I think it's great.
Personally, the more mainstream exposure that minorities (whether ethnic or sexual-preference minorities, etc) get, the better it is for everyone. It helps redefine "normal" in the minds of the majority, to not be so WASP/hetero-normative, and that's a damn good thing in my book. I have no problem with her being "appropriate" or not.
Now, that said, I am not a huge make-up user, and I almost never pay attention to ads (I don't remember the last make-up ad I saw), so I might not have even seen this if you hadn't pointed it out.
But I am very sure that plenty of women (and men) in the US will see this ad, and for that reason, I don't care what they're trying to sell... marketing is a powerful social tool, as well as an economic one.
Along the same lines, there was a recent Dove ad that had normal-sized women (not models, at all) in swimsuits in their promos... I thought that was a fantastic idea. I hope to see more of that in the future.
-----Added 18/9/2008 at 01 : 25 : 43-----
I also just want to add how excited I am about all you ladies posting like mad, lately... ROCK ON!!!