Re: Marketing a perception. Let's brainstorm?

February 24, 2006

I think you have a great idea! I love the tee-shirt idea for men. I found

this website when searching for info regarding breast implants, another

website written by a man that doesn't like implants.

Kenda

48 REASONS NOT TO GET A BOOB JOB:

[ Warning: nudity below. And it ain't pretty. ]

[ If you don't like adult language or you want censored pictures,

go here for the AOL Special Edition version of this page. ]

1) According to the National Institute of Medicine, 25 to 40 percent of

people who get breast implants end up needing another operation to correct

something wrong with the first one. (The rate varied in particular studies,

depending on things like how long women were monitored, the typical time

being five years.)

2) A study by a maker of saline breast implants, Mentor, found that 27

percent of implants put into breast cancer patients had to be taken back out

again within three years, due to side effects. Another 13 percent had to

have lesser corrective surgeries. The competing manufacturer McGhan has

similar numbers. Even for healthy patients, both were forced to admit that

" most women experienced at least one complication over the three year

period " .

3) In general, breast cancer patients have complications with implants far

more often than healthy people do. Many of the complications are about

three times as likely for mastectomy reconstruction patients as for cosmetic

augmentation patients. We regard this as socially the most acceptable and

necessary time for implants to be used, but medically it is the most risky

and unjustifiable time to use them.

4) Up to 9 percent of saline implants end up deflating within just three

years, according to the Food and Drug Administration. The FDA also found

that complications become more and more common for each year implants spend

in the body.

5) Another FDA study found that even among women who had not complained of

any perceived trouble with their implants, MRI scans showed two thirds of

them have ruptured implants on at least one side. The rate was actually

higher in 10 to 15 year old implants than with 20 year old ones, because the

older ones were made with thicker containers. In 21 percent of women in the

study, significant volumes of silicone were found to have migrated elsewhere

in the body. Doctors removing implants often claim that they ruptured at

the time of removal. This study makes me suspect, as some patients long

have, that many doctors are lying about this for some reason, perhaps to

avoid liability.

6) Though rare, it is not unknown for complications to be so severe that

the breast ends up getting amputated. The chest wall can be injured. Your

lungs and heart can be affected. You can end up dead.

7) They sometimes find cultures of microorganisms growing inside saline

implants when they're removed. This is worrisome given that the newest

implants contain vegetable oil... it could spoil. Saline, at least, is not

a nutritious meal for bacteria. Even the silicone gel ones sometimes get

some kind of mildewy looking stuff growing inside them... and each new fluid

they've tried has been friendlier to microorganisms than the last one was.

8) If you're a European patient who has the option of oil-filled implants

(these implants have not been approved in the US), British doctor Rahim

Karjoo warns that oils leaking into the body will absorb calcium, and the

resulting soaplike material, if it enters the bloodstream, can create fat

emboli which can kill you without warning. The British government recently

withdrew its approval for oil-filled implants and they will no longer be

sold there.

9) Surgery in fatty tissues runs a much higher risk of difficult and

dangerous infections taking root than surgery in lean tissue does.

Infections with implants present are harder to treat than otherwise. In

some cases the implant has to be taken out before the infection can be

controlled. This problem affects about one breast augmentation patient out

of 80.

10) So they replaced silicone implants with saline ones, avoiding the

possible immunological problems associated with silicone gel leakage... and

then the National Institute of Medicine decided that silicone has been

" exonerated " and doesn't cause many of the problems it was accused of

causing... So what -- somehow just about as many people have problems with

saline implants as had trouble with silicone ones. The container is still

silicone rubber, after all, which differs from silicone gel mostly just in

the length of its molecules' polymer chains. Eventually, small flakes of

silicone rubber come loose, and sometimes the chains break down chemically,

yielding fluid silicone compounds, elemental silicon, and silica dust. (The

operation often leaves stray talcum powder in the body, too.) The implant

container can also release traces of heavy metals like lead and platinum

(used as a catalyst in creating the silicone polymers), and carcinogenic

solvents like xylene and toluene. A German study (J. Friemann, M. Bauer, et

al) of the scar tissue surrounding removed implants found the tissue was

commonly impregnated with chemicals from the implant, and also showed

evidence of chronic inflammation occurring there.

11) And if the official line is that silicone is now exonerated, then why

isn't it okay to inject silicone directly into the body without a container

around it, like they used to back in 1960? No doctor would try that now...

they could land in jail. Some doctors are of the opinion that no facility

that accepts blood or organ donations should take any from women who have

silicone in their bodies, whether it's in a container or not.

12) The " exoneration " of silicone and implants is based on a failure to

link it to certain autoimmune diseases that some implant patients were

diagnosed with: arthritis, lupus, sclerodoma, etc. Interestingly, the same

symptoms (sore joints, weak muscles, fatigue, cognitive difficulties) keep

leading to different diagnoses, none of which was provable in itself. The

obvious conclusion is that the condition is a separate disease that somewhat

resembles these others. One theory is that many of these symptoms might be

caused by ethylene oxide, which was used to sterilize many implants after

they were manufactured, possibly contaminating the material. They also

found no link with breast cancer... but overall cancers were another matter.

Two recent NIH studies of overall mortality of women with implants, one from

the National Cancer Institute (Dr. Louise Brinton) and one from the FDA,

found plenty of extra mortality relative to patients of other plastic

surgeries. Causes included lung cancer, brain cancer, a few other cancers,

other lung diseases, and an increased rate of suicide.

13) One of the fastest growing areas of medical practice is surgeons who

specialize in repairing the errors and complications of boob jobs done by

other doctors. " If a doctor tells you they don't have complications,

they're either not operating or they're lying to you, " says Dr. Jack A.

Friedland of sdale.

14) A lot of doctors doing boob jobs and other vanity surgery are

half-assed quacks without proper qualifications. Most states allow anyone

with a medical degree -- even dentists -- to take a weekend course and sell

plastic surgery. They do it because it's easy money. Dr. Ervin Moss of New

Jersey says, " You can't imagine how many specialist groups are lobbying

against [laws requiring proper accreditation] as a threat to the bottom

line. "

15) Can you imagine your doctor brushing off life-threatening complications

and telling you " You look great! " when you ought to be heading for the

emergency room? It's been known to happen in the cosmetic surgery biz...

16) You want health insurance coverage for other breast-related illnesses?

Goooooooood luck.

17) The first time I had a chance to feel a pair of tits with implants in

them, they felt like two blocks of cement covered with a quarter inch of

skin. I was told it was an unusually high quality job, too.

18) They claim that the cement tit problem has been solved, and modern

operations don't produce that kind of extreme hardening any more. Well,

they still end up hardening sometimes. One doctor who trumpets the

improvements over past techniques and calls saline implants " absolutely

safe " ( Beraka of New York -- he gives plastic surgery advice on

women.com and elsewhere) still admits that 5 to 8 percent can end up " as

firm as your thigh " due to scar tissue... and that he sees " a lot of bad

results " from other doctors. I think he's understating the problem rate...

Mentor found that 9 percent of augmentations had serious " capsular

contracture " (which causes hardening, and sometimes pain), sometimes bad

enough to require reoperation.

19) The more we see blown-up boobs, the more we learn to recognize them

instead of being fooled. The more we learn to recognize them, the less

attractive they are. The more people are exposed to these bug-eye bosoms,

the more often they are going to start seeing them as unattractive instead

of as appealing. I've been seeing them that way for years now.

20) If I am not making myself clear, let me spell it out right now:

implants are fucking ugly! Implants only look good on the level of first

impressions. Expect people in your life to react with an initial charge

followed by a gradual accumulation of disgust. Anyone who likes you over

the long term will do so in spite of them, not because of them -- the same

as they would if you had a glass eye.

21) Lots of men have written me in response to this page and said they

agree that implants are gross... but after tens of thousands of hits here,

only a handful of men ever wrote to tell me they disagree and think implants

are attractive... and sometimes I can't even be sure because the mail

they've written is so inarticulate. (The total number of such messages

written in proper English, so far, is about three.) From other mail I get,

it seems to be very commonly the case that when women want implants, it's

the men in their lives who are trying to talk them out of it, often without

success. Our stereotypes tell us to expect the opposite -- men are supposed

to be thrilled by this kind of " improvement " . If our assumptions are

backwards on this, how realistic is the rest of our thinking about implants?

How much of what you look forward to after you have your implants is not

going to work out the way you expect, because it's based on that kind of

assumption?

22) If you envy women with big jugs, talk to them... a lot of them wish

they could have smaller ones. (By the way, I wouldn't get breast reduction

surgery either unless you're desperate. The surgery is more serious and, in

the short term, probably more risky than breast enhancement is -- there are

cases where the nipple, after being unplugged and stuck in a new position,

dies and rots away -- but at least the risk is over once it heals.)

23) If you think being made fun of for being flat is bad... well, some

women tell me that the amount of ridicule they experienced got worse, not

better, after getting implants. Remember the old proverb about the color of

the grass on the other side of the fence.

24) Any man who has a higher opinion of your body after you get implants

will probably also have a lower opinion of your mind. Or do you imagine

he'll never know? Fat chance. If they're saline and not overfilled to the

point where they become unrealistically firm, he'll notice the sloshing.

25) An awful lot of implant jobs come out crooked, uneven, or weird

looking. An awful lot of women think it's worth that, just to have the

size. Does that make any sense to you? It doesn't to me.

26) If you're embarrassed because your titties are itty bitty and you want

to do something about it... don't forget that the less natural breast tissue

you start out with, the less convincing an implant job will look. The only

ones that look halfway decent are when what's added is less than what was

already there.

27) Fashions in body shape change. A lot of people nowadays are going to

feel real stupid in 20 years when they look at the tattoos they've got...

and you can bet the same is going to be true of a lot of cosmetic surgery.

It happened with nose jobs: now there are a lot of women with nostrils

aimed forward like headlights, making them look like a new species of pig.

They don't do nose jobs that way any more, because it looks awful. Yet

thousands paid to have it done that way, because that was the style at the

time. Says one Hollywood actress: " That whole big chest thing is so

eighties. "

28) Speaking of fashions... some people have pointed out that strange,

uncomfortable, weird-looking, fetishistic, and dangerous women's fashions

tend to have an upsurge after any period where there are improvements in

women's rights. We are in such a period now. I think implants have become

such a fashion. In America, we've gotten accustomed to implants that, to

someone from outside our culture -- even from a place as similar as England

or Australia -- look bizarre and hideous.

29) However fashions go, when you get old, you're gonna look really weird

and implausible. They call it the " double bubble " look -- each breast

shaped sort of like the letter B. (That term is also used for a

complication in which the underside of the breast has a second fold, like a

double chin.)

30) Then again maybe you won't, because your implants probably won't last

until then. Those who know say that anyone who gets implants should not

keep them more than ten or fifteen years without either removing them or

replacing them with a fresh set. This is because the container, though it's

rugged when new, loses its strength and eventually becomes fragile. That

means more surgery, with more expense and more risk... but not as much risk

as leaving the old ones in place until they break or their contents leak

out. One reason the rate of implant surgery keeps rising is because at

least half of them are repeats.

31) Whether you replace your implants or take them out, it's going to be

quite a challenge to find any way, as an elderly woman, to have halfway

natural looking breasts. If you have any plans to ever get old, bear in

mind that by getting implants now you may be throwing away any chance of not

looking deformed at that age.

32) You have to protect your implants. A simple fall that would ordinarily

only give you a bruising can create a major medical crisis if an implant

gives way. The longer it's been in you, the more easily it will rupture.

Putting implants beneath the muscle -- something that is becoming popular

because the shape comes out less obviously fake that way -- means that

eventually just using your shoulder strongly will put you at risk (assuming

that your shoulder still has its strength after the muscle has been

distorted). The extra care you need to protect and maintain the implants

makes you just a little bit crippled as long as you have them.

33) Any surgery on breasts can, and often does, damage nerves and reduce

skin sensation. The amount of loss is unpredictable. The damage can't be

reversed. Attempts to reduce this effect have a tradeoff: they increase the

visibility of the surgical scar. Complete numbness of the nipple is not

unknown. In a smaller number of cases, the side effect is the opposite:

painful hypersensitivity to touch.

34) If you feel inadequate as a woman, the problem to address is in your

head, not your chest. Self esteem first, cosmetics after! If you ignore

that, you are doomed to disappointment. A lot of people who think a

cosmetic change like this is going to fix their lives end up despondent and

suicidal when they find they're still the same person with the same life.

This is such a common problem that cosmetic surgeons have to pay a lot of

attention to weeding out patients who might be suicide risks. Getting chest

surgery to improve your self-esteem is like buying a girdle to improve your

eyesight: you're addressing the wrong problem.

35) Breasts probably have a wider range of natural healthy variation than

any other body part... and we seem to be trying to forget this. If we act

as if only one subset of the range of variation is good -- as the

entertainment and advertising industries are currently doing -- we condone

and reinforce a mindset that says ordinary people are defective. We distort

our sense of what is normal and end up treating healthy people (including

ourselves) as if they were pitiable freaks. Every additional person who

gets that surgery adds to the marginalization of those who don't.

