The Wisdom of Gisele Bundchen
June 23rd, 2008Brazilian Supermodel Gisele Bundchen, the world’s highest paid model and sixteenth richest woman (according to Forbes), blames parents and not the fashion industry for eating disorders.
Huh? Is she saying that it’s the parents’ job to raise their children? That’s strange. I was under the impression that parents are only supposed to breed them, then leave them, and let the government raise the children.
I don’t get it. I’m really busy. I work 40 hours a week, and when I get home, I don’t want to spend time with my kid. Let the government and the schools work on his self-esteem. I just want to watch t.v.
Geez. The next thing you know, parents might even have to monitor the movies their kids watch and the music they listen to. I’m too busy for that. Let the government do that. She’s telling us we need to be responsible for our gonads? Come on. Let the taxpayers pick up the bill.
How could someone actually have the audacity to say a parent should parent their children? Doesn’t she know how busy we are? I bet she doesn’t even have children. If she did, she’d think otherwise.
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I had this satire already written, but this morning I found out George Carlin passed on. It’s a shame. He will be missed. My favorite comedians of all-time in order are Dave Chappelle, Eddie Murphy, Bill Hicks, George Carlin, Sam Kineson, Bill Cosby, and Rodney Dangerfield. It sucks only three of them are still alive. My condolences go out to his loved ones. Carlin has made me laugh many, many times.
Hmmm, I’m not exactly impressed with her face in that picture. I wouldn’t pick her out in a crowd as a supermodel.
I think most models nowadays are picked for qualities other than the obvious ones (big breasts, classical hourglass figure). I don’t get it, but in a way I’m relieved that beauty can take many shapes.
The family is where it all starts, but there is also the media the peddles a distorted version of reality.
i resent her comments. i do parent my children and over the years we have had numerous discussions on body image, proper diet, etc. but unless we were amish there is simply no way to avoid the onslaught of media representations of “perfect bodies” and the continual message from every direction that perfection is a size 2 or below. my husband and i give positive messages to our kids but some how our girls, both who are taller than me (5′4″) and weighing 120 or less, come away thinking they are needing to loose weight.
I’ve been working on a rant along these same lines.
Lime makes a good point. Have you checked out girl’s toys lately? They’re all about beauty, makeup, and dating.
Then check out the hooker style clothing that they’re peddling for grade-school aged girls.
It’s hard for parents to battle that shit!
Parents have something to do with it, in that they can learn the warning signs. However, some parents are actually the CAUSE of their children’s eating disorders (overbearing, overcontrolling, perfectionist expecations, forcing kids to ‘clean their plates,’ etc).
Really… what’s mom and dad supposed to do, just tell their kid not to ignore representations of men and women in the media telling them what they should aspire to be? Easier said then done.
We handed our three over to the government schools as soon as they were viable… wanted to get the most bang for our tax buck. School lunch and breakfast programs gave us a good return… we also taught them to loot the art and supply cabinets… funny thing, though. Now they think they’re entitled to health care, cheap energy and a job!
You have Dave Chapelle and not Richard Pryor??? I am dumfounded.
Kathleen - Her face is ok. She’s a supermodel because of lack of flaws and she’s 5′11″.
Scott - That’s why I turn the t.v. off.
Lime - As I told Scott, turn the t.v. off and they’ll feel much better about themselves (and they’ll get more done).
Tshsmom - Well, when I was a kid…
Just kidding.
Toys in general are lame, including toys made for boys. Cheap plastic crap.
My father actually took us to the football field and baseball diamond. We grew up with very few toys, besides Legos. I think the best thing a parent could possibly do is spend time with their kids. Don’t need money to do that. Toys are also expensive.
Laura - I think that’s what her points was, that parents were the cause of eating disorders and the fashion industry is a neat scapegoat. Just like in the 80s, Heavy Metal and Dungeons and Dragons got blamed for everything.
Bo - Uh oh. I’m fearing my son is going to end up the same way. Some of the politically correct crap that comes out of his mouth scares me.
I’m hoping he learns from my example of self-reliance.
Exmi - I’m too young for Richard Pryor. I’m sure he was funny, but he simply was before my time.
This was very funny and extremely true. However…there comes a point in time where we can no longer blame the sins of our parents or MTV for our bad behavior.
At some point we are adults and have to say the choices I make good or bad are mine to own. And take responsibity for our own actions.
Great Post!
it’s not just the tv, zombie….it’s tv, it’s magazines and books, it’s music, it’s toys peddled to very young girls. it’s taking them clothes shopping and being unable to find 1) appropriately modest clothes that don’t look completely dorky or 2) clothes that are cut to fit normally shaped young girls who haven’t got an ounce of extra fat on them anywhere.
i have been very deliberate about what sorts of toys, activities and entertainment was allowed into the house but i can’t control everything they are exposed to when they leave the house.
sorry, giselle bundchen is full of shit. she is part of one of the main industries that is largely responsible for perpetrating a narrow view of what is beautiful.
