So Who Get's To Say What's Best?

Hey all,

I read an article the other day about Kris Jenner (for those of you like me who didn't know who she is, she is Kim Kardasian's mom.)  Apparently, she wore what's called a "bandage dress" to her son's 25th birthday party.

And the critics came out and flamed her so hard and fast it's a wonder she didn't catch on fire!

Now people who say what other people SHOULD do annoy me.  So, out of curiosity I went and looked at this "age inappropriate" dress everyone was sniping about.  And what I saw made me wonder what the hell these people were thinking.

Here is the picture so you can take a look yourself, but personally, I think she looks great.  In fact I hope I look half that good at fifty-six.

But the bottom line for me is if SHE likes the way she looks, why not? 

Now don't get me wrong, I've seen some things on people that make my eyes bleed, and I often wonder what they were thinking when they got dressed that morning.  

But it's their body and they have every right to wear what they want.  Even if it looks ridiculous.  My OMG ridiculous might be their idea of the most beautiful outfit on the planet.

One of my guilty pleasures is watching the red carpet at the Oscars, Grammys, Emmys, Tonys or any other major award show.  Some of the outfits are gorgeous and elegant, and some *cough, cough--Lady Gaga--cough, cough* are nothing but a promotional hype.

But then you get the critics going.  And I often cock my head and say "What??????" to myself.  They'll rip into some celebrity for what they're wearing, and I just don't see the horror they do.  And again, why the hell do THEY get to decide what is good and what isn't?  

People get a huge charge out of dissing someone else.  I think it makes them feel better about themselves.  We may be talking about clothing here, but I've seen the same behavior in my business as well.  Some publishers and editors are not shy about giving their opinion on a story, and I've seen some pretty nasty remarks come down the pipe.  Luckily, I've never been on the receiving end of that type of stupidity, but in every case I've been told about, the publisher or editor in question went to great lengths to try to convince the author they were being nasty to that their opinion was the ONLY one that mattered.  That THEY were the authority and should be listened to.

Can you see me rolling my eyes?  Whether it's a publisher, editor or reviewer...a theater critic, censor or the fashion police, they all have one thing in common...

They are giving their OPINION!!!!

Which is a real problem when their opinion suddenly becomes the standard for which everything else is measured.  Want a last ridiculous example?

When I went to the Picasso Museum in Barcelona I saw some great paintings.  One in particular made me do a double take.  It's called Two Figures and a Cat.  Basically, Picasso drew a picture of a guy going down on girl while a cat watches.  I know...weird, but I thought it was awesome.

It's not a painting, it's a drawing, but it's a Picasso.  A painting worth hundreds of thousands, if not millions.  A picture that is done by one of the great masters of the past.  I loved it, so I bought a magnet of the drawing to remember the museum by.

I wrote an email to my yahoo group about it, and in it, I put a copy of the picture.  Just in case it didn't come through, I put it in my photobucket folder so I could send people a link as well.

And guess what Photobucket did?  Yep.  That's right...they pulled it.  A masterpiece by Picasso himself was called porn and removed.  When I asked about it, mentioned it was a Picasso masterpiece, I was told that when the people who monitor accounts see something that is in their OPINION porn, they'll pull it.  Even if it's by one of the masters himself.  Really?  Seriously?

So there you have it.  Some idiot pulled up the picture, saw the subject matter and decided it was porn without doing their homework.  Does that mean that the Venus d' Milo by Alexandros of Antioch would be pulled?  She shows her breasts.  GASP!!!  What about The Creation of Man by Michelangelo on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel?  The man with his fingers outstretched has his willy wagging.  Would that be pulled because of nudity?  And what about the hundreds of Renaissance paintings of cherubs.  They are all definitely naked.  Does that mean it's child porn?

See how ridiculous it all can be?  Opinions can be silly, weird or hysterically funny.  They can also be downright dangerous.  IF, the people who hear them don't take a moment and think about it before just accepting the opinion as gospel.  We all have the freedom to give our opinion, but it's also our responsibility to use our head and consider an opinion carefully before believing it.

In the words of John Moore... "Your opinion is your opinion, your perception is your perception--do not confuse them with "facts" or "truth". Wars have been fought and millions have been killed because of the inability of men to understand the idea that EVERYBODY has a different viewpoint."

I'll be back on Friday with another trip to the Lighter Side.  This time, we'll do some more signage fun!!!

Hugs to all,

CJ England  

Follow Your Dreams

http://cjengland.com

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CJsaysFollowYourDreams/