Cuz I'm not beautiful like you...I'm beautiful like me

Well, I'm back from Ooty. It was a good trip - the weather was so cool (it's at 7,500 feet). A post about that is forthcoming.

I've posted before about Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty, and about how it's one of the best things I've ever seen. Talk about corporate social responsibility! I hang out with some people here whose attitudes toward women are in complete opposition to this kind of thing, and it's really too bad. I think one of the bigger problems that needs to be worked on is men's attitudes towards women. I am perfectly comfortable saying that I think people's standards are fucked up, and that no, that girl doesn't need to go to the gym, she's attractive the way she is, things like that. Most men aren't. The biggest trouble for me is that guys rate far too many women as unattractive; the scale is very finely graded at the upper end, but not at the lower end. One of the commercials says, "...because every girl deserves to feel good about herself". Guys don't think of it that way. They don't actively disagree, but they don't think about how the way they think about women affects women. Guys always will look at women and objectify (i.e. look at them for their attractiveness), but it doesn't have to go beyond looking. It doesn't have to extend into their interactions with women. I'm a guy; I like to look at very attractive women. But I don't let that interfere with anything else, and it doesn't mean that someone who isn't as attractive should feel unattractive or that I'd consider them unattractive. Does that make sense? Looking is just looking; and looking-standards don't mean anything and shouldn't exist anywhere else. Most guys don't realize that.
Being in India, half the commercials are for beauty products that make your skin lighter. Because obviously, dark isn't pretty, only fair skin is attractive. Ugh. [/rant]
Anyway, said campaign has at least 3 videos out. There's this commercial, and two others, Daughters and The Evolution of Beauty. I feel very strongly about this stuff.


In sad, sad news, Hedonistica is apparently shutting down. It's a tragedy, really. The content is always quality, and the guy is so funny in his comments for the posts.

In other news, I'm doing a big, two-week-long group project. It's going...well, it's going. My group is...well, it's a group.

My dad really wanted me to make a video about my project to show potential employers or whatever. So before I left, we went in and he took footage of me talking (awkwardly, because I hadn't prepared) about my project and giving a demonstration. Then, he edited it into a video. There are two versions: the original and the cut-down version. The original is more personal and less formal. The second one is the one I'd show to an employer. The only difference is that the beginning and end bits are taken off. So here's the original for your viewing pleasure: link!

Links:
= The incredible mouth band - I've always said it'd be great if more things were onomatopoeic. I usually used table as an example, but this will do.
= Holy crap doppelgangers exist!
= The CSS Zen Garden aims to show how awesome CSS really is. It succeeds, too. Take a look around the site, it's worth it. On the other (hilarious and awesome) hand, CSS can be used for evil/humor: Geocities 1996 (the story is here)
= Grumpy bumperstickers has a few good things.
= The Nietzsche Family Circus