face offs - Jezebel

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Making Faces: Crazy Grimaces The Beat Costumes For Wimbledon
Sex Workers Are Different — Similar - The World Over
"Battle" Of The Danicas: Patrick Vs. McKellar
Why Do Women Take So Long To Get Ready? People Ask, And No One Answers

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Ailatan
06/23/09

In reply to Making Faces: Crazy Grimaces The Beat Costumes For Wimbledon
I'm going with this one

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Rooo sez BISH PLZ
06/23/09

In reply to Making Faces: Crazy Grimaces The Beat Costumes For Wimbledon
King of Wimbledon Tennis Fashion:

Still mourning b/c of no defense of crown:

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aspiringexpatriate
06/24/09

@Rooo sez BISH PLZ: Feds really wore that? Awesome.
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ericacartman
06/24/09

@Rooo sez BISH PLZ: Oh I love him but that jacket. Christ. Notice how he isn't one of the "crazy grimaces." It's impossible. He's too beautiful.
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Rooo sez BISH PLZ
06/24/09

@aspiringexpatriate: He really did.

He could probably dress up like a Martian tribal warrior and I'd love it, but he really did.

(Nice to see you.)
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Rooo sez BISH PLZ
06/24/09

@ericacartman: '"Notice how he isn't one of the "crazy grimaces."'

Hee. He looked pretty fierce doing his USO and RG victory roars, but other than that I generally think the photogs don't dare.

(I also think he's just naturally photogenic.)
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sassyredhead
06/23/09

In reply to Making Faces: Crazy Grimaces The Beat Costumes For Wimbledon
Thanks Sadie for including my Djokovich in #7. He's always good for the pulled face shot! And he's also always good for the shirtless shot, too!

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Fridge Hussy : Is finally heading back to uni!
06/23/09

In reply to Making Faces: Crazy Grimaces The Beat Costumes For Wimbledon
I looked through these fantastic images - the captions are great! I noticed that Marat was not featured. I realised that Marat would not be around this time next year. And then, I was sad.
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sassyredhead
06/23/09

@Fridge Hussy : You Do The Meth!: He lost today. It was really sad. He got a huge ovation as he waved his way off for the final time at Wimbledon.
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Rooo sez BISH PLZ
06/23/09

Oh, Sadie. Jezzie begins to really understand.

Go ahead. Don't fight it. Let the tennis embrace you. The more you watch the better it gets.

@sassyredhead: *hysterics*
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token_illiterate_commenter
06/23/09

In reply to Making Faces: Crazy Grimaces The Beat Costumes For Wimbledon
Wouldn't that be "professional grass-courter" when you're referring to Wimbledon?
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Fridge Hussy : Is finally heading back to uni!
06/23/09

@token_starless_commenter: Yup. Unless the pictured p-layer is particularly skilled clay-courter.
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rocknrollunicorn
06/23/09

In reply to Sex Workers Are Different — Similar - The World Over
When I see something like this and realize just how many prostitutes there must be in the world, and how giant the industry is, I'm really most amazed at the demand for them. I know that sounds naive. But as a heterosexual woman, the concept of paying for sex is, at this stage in my life, really unrelatable. This is something I think about a lot and have trouble wrapping my head around.

Not to necessarily judge anyone at all, except for men who frequent prostitutes who are 14 or obvious sex slaves but hey it's ok because I'm in Thailand. Or, you know, similar situations.
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MissN
06/23/09

In reply to Sex Workers Are Different — Similar - The World Over
Is it weird that I'm wondering where the French sex worker in #32 got her amazing outfit?
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kithkin
06/23/09

@MissN: Cure shoes!
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KLondike5
06/23/09

In reply to Sex Workers Are Different — Similar - The World Over
Thanks for compiling such a wide range of images. Women forced into prostitution, women rallying for the right to be prostitutes, older women, women who are no more than children, pregnant women, women with HIV, working in brothels, working on the street corner, women smiling and dancing, women hiding their faces in shame and fear, women with bored expressions, and of course women of every color, shape, and language.

