No Feminazi Ramblings for Moi!

To be frank, I rarely ever write about sexism. It's not that I don't care, I just don't care to write about it. I'm a grand believer that if something is written it should be written well, and my neo-feminism just isn't feverish enough to print.

So today I found this article this article and thought, "wow, I couldn't have said it better myself."

The internet is exploding today with stories about "Lindsey's Vonn's controversial SI cover." Oh, no! So sexist! So objectifying! So the way you tuck into position going down a mountain at 60 mph. Is the position flattering? Nah. Is the picture cheesy? Totally. Sexual? Give me a break.

As the opinion piece states

The headline reads "America's best woman skier ever", for Jean-Claude's sake! Why can't she be both the best skier in the world and really, really attractive too? Tom Brady's a great athlete and a handsome dude and I don't hear people whine when he's shirtless in GQ.

So brace yourself for another of my "because I work in print advertising moments." Yes, Sports Illustrated rarely has female athletes on the cover. Sorry ladies, but your sports just aren't that popular with the mainstream. Second, SI knows its audience is mostly men. Manly sports men. That's why the swimsuit issue sells every year except those women are in barely there bikinis. In that case, the sex is selling on purpose. Honestly, I didn't see the controversy in this cover until I read the articles. Sports Illustrated is, in my opinion, the superior of all sports magazines. It combines real news with human interest pieces and, unlike ESPN, doesn't toot its own horn at every possible moment. SI works its craft and works it well.

If you want to be dirty minded, fine. The rest of us normal people will take the picture for what it's worth, a beautiful female athlete practicing the sport she has worked for her entire career.