36) Treating your own normal body as being defective is an act of

self-hatred. (That doesn't mean you feel hatred for yourself... but the way

you feel about yourself is as much a result of such actions as a cause of

them.) Acting on this in a public way and flaunting the results before

everyone rubs this off on other people; it becomes not only self-hatred but

an act that carries hatred to other women. You're like

bleaching his skin and having his nose narrowed -- the message that sends to

other African- Americans is hardly a positive one.

37) What on Earth do you think you're really accomplishing by getting

implants? If you examine your goals, you may find they are not very

rational or realistic. Unless you're a professional model or are dedicating

your whole life to the goal of marrying an elderly millionaire, the implants

are probably not going to bring you much closer to what you really want.

What are you really after? You'd better take a hard look at that question

before you act on the assumption that implants will get it for you.

38) If you want more male attention, implants may increase the quantity but

only with a corresponding decrease in quality. You'll probably get your

biggest gains in approval among guys who are most prone to objectifying you,

and least prone to treating you as an equal. The guys who like implants the

best are those who prefer pornography to live women, and probably find

ordinary women a turn-off if they're not somehow artificialized by things

like fake hair, shaving, ridiculous shoes, and so on. Implants can be very

artificializing.

39) If you want to like your body better, the way to do it is to start

liking the body you've got better. If your mindset toward your body is

negative, no change of appearance will ever eliminate that! If you think it

will, you end up chasing an illusion. When you are in the habit of always

finding fault with your body, you will never run out of faults to find...

indeed, you'll only find more and more as you get older. It's a trap, and

changing your body won't get you out of it -- the one thing that will is to

change the fault-finding way of treating yourself. If I treated you that

way, I'd be an intolerable asshole... so why treat yourself that way? If

you keep hitting your forehead with a rock, that doesn't mean you need a

tougher forehead -- it means it's time to put down the rock.

40) If you want a spicier love life... Jesus Christ, if you think implants

will help there, I suggest you stick your head into a bucket of ice water

until you come to your senses. The only way implants ever help people's

love lives is as a temporary crutch to get over inhibitions caused by body

shame. This effect wears off. The only lasting way to remove such shame

and inhibition is to tackle them directly -- for instance, to just start

unconditionally refusing to view yourself as something to be ashamed of, and

then working with whatever obstacles come up in trying to stick to that.

It's slow to change but nothing can stop you if you stick to that decision.

(And incidentally, it just might revolutionize your whole life.)

41) There are studies that use psychological tests to measure self-esteem

changes after getting breast implants. Some found a slight improvement

after three years, other tests found no change at all. The tests that found

a slight improvement did not compare the sample group with a control group

of people who didn't get surgery, to check against how much people tend to

gain in self-esteem just by living. (Usually it's young people who have the

most trouble with self-esteem.)

42) The worst time to get implants is when you're young. You already have

a body that, in twenty years, you will wish you had. And yet when you're

older you may be far more immune to the wishful thinking that tells you that

a body part bought from a store shelf can improve your life. You'll be a

lot less easily embarrassed about yourself, too. Imagine yourself twenty or

forty years older and full of wisdom about life. What do you think that

wiser future self would tell you to do? For that matter, imagine if you

could ask God for an opinion. What do you think God would suggest as the

wisest and truest course for your life? If the answer you get is different

from what you think you want, this shows that something inside you actually

knows better. Ignore that deeper wisdom at your peril.

43) Big knockers, whether natural or artificial, can be a hindrance in many

physical activities. Making them bigger by choice is like hobbling yourself

with a too-small pair of shoes because you're embarrassed by big feet.

Proper support of fake boobs for physical activity is a more difficult

problem than support of natural ones is. They're less tolerant and less

adaptable. They get in the way a lot more than natural ones do because

they're more rigid. There is no such thing as an implant with the

resiliency of a real breast, no matter what some people claim.

44) Maybe you shouldn't believe those lists in tabloids of surgeries that

various celebrities have had. " Only a tiny percentage have the work done

[the tabloids] say " , says Dr. Harold Lancer, a Beverly Hills dermatologist

with major movie stars for customers. (Of course, he could be covering up

for them...) As far as I have been able to learn from the sources

available, most of the cosmetic surgery used by the stars is done on faces.

45) On the other hand, Hollywood certainly has no shortage of implants

among non-celebrity starlets. Watch some late night cable TV swill and

you'll learn to spot implants at a glance. If you sit through enough T & A

exploitation movies to really get a good clear idea of how implants usually

end up looking, I doubt very much that you will want to look that way

yourself. I would recommend that anyone who thinks they want implants

should try this before making a final decision. Anyone who can watch

something like, say, Caged Heat 3000 and still want to look that way is

weirder than I like to imagine.

46) Boob jobs cost a lot of money. If you're not rich, giving yourself

implants means depriving yourself of something else quite substantial, which

might do you more good.

47) Boob jobs are like stage makeup: they look good at a distance. They

look better on you from 50 feet than from 10 feet, better from 10 feet than

from one foot, better in a photograph or video than in real life, and better

with more clothing than they do with less. They're at their worst when the

distance is most intimate.

48) A lot of women inflict malnutrition on themselves because they think

something's wrong or shameful about how much they weigh. Other women

undergo mutilation because they think something's wrong or shameful about

the shape of their breasts, or other body parts. In the former case,

there's clearly something very flawed about the thought pattern that says

" If I punish my body enough, I will be happy. " Is the latter case really

very different?

If my 48 reasons aren't enough, here is a page with even more reasons sent

in to me by readers of this page.

>From time to time I get mail about this page saying things like, " But you

don't understand how hard it is to live with a flat chest. " Here is an open

letter to any woman who feels similarly.

(There used to be a discussion forum, but nonconstructive hostile bickering

pushed out the more positive uses, so I took it down. People aren't likely

to share support on sensitive issues in that kind of environment.)

A note to those who want to write angry letters saying " What gives you the

right to decide what someone else can do with her body? " I have not told

anyone what they can or can't do, I have only discussed the consequences of

different choices. Okay? Have we got that clear? The same goes for those

who want to accuse me of somehow bashing women, or implying that anyone who

considers implants must be insecure and inadequate. I said only that if you

feel that way, cosmetic surgery isn't the solution.

For hideous medical photos with all the gruesome details of how badly

implants can go wrong, see this site. And here is an interesting article by

a doctor who happened to be practicing in the town where implants were

invented, and may have gotten to see more cases of people made ill by

silicone than any other doctor. And here is a group for people who've

had trouble with saline implants to share support.

Some readers ask why I don't complain about other dangerous cosmetic

procedures. Here is a brief list of some other risky things people do to be

attractive, and reasons to avoid them:

Liposuction: the #1 cause of dead bodies in plastic surgeons' offices. It's

just too easy to create a drastic hemorrhage during the procedure. A few

years ago, the statistic was that something like one patient in 5000 was

dying of it. Also, recovery time is very prolonged.

Human Growth Hormone: evidence is increasing that far from " turning back the

clock " , HGH usage actually shortens your lifespan. And overuse can cause

disfiguring bone growth.

Steroids: if you're male, steroids can help you build bigger muscles, but

they can also give you troubles with aggressive behavior and they can also

actually shrink your genitals. If you're female, the muscle growth

difference is much more dramatic, but so are the side effects. (Do you

really want to have to shave every morning?)

Speaking of genital size, vacuum penis enlargers do work, but I'm told they

leave your penis with a weird unrealistic rubbery texture, and the more you

use them, the softer your erections get.

Facelifts have sometimes created side effects of extreme sensitivity to

light, noise, and pressure. On the other hand, facelifts have sometimes

been known to unexpectedly cure chronic migraine headaches. In either case,

over-facelifted people end up looking more like lizards than like mammals.

Hair transplants for baldness often produce very disappointing results, and

sometimes (especially if repeated) can end up killing off more of your hair

follicles than you were losing already. Scars can sometimes be quite

visible, and a poorly done job can make your scalp all bumpy. (To see how I

personally cope with male pattern baldness, take a look at my latest

haircut.)

People will do incredibly nasty stuff to their skin to attack wrinkles:

grinding off the skin surface with abrasives, burning it off with acid, etc.

One of the weirdest approaches is called Botox. That's short for botulism

toxin, one of the deadliest chemical poisons in nature. Minute amounts can

paralyze small facial muscles, which has a smoothing effect. You actually

want a paralyzed face?

I just learned of an appalling cosmetic medical abuse, which has apparently

been going on for decades with no particular monitoring of the long term

effects: perscribing massive doses of estrogen to girls in their early teens

who are worried about growing too tall. This simulates the effects on the

body of getting pregnant at that age, one outcome of which is to stunt your

growth so you never reach full adult size. Now it's coming out that women

who received this treatment as girls are prone to infertility, and even

without that problem, very few who've had this treatment are glad they did.

In addition, here are a couple more vanity medical procedures that are not

cosmetic, but have similar roles in our health system as easy money for

doctors who don't care about healing the sick:

In-vitro fertilization. Scientists are starting to realize that if you mash

together an egg and a sperm that won't go together by themselves, that might

be telling you that there's something wrong with the combination. At least

one type of IVF is now coming under tightened regulation because of the

extra birth defects coming out of it.

Another thing to be cautious about is LASIK vision correction. Even with a

perfect outcome, the vision correction is inferior to what was attainable

through the old RK procedure that nobody does any more, in that it can't

make your night vision sharp. And too many outcomes are less than perfect

-- it comes out bad in something like 3 to 5 percent of cases. And when

that happens, there is often no possible repair of the damage: your vision

is hosed forever. Doctors like it because, unlike RK, it's quick and

automated. But something as simple as an asymmetrical pupil can fool the

machine into mangling your eye.

And I might mention that ever since Viagra came out, the pharmaceutical

companies are putting bigger and bigger portions of their research into

" lifestyle " medications instead of health medications. Do they give a crap

how many thousands of poor people constantly die of tuberculosis or

dysentery? Not very much. They care about how many thousands of dollars

people will pay per year for the perfect weight loss pill or hair restorer

cream. The result is a coming wave of what you might call vanity

pharmaceuticals... and like Viagra, over-reliance on them is going to be

just as good for you as abusing any feel-good street drug is. The pharma

companies have chosen to become pushers.

Do breast enlarging pills and creams work? Apparently the answer is: not

really. Evidently they can produce a sort of temporary swelling, but they

do not produce actual growth. They do this by messing with your hormones,

which can have side effects; some of them contain ingredients that are

considered unsafe before menopause. A lot of disreputable ads for them have

been appearing lately, and at least some have been caught in lies such as

citing nonexistent studies of effectiveness.

Do vacuum breast enlargers work? It appears that they do, sort of. (In

fact, I recently learned that vacuum techniques have been promoted for

breast enlargement as long ago as 1870. Vacuum penis enlargers go back even

further.) Whether they have negative side effects like those of vacuum

penis enlargers I don't know yet. I did hear from one lady who was in a

clinical trial for an expensive new vacuum breast enlarging system called

Brava, and she had to quit because of how much it hurt her boobs (bruising,

rash). The claims on Brava's site are apparently less than honest in

revealing the results of that clinical trial.

Now that the Brava has been sold to the public for a while, a realistic

picture is starting to emerge, and results are mixed. Often the amount of

growth is minimal; in some cases it's substantial. Rashes are common, welts

and blisters are not too rare, and weird infections sometimes happen.

Antibacterial soap may reduce that problem. A few Brava users find that the

suction makes them start lactating. Those interested in the Brava should

probably check some of the criticism by frustrated users, such as this one:

Brav-argh. (And speaking of them, guess what's happened: the word

" brav-argh " has now been co-opted as a fake search keyword by sites selling

fake breast enlarging pills and creams.)

Number of women so far who have told me that they decided against getting a

boob job at least partly because of this page: 65

We are allowing too much of our culture and daily experience to be

overwhelmed by advertising, marketing, and cosmetics. As Faludi has

pointed out, nowadays even the definition of masculinity, let alone

femininity, has become mostly cosmetic. Let's start with our own lives as

the place to resist this trend.

> I found this website, and was quite surprised!

>

> http://www.cafepress.com/mafboobs

>

> It's called " Men Against Fake Boobs! " All profits made from the sales of

> MAFB products are donated to fight breast cancer. (We are " Men Against Fake

> Boobs, and Men For A Cure. " We support the both: www.nationalbreastcancer.org

> www.curebreastcancer.org )

>

> I found this site as I was mulling over some ideas related to how we can

> turn the tide against breast implants, to not only make women understand the

> very real dangers associated with them, but also my thoughts turned toward the

> men, and how we can garner their support to change how society views implants.

> I guess I was thinking that there was probably a group of men who really don't

> like implants at all, and if they are still single, might rather choose a

> natural silicone-less woman over a woman with implants. I'd love to exploit

> that, if I may use that word, in a way that helps all of us.

>

> I guess finding that website showed that at least someone else has had that

> thought before me!

>

> However, looking over these T-shirts, I can see where I would make some

> changes. The marketing student in me sees something missing where it comes to

> the men's T-shirts. I was thinking of something along the lines of a young

> guy going out to a bar wearing a shirt that says something like " WANTED: Real

> Woman for Real Man. Implanted need not apply. " Or ????? Just tossing out

> ideas here.

>

> I wonder if we can start a movement, with the men's help, that can start

> making a dent and start changing the tide against the idea that implants are

> at all sexy or desireable? I'd love it if we could start altering this

> perception that they are safe-- to be more in line with the fact that long

> term, they are a huge liability, and that natural women are a safer choice.

