Attn Ladies: If you are not Beauty, you're definitely The Beast!

Watched a "fascinating" feature on ABC news this evening. Apparently, the modelling world has realised that beauty is only skin deep, and hence "Ugly Models" are currently in high demand! Next, we viewers got a sample of these ugly ducklings in discussion:-
Men: 1 obese male with embarrassingly over developed mammary glands, an extremely skinny Prince Charles look-alike with 2 of his front teeth missing, 1 dwarf with a head just about as big as the rest of his body etc. etc.
Women: Initially I thought there must be some mistake, because all the women were rather young and very ordinary-looking....absolutely nothing strikingly ugly about them (a couple of them, in fact, looked quite appealing). Soon, though, I realised that there wasn't any error....these were in fact pictures of ugliness where the female sex is concerned! There was only 1 woman who was extremely old & wrinkled (make no mistake, compared to the men, even she looked drop-dead gorgeous!).
And we wonder why young girls are so self-destructively obsessed with their physical appearances! I'm a mature adult, and hence found this portrayal of ugliness in the 2 sexes unfair & annoying....imagine the plight of an impressionable, insecure 15-year old girl who is bombarded with such images of ugly!!!! Basically, according to these people, any woman who doesn't pose sexily for the camera & pout her lips is Ugly! A classic example of an Ugly couple from Hollywood would be: Danny De Vito & Hillary Swank!!!!

"Committed" by Dan Mathews

I haven't had so much fun reading a book in a long time! It's a must-read for all genuine animal lovers! There were a couple of issues where I completely disagreed with the author, but on the whole, I thought it was excellent reading!
Please be warned, though. This isn't a book for the faint of heart (or brain, in my opinion). Special warning for conservatives & religious-minded folks: Perusal of this masterpiece may be injurious to your health!

My response to the following news item: New York Knicks guard Stephon Marbury defended Michael Vick, calling dogfighting a sport and comparing it to hunting.
Marbury spoke Monday about the federal dogfighting conspiracy charges against Vick while promoting his basketball shoe in Albany, N.Y. "I think it's tough," Marbury said, according to Albany TV station Capital News 9. "I think, you know, we don't say anything about people who shoot deer or shoot other animals. You know, from what I hear, dogfighting is a sport. It's just behind closed doors." On Monday, Vick said through a lawyer that he will plead guilty to a federal charge of conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce in aid of unlawful activities and conspiracy to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture. He also faces possible prosecution in Virginia. "I think it's tough that we build Michael Vick up and then we break him down," Marbury said. "I think he's one of the superb athletes, and he's a good human being. I just think that he fell into a bad situation.":

Yes, Marbury, in a weird way, I do agree with you! This is precisely what I told my partner the moment I heard about the Vick scandal! I'm totally against any form of cruelty towards animals, but what we have here can be termed blatant double standards! If invading an animal's territory & killing him is considered a fun-filled sporting activity, so should dog-fighting! Granted, the news reports said that Vick was extremely cruel towards the dogs that failed to perform, but do we have any proof that hunters do not torture animals before taking their lives? I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to learn that most of them do! I personally would be happiest if both hunting & dog-fighting were deemed inhumane & banned, but as things stand now, I do have to concur with Marbury!

"Note to so-called animal lover authors who preach to their readers that one should limit one's financial expenditure on animals when so many humans are suffering":

That's a personal decision and something writers should refrain from imparting advice on. My favourite animal books are Cleveland Amory's "Ranch Of Dreams" & Kat Albrecht's "Lost Pet Chronicles". These writers had the sense to understand that we are willing to devote our time, efforts & money on those we love; it doesn't matter if the object of our affection is a human or an animal. If I have a mentally disabled offspring, would I choose to spend my hard-earned money on my neighbour's brilliant, talented child simply because that would be the more practical thing to do? No! I'd devote my life to my own "useless" child because he's mine & I love him!