mixedmedia

I blame Bratz dolls. Shit truly does roll up hill.

And I say that with tongue only partly in cheek. Today there is an image of girlish sexuality that is marketed to both children and adult women. And in my mind, it can be traced back to late '90s pop culture - The Spice Girls (Baby Spice?), Brittany Spears, Bratz dolls, some Japanese comics, etc. But it wouldn't be so popular if women weren't wearing it and buying it for their daughters.

As for women buying into this culture, I don't see the harm as it is no more than an eyesore and an annoyance for those of us who dislike it. But the early sexualization of young girls is more questionable. And not only is it the marketing of sexuality to young girls, but the marketing of a female ideal to them that is immature, materialistic, childish and vain. I might even take more exception with the latter than the former, although I think both are inappropriate and disappointing.

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Most people go through life dreading they'll have a traumatic experience. Freaks were born with their trauma. They've already passed their test in life. They're aristocrats. - Diane Arbus
PESSIMISM, n. A philosophy forced upon the convictions of the observer by the disheartening prevalence of the optimist with his scarecrow hope and his unsightly smile. - Ambrose Bierce