"Before You Go, Can You Read My Mind..."

[psalm_onethirtyone]

Here is an article that ran in the Patriot-News to-day:

BeautifulPeople.com ousts members for being overweight
By Colin Stewart
Orange County (Calif.) Register

BeautifulPeople.com, a dating and social networking site that only accepts members who are attractive to the opposite sex, has ousted about 5000 members for allegedly gaining weight during the holidays.

"Letting fatties roam the site is a direct threat to our business model and the very concept for which BeautifulPeople.com was founded," site founder Robert Hintze said in a press release.

The site benefits from the fact that laws against discrimination typically cover personal characteristics such as gender, age, ethnicity, religion and sometimes sexual orientation but not weight or appearance.

Members from the United States topped the list of excluded former members, followed by the UK, Canada, Poland and Germany.

"The USA has been grossly over-indulging since Thanksgiving--it's no wonder that so many members have been expelled from the network," said Greg Hodge, managing director of BeautifulPeople.com.

"After the recent cull, over 550,000 members remain on the site, representing 190 countries and almost every ethnic and cultural background," the site said.

"The drastic measures took place after many members posted photos of themselves celebrating Christmas and the new year--revealing that they have let themselves go. Vigilant members, who take pride in the standards demanded by the site, called for action," BeautifulPeople.com said.

"Despite considerable backlash against us, the numbers don't lie--we are catering to a very clear demand. BeautifulPeople.com may be morally ugly to our critics, but our growing success is a very beautiful truth."

I really hope these people feel a deep sense of shame when they wake up every morning. I am just appalled. Really, really appalled. I mean, I recognise that the kind of people who would sign up for a site like this are the kind of people who should really expect to be kicked off said site over a reason like that, but. Just.

I can name at least five actresses off the top of my head who are plus size and completely fucking gorgeous. It's not that hard to do with men, either (when I read the article to Maria, she said "WILLIAM SHATNER". Take that). How can you claim that weight is a defining factor in physical beauty? It's so obviously not. There are lots of people who are plain-looking and thin, and anyway physical beauty is 1) such a subjective thing and 2) so secondary to a person's character that I just can't even wrap my head around a site with over 550,000 members who are so shallow I just aklfjaklsfjlaksjfalskjflksfla.

p.s. Queen Latifah called she's going to fucking squish you. (And since this is my livejournal post and I can do what I want on it, after that she's going to take me on a date.)

Edit: I don't think I sound angry enough in this post, so let me add: FATTIES? ARE YOU FOR FUCKING SERIOUS? DIAF, MOTHERFUCKERS. OH NOES SOMEBODY ATE FOOD DURING THE HOLIDAYS THOSE BASTARDS BURN THEM AT THE STAKE FOR THEIR CRIMES AGAINST THE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE OF THE WORLD. I'm sorry, my self-esteem is pretty goddamn low, but even I know that this is fucking shit.

Also, 'a very beautiful truth'? Maybe outside, but inside you are a cancerous lung, sir, and I feel very sorry for you.

Comments

[snowyofthenight.livejournal.com]

Though you have to giggle at the fact that he actually used the word "fattie" in a press release. I actually thought it was going to be a joke after I read that.

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

Actually, that just made me madder. >_>

[snowyofthenight.livejournal.com]

I mean, it's completely awful. But also the kind of thing a middle schooler would say. Like... really, team? Good, professional press release, there.

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

Fair enough. They're not doing anything for their image.

[snowyofthenight.livejournal.com]

yeah. And I'm sorry if I sounded like I didn't think it was totally terrible because it totally is! I just am inordinately amused/easily distracted because I'm awful. >_>

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

no, no, I know, it's fine! I'm just really sensitive on this subject.

[raanve]

Queen Latifah. For real. Oh, wow. *fans self*

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

Omg Queen Latifah is so. hot. Everytime I see a film with her in it I sit there squeeing to myself. XD

[snowyofthenight.livejournal.com]

Dude. Yeah.

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

Thumbs up for us with the good taste.

[little-lady-d.livejournal.com]

[raanve]

This is actually the VERY THING I was thinking of! XD

[eremon-lass.livejournal.com]

Dear BeautifulPeople.com:

If y'all are so goshdarn beautiful and perfect, why the heck are you A) using an online dating site in the first place and B) threatened by the prospect of people who don't look like Barbies and/or pornstars also being on said site?