>

> I realize I am walking a fine line here....it's not meant to be negative

> toward us, but a way to reach out and start taking profits away from the

> implant industry and make that pendulum swing back the other way. We have got

> to get back to protecting our young women from making this very tragic

> mistake! If men can be educated to hate implants for what they do to our

> health, do you think we have a chance?

>

> We need to start while they are young, and make young, sensitive men

> understand the terrible price we pay. After all, if they go on to marry women

> who have implants, they will pay a heavy price themselves, in huge medical

> bills, marriage upheaval, possible risk to their children's health....

>

> Let's pray for a movement that grows against implants. I'd love to see some

> T-shirts and clothing lines come out for men that will take a stance against

> implants. After all, if men let women know that implants aren't cool, I

> wonder how many women will still want to get them?

> Patty

>

> __________________________________________________

>

February 24, 2006

Wow, that's pretty darn cool!!

>

> I found this website, and was quite surprised!

>

> http://www.cafepress.com/mafboobs

>

> It's called " Men Against Fake Boobs! " All profits made from the

sales of MAFB products are donated to fight breast cancer. (We

are " Men Against Fake Boobs, and Men For A Cure. " We support the

both: www.nationalbreastcancer.org www.curebreastcancer.org )

>

> I found this site as I was mulling over some ideas related to

how we can turn the tide against breast implants, to not only make

women understand the very real dangers associated with them, but

also my thoughts turned toward the men, and how we can garner their

support to change how society views implants. I guess I was

thinking that there was probably a group of men who really don't

like implants at all, and if they are still single, might rather

choose a natural silicone-less woman over a woman with implants.

I'd love to exploit that, if I may use that word, in a way that

helps all of us.

>

> I guess finding that website showed that at least someone else

has had that thought before me!

>

> However, looking over these T-shirts, I can see where I would

make some changes. The marketing student in me sees something

missing where it comes to the men's T-shirts. I was thinking of

something along the lines of a young guy going out to a bar wearing

a shirt that says something like " WANTED: Real Woman for Real Man.

Implanted need not apply. " Or ????? Just tossing out ideas here.

>

> I wonder if we can start a movement, with the men's help, that

can start making a dent and start changing the tide against the idea

that implants are at all sexy or desireable? I'd love it if we

could start altering this perception that they are safe-- to be more

in line with the fact that long term, they are a huge liability, and

that natural women are a safer choice.

>

> I realize I am walking a fine line here....it's not meant to be

negative toward us, but a way to reach out and start taking profits

away from the implant industry and make that pendulum swing back the

other way. We have got to get back to protecting our young women

from making this very tragic mistake! If men can be educated to

hate implants for what they do to our health, do you think we have a

chance?

>

> We need to start while they are young, and make young, sensitive

men understand the terrible price we pay. After all, if they go on

to marry women who have implants, they will pay a heavy price

themselves, in huge medical bills, marriage upheaval, possible risk

to their children's health....

>

> Let's pray for a movement that grows against implants. I'd love

to see some T-shirts and clothing lines come out for men that will

take a stance against implants. After all, if men let women know

that implants aren't cool, I wonder how many women will still want

to get them?

> Patty

>

> __________________________________________________

>

February 24, 2006

I just noticed that there is a link to this list down near the bottom!

Kenda

>

> 48 REASONS NOT TO GET A BOOB JOB:

>

> [ Warning: nudity below. And it ain't pretty. ]

> [ If you don't like adult language or you want censored pictures,

> go here for the AOL Special Edition version of this page. ]

>

> 1) According to the National Institute of Medicine, 25 to 40 percent of

> people who get breast implants end up needing another operation to correct

> something wrong with the first one. (The rate varied in particular studies,

> depending on things like how long women were monitored, the typical time

> being five years.)

> 2) A study by a maker of saline breast implants, Mentor, found that 27

> percent of implants put into breast cancer patients had to be taken back out

> again within three years, due to side effects. Another 13 percent had to

> have lesser corrective surgeries. The competing manufacturer McGhan has

> similar numbers. Even for healthy patients, both were forced to admit that

> " most women experienced at least one complication over the three year

> period " .

> 3) In general, breast cancer patients have complications with implants far

> more often than healthy people do. Many of the complications are about

> three times as likely for mastectomy reconstruction patients as for cosmetic

> augmentation patients. We regard this as socially the most acceptable and

> necessary time for implants to be used, but medically it is the most risky

> and unjustifiable time to use them.

> 4) Up to 9 percent of saline implants end up deflating within just three

> years, according to the Food and Drug Administration. The FDA also found

> that complications become more and more common for each year implants spend

> in the body.

> 5) Another FDA study found that even among women who had not complained of

> any perceived trouble with their implants, MRI scans showed two thirds of

> them have ruptured implants on at least one side. The rate was actually

> higher in 10 to 15 year old implants than with 20 year old ones, because the

> older ones were made with thicker containers. In 21 percent of women in the

> study, significant volumes of silicone were found to have migrated elsewhere

> in the body. Doctors removing implants often claim that they ruptured at

> the time of removal. This study makes me suspect, as some patients long

> have, that many doctors are lying about this for some reason, perhaps to

> avoid liability.

> 6) Though rare, it is not unknown for complications to be so severe that

> the breast ends up getting amputated. The chest wall can be injured. Your

> lungs and heart can be affected. You can end up dead.

> 7) They sometimes find cultures of microorganisms growing inside saline

> implants when they're removed. This is worrisome given that the newest

> implants contain vegetable oil... it could spoil. Saline, at least, is not

> a nutritious meal for bacteria. Even the silicone gel ones sometimes get

> some kind of mildewy looking stuff growing inside them... and each new fluid

> they've tried has been friendlier to microorganisms than the last one was.

> 8) If you're a European patient who has the option of oil-filled implants

> (these implants have not been approved in the US), British doctor Rahim

> Karjoo warns that oils leaking into the body will absorb calcium, and the

> resulting soaplike material, if it enters the bloodstream, can create fat

> emboli which can kill you without warning. The British government recently

> withdrew its approval for oil-filled implants and they will no longer be

> sold there.

> 9) Surgery in fatty tissues runs a much higher risk of difficult and

> dangerous infections taking root than surgery in lean tissue does.

> Infections with implants present are harder to treat than otherwise. In

> some cases the implant has to be taken out before the infection can be

> controlled. This problem affects about one breast augmentation patient out

> of 80.

> 10) So they replaced silicone implants with saline ones, avoiding the

> possible immunological problems associated with silicone gel leakage... and

> then the National Institute of Medicine decided that silicone has been

> " exonerated " and doesn't cause many of the problems it was accused of

> causing... So what -- somehow just about as many people have problems with

> saline implants as had trouble with silicone ones. The container is still

> silicone rubber, after all, which differs from silicone gel mostly just in

> the length of its molecules' polymer chains. Eventually, small flakes of

> silicone rubber come loose, and sometimes the chains break down chemically,

> yielding fluid silicone compounds, elemental silicon, and silica dust. (The

> operation often leaves stray talcum powder in the body, too.) The implant

> container can also release traces of heavy metals like lead and platinum

> (used as a catalyst in creating the silicone polymers), and carcinogenic

> solvents like xylene and toluene. A German study (J. Friemann, M. Bauer, et

> al) of the scar tissue surrounding removed implants found the tissue was

> commonly impregnated with chemicals from the implant, and also showed

> evidence of chronic inflammation occurring there.

> 11) And if the official line is that silicone is now exonerated, then why

> isn't it okay to inject silicone directly into the body without a container

> around it, like they used to back in 1960? No doctor would try that now...

> they could land in jail. Some doctors are of the opinion that no facility

> that accepts blood or organ donations should take any from women who have

> silicone in their bodies, whether it's in a container or not.

> 12) The " exoneration " of silicone and implants is based on a failure to

> link it to certain autoimmune diseases that some implant patients were

> diagnosed with: arthritis, lupus, sclerodoma, etc. Interestingly, the same

> symptoms (sore joints, weak muscles, fatigue, cognitive difficulties) keep

> leading to different diagnoses, none of which was provable in itself. The

> obvious conclusion is that the condition is a separate disease that somewhat

> resembles these others. One theory is that many of these symptoms might be

> caused by ethylene oxide, which was used to sterilize many implants after

> they were manufactured, possibly contaminating the material. They also

> found no link with breast cancer... but overall cancers were another matter.

> Two recent NIH studies of overall mortality of women with implants, one from

> the National Cancer Institute (Dr. Louise Brinton) and one from the FDA,

> found plenty of extra mortality relative to patients of other plastic

> surgeries. Causes included lung cancer, brain cancer, a few other cancers,

> other lung diseases, and an increased rate of suicide.

> 13) One of the fastest growing areas of medical practice is surgeons who

> specialize in repairing the errors and complications of boob jobs done by

> other doctors. " If a doctor tells you they don't have complications,

> they're either not operating or they're lying to you, " says Dr. Jack A.

> Friedland of sdale.

> 14) A lot of doctors doing boob jobs and other vanity surgery are

> half-assed quacks without proper qualifications. Most states allow anyone

> with a medical degree -- even dentists -- to take a weekend course and sell

> plastic surgery. They do it because it's easy money. Dr. Ervin Moss of New

> Jersey says, " You can't imagine how many specialist groups are lobbying

> against [laws requiring proper accreditation] as a threat to the bottom

> line. "

> 15) Can you imagine your doctor brushing off life-threatening complications

> and telling you " You look great! " when you ought to be heading for the

> emergency room? It's been known to happen in the cosmetic surgery biz...

> 16) You want health insurance coverage for other breast-related illnesses?

> Goooooooood luck.

> 17) The first time I had a chance to feel a pair of tits with implants in

> them, they felt like two blocks of cement covered with a quarter inch of

> skin. I was told it was an unusually high quality job, too.

> 18) They claim that the cement tit problem has been solved, and modern

> operations don't produce that kind of extreme hardening any more. Well,

> they still end up hardening sometimes. One doctor who trumpets the

> improvements over past techniques and calls saline implants " absolutely

> safe " ( Beraka of New York -- he gives plastic surgery advice on

> women.com and elsewhere) still admits that 5 to 8 percent can end up " as

> firm as your thigh " due to scar tissue... and that he sees " a lot of bad

> results " from other doctors. I think he's understating the problem rate...

> Mentor found that 9 percent of augmentations had serious " capsular

> contracture " (which causes hardening, and sometimes pain), sometimes bad

> enough to require reoperation.

>

> 19) The more we see blown-up boobs, the more we learn to recognize them

> instead of being fooled. The more we learn to recognize them, the less

> attractive they are. The more people are exposed to these bug-eye bosoms,

> the more often they are going to start seeing them as unattractive instead

> of as appealing. I've been seeing them that way for years now.

> 20) If I am not making myself clear, let me spell it out right now:

> implants are fucking ugly! Implants only look good on the level of first

> impressions. Expect people in your life to react with an initial charge

> followed by a gradual accumulation of disgust. Anyone who likes you over

> the long term will do so in spite of them, not because of them -- the same

> as they would if you had a glass eye.

>

> 21) Lots of men have written me in response to this page and said they

> agree that implants are gross... but after tens of thousands of hits here,

> only a handful of men ever wrote to tell me they disagree and think implants

> are attractive... and sometimes I can't even be sure because the mail

> they've written is so inarticulate. (The total number of such messages

> written in proper English, so far, is about three.) From other mail I get,

> it seems to be very commonly the case that when women want implants, it's

> the men in their lives who are trying to talk them out of it, often without

> success. Our stereotypes tell us to expect the opposite -- men are supposed

> to be thrilled by this kind of " improvement " . If our assumptions are

> backwards on this, how realistic is the rest of our thinking about implants?

> How much of what you look forward to after you have your implants is not

> going to work out the way you expect, because it's based on that kind of

> assumption?

> 22) If you envy women with big jugs, talk to them... a lot of them wish

> they could have smaller ones. (By the way, I wouldn't get breast reduction

> surgery either unless you're desperate. The surgery is more serious and, in

> the short term, probably more risky than breast enhancement is -- there are

> cases where the nipple, after being unplugged and stuck in a new position,

> dies and rots away -- but at least the risk is over once it heals.)

> 23) If you think being made fun of for being flat is bad... well, some

> women tell me that the amount of ridicule they experienced got worse, not

> better, after getting implants. Remember the old proverb about the color of

> the grass on the other side of the fence.

> 24) Any man who has a higher opinion of your body after you get implants

> will probably also have a lower opinion of your mind. Or do you imagine

> he'll never know? Fat chance. If they're saline and not overfilled to the

> point where they become unrealistically firm, he'll notice the sloshing.

> 25) An awful lot of implant jobs come out crooked, uneven, or weird

> looking. An awful lot of women think it's worth that, just to have the

> size. Does that make any sense to you? It doesn't to me.

>

> 26) If you're embarrassed because your titties are itty bitty and you want

> to do something about it... don't forget that the less natural breast tissue

> you start out with, the less convincing an implant job will look. The only

> ones that look halfway decent are when what's added is less than what was

> already there.

> 27) Fashions in body shape change. A lot of people nowadays are going to

> feel real stupid in 20 years when they look at the tattoos they've got...

> and you can bet the same is going to be true of a lot of cosmetic surgery.

