Tuesday, April 26, 2005
The Panty Line Project
Do you think it's useful to shock people to get their attention about something they might otherwise ignore? Or do you think that causing consternation drives compassion even further away? I lean toward thinking it's useful to startle and upset people sometimes because being forced to think about something, even if it's unpleasant or upsetting, seems better than not thinking about it at all. But I'm not entirely sure.
Lawrence, Kansas is a really wonderful town. Lots of energy as befits a college community and chock full of coffee shops, many (and good) bookstores, fantastic and unusual grocery stores, restaurants, super fantastic yarn stores (Stitch On and The Yarn Barn), etc., etc. I visited a friend there a couple of summers ago, en route from west coast to east. As a dyed-in-the-wool northeasterner, I assumed it would be hayseedy and ultraconservative. I have rarely been more wrong and I frequently urge people to go see for themselves.
All that said, an enterprise there may be taking things too far - or maybe isn't - it's certainly got everyone talking about a topic they usually avoid only slightly less than the plague. (Besides, going too far is often how we decide where "too far" is, right?) Three bookstores have front-window displays for April in which "pieces of thick blue ribbon hold up about a dozen pieces of women's undergarments. Most are pairs of panties, painted with messages like: 'This is Mine' and 'By Invitation Only'." The point being that "no" means "no", even if the declarer is wearing alluring clothing. Some people find this absurd and feel that a woman dressed to attract is pretty much out of luck. If she wanted to reel men in when she was getting dressed, then that's what she gets whether they come to her in the way she wants or not. This sounds exactly like "boys will be boys" and the decades-ago assertions of the nuns to my classmates and me that "the base you get to is in your control because boys aren't able to stop themselves past a given point". I'd like to think we've moved beyond that but maybe we haven't.
Anyway, I refer you to the Lawrence Journal-World newspaper report (here) and Nykola (here) and rosenblog.com for more details. It's interesting fodder for thought and discussions.
Are the displays too heavy-handed?? Are they provocative but effective? What do you think?
Lawrence, Kansas is a really wonderful town. Lots of energy as befits a college community and chock full of coffee shops, many (and good) bookstores, fantastic and unusual grocery stores, restaurants, super fantastic yarn stores (Stitch On and The Yarn Barn), etc., etc. I visited a friend there a couple of summers ago, en route from west coast to east. As a dyed-in-the-wool northeasterner, I assumed it would be hayseedy and ultraconservative. I have rarely been more wrong and I frequently urge people to go see for themselves.
All that said, an enterprise there may be taking things too far - or maybe isn't - it's certainly got everyone talking about a topic they usually avoid only slightly less than the plague. (Besides, going too far is often how we decide where "too far" is, right?) Three bookstores have front-window displays for April in which "pieces of thick blue ribbon hold up about a dozen pieces of women's undergarments. Most are pairs of panties, painted with messages like: 'This is Mine' and 'By Invitation Only'." The point being that "no" means "no", even if the declarer is wearing alluring clothing. Some people find this absurd and feel that a woman dressed to attract is pretty much out of luck. If she wanted to reel men in when she was getting dressed, then that's what she gets whether they come to her in the way she wants or not. This sounds exactly like "boys will be boys" and the decades-ago assertions of the nuns to my classmates and me that "the base you get to is in your control because boys aren't able to stop themselves past a given point". I'd like to think we've moved beyond that but maybe we haven't.
Anyway, I refer you to the Lawrence Journal-World newspaper report (here) and Nykola (here) and rosenblog.com for more details. It's interesting fodder for thought and discussions.
Are the displays too heavy-handed?? Are they provocative but effective? What do you think?
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