from the hip

I always though curling was a boring sport. The game itself is OK, but it takes place on ice with players who are not all that attractive. I thought. But I may have to revise my opinions on the game. Maybe things have changed, or maybe I simply did not see the beauty or the beauties of the game?

The two curling players below certainly are beautiful. They are from a calendar full of similar curling players. Female, that is. And good looking!

The top fell off for Russian ice skater Ekaterina Rubleva as she danced with Ivan Shefer on the ice. The russian figure skater was being twirled around by her partner, Ivan Shefer, when her costume started to slip.

The 23-year-old world class skater is extremely professional, and kept smiling, but with the next move, which required her partner to hold her hand above her head, the inevitable happened. And here is the result:

PS: You can see more beautiful pictures of world class athletes in this article from Bild!

In Denmark, body paint is becoming fashionable among pregnant women. They go and get their bodies painted, and then, next, get themselves photographed. This is a nice way to create very special and sometimes even spectacular memories of their pregnancies.

I think the pictures are stunning. Very beautiful, and with some very intriguing designs also!

(more…)

The Icelandic band Sigur Rós has recorded a somewhat unusual music video for a song entitled “Gobbledigook”. The video has lots of nudity (what is known as “frontal nudity” in the US). As a result, it will be banned on MTV and has been removed from YouTube.

The movie may be interesting because of the nudity – it has both nude males and nude women. It may also be interesting because of lots of pubic hair – a new trend? In Iceland?

However, the most interesting aspect of this is the marketing aspect. We have seen Pamela Anderson, Paris Hilton, and others using sex videos and nudity to become world famous. Is this possible for a band with a music video too? If it has lots of nudity?

Also, the media world is changing, and this video may well illustrate how relatively unimportant traditional media channels are becoming – even YouTube, when it chooses to censor. My bet is that this video will go viral, and that it will be one of the most viewed music videos this year.

It is still art? Who knows? However, the new album, which this song is from, is called “Nude”, so at least it reflects the title of the album.

What remains to be seen is whether sex sells, and whether the group will be able to reach their intended audience with this content or not?

We will see!

PS: Oh, and the video? You can find it on the homepage of Sigur Rós:  Here.

Many things may be said about Italy’s Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi (71), and, indeed, much has been said. But one thing is for sure: He likes beautiful women! An apppreciation of beauty he shares with most of his countrymen, I am sure (and a few others, as well).

Now he has appointed the very beautiful, conservative and talented Mara Carfagna (32) as his minister for equality. But not only that – at a dinner party he also said that if he had been single, he would have like to marry her. That’s a slightly unusual way for a prime minister to speak of his ministers, I would say. And, clearly also a statement his wife was not to pleased with, and made quite a lot of noise about.

Beautiful Mara Carfagna has a future, like most people. She has been a TV-hostess and a top-less model. And now she is, I would think, the most beautiful minister in any government in OECD. That really has to count for something in Italy?!?

And there is no rule anywhere stating that ministers of equality must be ugly, is there?

Mara Carfagna……Italy’s next Minister for something or other.

Rightwingers and ex-model in Italian cabinet

Today there was a big meeting in Stockholm, Sweden, about the bare breast (“Bara Bröst” in Swedish) movement. The topic is why naked female breasts provoke some people so much.

The Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet has an interview with one of the participants, feminist Nour El-Refai says that “I think people should let women’s breasts in peace. We women should be allowed to de-sexualize our breasts if we want to. We are not to blame for the sexualization of breasts. A de-sexualization of breasts would increase my freedom as a woman.”

Nour firmly believes that the bath house protests of the bare breast movement in Sweden represent a good approach for the movement, as they are visible manifestations that attract attention.

She says de-sexualization of breasts is important in order for the sexes to be able to act natural: “I do not get wet by watching the naked breasts of a man, so why should it be that way for men?”

The feminist movement in Scandinavia has been very successful in a large number of areas. Now a growing number of feminists, especially in Sweden and Denmark, want to fight for the right to behave as men do with respect to their bodies. They essentially want to be able to be topless wherever and whenever men are allowed to be topless. In public bath houses, at the beach, and similar places. They also want to be able to take off their shirts on the soccer field after a match, like the men do. And so on.

A short statement of their goals in English can be found on one of their blogs. Also, Washington Post has had an article about this movement. And here is a Wikipedia article (unfortunately in Swedish).

I am European, so I view the following images as both beautiful and as art. But the line between the two is sometimes hard to draw. Especially as some pornographic pictures may also at the same time be beautiful. I guess?

So what to you think? First, Gisele Bündchen:

Next, Jenny Kapitan:

Finally, Lauren Hutton:

So? Which is what? Or are they all – what?

Swedish and Danish women are still fighting for equal rights. Scandinavian women have in many ways been in the forefront in women’s struggle for equality between the sexes. And much has been achieved. A number of studies indicate that wage discrimination has more or less disappeared in Scandinavia. And the women have won a number of other important victories as well.

Now a group of women are fighting for the right to bath and swim topless in public swimming facilities. The city of Sundsvall in Northern Sweden granted women this right after a bare-breasted protest a while ago. And now Copenhagen has permitted topless swimming as well.

Another victory for Scandinavian women.

Actually, for the men as well, I guess?

The Sun (UK) wrote about this today (03/29):

Campaign leader Astrid Vang, 20, who took her top off with others to protest at a leisure centre at Christmas, said: “We women would like to decide by ourselves when our breasts should be sexual and when not.”In swimming pools they should not and that is why the breasts should not be covered – We will bathe topless just like men.”

The Danish campaign was inspired by a Swedish group called Just Breasts, which was formed after two women were asked to cover up their breasts by a lifeguard at a public pool near Stockholm.

Swedish protesters carried out several full-frontal marches in their country but their tireless topless fight will not stop at swimming pools — the perky sufferagettes want to show tops the red card at football matches next.