by 
A lot was made of a picture this past week on the Drudge Report that showed Hillary Clinton looking old and run down. The fact is that these people are under tremendous stress and pressure, putting in more hours than normal, and they’re not young by any stretch of the imagination.
And yet, we definitely hold our women to higher standards. Take a look at the picture at right. The picture shows on the bottom nine women wearing their finest clothes and makeup and then links them to their regular selves at the top of the page. I’ll give you a minute to get to the other page and continue when you get back.
You see, I believe that ever since the Garden of Eden (if not before) women liked to look well. For a while in history I’m sure that they believed that they had to look their best in order to attract a good husband. Don’t believe me? Look at some of the language in the Song of Solomon, or what some of the cultures do today to attract a mate. Everything from painted faces to breaking feet, to other things we can’t mention here!
And yet we seemed to have taken this obsession to a new level with what we can do with the human body. Everything from makeup to plastic surgery, from form fitting outfits to anorexic diets. We have taken the whole idea of looking good to an absurd level.
What’s happened is that we’ve glorified an ideal that’s difficult to achieve, and our wives, daughters, and sisters are paying for it. So, take some time this week and let the women in your life know how attractive you think that they are– naturally. Tell them what you find attractive, and that you appreciate them. Let them know they’re worth more to you than a pretty face.
–UPDATE–
I was informed that this isn’t the result of Photoshop and makeup (though I’m sure that the ladies are wearing makeup and some Photoshop has been done (because it always is). However, these are before and after pictures from Fox’s The Swan which further makes my point.� These women believed that they needed procedures to make themselves up to be something that they’d seen that was artificial.
While I applaud the positive message you’re trying to share, the photo you used as your example is so far from your point that I feel I should say something.
Those women are NOT dressed up in their best gowns and makeup. They were contestants on the Fox reality show, The Swan, and each of them received EXTENSIVE plastic surgery to look that “good”. It was pretty much Extreme Makeover except these ladies then had to compete with each other in a hideous beauty contest that taught them, and the world, that no matter what lengths you may go to, you’re still going to be judged on how you look.
I
Thanks, erm… I saw the picture without any context. I’ll put in a message with your clarification.