Althouse: "Never will we accept in [fashion] that a judge decides if a young girl is skinny or not skinny."

April 16, 2008

"Never will we accept in [fashion] that a judge decides if a young girl is skinny or not skinny."

"That doesn’t exist in the world, and it will certainly not exist in France."

The French try to legislate against the promotion of excessive dieting. I should think it will only encourage excessive dieting to make it illicit and rebellious against the government. Government repression like this should induce bulimia.

11 comments:

rhhardin said...: The scandal has bypassed Middle America.; 4/16/08, 8:20 AM
vet66 said...: Judges have already addressed this issue. Skinny is like pornography, I know it whe I see it! ...Or something along those lines.

Most guys like a little junk on those bones ladies. If we want a rib dinner we can go to the local barbecue pit. Visible breast and pelvic bones are not attractive.

In my studied and humble opinion, of course.; 4/16/08, 8:36 AM
Anthony said...: I am Italian. My mother used to say that if a woman is too skinny that means only one thing -- she is not a good cook.

(And as a fellow Italian American at law school once told me, "Good looks last 10 years but a good cook lasts a lifetime")

Please forward your complaints to NOW.

As for the law, this has to be incredibly stupid. Glad to see the French have solved the problems with the suburbs and the pension plans, and the health care fund and can now focus in on the things that really matter.; 4/16/08, 9:16 AM
Roger J. said...: Thank Godess the French Government has tackled this issue. (please no lectures about the perils of anorexia/bulemia/eating disorders--I had the invisible sarcasm tag on); 4/16/08, 9:39 AM
Peter V. Bella said...: Who is going to enforce this? The skinny police? If there is a riot will the French surrender like they did when the moslems rioted?

And all these people here worry about what the Frenc think of Americans.; 4/16/08, 12:26 PM
Elliott A said...: I don't see the ideaitself as outlandish. Modelling is a big industry in France. The government has an interest in making sure that to participate in this job, one doesn't need to starve oneself to death. It is really no different than steroid use by athletes. The compelling evidence of injury to the user makes the behavior of taking steroids unhealthy for them and for the younger athletes who emulate them. The models situation is no different. Behaviors that are unhealthy to the extreme and also cause impressionable young people to copy them are undesirable. The methodology of enforcement is another issue, bu the central idea is not laughable as many of the posters seem to suggest.; 4/16/08, 12:48 PM
Unknown said...: c; 4/16/08, 3:23 PM
Unknown said...: I think this might start a revolution and inflict change on what people think is "beauty" and looks good. However, this sound outlandish as a law. It seems so out of left field and a hard issue to report. let alone fine. It seems more of a social issue than one of the government.; 4/16/08, 3:26 PM
blake said...: It's not laughable, it's an appalling and absurd example of government overreach likely, as Althouse points out, to backfire.

But it's also France, and they don't seem to mind that.; 4/16/08, 10:19 PM
Positroll said...: I should think it will only encourage excessive dieting to make it illicit and rebellious against the government.
Don't think so. Because excessive dieting as such will not be illegal. Only publicly promoting it will be.; 4/17/08, 2:54 AM
Unknown said...: oh please .. the forbidden fruit effect is not that strong. i think it's a great idea.; 4/22/08, 2:18 AM