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Beauty in the ideology of the beholder

9 comments on Beauty in the ideology of the beholder

Beauty in the ideology of the beholder
: I was going to ask whether it was wrong of me to note that this French libertarian is a babe. Well, that is the wrong way to ask it. But it turns out, it’s not wrong to ask at all. Glenn Reynolds linked to her and then another smart and, it so happens, beautiful political activist and he next links to Kimberly Swygert quoting P.J. O’Rourke saying that the beautiful women always link up with the cutting-edge social trends.

These two photos reminded me of a paragraph from an old essay by satirist and uber-Libertarian P.J. O’Rourke. The paragraph comes from Parliament of Whores; O’Rourke had attended a “Housing Now!” rally in which the primary cry of the attendees seemed to be, “Give us money now!” O’Rourke’s friend posited an interesting theory about the relationship of feminine beauty and the cultural zeitgeist:

“Best of all, there were hardly any beautiful women at the [Housing Now!] rally. I saw a journalist friend of mine in the Mall, and he and I purused this line of inquiry as assiduously as our happy private lives allow. Practically every female at the march was a bowser. “We’re not being sexist here,” my friend insisted. “It’s not that looks matter per se. It’s just that beautiful women are always on the cutting edge of social trends. Remember how many beautiful women were in the anti-war movement twenty years ago? In the yoga classes fifteen years ago? At the discos ten years ago? On Wall Street five years ago? Where the beautiful women are is where the country is headed,” said my friend. “And this,” he looked around him, “isn’t it.”

So I wasn’t being sexist. I was being sociological.

9 responses to “Beauty in the ideology of the beholder”

  1. hugh macleod Avatar
    hugh macleod

    heh. reminds me of what I used to say to my friends when they complained about how expensive New York was.

  2. andy obuoforibo ("a.t.o.) Avatar
    andy obuoforibo (“a.t.o.)

    As sexist as this might sound, here’s my hypothesis. Men tend to have a lot more financial, institutional and political influence than women. financial influence tends to fuel culture, as the other two fuel politics. Men are constantly trying to impress attractive women, and are more likely to lisen to/be influenced by them. These men bring with them their influences, and fuel movements. Simplistic I know, but not far from the truth. Plus, I can type with my tongue in cheek.

  3. Jeremy Avatar
    Jeremy

    The first thing I noticed was that she er, shaves (or some such). Most French women I’ve known were as hairy as Yasser Arafat. Though they kinda looked like him, too.

  4. lk Avatar
    lk

    Sexism and worship of beauty all the way. Rationalize if you must.

  5. Angus Jung Avatar
    Angus Jung

    “Sexism and worship of beauty all the way. Rationalize if you must.”
    Frown when you say that, pilgrim!

  6. Yehudit Avatar
    Yehudit

    i think this refutes your theory.

  7. John Avatar
    John

    Do beautiful women join a cause because it is trendy, or is the cause trendy because beautiful women join it?

  8. hugh macleod Avatar
    hugh macleod

    I join the trendy causes for the chicks.

  9. KMK Avatar
    KMK

    Men are suckers for a pretty girl. In the 60’s my mother was spotted on the street by a so called modeling agent. Turns out he worked for cigarette companies. She wore a bikini top and red pants with Winston written down the sides and handed out mini packs of cigarettes. In the 80’s I applied for an accountants asst. job. They put me in the front office and called me a greeter. They said I had a nice smile but they weren’t looking at my face. I got a lot of side work from beer promoters working in bars promoting stupid games patrons were asked to play just to win a T-shirt or other silly prize. The last time I did work like that was during the MTV Joan Jett concert on Jones Beach (or was it coney Island) I made good money and worked to pay my way through school. In any event those experiences led me to believe men will do anything for a pretty face and a figure even if it means joining a political cause or signing a petition they know nothing about.