I think the notion that by posing nude, any famous/athletic/beautiful/ugly/rich woman empowers other women, is a load of bull myself. That is just my opinion, although I am entirely certain that my wife shares the same opinion and through years of beatings, has shaped my opinion to resemble hers;)! My opinion is also that if Amanda Beard wants to pose in the nude, whether it be to make more money, make herself more famous or push her particular cause du jour further into the limelight, that's entirely her prerogative. If PETA feels that a photo spread of Ms. Beard in some state of dress other than full business attire will generate more publicity for their cause, then more power to them. I also think that swimmers, both male and female, have the sexiest bodies on the planet and I probably wouldn't put down any photos that happened to come through my inbox. I might not go distributing nude photos of Alain Bernard or Michael Phelps, but only because I fear what my friends might think of me. I am pretty certain that I couldn't stop myself from looking though. Perhaps I have said too much...I should stop...It's like an addiction (sort of like the EuroCup 2008 thread!)!!!
Lumping Beard in with Owens, Rudolph, BJK, Ali is absurd, beyond absurd, bordering on insane. She took off her clothes for money. Owens stood up against Hitler, hardly equal. That's almost like lumping Stud in with noodlers, does the noodlers a great disservice, as they actually do swim from time to time fast.
I don't think he was lumping Beard in with any of those people. I think he was merely illustrating the point that he wished that more athletes would take a stand on social issues and that the Olympics were beyond being just about 'the sport'!
I don't think he was lumping Beard in with any of those people. I think he was merely illustrating the point that he wished that more athletes would take a stand on social issues and that the Olympics were beyond being just about 'the sport'!
It always makes me laugh when people say that because someone is great at something that they should automatically be socially conscious or have a superb moral compass. There really is no correlation between the two, sporting and activism. I can only think of a few sports greats who are legitimate activists and can't think of a single great social activist who was first an elite athlete. I think it is rare to have both great abilities. I mean, ever seen Oprah, Bill Gates, or Warren Buffet play hoops?
And, if Beard was paid to strip for this ad, then she is not an activist, definitely a capitalist, nothing wrong with that.
I think the notion that by posing nude, any famous/athletic/beautiful/ugly/rich woman empowers other women, is a load of bull myself. That is just my opinion, although I am entirely certain that my wife shares the same opinion and through years of beatings, has shaped my opinion to resemble hers;)! My opinion is also that if Amanda Beard wants to pose in the nude, whether it be to make more money, make herself more famous or push her particular cause du jour further into the limelight, that's entirely her prerogative. If PETA feels that a photo spread of Ms. Beard in some state of dress other than full business attire will generate more publicity for their cause, then more power to them. I also think that swimmers, both male and female, have the sexiest bodies on the planet and I probably wouldn't put down any photos that happened to come through my inbox. I might not go distributing nude photos of Alain Bernard or Michael Phelps, but only because I fear what my friends might think of me. I am pretty certain that I couldn't stop myself from looking though. Perhaps I have said too much...I should stop...It's like an addiction (sort of like the EuroCup 2008 thread!)!!!
Well said. Pose nude all you'd like but don't make inane statements about how empowering it is for others. Or about how we wouldn't know that you are sexual without seeing your personal equipment.
At the very least, let's have some equal time (and equal acceptance) for those of us more interested in the seductive nude male than the Playboy playmate!:banana:
It always makes me laugh when people say that because someone is great at something that they should automatically be socially conscious or have a superb moral compass.
It seems to me that some athletes have the perfect stage from which to shine a light on social issues. I am not saying that they should. Indeed, Tiger Woods is probably capable of bringing about enormous social change, but he has chosen not to. That's fine and it's entirely within his rights as a human to choose that path.
The purpose of the original post was not to say that Beard should take a stand on animal rights...rather it was to say that if Beard wanted to take a stand on animal rights, then the poster (the person doing the posting, not the large, shiny poster of Amanda Beard) was fine with it and he wished that more athletes would take stands.
I for one, don't know her motivations, but I'm not willing to just assume what they are. There are few athletes that I look to for social inspiration and none in the very recent past. Beard certainly does nothing to change that. It's a very personal choice for an athlete to risk being shunned by taking a stand at the moment of their crowning achievement. I saw the special about Tommy Smith and John Carlos on the ESPYs and it changed my perspective entirely on their actions.