> It happened with nose jobs: now there are a lot of women with nostrils

> aimed forward like headlights, making them look like a new species of pig.

> They don't do nose jobs that way any more, because it looks awful. Yet

> thousands paid to have it done that way, because that was the style at the

> time. Says one Hollywood actress: " That whole big chest thing is so

> eighties. "

>

> 28) Speaking of fashions... some people have pointed out that strange,

> uncomfortable, weird-looking, fetishistic, and dangerous women's fashions

> tend to have an upsurge after any period where there are improvements in

> women's rights. We are in such a period now. I think implants have become

> such a fashion. In America, we've gotten accustomed to implants that, to

> someone from outside our culture -- even from a place as similar as England

> or Australia -- look bizarre and hideous.

> 29) However fashions go, when you get old, you're gonna look really weird

> and implausible. They call it the " double bubble " look -- each breast

> shaped sort of like the letter B. (That term is also used for a

> complication in which the underside of the breast has a second fold, like a

> double chin.)

> 30) Then again maybe you won't, because your implants probably won't last

> until then. Those who know say that anyone who gets implants should not

> keep them more than ten or fifteen years without either removing them or

> replacing them with a fresh set. This is because the container, though it's

> rugged when new, loses its strength and eventually becomes fragile. That

> means more surgery, with more expense and more risk... but not as much risk

> as leaving the old ones in place until they break or their contents leak

> out. One reason the rate of implant surgery keeps rising is because at

> least half of them are repeats.

> 31) Whether you replace your implants or take them out, it's going to be

> quite a challenge to find any way, as an elderly woman, to have halfway

> natural looking breasts. If you have any plans to ever get old, bear in

> mind that by getting implants now you may be throwing away any chance of not

> looking deformed at that age.

> 32) You have to protect your implants. A simple fall that would ordinarily

> only give you a bruising can create a major medical crisis if an implant

> gives way. The longer it's been in you, the more easily it will rupture.

> Putting implants beneath the muscle -- something that is becoming popular

> because the shape comes out less obviously fake that way -- means that

> eventually just using your shoulder strongly will put you at risk (assuming

> that your shoulder still has its strength after the muscle has been

> distorted). The extra care you need to protect and maintain the implants

> makes you just a little bit crippled as long as you have them.

>

> 33) Any surgery on breasts can, and often does, damage nerves and reduce

> skin sensation. The amount of loss is unpredictable. The damage can't be

> reversed. Attempts to reduce this effect have a tradeoff: they increase the

> visibility of the surgical scar. Complete numbness of the nipple is not

> unknown. In a smaller number of cases, the side effect is the opposite:

> painful hypersensitivity to touch.

> 34) If you feel inadequate as a woman, the problem to address is in your

> head, not your chest. Self esteem first, cosmetics after! If you ignore

> that, you are doomed to disappointment. A lot of people who think a

> cosmetic change like this is going to fix their lives end up despondent and

> suicidal when they find they're still the same person with the same life.

> This is such a common problem that cosmetic surgeons have to pay a lot of

> attention to weeding out patients who might be suicide risks. Getting chest

> surgery to improve your self-esteem is like buying a girdle to improve your

> eyesight: you're addressing the wrong problem.

> 35) Breasts probably have a wider range of natural healthy variation than

> any other body part... and we seem to be trying to forget this. If we act

> as if only one subset of the range of variation is good -- as the

> entertainment and advertising industries are currently doing -- we condone

> and reinforce a mindset that says ordinary people are defective. We distort

> our sense of what is normal and end up treating healthy people (including

> ourselves) as if they were pitiable freaks. Every additional person who

> gets that surgery adds to the marginalization of those who don't.

> 36) Treating your own normal body as being defective is an act of

> self-hatred. (That doesn't mean you feel hatred for yourself... but the way

> you feel about yourself is as much a result of such actions as a cause of

> them.) Acting on this in a public way and flaunting the results before

> everyone rubs this off on other people; it becomes not only self-hatred but

> an act that carries hatred to other women. You're like

> bleaching his skin and having his nose narrowed -- the message that sends to

> other African- Americans is hardly a positive one.

> 37) What on Earth do you think you're really accomplishing by getting

> implants? If you examine your goals, you may find they are not very

> rational or realistic. Unless you're a professional model or are dedicating

> your whole life to the goal of marrying an elderly millionaire, the implants

> are probably not going to bring you much closer to what you really want.

> What are you really after? You'd better take a hard look at that question

> before you act on the assumption that implants will get it for you.

> 38) If you want more male attention, implants may increase the quantity but

> only with a corresponding decrease in quality. You'll probably get your

> biggest gains in approval among guys who are most prone to objectifying you,

> and least prone to treating you as an equal. The guys who like implants the

> best are those who prefer pornography to live women, and probably find

> ordinary women a turn-off if they're not somehow artificialized by things

> like fake hair, shaving, ridiculous shoes, and so on. Implants can be very

> artificializing.

> 39) If you want to like your body better, the way to do it is to start

> liking the body you've got better. If your mindset toward your body is

> negative, no change of appearance will ever eliminate that! If you think it

> will, you end up chasing an illusion. When you are in the habit of always

> finding fault with your body, you will never run out of faults to find...

> indeed, you'll only find more and more as you get older. It's a trap, and

> changing your body won't get you out of it -- the one thing that will is to

> change the fault-finding way of treating yourself. If I treated you that

> way, I'd be an intolerable asshole... so why treat yourself that way? If

> you keep hitting your forehead with a rock, that doesn't mean you need a

> tougher forehead -- it means it's time to put down the rock.

> 40) If you want a spicier love life... Jesus Christ, if you think implants

> will help there, I suggest you stick your head into a bucket of ice water

> until you come to your senses. The only way implants ever help people's

> love lives is as a temporary crutch to get over inhibitions caused by body

> shame. This effect wears off. The only lasting way to remove such shame

> and inhibition is to tackle them directly -- for instance, to just start

> unconditionally refusing to view yourself as something to be ashamed of, and

> then working with whatever obstacles come up in trying to stick to that.

> It's slow to change but nothing can stop you if you stick to that decision.

> (And incidentally, it just might revolutionize your whole life.)

> 41) There are studies that use psychological tests to measure self-esteem

> changes after getting breast implants. Some found a slight improvement

> after three years, other tests found no change at all. The tests that found

> a slight improvement did not compare the sample group with a control group

> of people who didn't get surgery, to check against how much people tend to

> gain in self-esteem just by living. (Usually it's young people who have the

> most trouble with self-esteem.)

> 42) The worst time to get implants is when you're young. You already have

> a body that, in twenty years, you will wish you had. And yet when you're

> older you may be far more immune to the wishful thinking that tells you that

> a body part bought from a store shelf can improve your life. You'll be a

> lot less easily embarrassed about yourself, too. Imagine yourself twenty or

> forty years older and full of wisdom about life. What do you think that

> wiser future self would tell you to do? For that matter, imagine if you

> could ask God for an opinion. What do you think God would suggest as the

> wisest and truest course for your life? If the answer you get is different

> from what you think you want, this shows that something inside you actually

> knows better. Ignore that deeper wisdom at your peril.

> 43) Big knockers, whether natural or artificial, can be a hindrance in many

> physical activities. Making them bigger by choice is like hobbling yourself

> with a too-small pair of shoes because you're embarrassed by big feet.

> Proper support of fake boobs for physical activity is a more difficult

> problem than support of natural ones is. They're less tolerant and less

> adaptable. They get in the way a lot more than natural ones do because

> they're more rigid. There is no such thing as an implant with the

> resiliency of a real breast, no matter what some people claim.

>

> 44) Maybe you shouldn't believe those lists in tabloids of surgeries that

> various celebrities have had. " Only a tiny percentage have the work done

> [the tabloids] say " , says Dr. Harold Lancer, a Beverly Hills dermatologist

> with major movie stars for customers. (Of course, he could be covering up

> for them...) As far as I have been able to learn from the sources

> available, most of the cosmetic surgery used by the stars is done on faces.

> 45) On the other hand, Hollywood certainly has no shortage of implants

> among non-celebrity starlets. Watch some late night cable TV swill and

> you'll learn to spot implants at a glance. If you sit through enough T & A

> exploitation movies to really get a good clear idea of how implants usually

> end up looking, I doubt very much that you will want to look that way

> yourself. I would recommend that anyone who thinks they want implants

> should try this before making a final decision. Anyone who can watch

> something like, say, Caged Heat 3000 and still want to look that way is

> weirder than I like to imagine.

> 46) Boob jobs cost a lot of money. If you're not rich, giving yourself

> implants means depriving yourself of something else quite substantial, which

> might do you more good.

> 47) Boob jobs are like stage makeup: they look good at a distance. They

> look better on you from 50 feet than from 10 feet, better from 10 feet than

> from one foot, better in a photograph or video than in real life, and better

> with more clothing than they do with less. They're at their worst when the

> distance is most intimate.

>

> 48) A lot of women inflict malnutrition on themselves because they think

> something's wrong or shameful about how much they weigh. Other women

> undergo mutilation because they think something's wrong or shameful about

> the shape of their breasts, or other body parts. In the former case,

> there's clearly something very flawed about the thought pattern that says

> " If I punish my body enough, I will be happy. " Is the latter case really

> very different?

> If my 48 reasons aren't enough, here is a page with even more reasons sent

> in to me by readers of this page.

>

>> From time to time I get mail about this page saying things like, " But you

> don't understand how hard it is to live with a flat chest. " Here is an open

> letter to any woman who feels similarly.

>

> (There used to be a discussion forum, but nonconstructive hostile bickering

> pushed out the more positive uses, so I took it down. People aren't likely

> to share support on sensitive issues in that kind of environment.)

>

> A note to those who want to write angry letters saying " What gives you the

> right to decide what someone else can do with her body? " I have not told

> anyone what they can or can't do, I have only discussed the consequences of

> different choices. Okay? Have we got that clear? The same goes for those

> who want to accuse me of somehow bashing women, or implying that anyone who

> considers implants must be insecure and inadequate. I said only that if you

> feel that way, cosmetic surgery isn't the solution.

>

> For hideous medical photos with all the gruesome details of how badly

> implants can go wrong, see this site. And here is an interesting article by

> a doctor who happened to be practicing in the town where implants were

> invented, and may have gotten to see more cases of people made ill by

> silicone than any other doctor. And here is a group for people who've

> had trouble with saline implants to share support.

>

> Some readers ask why I don't complain about other dangerous cosmetic

> procedures. Here is a brief list of some other risky things people do to be

> attractive, and reasons to avoid them:

>

> Liposuction: the #1 cause of dead bodies in plastic surgeons' offices. It's

> just too easy to create a drastic hemorrhage during the procedure. A few

> years ago, the statistic was that something like one patient in 5000 was

> dying of it. Also, recovery time is very prolonged.

> Human Growth Hormone: evidence is increasing that far from " turning back the

> clock " , HGH usage actually shortens your lifespan. And overuse can cause

> disfiguring bone growth.

> Steroids: if you're male, steroids can help you build bigger muscles, but

> they can also give you troubles with aggressive behavior and they can also

> actually shrink your genitals. If you're female, the muscle growth

> difference is much more dramatic, but so are the side effects. (Do you

> really want to have to shave every morning?)

> Speaking of genital size, vacuum penis enlargers do work, but I'm told they

> leave your penis with a weird unrealistic rubbery texture, and the more you

> use them, the softer your erections get.

> Facelifts have sometimes created side effects of extreme sensitivity to

> light, noise, and pressure. On the other hand, facelifts have sometimes

> been known to unexpectedly cure chronic migraine headaches. In either case,

> over-facelifted people end up looking more like lizards than like mammals.

> Hair transplants for baldness often produce very disappointing results, and

> sometimes (especially if repeated) can end up killing off more of your hair

> follicles than you were losing already. Scars can sometimes be quite

> visible, and a poorly done job can make your scalp all bumpy. (To see how I

> personally cope with male pattern baldness, take a look at my latest

> haircut.)

> People will do incredibly nasty stuff to their skin to attack wrinkles:

> grinding off the skin surface with abrasives, burning it off with acid, etc.

> One of the weirdest approaches is called Botox. That's short for botulism

> toxin, one of the deadliest chemical poisons in nature. Minute amounts can

> paralyze small facial muscles, which has a smoothing effect. You actually

> want a paralyzed face?

> I just learned of an appalling cosmetic medical abuse, which has apparently

> been going on for decades with no particular monitoring of the long term

> effects: perscribing massive doses of estrogen to girls in their early teens

> who are worried about growing too tall. This simulates the effects on the

> body of getting pregnant at that age, one outcome of which is to stunt your

> growth so you never reach full adult size. Now it's coming out that women

> who received this treatment as girls are prone to infertility, and even

> without that problem, very few who've had this treatment are glad they did.

> In addition, here are a couple more vanity medical procedures that are not

> cosmetic, but have similar roles in our health system as easy money for

> doctors who don't care about healing the sick:

>

> In-vitro fertilization. Scientists are starting to realize that if you mash

> together an egg and a sperm that won't go together by themselves, that might

> be telling you that there's something wrong with the combination. At least

> one type of IVF is now coming under tightened regulation because of the

> extra birth defects coming out of it.

