Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 (Tek) 9/26/83; site shark.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxl!houxm!houxz!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!tektronix!orca!shark!hutch
From: hutch@shark.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.women
Subject: Re: Penthouse/Pageant
Message-ID: <999@shark.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 20-Aug-84 14:39:40 EDT
Article-I.D.: shark.999
Posted: Mon Aug 20 14:39:40 1984
Date-Received: Wed, 22-Aug-84 01:15:34 EDT
Sender: hutch@shark.UUCP
Organization: Tektronix, Wilsonville OR
Lines: 66

< beauty is only skin deep; ugly goes clean to the bone >

| But what about the men's pageants, Mr. America and the like?  As far as
| I know, they don't even pretend to consider the guy's intelligence.
| They hold up as the ideal man a guy with 200 pounds of rock-hard muscle
| and zero ounces of fat -- despite the fact that the guy may be (in the
| traditional phrase) a macho asshole, or even (in the traditional
| semi-joke) a homosexual.  This is not nice to those of us who do not
| boast a 60-inch chest measure and who do have a tough time keeping a
| few superfluous pounds from accumulating around the waistline, but who
| at least try to be considerate and sensitive (not that I always
| succeed) despite being heterosexual....
|   --- Jeff Sargent


Uh, not to dispute your assertion that our society has screwy values
where "beauty" is concerned, but I can't take the above without any
comment.

Jeff, the "mens pageants" are completely different things from the
physique contests you refer to.  There are men's "beauty pageants"
that are just as repulsive, sexist, insipid, and degrading as any
that women participate in.  They aren't particularly popular because
they tend to cause too much discomfort in the audience - most folks
can't or won't handle the (assumed) role-reversal that occurs in 
such an event.

On the other hand, physique contests are more of an athletic event.
The bodybuilder (male OR female, and there are a LOT of female
bodybuilders) has spent years building and honing a physique that
is rather beyond what most people consider "beautiful".

The number of "macho assholes" and "semi-joke homosexuals" is not
particularly greater in this area than anywhere else.  Note that
there are a lot of bodybuilding "groupies" and that a number of
these are homosexuals.  However, most bodybuilders are avowed and
active homophobes.  (I speak from experience, having been present
when a Michael Jackson song triggers a bout of "fag jokes".)

On the other hand, most bodybuilders are very nice people.  They do
tend to have one unusual trait.  The competitive bodybuilder has a
deliberately hypertrophied ego.  In order to keep the edge of
competitive drive sharp, they build an image of themselves that is
rather inflated from the reality, and a lot of bodybuilders haven't
got the self-understanding to separate themselves from this image.

Anyway, the bodybuilder, male or female, has a personal idea of
what PHYSICAL beauty is, and pursues it actively and effectively.
So, if they are able to make themselves conform to their ideals, then
I can't fault them, even if my own efforts are less of a success.
(Yes, those "few extra pounds" still hang in there despite diet and
incredibly intense exercise.  Gotta get more aerobics, that's it,
right, uh huh. . . Oh, excuse me, I was rambling.)

In fact, I would recommend bodybuilding to anyone who wants to
improve their self-image.  It requires a lot of self-discipline,
which is also a good thing to develop, and the increased strength
and confidence are quite useful to women who want to reduce the
number of harrassment attacks they get.  It also works a LOT
better than "diets" for getting rid of fat.

  Hutch
(\_____/)
 \*\ /*/
 |\_=_/|
  \`_'/