Now, I'm going to go eat a bowl of chocolate goodies while I package the firebomb I'll be mailing to your offices.

No love,
Me

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

IKR? I had to go eat chocolate pie after that just to cleanse myself from reading it.

[perculious.livejournal.com]

I love the idea that fatties just roam around causing trouble. Perhaps looking for places to heinously debeautify?

I don't know, it's so ridiculous I almost can't get worked up over it (although I fully support your right to). I think if this dude saw someone like Crystal Renn his brain might actually short-circuit. I feel really bad for the people who have been kicked off, because I empathize with the kind of guilt and shame they must feel, but—the whole concept of the site is totally insane. All those people are just looking for societal validation, and that's never really going to make anyone happy. At least the fatties can get away from it now and maybe find partners who care about the right things.

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

Hm. This actually ties in to what I was going to say to you below, so: I actually used to feel like it was not okay for me, as a fat person, to go to beautiful places, because I was "ruining" them by being there. I felt like my ugly fatness meant that it was not okay for me to be around something nice. Which is why the concept of the site upsets me so much. I realise that the whole thing sounds ridiculous, and it sounds ridiculous to me, too, but then I have to acknowledge that this is the kind of thing I used to buy into bigtime, and it scares me to think that there are other people out there buying into it.

I just. I remember when we were in Europe and went to Kew Gardens, and I spent the whole time crying because all I could think was: We took all these beautiful photographs, and I ruined them all by being in them. How could I have been such a selfish person?

I hate the idea of institutions that help to validate the self-hatred people can feel for themselves. It makes me really, really angry.

[gileonnen.livejournal.com]

That's an odd way of thinking about it; here I was thinking how beautiful you made pictures by being in them. <333

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

Thank you; but you were able to look at things objectively, and the fact remains that I couldn't, and frankly still have a hard time doing so, and I doubt I'm the only person who does.

[gileonnen.livejournal.com]

And I don't mean to demean your experience with this--I hope you don't take it that way. I feel that way all the time, myself. But you must know that I think you're absolutely gorgeous.

[karen555.livejournal.com]

I've always been a fan of fuller-figured models. There's a great site with many images of Crystal and other plus-size models here:

http://www.judgmentofparis.com/ (http://www.judgmentofparis.com/)

They're all gorgeous.

The site's forum also has thought-provoking discussions about body image and the media.

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

Ooo. When I'm off dialup, I'm so checking that out.

[holyschist.livejournal.com]

It's really gross and hateful, but I confess I'm kind of glad the shallow people are segregating themselves on their Special Sekrit Club website so the rest of us don't end up accidentally dating them. >.

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

XD Good point. At least we know which treehouse has the lame club.

[nowgoesquickly.livejournal.com]

Excellently said. The rest of us can think of it as a little chlorine in the dating pool.

[watchcry.livejournal.com]

They are smelly poopheads, and it's that simple.

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

>_> Well said.

[nowgoesquickly.livejournal.com]

Poor, poor Beautiful People having to defend themselves from the suffocating, Krispy Kreme-scented crush of evil Fatties systematically invading and corrupting their precious website. OH, THE HUMANITY.

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

Oh the huge manatee might never have been as appropriate as it is in this context, actually. >_>

[josiana.livejournal.com]

I don't even know.

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

Me either.

[brieboo.livejournal.com]

We should start our own dating site, something along the lines of "NoJackasses.com". To get in, you'd have to post personal information about yourself and the other members would vote on whether or not you're a jackass, and you have to maintain that level of non-jackassery to stay in. If you use the holidays as an excuse to criticize other people's eating habits and weight, you're automatically out.

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

Technically these are the criteria for my livejournal friendslist, but I am perfectly willing to extend them to our awesome new dating site.

[the-chloroplast.livejournal.com]

All of those quotes are from people who rate just below pond scum with me. ><

And yet all I can think is, "At least there's a dating site for shallow minds that I don't want to know, so I'll know who to stay away from should I ever need a dating site." Or, if I'm talking to someone and they're like "Oh yeah I checked that site out," I'll be all, "Oh, you're scum, goodbye."

*shock and disgust

[rainbowjehan.livejournal.com]

Ugh. It is just--ugh.