> Another thing to be cautious about is LASIK vision correction. Even with a

> perfect outcome, the vision correction is inferior to what was attainable

> through the old RK procedure that nobody does any more, in that it can't

> make your night vision sharp. And too many outcomes are less than perfect

> -- it comes out bad in something like 3 to 5 percent of cases. And when

> that happens, there is often no possible repair of the damage: your vision

> is hosed forever. Doctors like it because, unlike RK, it's quick and

> automated. But something as simple as an asymmetrical pupil can fool the

> machine into mangling your eye.

> And I might mention that ever since Viagra came out, the pharmaceutical

> companies are putting bigger and bigger portions of their research into

> " lifestyle " medications instead of health medications. Do they give a crap

> how many thousands of poor people constantly die of tuberculosis or

> dysentery? Not very much. They care about how many thousands of dollars

> people will pay per year for the perfect weight loss pill or hair restorer

> cream. The result is a coming wave of what you might call vanity

> pharmaceuticals... and like Viagra, over-reliance on them is going to be

> just as good for you as abusing any feel-good street drug is. The pharma

> companies have chosen to become pushers.

> Do breast enlarging pills and creams work? Apparently the answer is: not

> really. Evidently they can produce a sort of temporary swelling, but they

> do not produce actual growth. They do this by messing with your hormones,

> which can have side effects; some of them contain ingredients that are

> considered unsafe before menopause. A lot of disreputable ads for them have

> been appearing lately, and at least some have been caught in lies such as

> citing nonexistent studies of effectiveness.

>

> Do vacuum breast enlargers work? It appears that they do, sort of. (In

> fact, I recently learned that vacuum techniques have been promoted for

> breast enlargement as long ago as 1870. Vacuum penis enlargers go back even

> further.) Whether they have negative side effects like those of vacuum

> penis enlargers I don't know yet. I did hear from one lady who was in a

> clinical trial for an expensive new vacuum breast enlarging system called

> Brava, and she had to quit because of how much it hurt her boobs (bruising,

> rash). The claims on Brava's site are apparently less than honest in

> revealing the results of that clinical trial.

>

> Now that the Brava has been sold to the public for a while, a realistic

> picture is starting to emerge, and results are mixed. Often the amount of

> growth is minimal; in some cases it's substantial. Rashes are common, welts

> and blisters are not too rare, and weird infections sometimes happen.

> Antibacterial soap may reduce that problem. A few Brava users find that the

> suction makes them start lactating. Those interested in the Brava should

> probably check some of the criticism by frustrated users, such as this one:

> Brav-argh. (And speaking of them, guess what's happened: the word

> " brav-argh " has now been co-opted as a fake search keyword by sites selling

> fake breast enlarging pills and creams.)

>

> Number of women so far who have told me that they decided against getting a

> boob job at least partly because of this page: 65

>

> We are allowing too much of our culture and daily experience to be

> overwhelmed by advertising, marketing, and cosmetics. As Faludi has

> pointed out, nowadays even the definition of masculinity, let alone

> femininity, has become mostly cosmetic. Let's start with our own lives as

> the place to resist this trend.

>

>> I found this website, and was quite surprised!

>>

>> http://www.cafepress.com/mafboobs

>>

>> It's called " Men Against Fake Boobs! " All profits made from the sales of

>> MAFB products are donated to fight breast cancer. (We are " Men Against Fake

>> Boobs, and Men For A Cure. " We support the both: www.nationalbreastcancer.org

>> www.curebreastcancer.org )

>>

>> I found this site as I was mulling over some ideas related to how we can

>> turn the tide against breast implants, to not only make women understand the

>> very real dangers associated with them, but also my thoughts turned toward

>> the

>> men, and how we can garner their support to change how society views

>> implants.

>> I guess I was thinking that there was probably a group of men who really

>> don't

>> like implants at all, and if they are still single, might rather choose a

>> natural silicone-less woman over a woman with implants. I'd love to exploit

>> that, if I may use that word, in a way that helps all of us.

>>

>> I guess finding that website showed that at least someone else has had that

>> thought before me!

>>

>> However, looking over these T-shirts, I can see where I would make some

>> changes. The marketing student in me sees something missing where it comes

>> to

>> the men's T-shirts. I was thinking of something along the lines of a young

>> guy going out to a bar wearing a shirt that says something like " WANTED: Real

>> Woman for Real Man. Implanted need not apply. " Or ????? Just tossing out

>> ideas here.

>>

>> I wonder if we can start a movement, with the men's help, that can start

>> making a dent and start changing the tide against the idea that implants are

>> at all sexy or desireable? I'd love it if we could start altering this

>> perception that they are safe-- to be more in line with the fact that long

>> term, they are a huge liability, and that natural women are a safer choice.

>>

>> I realize I am walking a fine line here....it's not meant to be negative

>> toward us, but a way to reach out and start taking profits away from the

>> implant industry and make that pendulum swing back the other way. We have

>> got

>> to get back to protecting our young women from making this very tragic

>> mistake! If men can be educated to hate implants for what they do to our

>> health, do you think we have a chance?

>>

>> We need to start while they are young, and make young, sensitive men

>> understand the terrible price we pay. After all, if they go on to marry

>> women

>> who have implants, they will pay a heavy price themselves, in huge medical

>> bills, marriage upheaval, possible risk to their children's health....

>>

>> Let's pray for a movement that grows against implants. I'd love to see

>> some

>> T-shirts and clothing lines come out for men that will take a stance against

>> implants. After all, if men let women know that implants aren't cool, I

>> wonder how many women will still want to get them?

>> Patty

>>

>> __________________________________________________

>>

February 24, 2006

Yup, a couple of years ago I wrote to this guy and asked him if he

would link to us....he was very nice and said yes!

Patty

--- In , Kenda Skaggs <skaggs@...>

wrote:

>

> I just noticed that there is a link to this list down near the

bottom!

>

> Kenda

>

> >

> > 48 REASONS NOT TO GET A BOOB JOB:

> >

> > [ Warning: nudity below. And it ain't pretty. ]

> > [ If you don't like adult language or you want censored pictures,

> > go here for the AOL Special Edition version of this page. ]

> >

> > 1) According to the National Institute of Medicine, 25 to 40

percent of

> > people who get breast implants end up needing another operation

to correct

> > something wrong with the first one. (The rate varied in

particular studies,

> > depending on things like how long women were monitored, the

typical time

> > being five years.)

> > 2) A study by a maker of saline breast implants, Mentor, found

that 27

> > percent of implants put into breast cancer patients had to be

taken back out

> > again within three years, due to side effects. Another 13

percent had to

> > have lesser corrective surgeries. The competing manufacturer

McGhan has

> > similar numbers. Even for healthy patients, both were forced to

admit that

> > " most women experienced at least one complication over the three

year

> > period " .

> > 3) In general, breast cancer patients have complications with

implants far

> > more often than healthy people do. Many of the complications

are about

> > three times as likely for mastectomy reconstruction patients as

for cosmetic

> > augmentation patients. We regard this as socially the most

acceptable and

> > necessary time for implants to be used, but medically it is the

most risky

> > and unjustifiable time to use them.

> > 4) Up to 9 percent of saline implants end up deflating within

just three

> > years, according to the Food and Drug Administration. The FDA

also found

> > that complications become more and more common for each year

implants spend

> > in the body.

> > 5) Another FDA study found that even among women who had not

complained of

> > any perceived trouble with their implants, MRI scans showed two

thirds of

> > them have ruptured implants on at least one side. The rate was

actually

> > higher in 10 to 15 year old implants than with 20 year old ones,

because the

> > older ones were made with thicker containers. In 21 percent of

women in the

> > study, significant volumes of silicone were found to have

migrated elsewhere

> > in the body. Doctors removing implants often claim that they

ruptured at

> > the time of removal. This study makes me suspect, as some

patients long

> > have, that many doctors are lying about this for some reason,

perhaps to

> > avoid liability.

> > 6) Though rare, it is not unknown for complications to be so

severe that

> > the breast ends up getting amputated. The chest wall can be

injured. Your

> > lungs and heart can be affected. You can end up dead.

> > 7) They sometimes find cultures of microorganisms growing

inside saline

> > implants when they're removed. This is worrisome given that the

newest

> > implants contain vegetable oil... it could spoil. Saline, at

least, is not

> > a nutritious meal for bacteria. Even the silicone gel ones

sometimes get

> > some kind of mildewy looking stuff growing inside them... and

each new fluid

> > they've tried has been friendlier to microorganisms than the

last one was.

> > 8) If you're a European patient who has the option of oil-

filled implants

> > (these implants have not been approved in the US), British

doctor Rahim

> > Karjoo warns that oils leaking into the body will absorb

calcium, and the

> > resulting soaplike material, if it enters the bloodstream, can

create fat

> > emboli which can kill you without warning. The British

government recently

> > withdrew its approval for oil-filled implants and they will no

longer be

> > sold there.

> > 9) Surgery in fatty tissues runs a much higher risk of

difficult and

> > dangerous infections taking root than surgery in lean tissue

does.

> > Infections with implants present are harder to treat than

otherwise. In

> > some cases the implant has to be taken out before the infection

can be

> > controlled. This problem affects about one breast augmentation

patient out

> > of 80.

> > 10) So they replaced silicone implants with saline ones,

avoiding the

> > possible immunological problems associated with silicone gel

leakage... and

> > then the National Institute of Medicine decided that silicone

has been

> > " exonerated " and doesn't cause many of the problems it was

accused of

> > causing... So what -- somehow just about as many people have

problems with

> > saline implants as had trouble with silicone ones. The

container is still

> > silicone rubber, after all, which differs from silicone gel

mostly just in

> > the length of its molecules' polymer chains. Eventually, small

flakes of

> > silicone rubber come loose, and sometimes the chains break down

chemically,

> > yielding fluid silicone compounds, elemental silicon, and silica

dust. (The

> > operation often leaves stray talcum powder in the body, too.)

The implant

> > container can also release traces of heavy metals like lead and

platinum

> > (used as a catalyst in creating the silicone polymers), and

carcinogenic

> > solvents like xylene and toluene. A German study (J. Friemann,

M. Bauer, et

> > al) of the scar tissue surrounding removed implants found the

tissue was

> > commonly impregnated with chemicals from the implant, and also

showed

> > evidence of chronic inflammation occurring there.

> > 11) And if the official line is that silicone is now

exonerated, then why

> > isn't it okay to inject silicone directly into the body without

a container

> > around it, like they used to back in 1960? No doctor would try

that now...

> > they could land in jail. Some doctors are of the opinion that

no facility

> > that accepts blood or organ donations should take any from women

who have

> > silicone in their bodies, whether it's in a container or not.

> > 12) The " exoneration " of silicone and implants is based on a

failure to

> > link it to certain autoimmune diseases that some implant

patients were

> > diagnosed with: arthritis, lupus, sclerodoma, etc.

Interestingly, the same

> > symptoms (sore joints, weak muscles, fatigue, cognitive

difficulties) keep

> > leading to different diagnoses, none of which was provable in

itself. The

> > obvious conclusion is that the condition is a separate disease

that somewhat

> > resembles these others. One theory is that many of these

symptoms might be

> > caused by ethylene oxide, which was used to sterilize many

implants after

> > they were manufactured, possibly contaminating the material.

They also

> > found no link with breast cancer... but overall cancers were

another matter.

> > Two recent NIH studies of overall mortality of women with

implants, one from

> > the National Cancer Institute (Dr. Louise Brinton) and one from

the FDA,

> > found plenty of extra mortality relative to patients of other

plastic

> > surgeries. Causes included lung cancer, brain cancer, a few

other cancers,

> > other lung diseases, and an increased rate of suicide.

> > 13) One of the fastest growing areas of medical practice is

surgeons who

> > specialize in repairing the errors and complications of boob

jobs done by

> > other doctors. " If a doctor tells you they don't have

complications,

> > they're either not operating or they're lying to you, " says Dr.

Jack A.

> > Friedland of sdale.

> > 14) A lot of doctors doing boob jobs and other vanity surgery

are

> > half-assed quacks without proper qualifications. Most states

allow anyone

> > with a medical degree -- even dentists -- to take a weekend

course and sell

> > plastic surgery. They do it because it's easy money. Dr. Ervin

Moss of New

> > Jersey says, " You can't imagine how many specialist groups are

lobbying

> > against [laws requiring proper accreditation] as a threat to the

bottom

> > line. "

> > 15) Can you imagine your doctor brushing off life-threatening

complications

> > and telling you " You look great! " when you ought to be heading

for the

> > emergency room? It's been known to happen in the cosmetic

surgery biz...

> > 16) You want health insurance coverage for other breast-related

illnesses?

> > Goooooooood luck.

> > 17) The first time I had a chance to feel a pair of tits with

implants in

> > them, they felt like two blocks of cement covered with a quarter

inch of

> > skin. I was told it was an unusually high quality job, too.

> > 18) They claim that the cement tit problem has been solved, and

modern

> > operations don't produce that kind of extreme hardening any

more. Well,

> > they still end up hardening sometimes. One doctor who trumpets

the

> > improvements over past techniques and calls saline

implants " absolutely

> > safe " ( Beraka of New York -- he gives plastic surgery

advice on

> > women.com and elsewhere) still admits that 5 to 8 percent can

end up " as

> > firm as your thigh " due to scar tissue... and that he sees " a

lot of bad

> > results " from other doctors. I think he's understating the

problem rate...

