West Virginia To Ban Barbie?
MAR 4, 2009 AT 04:07 PM
MSNBC just posted this story about West Virginia wanting to ban Barbie.
Barbie could get an unwelcome present for her 50th birthday: outlawed in West Virginia.
A state lawmaker proposed a bill Tuesday to ban sales of the iconic Mattel doll and others like her.
The Barbie Ban Bill, proposed by Democratic Delegate Jeff Eldridge (D) Lincoln County, says such toys influence girls to place too much importance on physical beauty, at the expense of their intellectual and emotional development.
Wow! A ban? That's a bit... harsh. But what do you think about the concept?
Thanks HappySorceress!
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330 points
Well, if that's the case, they shouldn't just stop at Barbie, they can continue on to Magazine covers, Movie stars, etc, etc, the list goes on. Everything begins at home, its up to the parents how they raise their little girls and instill in them the importance of being an "individual". Leave Barbie Alone!
300 points
Yep you can start on them young but once a girl gets to high school (even jr high) it's even harder to steer them the right way. Their cooler friends will always be an influence on them although we hope that the base morals we impress upon them are strong.
A ban is kinda stupid, I think anorexic models and celebs do more damage then Barbie. They really need to ban Lindsay Lohan!
34623 points
Barbie just needed some press. ROFL
5355 points
ridic.
Well, leave it to a Democrat to come up with this!
Don't we have more important things to worry about...........pfffft!
I've loved Barbie since I was nine, and I'm petite all over with dark eyes and hair. I'm happy with my appearance. I certainly don't blame a DOLL for all my woes! :)
300 points
Another idiot (politician) with nothing better to do. I love Barbie!
8085 points
Female objectification and patriarchy are all highly influenced and reinforced by toys, magazines, movies, etc. I think a BAN seems silly when the real route of the problem is the design of the toy itself and, you know...societal stereotypes/gender roles in general, haha.
How about she not come in skanky clothing with giant tits and feet molded for highheels though? It's too bad a ban has to take place when the reality is that I just would hope no parent would get their child such an unhealthy, anti-feminist, and degrading toy. Oh well.
Well said! Well said!
2895 points
They tried that years ago. The doll didn't sell well! :)
very well put launicorn....
i know when i go shopping for my neice, i have a hard time getting her something. I don't aggree with the way they are put on display with all this make up, etc...
i think it's a great idea....dolls like barbie and the prostatots called bratz are not a good example for girls. girls now days are asking to wear clothes that are skanky because barbie does and because their parents allow it. My mother would have never allowed me to dress the way some of these little girls dress nowadays.
you can't reference how it was when we were kids (yes i'm 30), our generation wanted to be kids. I didn't start wearing make up til i was 15-16 and look at these girls today, girls now days who are 12 or 10 don't look 10 or 12, they are wearing makeup and carrying purses and for what.....WTF is in your purse at the age of 10? they carry cell phones...I didn't have a cell phone until i was 16 and I paid for that myself.
I am a parent and kids these are not kids, they are to in a hurry to grow up and have boobs and want to dress like adults and it's sad. you have mothers out there who do dress their daughters in slutty outfits cause they think it's cute and then they wonder why dirty old men are looking at these little girls...ARE YOU SERIOUS....you know why they are, they can't help it. These mothers and kids think it's ok to wear make up out and about...wow.
Parents need to teach their daughters to have more self respect....I think Britney is a good example of how things are today. Look at the sex appeal she had a such a young age. she didn't get to enjoy being a kid and look at the breakdown she went through. it's so sad that parent's think its ok for little girls to dress so provocative and lavish them with things that as kids they can't appreciate.
5735 points
This is ridiculous. Times have changed, and it's not Barbie that caused this. And whoever said the stupid thing about blaming Barbie for making girls want to wear heels and makeup. Wake up. Girls want to be women. With or without Barbie, they'll still wear their moms' makeup, clothes, and heels. There's still TV, the Internet, and their friends. Barbie did not cause a revolution in millions of girls around the world.
Big brother is coming. What will he go after next?? Totally unconstitutional.
