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TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2009
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 OPINION 
11

Butt Wait a Sec: First Lady Derrières Shouldn't Matter

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(Newser) – European reporters celebrated the “battle of the bottoms” between Carla Bruni-Sarkozy and Princess Letizia of Spain last week, a display “so bonkersly old-fashioned that I hardly know what to say,” India Knight writes in the Times of London. Beauty is worth praising, she admits, but why does the media insist that women are "so completely tragic and brain-dead that they view all other women through the prism of demented competitiveness”?

Bruni-Sarkozy "can’t win,” Knight laments. "Like all beautiful women—go on, name me four exceptions—she is a victim of her looks”—a fate that never befalls male political figures in Europe. And that’s why gorgeous women are driven to entertainment: “They know that showbiz, unlike the real world, will reward them for their looks rather than punish them.”

France's first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy waves to onlookers.
France's first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy waves to onlookers.   (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)
Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, the wife of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, is seen during a welcome ceremony at the Pardo Palace in Madrid, Spain, Monday, April 27, 2009.
Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, the wife of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, is seen during a welcome ceremony at the Pardo Palace in Madrid, Spain, Monday, April 27, 2009.   (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
Princess Letizia of Spain and Carla Bruni-Sarkozy attend a lunch honouring Nicolas Sarzozy and Carla Bruni-Sarkozy at the Zarzuela Palace on April 27, in Madrid, Spain.
Princess Letizia of Spain and Carla Bruni-Sarkozy attend a lunch honouring Nicolas Sarzozy and Carla Bruni-Sarkozy at the Zarzuela Palace on April 27, in Madrid, Spain.   (Getty Images)
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Bruni wakes up every morning, in the manner of Snow White's evil stepmother, and asks herself whether hers is still the fairest Euro-bottom of them all. The question probably keeps her awake at night, I shouldn't wonder. - India Knight

I’m sure this is why unusually good-looking women still retreat into the old tried-and-tested career choice of some form of show business: they know that showbiz, unlike the real world, will reward them for their looks. - India Knight

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11 comments
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TerrifiedCitizen
May 3, 09 6:17 PM CDT
I wouldn't think of punishing Carla... Reply
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-1
NutsInNY
May 3, 09 6:53 PM CDT
So how did Laura's Bush rank? Reply
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+3
IN RESPONSE:
riffran
May 4, 09 3:43 AM CDT
a lot higher than Hillarhoids backside
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+3
anchower
May 3, 09 7:09 PM CDT
Boing alert! Reply
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+1
riffran
May 3, 09 8:54 PM CDT
brings to mind the phrase.."I hate to see ya leave...but love to watch ya go".. Reply
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+1

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