> > Mentor found that 9 percent of augmentations had

serious " capsular

> > contracture " (which causes hardening, and sometimes pain),

sometimes bad

> > enough to require reoperation.

> >

> > 19) The more we see blown-up boobs, the more we learn to

recognize them

> > instead of being fooled. The more we learn to recognize them,

the less

> > attractive they are. The more people are exposed to these bug-

eye bosoms,

> > the more often they are going to start seeing them as

unattractive instead

> > of as appealing. I've been seeing them that way for years now.

> > 20) If I am not making myself clear, let me spell it out right

now:

> > implants are fucking ugly! Implants only look good on the level

of first

> > impressions. Expect people in your life to react with an

initial charge

> > followed by a gradual accumulation of disgust. Anyone who likes

you over

> > the long term will do so in spite of them, not because of them --

the same

> > as they would if you had a glass eye.

> >

> > 21) Lots of men have written me in response to this page and

said they

> > agree that implants are gross... but after tens of thousands of

hits here,

> > only a handful of men ever wrote to tell me they disagree and

think implants

> > are attractive... and sometimes I can't even be sure because the

mail

> > they've written is so inarticulate. (The total number of such

messages

> > written in proper English, so far, is about three.) From other

mail I get,

> > it seems to be very commonly the case that when women want

implants, it's

> > the men in their lives who are trying to talk them out of it,

often without

> > success. Our stereotypes tell us to expect the opposite -- men

are supposed

> > to be thrilled by this kind of " improvement " . If our

assumptions are

> > backwards on this, how realistic is the rest of our thinking

about implants?

> > How much of what you look forward to after you have your

implants is not

> > going to work out the way you expect, because it's based on that

kind of

> > assumption?

> > 22) If you envy women with big jugs, talk to them... a lot of

them wish

> > they could have smaller ones. (By the way, I wouldn't get

breast reduction

> > surgery either unless you're desperate. The surgery is more

serious and, in

> > the short term, probably more risky than breast enhancement is --

there are

> > cases where the nipple, after being unplugged and stuck in a new

position,

> > dies and rots away -- but at least the risk is over once it

heals.)

> > 23) If you think being made fun of for being flat is bad...

well, some

> > women tell me that the amount of ridicule they experienced got

worse, not

> > better, after getting implants. Remember the old proverb about

the color of

> > the grass on the other side of the fence.

> > 24) Any man who has a higher opinion of your body after you get

implants

> > will probably also have a lower opinion of your mind. Or do you

imagine

> > he'll never know? Fat chance. If they're saline and not

overfilled to the

> > point where they become unrealistically firm, he'll notice the

sloshing.

> > 25) An awful lot of implant jobs come out crooked, uneven, or

weird

> > looking. An awful lot of women think it's worth that, just to

have the

> > size. Does that make any sense to you? It doesn't to me.

> >

> > 26) If you're embarrassed because your titties are itty bitty

and you want

> > to do something about it... don't forget that the less natural

breast tissue

> > you start out with, the less convincing an implant job will

look. The only

> > ones that look halfway decent are when what's added is less than

what was

> > already there.

> > 27) Fashions in body shape change. A lot of people nowadays

are going to

> > feel real stupid in 20 years when they look at the tattoos

they've got...

> > and you can bet the same is going to be true of a lot of

cosmetic surgery.

> > It happened with nose jobs: now there are a lot of women with

nostrils

> > aimed forward like headlights, making them look like a new

species of pig.

> > They don't do nose jobs that way any more, because it looks

awful. Yet

> > thousands paid to have it done that way, because that was the

style at the

> > time. Says one Hollywood actress: " That whole big chest thing

is so

> > eighties. "

> >

> > 28) Speaking of fashions... some people have pointed out that

strange,

> > uncomfortable, weird-looking, fetishistic, and dangerous women's

fashions

> > tend to have an upsurge after any period where there are

improvements in

> > women's rights. We are in such a period now. I think implants

have become

> > such a fashion. In America, we've gotten accustomed to implants

that, to

> > someone from outside our culture -- even from a place as similar

as England

> > or Australia -- look bizarre and hideous.

> > 29) However fashions go, when you get old, you're gonna look

really weird

> > and implausible. They call it the " double bubble " look -- each

breast

> > shaped sort of like the letter B. (That term is also used for a

> > complication in which the underside of the breast has a second

fold, like a

> > double chin.)

> > 30) Then again maybe you won't, because your implants probably

won't last

> > until then. Those who know say that anyone who gets implants

should not

> > keep them more than ten or fifteen years without either removing

them or

> > replacing them with a fresh set. This is because the container,

though it's

> > rugged when new, loses its strength and eventually becomes

fragile. That

> > means more surgery, with more expense and more risk... but not

as much risk

> > as leaving the old ones in place until they break or their

contents leak

> > out. One reason the rate of implant surgery keeps rising is

because at

> > least half of them are repeats.

> > 31) Whether you replace your implants or take them out, it's

going to be

> > quite a challenge to find any way, as an elderly woman, to have

halfway

> > natural looking breasts. If you have any plans to ever get old,

bear in

> > mind that by getting implants now you may be throwing away any

chance of not

> > looking deformed at that age.

> > 32) You have to protect your implants. A simple fall that

would ordinarily

> > only give you a bruising can create a major medical crisis if an

implant

> > gives way. The longer it's been in you, the more easily it will

rupture.

> > Putting implants beneath the muscle -- something that is

becoming popular

> > because the shape comes out less obviously fake that way --

means that

> > eventually just using your shoulder strongly will put you at

risk (assuming

> > that your shoulder still has its strength after the muscle has

been

> > distorted). The extra care you need to protect and maintain the

implants

> > makes you just a little bit crippled as long as you have them.

> >

> > 33) Any surgery on breasts can, and often does, damage nerves

and reduce

> > skin sensation. The amount of loss is unpredictable. The

damage can't be

> > reversed. Attempts to reduce this effect have a tradeoff: they

increase the

> > visibility of the surgical scar. Complete numbness of the

nipple is not

> > unknown. In a smaller number of cases, the side effect is the

opposite:

> > painful hypersensitivity to touch.

> > 34) If you feel inadequate as a woman, the problem to address

is in your

> > head, not your chest. Self esteem first, cosmetics after! If

you ignore

> > that, you are doomed to disappointment. A lot of people who

think a

> > cosmetic change like this is going to fix their lives end up

despondent and

> > suicidal when they find they're still the same person with the

same life.

> > This is such a common problem that cosmetic surgeons have to pay

a lot of

> > attention to weeding out patients who might be suicide risks.

Getting chest

> > surgery to improve your self-esteem is like buying a girdle to

improve your

> > eyesight: you're addressing the wrong problem.

> > 35) Breasts probably have a wider range of natural healthy

variation than

> > any other body part... and we seem to be trying to forget this.

If we act

> > as if only one subset of the range of variation is good -- as the

> > entertainment and advertising industries are currently doing --

we condone

> > and reinforce a mindset that says ordinary people are

defective. We distort

> > our sense of what is normal and end up treating healthy people

(including

> > ourselves) as if they were pitiable freaks. Every additional

person who

> > gets that surgery adds to the marginalization of those who don't.

> > 36) Treating your own normal body as being defective is an act

of

> > self-hatred. (That doesn't mean you feel hatred for yourself...

but the way

> > you feel about yourself is as much a result of such actions as a

cause of

> > them.) Acting on this in a public way and flaunting the results

before

> > everyone rubs this off on other people; it becomes not only self-

hatred but

> > an act that carries hatred to other women. You're like

> > bleaching his skin and having his nose narrowed -- the message

that sends to

> > other African- Americans is hardly a positive one.

> > 37) What on Earth do you think you're really accomplishing by

getting

> > implants? If you examine your goals, you may find they are not

very

> > rational or realistic. Unless you're a professional model or

are dedicating

> > your whole life to the goal of marrying an elderly millionaire,

the implants

> > are probably not going to bring you much closer to what you

really want.

> > What are you really after? You'd better take a hard look at

that question

> > before you act on the assumption that implants will get it for

you.

> > 38) If you want more male attention, implants may increase the

quantity but

> > only with a corresponding decrease in quality. You'll probably

get your

> > biggest gains in approval among guys who are most prone to

objectifying you,

> > and least prone to treating you as an equal. The guys who like

implants the

> > best are those who prefer pornography to live women, and

probably find

> > ordinary women a turn-off if they're not somehow artificialized

by things

> > like fake hair, shaving, ridiculous shoes, and so on. Implants

can be very

> > artificializing.

> > 39) If you want to like your body better, the way to do it is

to start

> > liking the body you've got better. If your mindset toward your

body is

> > negative, no change of appearance will ever eliminate that! If

you think it

> > will, you end up chasing an illusion. When you are in the habit

of always

> > finding fault with your body, you will never run out of faults

to find...

> > indeed, you'll only find more and more as you get older. It's a

trap, and

> > changing your body won't get you out of it -- the one thing that

will is to

> > change the fault-finding way of treating yourself. If I treated

you that

> > way, I'd be an intolerable asshole... so why treat yourself that

way? If

> > you keep hitting your forehead with a rock, that doesn't mean

you need a

> > tougher forehead -- it means it's time to put down the rock.

> > 40) If you want a spicier love life... Jesus Christ, if you

think implants

> > will help there, I suggest you stick your head into a bucket of

ice water

> > until you come to your senses. The only way implants ever help

people's

> > love lives is as a temporary crutch to get over inhibitions

caused by body

> > shame. This effect wears off. The only lasting way to remove

such shame

> > and inhibition is to tackle them directly -- for instance, to

just start

> > unconditionally refusing to view yourself as something to be

ashamed of, and

> > then working with whatever obstacles come up in trying to stick

to that.

> > It's slow to change but nothing can stop you if you stick to

that decision.

> > (And incidentally, it just might revolutionize your whole life.)

> > 41) There are studies that use psychological tests to measure

self-esteem

> > changes after getting breast implants. Some found a slight

improvement

> > after three years, other tests found no change at all. The

tests that found

> > a slight improvement did not compare the sample group with a

control group

> > of people who didn't get surgery, to check against how much

people tend to

> > gain in self-esteem just by living. (Usually it's young people

who have the

> > most trouble with self-esteem.)

> > 42) The worst time to get implants is when you're young. You

already have

> > a body that, in twenty years, you will wish you had. And yet

when you're

> > older you may be far more immune to the wishful thinking that

tells you that

> > a body part bought from a store shelf can improve your life.

You'll be a

> > lot less easily embarrassed about yourself, too. Imagine

yourself twenty or

> > forty years older and full of wisdom about life. What do you

think that

> > wiser future self would tell you to do? For that matter,

imagine if you

> > could ask God for an opinion. What do you think God would

suggest as the

> > wisest and truest course for your life? If the answer you get

is different

> > from what you think you want, this shows that something inside

you actually

> > knows better. Ignore that deeper wisdom at your peril.

> > 43) Big knockers, whether natural or artificial, can be a

hindrance in many

> > physical activities. Making them bigger by choice is like

hobbling yourself

> > with a too-small pair of shoes because you're embarrassed by big

feet.

> > Proper support of fake boobs for physical activity is a more

difficult

> > problem than support of natural ones is. They're less tolerant

and less

> > adaptable. They get in the way a lot more than natural ones do

because

> > they're more rigid. There is no such thing as an implant with

the

> > resiliency of a real breast, no matter what some people claim.

> >

> > 44) Maybe you shouldn't believe those lists in tabloids of

surgeries that

> > various celebrities have had. " Only a tiny percentage have the

work done

> > [the tabloids] say " , says Dr. Harold Lancer, a Beverly Hills

dermatologist

> > with major movie stars for customers. (Of course, he could be

covering up

> > for them...) As far as I have been able to learn from the

sources

> > available, most of the cosmetic surgery used by the stars is

done on faces.

> > 45) On the other hand, Hollywood certainly has no shortage of

implants

> > among non-celebrity starlets. Watch some late night cable TV

swill and

> > you'll learn to spot implants at a glance. If you sit through

enough T & A

> > exploitation movies to really get a good clear idea of how

implants usually

> > end up looking, I doubt very much that you will want to look

that way

> > yourself. I would recommend that anyone who thinks they want

implants

> > should try this before making a final decision. Anyone who can

watch

> > something like, say, Caged Heat 3000 and still want to look that

way is

> > weirder than I like to imagine.

> > 46) Boob jobs cost a lot of money. If you're not rich, giving

yourself

> > implants means depriving yourself of something else quite

substantial, which

> > might do you more good.

> > 47) Boob jobs are like stage makeup: they look good at a

distance. They

> > look better on you from 50 feet than from 10 feet, better from

10 feet than

> > from one foot, better in a photograph or video than in real

life, and better

> > with more clothing than they do with less. They're at their

worst when the

> > distance is most intimate.

> >

> > 48) A lot of women inflict malnutrition on themselves because

they think

> > something's wrong or shameful about how much they weigh. Other

women

> > undergo mutilation because they think something's wrong or

shameful about

> > the shape of their breasts, or other body parts. In the former

case,

> > there's clearly something very flawed about the thought pattern

that says

> > " If I punish my body enough, I will be happy. " Is the latter

case really

> > very different?

> > If my 48 reasons aren't enough, here is a page with even more

reasons sent

> > in to me by readers of this page.

