Sure, Michael Vick has admitted involvement in dogfighting. But did you see how sharp he looked in that suit on the way to the courthouse? And yes, Mark McGwire bombed at those congressional hearings with his "I don't want to talk about the past" skate on steroids, but he's the epitome of what a XXXL Abercrombie & Fitch guy can be.
Inane as those comments are, they at least have the merit of being made by me in jest. But what is Robin Givhan's excuse for her similarly silly glorification of the fashion sense of another disgraced athlete, Marion Jones? For that's exactly what the Washington Post's style maven does in her column of this morning, "Marion Jones, a Success On the Glamour Track, Too".
"Too"? Givhan's might believe that Jones was a "success" on the running track, but her legacy there is that of a liar and a cheat.
But after an opening acknowledgement of Jones's off-track travails, the rest of the column is an ode to the runner's fashion sense. In particular, Givhan celebrates Jones for reinforcing the author's feminist view, which she sums up by referring to the notion that women should look good while doing sports as "nonsense." Excerpts:
- [S]he was also an exemplar of the beauty inherent in female strength
- She could be both a gritty competitor and a glamourpuss -- but separately. She did not have to be a pretty athlete, a sexy sprinter or a stylish runner. She didn't glam-up her performance in the sports arena
- It's not often that athletes such as Jones are celebrated for their beauty and grace in glossy magazines.
- Jones's beauty registered amidst the grunting and sweating as she sprinted across the finish line without glitter makeup, a thousand hair barrettes or a costume designed by Vera Wang.
- Jones was fascinating because she was a celebrated female athlete who showed that toughness on the track did not have to be tempered by a nod to traditional femininity.
As far as Givhan is concerned, the fact that Jones was a fraud is just a minor detail. For supporting her view of the world, the WaPo author is happy to award the disgraced athlete a gold medal for feminist fashion sense.
—Mark Finkelstein is a NewsBusters contributing editor and host of Right Angle. Contact him at mark@gunhill.net.
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MARION JONES IS A FRAUDSTER...
October 13, 2007 - 07:38 ET by danybhoyMarion Jones is a drug cheat, then she lied about it. We her ex-husband CJ Jones tested positive & was banned. The father of her child Tim Montgomery, the same. The people she worked with at BALCO have been under federal investigation with a couple of convictions as well. She gets caught, & does the presser while sobbing how sorry she is & that she is disgraced. She right on the 2nd count, but she's only sorry she got caught. She would have kept the 5 medals from Sydney had they not caught her.
I do feel bad for those atheletes who were cheated out their moment of glory on the medal stand, 3 of them gold. Those people had their chance to hear their national anthem played for their acomplishment, they got screwed because of Jones selfishness.
The fact that Marion Jones looks good on & off the track(she is a good looking woman)does not change the fact that she lacks honesty & will cheat others to gain from that personally. Maybe Robin Givhan need to some self examination about right & wrong.
"Some of us are wise, some of us are otherwise" Mark Levin
Danybhoy, you need to get
October 13, 2007 - 12:32 ET by MikeBDanybhoy, you need to get with the times. Right and wrong are such outdated concepts. What gives anyone the right to judge what is right or what is wrong for someone else? Democrats will lie, cheat, steal, take campaign money from foreign nationals, allow illegal aliens, convicted felons, and dead people to vote, and it is all for the public good. How could that possibly be "wrong"? Athletes will use steroids and other performance enhancing drugs in order to defeat their opponents in whatever sport they play. How could that possibly be "wrong"? The newsmedia will lie by omission or by commission in order to advance their left wing agenda. How can that be "wrong"? Junkies will lie, cheat, steal (even from their own family), and kill for their next fix. They have a right to pursue "happiness". How can that be wrong? Don't you know the end justifies the means?
"A communist is someone who reads Marx. An anti-communist is someone who understands Marx." Ronald Reagan
marion Jones
October 13, 2007 - 08:27 ET by WR JonasThe aspect of this story that insults and shocks some of us is the implied "right to use any means necessary to further the cause". That coupled with the plea for "understanding ".
What ever happened to the concept of accepting ones disgrace and being humbled by the sins of your behavior?
A quaint old notion I suppose but the "I was naive and misled" defense is so phony it is a complete gagger. Besides, she needs extra consideration for being pretty and stylish.
For supporting her view of
October 13, 2007 - 08:59 ET by motherbeltFor supporting her view of the world, the WaPo author is happy to award
the disgraced athlete a gold medal for feminist fashion sense.
Well, isn't that what it really should be about???
<sarc off>