Your justification as to why Gisele is a supermodel is that she “lacks flaws” and is 5′ 11″? You have got to be kidding me - and you claim to know something about models? Yikes….
For the record, one of your favorite comedians is Sam Kinison, not Kineson. But hey, we know what you mean.
I think Eddie Murphy is a great comedic actor, but a terrible standup comedian. Emphasis on terrible.
OMG - Bill Cosby? You are making a joke, right?
Hmm, let’s see here now - George Carlin, born 1937, Richard Pryor, born 1940. Both had many releases in the 70’s. Not sure why you play your youth card to support your ignorance of the younger guy. Well, it’s certainly safe to say that Lenny Bruce was before your time.
Surprisingly, I too consider Hicks and Kinison great. The others on your list are fairly boring/mainstream.
For the record I HATE Robin Williams, Eddie Murphy, Steve Martin, Whoopi Goldberg, Gilbert Gottfried, Billy Crystal, that Gallagher idiot, and many other less popular comics so I won’t bore you further.
I’d give a very positive nod to Steven Wright (too surreal for you), Dennis Miller (too literary for you - I know you are predisposed to hating him because he doesn’t align with your political stance), Robert Schimmel, early Jake Johannsen, Denis Leary, and Paula Poundstone.
Jen - Yes. Once one comes an adult, it’s time to take responsibilities for oneself. But I think you and I agree on that point.
Lime - True that it’s not just tv. My son thinks he needs to put on muscle. Keep in mind, he’s only 14. I don’t let him watch tv.
It’s his peers, and a lot of other crap. But singling out the fashion industry for eating disorders is ludicrous. Parents are #1. TV is probably #2. Fashion industry may be #6 or #7.
This is what I heard from a model herself - models are coat hangers. That’s why they’re skinny. They’re supposed to be, because they’re walking coat hangers.
Now what does a man find attractive? Let me tell you straight up not fashion models. Take a Playboy centerfold and add 10-15 pounds and you have someone I like.
Badman - Eddie Murphy’s standup is hilarious. I don’t know what you’re talking about. His relationship diatribes had me rolling.
Carlin, I’ve seen on HBO many, many times. Pryor was before my time. Carlin may not have been as big as Pryor in the 70s, but he was consistently good until his death.
And Cosby is funny. He’s the only clean standup guy who can make me laugh.
Steven Wright is cool. I don’t know why you think I wouldn’t like him. Miller’s a pretentious dweeb. He’s the guy I would have stuffed in a locker. He tries too hard to be funny but he’s the only one who laughs at his own jokes. Leary is overrated. Poundstone is very funny, but not one of my faves.
As for Gisele, those are the main 2 reasons. Do you expect me to write a book? I was at work with people creeping over my shoulders when I wrote that. I don’t want anyone at my work knowing I have a blog. That’s why I have to keep my answers brief. And yes, I do know something about models.
She’d prolly do in a pinch but I surely prefer them with some meat on em
I think that even though you were puttin on in your take there are many many folks that believe that. I heard a woman last night on TV say the g’ment should take a larger role in the day today lives of Americans. 1 guess who she was pimping for pres.
AUGH!! she said that.
Nways i don’t like her, don’t care if she’s the 16th most whatever, some people are just too over-rated.
The current president should be my fav. comedian. The only irony is that, the stupid things he does is nothing to laugh about (rather it makes one cry).
Also wanted to ask if you have watched 12 Angry Men?
i will agree it is not solely the fault of the fashion industry but i am glad you recognize that even insulating kids from tv doesn’t eliminate the negative messages. the only way to get rid of them all is to make the kid live in a closet… even then they run the risk of becoming a coat hanger.
Uh oh. I’m fearing my son is going to end up the same way. Some of the politically correct crap that comes out of his mouth scares me.
I’m hoping he learns from my example of self-reliance.
Not to fear or fret, my friend… you just do your part and leave the results to Providence. Here’s what I mean.
With three grown, responsible and delightful children (a self-supporting artist, a CPA and manager working with charities and a design student) I think I would break it down like this…
Yeah, you’ll hear stuff they pick up “out there” and it plays a part in their formation. Then, you’re instruction and your values modeled moment by moment, tempers what they are hearing and seeing in others. It seems to play a pretty big part in developing their character and how they process things… how they think. But, by far, it’s their temperment… their inate ability to discipline themselves and learn how to cope with adversity and interact with others… in other words, a lot of it has to do with their wiring.
In other words, I would put more weight on nature, than nurture, in general. Not one or the other.
Sorry for the “you’re” in that comment… my parents really let me down with my language skills
Can we get one thing straight, please? WOMEN choose who is a supermodel - and well, OK, some ‘men’. (Sure ‘men’, I guess, but.. eh… OK. Let’s not go there…) Let me ask some of you red blooded types (oh how politically incorrect!) don’t you prefer the Jane Mansfield and Marilyn Monroe type figures to the frowning, emaciated stick insects infesting the runways of the high fashion industry??
