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Post 0

Wednesday, December 10, 2008 - 6:16amSanction this postReply
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So, I read that Fran Drescher has "thrown her hat in the ring" to replace Hillary.  Would make a pretty effective extortion threat for the New York governor to use against the current members of the Senate, don't you think?

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Post 1

Wednesday, December 10, 2008 - 7:27amSanction this postReply
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I think the Senate is pretty used to "whine" by now.


Post 2

Wednesday, December 10, 2008 - 7:31amSanction this postReply
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Well I hear Pam Geller is considering throwing her hat into the New York seat too.. ;-)

Post 3

Wednesday, December 10, 2008 - 3:16pmSanction this postReply
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I'd love to hear Pam's stump speech.    She reminds me of a Palin on intellectual steroids.  She's great.

Post 4

Wednesday, December 10, 2008 - 5:25pmSanction this postReply
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So, I read that Fran Drescher has "thrown her hat in the ring" to replace Hillary.  Would make a pretty effective extortion threat for the New York governor to use against the current members of the Senate, don't you think?
I had to google her to find out who she is.  Then, I watched one and a fraction YouTube clips.  I agree that the woman is obnoxious. 

When we moved into this house in August, broadband was cheaper and more reliable than DSL, so we got television for the first time in three years.  The big screen was a gift and is so darned cable-ready that is has no broadcast receiver.  We surfed the channels once for about 10 minutes when it was first installed.  The History Channel is still Alll-Hitler-All-the-Time.  

To be fair to television, we were in a motel one night in 2001 or 2002 and saw The West Wing.  Now we own the first five seasons on DVD, but that this "Fran Drescher" creature is allowed near a camera is just symptomatic of a bankrupt culture. 

Oh, hey, one thing though... one of the YouTube clips was an interview on a television show hosted by Ellen Degeneres, who wears sensible shoes! Imagine that, just as Adrian Cronauer said...  Would Ellen Degeneres consider the Senate?  They need "sensible" there, and they could use someone who is man enough to stand up to Barney Frank.  Oh, but, according to a Time interview, Degeneres is a Democrat.  Darn... 


Post 5

Thursday, December 11, 2008 - 1:48pmSanction this postReply
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Michael,

If Ellen wears "sensible" shoes, it might be because she's a lesbian...

Were they Birkenstocks?

Traci


Post 6

Friday, December 12, 2008 - 11:45amSanction this postReply
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Speaking of sensible shoes, several years ago I was watching a Miss America Pageant, in which the women paraded on stage in swim suits and high heels. The incongruity of it struck me in a way that I didn't expect. It looked odd which, when you think about it, makes perfect sense. Where would you expect to find swim suits? On the beach, of course. Would you expect the women wearing them to be walking around in high heels? Yet here on stage, it was considered appropriate attire. Why?

High heels make even less sense than neck choking ties on men. They are hard on the feet, and shorten the Achilles tendons. When my mother and her friends were in their 60's, they found it difficult to exercise in tennis shoes, because the low heels placed too much stress on their Achilles tendons which had shortened from years of wearing high heels. Why do we continue to maintain these clothing conventions in the face of their obvious impracticality?

Yes, I know, high heels are supposed to beautify the woman by lengthening her legs and emphasizing her ass, but why is beauty to be purchased at the price of physical exaggeration and discomfort. During the 70's when the trend away from high heels had become fashionable, I got used to seeing women in sandals and low heels. When, on occasion, I would see a woman wearing high heels, she didn't look beautiful to me; she looked strange if not ridiculous. It didn't enhance her appearance; it detracted from it.

I'd expect a similar reaction to makeup on women -- lipstick, eye liner, mascara, etc -- if it weren't already fashionable. If I saw a woman wearing it, I wouldn't find her attractive; I'd find her strange looking, if not bizarre. The artificial color wouldn't enhance her appearance; it would detract from it.

I suspect that culture and fashion have more of an influence on our tastes and esthetic values than we realize.

- Bill

Post 7

Friday, December 12, 2008 - 4:16pmSanction this postReply
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Yet here on stage, it was considered appropriate attire. Why?

 Don't you know that high heels add fabulous length to the legs??  Run-way models sporting swimwear often wear those heels too, you know.  They make your legs look fantastic. 


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Post 8

Saturday, December 13, 2008 - 2:35pmSanction this postReply
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You see, Teresa, you're a victim of capitalist cultural conditioning, just like all of your lackey sisters! Don't you think it's about time you started wearing Birkenstocks?!

Seriously, seriously, don't you see a problem in this "makes your legs look fantastic" viewpoint? That's only if you've been conditioned to view it that way. As I say, I didn't think it improved the woman's appearance. It just made her attire look strange and inappropriate. In fact, she kind of looked as if she were walking around on stilts. The purpose of shoes, after all, should be to facilitate the act of walking or running. Just as in architecture, form should follow function.

The feet of Chinese woman were also abused in a much more destructive fashion, as the following description makes painfully clear: "When a girl turned anywhere from three to six years old in China, her mom would rip up strips of cloth and start binding her feet. The wrappings would be taken off daily, then rewound tighter and tighter. Sometimes the toes would be broken right away and folded under the foot; otherwise they would just be gradually bound in that direction so they'd end up there. The many bones in the top of the foot would be broken and the ball of the foot buckled in, then wrapped to the heel. It was common for the bound toes to develop gangrene due to lack of circulation and fall off. This was thought of as a blessing because it would enable the feet to be made smaller still. The girl would never be able to stand again; or play. If by some chance they even managed to stand up for one second, it was unstable and painful. That was considered insignificant in the quest for tiny feet."

This was done, because it was considered attractive to have small feet. To the Chinese men, it made the woman's feet "look fantastic." But looks, which are often subjective and a result of what's considered fashionable, should not trump health and functionality. Granted, high heels are not as bad as bound and broken feet, but they're still not the best footware.

I have a similar complaint about men's dress shoes. They too are not very comfortable, and are not unnecessary, because the technology has advanced to the point that stiff, leather shoes are no longer necessary. Much more comfortable shoes are now available, thanks to the running boom, which forced companies to come up with better and more comfortable footware. You often see women in business suits, who would otherwise be wearing high heels, take them off and put on much more comfortable athletic shoes for the purpose of walking, which is why you're wearing shoes, to begin with.

- Bill



Post 9

Wednesday, December 17, 2008 - 1:54pmSanction this postReply
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michael,

"Would Ellen Degeneres consider the Senate? They need "sensible" there, and they could use someone who is man enough to stand up to Barney Frank."

My wife informed me last night that Barney Franks is gay. Is that so?? Know nothing else about him except that he's a sleaze ball.

jt

Post 10

Wednesday, December 17, 2008 - 2:18pmSanction this postReply
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yep - sure is...........

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barney_Frank

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Post 11

Wednesday, June 24, 2009 - 5:31pmSanction this postReply
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Hey, Traci, we could use more humor, please.

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