33545 points
That is pathetic. Everyone I know grew up playing with Barbies Barbie is an icon and she's fabulous. They should leave that doll alone and ban Bratz instead! Those things are disturbing. =^_^=
Couldn't agree more! I love Barbie... she's a lady. Those Bratz are just trampy 12 year olds. Just look at the data... if Barbie came on the scene 50 years ago and is to blame for the ruined innocence of our children, how come kids in the 60's weren't slutty? Besides, what would help kids with their body image... obese dolls? good grief.
This is absurd. I played with Barbies all the time and I NEVER, not once ever thought "This is the way I should look and/or want to look". I just liked to play with them. I have never heard any of my friends complaining about not looking like Barbie either. If anything GI Joe should be banned. It broke my heart when I found out not all men were built like him. It's just a toy. End of story.
I predict that the politician who proposed this bill will be caught in a sex scandal with a Barbie look-alike in the near future. Probably has a Barbie fetish.
330 points
LMAO :)
1800 points
It's a doll...? !!!! My goodness. I loved playing with Barbies. "...such toys influence girls to place too much importance on physical beauty, at the expense of their intellectual and emotional development. " I love everyone for who they are, am very mature for my age, and am extremely intellectual. Stop distracting us with these pointless laws and fix the economy.
2895 points
If they do, I'm opening a Barbie store just over the border of West Virginia in Maryland, much like the firework superstores in the south!
Genius :)
Wish I would have thought of that first!
great idea!! i should start scouting now for a suitable place in Kentucky for myself to make such an establishment......
First of all, state government and laws are completely separate from federal government and laws; the WV state government isn't going to "fix the economy", so I wouldn't start to get into some debate about what people should be doing - let's all focus on our own jobs if we are lucky enough to have them. Second, I remember playing with Barbie when I was younger, wondering when my DD boobs would finally arrive; HOWEVER, I will never agree with censorship. The idea behind the law makes a whole lot of sense, but the actual law is nonsense... outlawing Barbie would do absolutely nothing. Instilling morals and a healthy sense of self-esteem in our children ought to be sufficient enough. I'm sure this bill won't go far at all, so this whole debate is probably pretty pointless lol...
jesus christ, that's a new low
300 points
This is the dumbest thing ever.
1350 points
Maybe parents should be parents and have a little more influence on their kids! Blaming a doll! A doll that has been around for 50 years? Barbie never sparked image disorders in children before now ---- what has changed? Absent parents...parents who don't teach their kids self-esteem, manners and how you must work hard to succeed. Nowadays, it's "not fair" if all kids don't succeed, regardless of effort and too many of them are spoilt and left to their own devices on the web. Teach your kids to be healthy, to love themselves. I guess far too many adults don't love themselves so to ask them to teach their kids good values is too much to ask. losethatgirl blog
300 points
Seriously the politicians need to leave these sort of decisions to the parents. Why the hell are the wasting their time and congress's time on these sort of bills? Don't we have a LOT bigger issues in the world right now??? If you don't want your kid to have the doll it is simple, don't buy it for them. I am SOOO sick of the government getting overly involved in our lives. Back off! Could they spend less time on this and more time on Child pornography on the internet and other similar things that are MUCH more damaging to kids than a freakin Barbie.
That was the last thing I ever thought about when I played with barbie.
Nothing about how I looked compared to her. ugh, this is the beginning of socialism.
I think this guy just wanted some attention. He knew if he thought up of something that would sound "morally right" and try and make a statement for America's youth, that it would get splashed all over the headlines and made into something more than it is. Lets face it, how could this ever come about? I live in WV and let me tell you, we have more important things to worry about instead of a toy. This is all just ridiculous and I'm sure that man will be laughed at for the rest of his life.
well i dont think you need to worry about girls worrying about beauty in WV. they are mostly toothless inbreds!
How about focusing more on actresses and models? Do what Spain did and ban any models from doing runways if they have less then 18% body fat, make it the same for actresses and print models (unless muscular).
they had to realize proposing a Barbie ban would cause a big media stir... but maybe this was strategic
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