> >

> >> From time to time I get mail about this page saying things

like, " But you

> > don't understand how hard it is to live with a flat chest. " Here

is an open

> > letter to any woman who feels similarly.

> >

> > (There used to be a discussion forum, but nonconstructive

hostile bickering

> > pushed out the more positive uses, so I took it down. People

aren't likely

> > to share support on sensitive issues in that kind of

environment.)

> >

> > A note to those who want to write angry letters saying " What

gives you the

> > right to decide what someone else can do with her body? " I have

not told

> > anyone what they can or can't do, I have only discussed the

consequences of

> > different choices. Okay? Have we got that clear? The same

goes for those

> > who want to accuse me of somehow bashing women, or implying that

anyone who

> > considers implants must be insecure and inadequate. I said only

that if you

> > feel that way, cosmetic surgery isn't the solution.

> >

> > For hideous medical photos with all the gruesome details of how

badly

> > implants can go wrong, see this site. And here is an

interesting article by

> > a doctor who happened to be practicing in the town where

implants were

> > invented, and may have gotten to see more cases of people made

ill by

> > silicone than any other doctor. And here is a group for

people who've

> > had trouble with saline implants to share support.

> >

> > Some readers ask why I don't complain about other dangerous

cosmetic

> > procedures. Here is a brief list of some other risky things

people do to be

> > attractive, and reasons to avoid them:

> >

> > Liposuction: the #1 cause of dead bodies in plastic surgeons'

offices. It's

> > just too easy to create a drastic hemorrhage during the

procedure. A few

> > years ago, the statistic was that something like one patient in

5000 was

> > dying of it. Also, recovery time is very prolonged.

> > Human Growth Hormone: evidence is increasing that far

from " turning back the

> > clock " , HGH usage actually shortens your lifespan. And overuse

can cause

> > disfiguring bone growth.

> > Steroids: if you're male, steroids can help you build bigger

muscles, but

> > they can also give you troubles with aggressive behavior and

they can also

> > actually shrink your genitals. If you're female, the muscle

growth

> > difference is much more dramatic, but so are the side effects.

(Do you

> > really want to have to shave every morning?)

> > Speaking of genital size, vacuum penis enlargers do work, but

I'm told they

> > leave your penis with a weird unrealistic rubbery texture, and

the more you

> > use them, the softer your erections get.

> > Facelifts have sometimes created side effects of extreme

sensitivity to

> > light, noise, and pressure. On the other hand, facelifts have

sometimes

> > been known to unexpectedly cure chronic migraine headaches. In

either case,

> > over-facelifted people end up looking more like lizards than

like mammals.

> > Hair transplants for baldness often produce very disappointing

results, and

> > sometimes (especially if repeated) can end up killing off more

of your hair

> > follicles than you were losing already. Scars can sometimes be

quite

> > visible, and a poorly done job can make your scalp all bumpy.

(To see how I

> > personally cope with male pattern baldness, take a look at my

latest

> > haircut.)

> > People will do incredibly nasty stuff to their skin to attack

wrinkles:

> > grinding off the skin surface with abrasives, burning it off

with acid, etc.

> > One of the weirdest approaches is called Botox. That's short

for botulism

> > toxin, one of the deadliest chemical poisons in nature. Minute

amounts can

> > paralyze small facial muscles, which has a smoothing effect.

You actually

> > want a paralyzed face?

> > I just learned of an appalling cosmetic medical abuse, which has

apparently

> > been going on for decades with no particular monitoring of the

long term

> > effects: perscribing massive doses of estrogen to girls in their

early teens

> > who are worried about growing too tall. This simulates the

effects on the

> > body of getting pregnant at that age, one outcome of which is to

stunt your

> > growth so you never reach full adult size. Now it's coming out

that women

> > who received this treatment as girls are prone to infertility,

and even

> > without that problem, very few who've had this treatment are

glad they did.

> > In addition, here are a couple more vanity medical procedures

that are not

> > cosmetic, but have similar roles in our health system as easy

money for

> > doctors who don't care about healing the sick:

> >

> > In-vitro fertilization. Scientists are starting to realize that

if you mash

> > together an egg and a sperm that won't go together by

themselves, that might

> > be telling you that there's something wrong with the

combination. At least

> > one type of IVF is now coming under tightened regulation because

of the

> > extra birth defects coming out of it.

> > Another thing to be cautious about is LASIK vision correction.

Even with a

> > perfect outcome, the vision correction is inferior to what was

attainable

> > through the old RK procedure that nobody does any more, in that

it can't

> > make your night vision sharp. And too many outcomes are less

than perfect

> > -- it comes out bad in something like 3 to 5 percent of cases.

And when

> > that happens, there is often no possible repair of the damage:

your vision

> > is hosed forever. Doctors like it because, unlike RK, it's

quick and

> > automated. But something as simple as an asymmetrical pupil can

fool the

> > machine into mangling your eye.

> > And I might mention that ever since Viagra came out, the

pharmaceutical

> > companies are putting bigger and bigger portions of their

research into

> > " lifestyle " medications instead of health medications. Do they

give a crap

> > how many thousands of poor people constantly die of tuberculosis

or

> > dysentery? Not very much. They care about how many thousands

of dollars

> > people will pay per year for the perfect weight loss pill or

hair restorer

> > cream. The result is a coming wave of what you might call vanity

> > pharmaceuticals... and like Viagra, over-reliance on them is

going to be

> > just as good for you as abusing any feel-good street drug is.

The pharma

> > companies have chosen to become pushers.

> > Do breast enlarging pills and creams work? Apparently the

answer is: not

> > really. Evidently they can produce a sort of temporary

swelling, but they

> > do not produce actual growth. They do this by messing with your

hormones,

> > which can have side effects; some of them contain ingredients

that are

> > considered unsafe before menopause. A lot of disreputable ads

for them have

> > been appearing lately, and at least some have been caught in

lies such as

> > citing nonexistent studies of effectiveness.

> >

> > Do vacuum breast enlargers work? It appears that they do, sort

of. (In

> > fact, I recently learned that vacuum techniques have been

promoted for

> > breast enlargement as long ago as 1870. Vacuum penis enlargers

go back even

> > further.) Whether they have negative side effects like those of

vacuum

> > penis enlargers I don't know yet. I did hear from one lady who

was in a

> > clinical trial for an expensive new vacuum breast enlarging

system called

> > Brava, and she had to quit because of how much it hurt her boobs

(bruising,

> > rash). The claims on Brava's site are apparently less than

honest in

> > revealing the results of that clinical trial.

> >

> > Now that the Brava has been sold to the public for a while, a

realistic

> > picture is starting to emerge, and results are mixed. Often the

amount of

> > growth is minimal; in some cases it's substantial. Rashes are

common, welts

> > and blisters are not too rare, and weird infections sometimes

happen.

> > Antibacterial soap may reduce that problem. A few Brava users

find that the

> > suction makes them start lactating. Those interested in the

Brava should

> > probably check some of the criticism by frustrated users, such

as this one:

> > Brav-argh. (And speaking of them, guess what's happened: the

word

> > " brav-argh " has now been co-opted as a fake search keyword by

sites selling

> > fake breast enlarging pills and creams.)

> >

> > Number of women so far who have told me that they decided

against getting a

> > boob job at least partly because of this page: 65

> >

> > We are allowing too much of our culture and daily experience to

be

> > overwhelmed by advertising, marketing, and cosmetics. As

Faludi has

> > pointed out, nowadays even the definition of masculinity, let

alone

> > femininity, has become mostly cosmetic. Let's start with our

own lives as

> > the place to resist this trend.

> >

> >> I found this website, and was quite surprised!

> >>

> >> http://www.cafepress.com/mafboobs

> >>

> >> It's called " Men Against Fake Boobs! " All profits made from

the sales of

> >> MAFB products are donated to fight breast cancer. (We are " Men

Against Fake

> >> Boobs, and Men For A Cure. " We support the both:

www.nationalbreastcancer.org

> >> www.curebreastcancer.org )

> >>

> >> I found this site as I was mulling over some ideas related to

how we can

> >> turn the tide against breast implants, to not only make women

understand the

> >> very real dangers associated with them, but also my thoughts

turned toward

> >> the

> >> men, and how we can garner their support to change how society

views

> >> implants.

> >> I guess I was thinking that there was probably a group of men

who really

> >> don't

> >> like implants at all, and if they are still single, might

rather choose a

> >> natural silicone-less woman over a woman with implants. I'd

love to exploit

> >> that, if I may use that word, in a way that helps all of us.

> >>

> >> I guess finding that website showed that at least someone

else has had that

> >> thought before me!

> >>

> >> However, looking over these T-shirts, I can see where I would

make some

> >> changes. The marketing student in me sees something missing

where it comes

> >> to

> >> the men's T-shirts. I was thinking of something along the

lines of a young

> >> guy going out to a bar wearing a shirt that says something

like " WANTED: Real

> >> Woman for Real Man. Implanted need not apply. " Or ????? Just

tossing out

> >> ideas here.

> >>

> >> I wonder if we can start a movement, with the men's help,

that can start

> >> making a dent and start changing the tide against the idea that

implants are

> >> at all sexy or desireable? I'd love it if we could start

altering this

> >> perception that they are safe-- to be more in line with the

fact that long

> >> term, they are a huge liability, and that natural women are a

safer choice.

> >>

> >> I realize I am walking a fine line here....it's not meant to

be negative

> >> toward us, but a way to reach out and start taking profits away

from the

> >> implant industry and make that pendulum swing back the other

way. We have

> >> got

> >> to get back to protecting our young women from making this very

tragic

> >> mistake! If men can be educated to hate implants for what they

do to our

> >> health, do you think we have a chance?

> >>

> >> We need to start while they are young, and make young,

sensitive men

> >> understand the terrible price we pay. After all, if they go on

to marry

> >> women

> >> who have implants, they will pay a heavy price themselves, in

huge medical

> >> bills, marriage upheaval, possible risk to their children's

health....

> >>

> >> Let's pray for a movement that grows against implants. I'd

love to see

> >> some

> >> T-shirts and clothing lines come out for men that will take a

stance against

> >> implants. After all, if men let women know that implants

aren't cool, I

> >> wonder how many women will still want to get them?

> >> Patty

> >>

> >> __________________________________________________

> >>

February 25, 2006

This could be a business opportunity for someone who is inclined.

I know we have graphic artists here too.

As well as very creative women! Can we try to come up with a bunch

of slogans that could be put on T-shirts? Both for men and women..

I've got a few ideas. Let's see what we can come up with!

Here's mine:

1. WANTED: Real woman for Real Man. Implanted need not apply.

2. Real boobs rock! Silicone sick is not sexy!

3. All natural. No artificial anything.

Okay, girls, let's have a little fun!

We've talked about doing calendars, let's do more!

Patty

> >

> > I found this website, and was quite surprised!

> >

> > http://www.cafepress.com/mafboobs

> >

> > It's called " Men Against Fake Boobs! " All profits made from

the

> sales of MAFB products are donated to fight breast cancer. (We

> are " Men Against Fake Boobs, and Men For A Cure. " We support the

> both: www.nationalbreastcancer.org www.curebreastcancer.org )

> >

> > I found this site as I was mulling over some ideas related to

> how we can turn the tide against breast implants, to not only make

> women understand the very real dangers associated with them, but

> also my thoughts turned toward the men, and how we can garner

their

> support to change how society views implants. I guess I was

> thinking that there was probably a group of men who really don't

> like implants at all, and if they are still single, might rather

> choose a natural silicone-less woman over a woman with implants.

> I'd love to exploit that, if I may use that word, in a way that

> helps all of us.

> >

> > I guess finding that website showed that at least someone else

> has had that thought before me!

> >

> > However, looking over these T-shirts, I can see where I would

> make some changes. The marketing student in me sees something

> missing where it comes to the men's T-shirts. I was thinking of

> something along the lines of a young guy going out to a bar

wearing

> a shirt that says something like " WANTED: Real Woman for Real

Man.

> Implanted need not apply. " Or ????? Just tossing out ideas here.

> >

> > I wonder if we can start a movement, with the men's help, that

> can start making a dent and start changing the tide against the

idea

> that implants are at all sexy or desireable? I'd love it if we

> could start altering this perception that they are safe-- to be

more

> in line with the fact that long term, they are a huge liability,

and

> that natural women are a safer choice.

> >

> > I realize I am walking a fine line here....it's not meant to

be

> negative toward us, but a way to reach out and start taking

profits

> away from the implant industry and make that pendulum swing back

the

> other way. We have got to get back to protecting our young women

> from making this very tragic mistake! If men can be educated to

> hate implants for what they do to our health, do you think we have

a

> chance?

> >

> > We need to start while they are young, and make young,

sensitive

> men understand the terrible price we pay. After all, if they go

on

> to marry women who have implants, they will pay a heavy price

> themselves, in huge medical bills, marriage upheaval, possible

risk

> to their children's health....

> >

> > Let's pray for a movement that grows against implants. I'd

love

> to see some T-shirts and clothing lines come out for men that will

> take a stance against implants. After all, if men let women know

> that implants aren't cool, I wonder how many women will still want

> to get them?

> > Patty

> >

> > __________________________________________________

> >

February 25, 2006

Here's a slogan I thought of a few months ago:

I used to have implants and now all I've got are empty pockets.

