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Over the last few days, whenever I've seen that naked Trump… - Tactical Ninja

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Aug. 21st, 2016

10:59 am

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Over the last few days, whenever I've seen that naked Trump statue posted, I've dropped in and left a comment along the lines of "I'm really not down with body shaming, even of that scumbag."

A statement of my own view, or so I thought. It's been interesting to see how many people will vehemently tell me I'm wrong to feel that way, and work very hard to convince me that my perspective is invalid. Arguments used include:

"It's art!" (it is art, because art is supposed to elicit emotion and discussion - but that doesn't mean it's not also body shaming)

"Think about it in context!" (you mean the context where almost everyone is bombarded with reasons to hate their body every day, or the one where Trump is not smart enough to realise that a lot of his belittling of other people probably comes from an unacknowledged desire to make himself feel big? which probably stems from the same crap this statue is perpetuating regarding self-loathing)

"He started it!" (what are we, 4?)

"He does it to women all the time!" (and we think he's scum for it, so why is it ok to now do the same thing? does that make us scum too?)

"He said he had a huge penis though!" (and? since when are tiny penis jokes any kind of argument about anything relevant?)

"You just don't understand how it's supposed to represent the Emperor with no clothes!" (which I do actually understand, I'm just not ok with the way we're focusing on the 'nauseatingness' of his naked body as a representation of his ugliness)*

"Not everything is about you!" (um, yeah - i got nothing)

* I actually think it had the potential to be a lot better. If his naked body were painted in representations symbolic of the people who would be (are being) harmed by his policies, for example. As it is, we take the Emperor's clothes off and what's revealed is a fairly accurate representation of the body of a fat old man, and we are supposed to be nauseated by that.

I'm sorry folks, it's body shaming and I'm still not ok with it.

Note - one person out of everyone I've commented to responded with "Oh, I hadn't thought of that." and took it down. There's a reason that person is in my inner circle of friends, just saying.

(17 comments | Leave a comment)

Comments:

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From:springheel_jack
Date:August 20th, 2016 11:04 pm (UTC)
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I hate those statues too. The joke behind them is ultimately that it is contemptible that a politician not have a big cock and balls. And that idea is precisely the problem.
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From:randomdreams
Date:August 20th, 2016 11:08 pm (UTC)
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It's also satire insofar as Trump claims those characteristics in a manner that says he thinks having them is somehow important for running a country.
I think it's a case of mud-wrestling with a pig, as the old sayings goes.
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From:springheel_jack
Date:August 21st, 2016 01:06 am (UTC)
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Wtf why did that reply post as anon? Never mind. Having trouble with the app.
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From:randomdreams
Date:August 21st, 2016 01:22 am (UTC)
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LJ just randomly signs me out sometimes with no warning.
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From:fflo
Date:August 22nd, 2016 02:49 pm (UTC)
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Yeah, great point.

Somehow it reminds me of how the whole moral of Beauty and the Beast is undercut by the fact that the reward in the story is someone's being made conventionally beautiful.
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From:randomdreams
Date:August 20th, 2016 11:06 pm (UTC)
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I too had not thought of that.
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From:fbhjr
Date:August 20th, 2016 11:21 pm (UTC)
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I don't like Trump at all. But, I agree it wasn't done right.
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From:clevermanka
Date:August 21st, 2016 01:56 am (UTC)
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I have avoided seeing this thing (I didn't even know what you were talking about) and I am going to do my best to keep it that way. I do appreciate the warning, thank you.
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From:jaelle_n_gilla
Date:August 21st, 2016 11:13 am (UTC)
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The way the US does elections is really weird to us. All these polemics and shaming and false accusations. And it's all so personal. When they did that to Obama last time round I unfriended and blocked a man whom I've known for decades. He just would stop sending emails with racist jokes and false accusations about Obama. I don't think I mind it being done to Trump that much because he's like that himself but you are totally right. What does that say about the people who do that? They are just as bad as Drumpf.

The worst is that they did that so badly the last time to Obama and he won. I hopehopehope the current victim of shaming isn't tomorrow's president of the United States. *fingers crossed*
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From:warriorsavant
Date:August 21st, 2016 05:02 pm (UTC)
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Haven't seen the meme, and hope I don't.

Not sure if it's body shaming or not, but comes under the heading of "crass ≠ clever" (at least once you're out of Junior High School), which is a general problem with the internet. Trump is a dork and if elected would be a disaster of the highest order. That should be pointed out with sense and passion, not crassness. As you say, we're not 4, or even 14.

His losing will also be a disaster, but not as bad as his winning. See post http://warriorsavant.livejournal.com/591659.html

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From:raincitygirl
Date:August 21st, 2016 05:13 pm (UTC)
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Very well said. I was uncomfortable seeing the statues but hadn't articulated exactly why. Now I can just point and say, "What she said."

P.S. Would it be okay for me to link to this post in my own LJ? You can absolutely say no if you'd prefer not.
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From:tatjna
Date:August 21st, 2016 05:55 pm (UTC)
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I'd be honoured! :)
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From:raincitygirl
Date:August 21st, 2016 09:27 pm (UTC)
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Posted! And thanks.
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From:anna_en_route
Date:August 21st, 2016 11:29 pm (UTC)
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Agreed entirely, they make me deeply uncomfortable and I loathe Trump passionately.

There's also the fact that it would be really creepy on a visceral level if this happened to a candidate who identified as female and this kind of stupidity opens the door for someone to try that in the name of "equality".

Why couldn't they have dressed him up as royalty instead, far more topical and on point.
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From:fflo
Date:August 22nd, 2016 02:48 pm (UTC)
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I, too, am with you on this one. I suppose it's already a minority of folks who recognize and object to body shaming in general, and then only a subset of us whose attitude occurs with respect to this situation as well. But maybe it's a large subset. And no doubt it's a bigger one when we speak up. Maybe not much bigger, but a little bigger. Plus we can know we spoke up.
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From:adam_0oo
Date:August 26th, 2016 08:08 pm (UTC)
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I totally agree, this is exactly the kind of thing that we are against him for.
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From:kehleyr
Date:August 28th, 2016 12:08 pm (UTC)
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Couldn't agree with you more.
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