Jordan River Forum

Being happy in your own skin\nSome women have big breasts, some big brains, some both. Oh yeah, and some have neither. As an IU coed who made the trip to the Playboy audition earlier this week, I am writing in response to the column entitled "Ticket to Topless Dating" in the IDS on April 16. The column asserts "hopefuls go to the hotel … and nervously pretend to be someone they are not." When I went to the interview, I did not pretend to be someone I was not. I was who I am, a beautiful IU student. One who is just as proud of the body God gave her as the brain he gave her. Additionally, the column claims "(you) spend the next three years avoiding eye contact with teachers … being a centerfold isn't … a resume-builder." Both of these statements are flawed. If chosen, I would be happy to tell any and all of my teachers I had the honor of appearing nude in the premier men's magazine. I would proudly display the honor on my resume as well. The comment "girls … run around … and pretend to be content..." is also out of place too. Many women spend thousands of dollars to construct the type of body that God has blessed some women with naturally. Is it a crime to love myself for being beautiful and to think the human body is art? In college I hear so much about how society gives women stereotypes about what women should look like (which gives women self-esteem issues) and how women should be happy in their skin. It appears to me that some people are unhappy with their own bodies and therefore feel the need to be facetious and criticize those people who are happy with their own bodies. I am lucky to have a stellar GPA and a gorgeous body. I thank Playboy for the opportunity they have given me, and I applaud them for giving countless other women the same opportunity.\nJanna Ingle
Junior\nOpposed to posing nude\nI picked up a paper (Wednesday, April 16), and I came across Erin White's column entitled "Ticket to Topless Dating." I realized it was about Playboy magazine coming to IU to recruit women to pose for their magazine. I was so pleased with what she had to say about the whole situation, and I wholeheartedly agree with her 100 percent! I read the recent (April 15) IDS article about Playboy magazine coming over to IU, and therefore I was saddened to see that such a degrading magazine would recruit innocent young women to pose nude for the entire world to see. Ms. White, you are right: Posing nude for Playboy magazine is not a resume-builder. If girls do this, it will just come back to haunt them, and they will regret doing it. Also, remember what happened to Vanessa Williams? Of course she didn't pose nude for Playboy, but she did nude pictures. Unfortunately her crown (as Miss America) was taken away from her because of what she did. Nevertheless, it was a good thing that she got through it, and now she's a successful singer/movie star. But still, to those who are thinking of doing this, don't do it. It will only degrade you to a mere sex object. Your dignity and self-worth as a human being should be more important than getting your 15 minutes of fame and a few extra bucks. Thank you.\nLupita Garza-Grande
Graduate Student