Sis

> > >

> > > I found this website, and was quite surprised!

> > >

> > > http://www.cafepress.com/mafboobs

> > >

> > > It's called " Men Against Fake Boobs! " All profits made from

> the

> > sales of MAFB products are donated to fight breast cancer. (We

> > are " Men Against Fake Boobs, and Men For A Cure. " We support the

> > both: www.nationalbreastcancer.org www.curebreastcancer.org )

> > >

> > > I found this site as I was mulling over some ideas related

to

> > how we can turn the tide against breast implants, to not only

make

> > women understand the very real dangers associated with them, but

> > also my thoughts turned toward the men, and how we can garner

> their

> > support to change how society views implants. I guess I was

> > thinking that there was probably a group of men who really don't

> > like implants at all, and if they are still single, might rather

> > choose a natural silicone-less woman over a woman with

implants.

> > I'd love to exploit that, if I may use that word, in a way that

> > helps all of us.

> > >

> > > I guess finding that website showed that at least someone

else

> > has had that thought before me!

> > >

> > > However, looking over these T-shirts, I can see where I

would

> > make some changes. The marketing student in me sees something

> > missing where it comes to the men's T-shirts. I was thinking of

> > something along the lines of a young guy going out to a bar

> wearing

> > a shirt that says something like " WANTED: Real Woman for Real

> Man.

> > Implanted need not apply. " Or ????? Just tossing out ideas

here.

> > >

> > > I wonder if we can start a movement, with the men's help,

that

> > can start making a dent and start changing the tide against the

> idea

> > that implants are at all sexy or desireable? I'd love it if we

> > could start altering this perception that they are safe-- to be

> more

> > in line with the fact that long term, they are a huge liability,

> and

> > that natural women are a safer choice.

> > >

> > > I realize I am walking a fine line here....it's not meant to

> be

> > negative toward us, but a way to reach out and start taking

> profits

> > away from the implant industry and make that pendulum swing back

> the

> > other way. We have got to get back to protecting our young

women

> > from making this very tragic mistake! If men can be educated to

> > hate implants for what they do to our health, do you think we

have

> a

> > chance?

> > >

> > > We need to start while they are young, and make young,

> sensitive

> > men understand the terrible price we pay. After all, if they go

> on

> > to marry women who have implants, they will pay a heavy price

> > themselves, in huge medical bills, marriage upheaval, possible

> risk

> > to their children's health....

> > >

> > > Let's pray for a movement that grows against implants. I'd

> love

> > to see some T-shirts and clothing lines come out for men that

will

> > take a stance against implants. After all, if men let women

know

> > that implants aren't cool, I wonder how many women will still

want

> > to get them?

> > > Patty

> > >

> > > __________________________________________________

> > >

February 25, 2006

Or, another t-shirt idea:

Smile if you've got real boobs

I think both (my previous suggestion and this one) have a double

meaning to them, obviously the empty pockets not only represents the

money we've lost because of the surgeries, and possible loss of

work, healthcare costs, but also the pun is that the implants were

placed inside these surgically created pockets when we had them, and

now that they're out, those pockets are empty as well.

As for the slogan above, implants made us sick, and people who

haven't had implants should be thankful they chose to keep their

natural shape rather than get implants and risk getting sick.

Sis

> > > >

> > > > I found this website, and was quite surprised!

> > > >

> > > > http://www.cafepress.com/mafboobs

> > > >

> > > > It's called " Men Against Fake Boobs! " All profits made

from

> > the

> > > sales of MAFB products are donated to fight breast cancer.

(We

> > > are " Men Against Fake Boobs, and Men For A Cure. " We support

the

> > > both: www.nationalbreastcancer.org www.curebreastcancer.org )

> > > >

> > > > I found this site as I was mulling over some ideas related

> to

> > > how we can turn the tide against breast implants, to not only

> make

> > > women understand the very real dangers associated with them,

but

> > > also my thoughts turned toward the men, and how we can garner

> > their

> > > support to change how society views implants. I guess I was

> > > thinking that there was probably a group of men who really

don't

> > > like implants at all, and if they are still single, might

rather

> > > choose a natural silicone-less woman over a woman with

> implants.

> > > I'd love to exploit that, if I may use that word, in a way

that

> > > helps all of us.

> > > >

> > > > I guess finding that website showed that at least someone

> else

> > > has had that thought before me!

> > > >

> > > > However, looking over these T-shirts, I can see where I

> would

> > > make some changes. The marketing student in me sees something

> > > missing where it comes to the men's T-shirts. I was thinking

of

> > > something along the lines of a young guy going out to a bar

> > wearing

> > > a shirt that says something like " WANTED: Real Woman for Real

> > Man.

> > > Implanted need not apply. " Or ????? Just tossing out ideas

> here.

> > > >

> > > > I wonder if we can start a movement, with the men's help,

> that

> > > can start making a dent and start changing the tide against

the

> > idea

> > > that implants are at all sexy or desireable? I'd love it if

we

> > > could start altering this perception that they are safe-- to

be

> > more

> > > in line with the fact that long term, they are a huge

liability,

> > and

> > > that natural women are a safer choice.

> > > >

> > > > I realize I am walking a fine line here....it's not meant

to

> > be

> > > negative toward us, but a way to reach out and start taking

> > profits

> > > away from the implant industry and make that pendulum swing

back

> > the

> > > other way. We have got to get back to protecting our young

> women

> > > from making this very tragic mistake! If men can be educated

to

> > > hate implants for what they do to our health, do you think we

> have

> > a

> > > chance?

> > > >

> > > > We need to start while they are young, and make young,

> > sensitive

> > > men understand the terrible price we pay. After all, if they

go

> > on

> > > to marry women who have implants, they will pay a heavy price

> > > themselves, in huge medical bills, marriage upheaval, possible

> > risk

> > > to their children's health....

> > > >

> > > > Let's pray for a movement that grows against implants.

I'd

> > love

> > > to see some T-shirts and clothing lines come out for men that

> will

> > > take a stance against implants. After all, if men let women

> know

> > > that implants aren't cool, I wonder how many women will still

> want

> > > to get them?

> > > > Patty

> > > >

> > > > __________________________________________________

> > > >

February 25, 2006

These are all good!

I'm creating a database where we can continue to add our thoughts on

T-shirt ideas. Maybe someday we can create another website where we

can sell pretty little shirts for us, and awesome T-shirts for guys

who want to make a statement.

Go to Database, and there is a record called " Write your own T-

Shirt! "

Here's another one:

" Intelligent, Independent, and Implant Free "

We can keep going...share your ideas, and maybe we can do something

with these someday.

Patty

> > > > >

> > > > > I found this website, and was quite surprised!

> > > > >

> > > > > http://www.cafepress.com/mafboobs

> > > > >

> > > > > It's called " Men Against Fake Boobs! " All profits made

> from

> > > the

> > > > sales of MAFB products are donated to fight breast cancer.

> (We

> > > > are " Men Against Fake Boobs, and Men For A Cure. " We support

> the

> > > > both: www.nationalbreastcancer.org www.curebreastcancer.org )

> > > > >

> > > > > I found this site as I was mulling over some ideas

> > > > how we can turn the tide against breast implants, to not

only

> > make

> > > > women understand the very real dangers associated with them,

> but

> > > > also my thoughts turned toward the men, and how we can

garner

> > > their

> > > > support to change how society views implants. I guess I was

> > > > thinking that there was probably a group of men who really

> don't

> > > > like implants at all, and if they are still single, might

> rather

> > > > choose a natural silicone-less woman over a woman with

> > implants.

> > > > I'd love to exploit that, if I may use that word, in a way

> that

> > > > helps all of us.

> > > > >

> > > > > I guess finding that website showed that at least

someone

> > else

> > > > has had that thought before me!

> > > > >

> > > > > However, looking over these T-shirts, I can see where I

> > would

> > > > make some changes. The marketing student in me sees

something

> > > > missing where it comes to the men's T-shirts. I was

thinking

> of

> > > > something along the lines of a young guy going out to a bar

> > > wearing

> > > > a shirt that says something like " WANTED: Real Woman for

Real

> > > Man.

> > > > Implanted need not apply. " Or ????? Just tossing out ideas

> > here.

> > > > >

> > > > > I wonder if we can start a movement, with the men's

help,

> > that

> > > > can start making a dent and start changing the tide against

> the

> > > idea

> > > > that implants are at all sexy or desireable? I'd love it if

> we

> > > > could start altering this perception that they are safe-- to

> be

> > > more

> > > > in line with the fact that long term, they are a huge

> liability,

> > > and

> > > > that natural women are a safer choice.

> > > > >

> > > > > I realize I am walking a fine line here....it's not

meant

> to

> > > be

> > > > negative toward us, but a way to reach out and start taking

> > > profits

> > > > away from the implant industry and make that pendulum swing

> back

> > > the

> > > > other way. We have got to get back to protecting our young

> > women

> > > > from making this very tragic mistake! If men can be

educated

> to

> > > > hate implants for what they do to our health, do you think

we

> > have

> > > a

> > > > chance?

> > > > >

> > > > > We need to start while they are young, and make young,

> > > sensitive

> > > > men understand the terrible price we pay. After all, if

they

> go

> > > on

> > > > to marry women who have implants, they will pay a heavy

price

> > > > themselves, in huge medical bills, marriage upheaval,

possible

> > > risk

> > > > to their children's health....

> > > > >

> > > > > Let's pray for a movement that grows against implants.

> I'd

> > > love

> > > > to see some T-shirts and clothing lines come out for men

that

> > will

> > > > take a stance against implants. After all, if men let women

> > know

> > > > that implants aren't cool, I wonder how many women will

still

> > want

> > > > to get them?

> > > > > Patty

> > > > >

> > > > > __________________________________________________

> > > > >

February 26, 2006

Now that's good!!

Hugs, Kathy

> > > > > >

> > > > > > I found this website, and was quite surprised!

> > > > > >

> > > > > > http://www.cafepress.com/mafboobs

> > > > > >

> > > > > > It's called " Men Against Fake Boobs! " All profits

made

> > from

> > > > the

> > > > > sales of MAFB products are donated to fight breast

cancer.

> > (We

> > > > > are " Men Against Fake Boobs, and Men For A Cure. " We

support

> > the

> > > > > both: www.nationalbreastcancer.org

www.curebreastcancer.org )

> > > > > >

> > > > > > I found this site as I was mulling over some ideas

> related

> > > to

> > > > > how we can turn the tide against breast implants, to not

> only

> > > make

> > > > > women understand the very real dangers associated with

them,

> > but

> > > > > also my thoughts turned toward the men, and how we can

> garner

> > > > their

> > > > > support to change how society views implants. I guess I

was

> > > > > thinking that there was probably a group of men who really

> > don't

> > > > > like implants at all, and if they are still single, might

> > rather

> > > > > choose a natural silicone-less woman over a woman with

> > > implants.

> > > > > I'd love to exploit that, if I may use that word, in a way

> > that

> > > > > helps all of us.

> > > > > >

> > > > > > I guess finding that website showed that at least

> someone

> > > else

> > > > > has had that thought before me!

> > > > > >

> > > > > > However, looking over these T-shirts, I can see where

I

> > > would

> > > > > make some changes. The marketing student in me sees

> something

> > > > > missing where it comes to the men's T-shirts. I was

> thinking

> > of

> > > > > something along the lines of a young guy going out to a

bar

> > > > wearing

> > > > > a shirt that says something like " WANTED: Real Woman for

> Real

> > > > Man.

> > > > > Implanted need not apply. " Or ????? Just tossing out

ideas

> > > here.

> > > > > >

> > > > > > I wonder if we can start a movement, with the men's

> help,

> > > that

> > > > > can start making a dent and start changing the tide

against

> > the

> > > > idea

> > > > > that implants are at all sexy or desireable? I'd love it

if

> > we

> > > > > could start altering this perception that they are safe--

to

> > be

> > > > more

> > > > > in line with the fact that long term, they are a huge

> > liability,

> > > > and

> > > > > that natural women are a safer choice.

> > > > > >

> > > > > > I realize I am walking a fine line here....it's not

> meant

> > to

> > > > be

> > > > > negative toward us, but a way to reach out and start

taking

> > > > profits

> > > > > away from the implant industry and make that pendulum

swing

> > back

> > > > the

> > > > > other way. We have got to get back to protecting our

young

> > > women

> > > > > from making this very tragic mistake! If men can be

> educated

> > to

> > > > > hate implants for what they do to our health, do you think

> we

> > > have

> > > > a

> > > > > chance?

> > > > > >

> > > > > > We need to start while they are young, and make young,

> > > > sensitive

> > > > > men understand the terrible price we pay. After all, if

> they

> > go

> > > > on

> > > > > to marry women who have implants, they will pay a heavy

> price

> > > > > themselves, in huge medical bills, marriage upheaval,

> possible

> > > > risk

> > > > > to their children's health....

> > > > > >

> > > > > > Let's pray for a movement that grows against

implants.

> > I'd

> > > > love

> > > > > to see some T-shirts and clothing lines come out for men

> that

> > > will

> > > > > take a stance against implants. After all, if men let

women

> > > know

> > > > > that implants aren't cool, I wonder how many women will

> still

> > > want

> > > > > to get them?

> > > > > > Patty

> > > > > >

> > > > > > __________________________________________________

> > > > > >

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