Well, my husband does. I find my eyes drift toward the nicely endowed, occasionally plump women TOO (and I am a red-blood American Girl - I like my men big, strong and SMART, but I can see the attraction, too). It is a natural thing… BUT, the key here, is they (these attractive women) also have to be young and ‘tender’. It is what our genes tell us to do. Our genes want to replicate! There is some of that in all of us. Women seek high status males to mate with, men seek Highly Fertile (young) females to breed with.
As to taking my social advice from a runway model? Get real…. However, in this case she makes a solid argument… WE are the ones that should be the influence on our children. This means: Taking them out of public schools, and making sure you are aware of their whereabouts and their ‘who’abouts.
I know several couples at my marina (where I live part of the year), that are raising their children on boats, closely supervised, although plenty of ‘free time’, this includes home schooling. Why? The putrid state of public schools (and a lot of private ones too). Regardless of the school, there is that ‘peer pressure’ junk, which is formidable and can waste many years of a child’s life.
These kids on boats (to a one) are a dream… They interact without interrupting, they add intelligently to conversations, they don’t mind being around adults, in fact they prefer it (gasp!) and they are not whining after the ‘latest’ piece of crap out of McDonalds Happy Meals. (Although they still appreciate ‘freedom’ fries, as do we all, it is not a staple food for them.)
I know that my parents turned me over to the school system, being that they had been cowed into thinking that they would be incapable of ‘teaching’ their (math savant) child. Yeah. Right. My dad was a math savant, TOO. But with only a 3rd grade education, he bought the argument that he could not effectively be a ‘teacher’ for me. But in fact, he’s the one I learned math from, not the morons in the public school system (amazingly, I am a mathematician. Thanks, DAD!)
I find more and more, at the age of 58, that my parents were the real influence in my life, however. Schools turned me into a whiney moron for a few years, but I rubber banded back to the core values my parents held. Good to family, friends and neighbors, learn everything you can from everywhere you go… Plan for the worst, hope for the best… The list goes on and on and on…
People, be of good cheer.. good people generally raise good children.
The fashion industry is run by chicks and gay dudes, so they’re the ones who choose supermodels. There are some hot supermodels, but most are too skinny with faces not worth looking at.
People with eating disorders are the ones to blame. The media affects everybody, but it’s the weak, insecure people who would actually starve themselves or make themselves puke. True, the media has a lot of negative influences, but the decisions you make are yours and not theirs.
I would have Jerry Seinfeld and Chris Rock on the top comedians list. I agree that Dennis Miller is the furthest thing from funny. He’s annoying as hell and just talks nonsense. I would put the Gallaghers on his level of lameness.
Skeletor - Exactly!
People with problems are always blaming someone else for their problems. The whole reason “self-esteem” is called “self-esteem” is it comes from the self.
How could I forget Seinfeld and Chris Rock? I must be going senile.
Wallflower - Like I said before, take a Playboy centerfold and add 10-15 pounds. I’d prefer a woman who wouldn’t starve to death if we’re on the run from zombies for a day or two.
As for the school system, I was to be very pro-public schools. I think they’ve changed. They’re horrible now. Politically correct nonsense.
Bo - I think it’s 50/50 nature vs nurture. You can do everything you can, but the kid comes out half-made.
Lime - The thing is, most kids turn out fine. Teenagers are by nature insecure little beasts who think are emotional basketcases. Once their hormones come under control, they’re much easier to deal with.
Tchoden - Not yet. I rarely watch anything any more.
Sage - Geez. We have enough gov’t. We need less, not more.
What a selfish thing of her to say! I was just getting ready to turn my son over to the “adult” life. He’s about to be 10 and damnit that’s old enough to get a job, get a vehicle and a place! And if he doesn’t want to eat then he’s old enough to decide that, too. Seriously. I’ve got beer to drink. Pfft.
Talk about parenting heard one of the many Tennis moms in my area pissed off telling another mom she didn’t have time to help her daughter with homework. She had country club and church activities to see to and that it was the teachers job to make sure her kid learned to read. Didn’t know whether to laugh or puke.
Jenn - I’m buying. head on over.
Beach - Talk about parenting heard one of the many Tennis moms in my area pissed off telling another mom she didn’t have time to help her daughter with homework. She had country club and church activities to see to and that it was the teachers job to make sure her kid learned to read. Didn’t know whether to laugh or puke.
This is when I wish I had a sterilization ray. Out of the gene pool.
Cosby’s a self-proclaimed racist prick - or didn’t you know that? He doesn’t allow white dudes on his set. Can’t really blame him though; it’s always good to horde your loot for your own people.
Seinfeld’s early pre-pre-pre-his-crappy-television-shite-show was the best “clean” comedian, although that’s like saying you like sugar-free chocolate, so wtf.
Parents are responsible. The problem is the lack of parenting. Due to the long long hrs people are working just to make ends meet these days, it’s tough. But a lot of parents are at fault. I worked in retails for yrs. The women come in with their daughters and they’r standing in front of the mirrors saying ew I look like a cow, ew I look like a whale in this. Honestly I thought they look fine, but they obviously had issues. I think they inadvertently pass it on to their daughters without realizing it.