Meat Market Index

[dfrankiswork at netscape.net]

The sight of Tabouli's conjoined eyebrows waggling (does the name Denis Healey convey anything?) above her Comments Fail Me boots was so unnerving that I was reminded of an old promise I made to discuss this topic from a male UK standpoint.

I originally promised this because I was reminded of a particular behaviour trait I observed a long time ago among engineering and similar types of people - Dilbert in the US is not very different.  There are men who are completely unconcerned about their appearance, and focus instead either on what they see as more important external things like getting a job done, or on internal realities from which clothes and appearance are a misleading distraction.

However, what intrigues me is that there are many men who *affect* to be unconcerned about their appearance, and may go to some lengths to demonstrate this by their scruffiness - but actually they are very concerned about their wider *image*.  They are, in effect, projecting the artificial message: I am a genuine kind of guy, and you can tell this because I'm not dandified (like those other people with whom I am in competition).  I have higher priorities than dress, or I know and live deeper realities than personal vanity.

Since the purpose of doing this is to gain status and girlfriends, one doubts its integrity.

British people are very image-conscious.  I do not know enough about other nationalities to say whether we are comparatively bad, but we are absolutely bad without a doubt.  Car advertising in particular (the nearest thing to religion we have in the media today), and most other advertising in general, is predicated on image.  Even the Volvo type of advertising is not really saying 'you will be safer with our car', it's saying 'If you own this car you will project an image of dependability and reliability'.

Pippin, we need your second commandment post.  And Tabouli, could you just cross and uncross your legs a couple of times again?

David
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