If that doesn't show what a complex and thorny issue sex work is, I don't know what would.
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LaMorena
06/23/09

@KLondike5: You said it exactly. It's hard to form a singular opinion (much less legislation) on such a complex issue. When done right, it is a relatively safe service. At it's worst, it's hard to imagine anything more terrifying--desperate refugees/victims of war, children, those sold into slavery.
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msAnthrope
06/23/09

In reply to Sex Workers Are Different — Similar - The World Over
i feel such heart pain for #11~~ you wonder if she even remembers having a carefree happy day.
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scootsincutoffs
06/23/09

In reply to Sex Workers Are Different — Similar - The World Over
#12, thr's my sstr. Sh's #4 prsttt n ll f Kzkhstn.
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labeled
06/23/09

@scootsincutoffs: Wait, really?
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labeled
06/23/09

@labeled: So I'm guessing that's an editorial "No. Not really." Which begs the question, was that supposed to be a joke? I'm confused. So confused.
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JerseyGrrrl
06/23/09

@labeled: Case in point: All the threads in the last few weeks about what most of Cohen's audiences take away from his films...

Yeah, it's not the social criticism.
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labeled
06/23/09

@JerseyGrrrl: le sigh.
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OK_NiceLegs (formerly: thevickinator)
06/23/09

@labeled: (hate that I know this) it was a poorly attempted joke ref. Sacha Baron Coehn's movie "Borat"- main character proudly declares in the opening scenes of the move that his sister is the #4 prostitute in Kaz... there's a trophy involved. Poor joke then, poor joke now.
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labeled
06/24/09

@thevickinator: Ahh, labeled's PopCulture Knowledge: Fail = Win?

Just didn't want to see it, and now am that much more glad that I didn't.
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boxingoctopus should be dissertating
06/23/09

In reply to Sex Workers Are Different — Similar - The World Over
"Times are hard in German brothels." *snerk* Indeed!

(sorry, I'm 12.)
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bowleserised
06/23/09

@boxingoctopus pities the fool: They're doing special discounts for pensioners.
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JerseyGrrrl
06/23/09

In reply to Sex Workers Are Different — Similar - The World Over
Also, I am struck by how much these women look like me. All of them. And that really takes away the comfortable distance some of us (me) normally place between ourselves and prostitution.
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schlegs84
06/23/09

@JerseyGrrrl: You phrased this so much better than I ever could have hoped to.
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little_engine_that_could
06/23/09

In reply to Sex Workers Are Different — Similar - The World Over
This is a stunning visual - but where are the images of men? I wonder if it is more shameful in a lot of these places to be a male sex worker. Is it more taboo here in the US as well? I was sort of thinking about this yesterday after the sex worker/menial job debate. Still dont have anything brilliantly articulate but I find it hard to believe that men would find a job as a prostitute less demeaning than one at McDonalds. Just a thought.
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tomatoheart
06/23/09

@little_engine_that_could: They are missing! I went to an international sex worker conference a few years ago and there were tons of guys!
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Megan
06/23/09

@tomatoheart: For one, this is a site about women, and the articles about sex work that I linked to were about women (but I didn't want to discount men). For two, it depends on how you define "man," as there are some people with XY chromosomes in the pictures, if that is how you choose to define male (many male prostitutes in developing countries choose to identify as female, and I had virtually no male-identified choices). For three, many of the images that were more obviously chromosomally male but identified were also very NSFW, frankly.
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tomatoheart
06/23/09

@Megan: It would have been great to perhaps mention the diversity of photographs and genders in the original set of photographs in your blog about it, even if you were not able to include them for NSFW or blog-gender reasons.
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veronykah
06/23/09

@little_engine_that_could: I always assume you see and hear less about male sex workers because their work tends to be of the homosexual kind. I think its something a lot of people don't want to think about.
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Megan
06/23/09

@tomatoheart: I think you've misunderstood slightly -- this wasn't a set as much as it was many hours of using available photo archives to cull pictures of sex workers from as many different countries as possible. There were literally no pictures of obviously "male" sex workers that were not transgender and NSFW in the obviousness (and I didn't use gendered search terms).

So, there wasn't a lot of male-identified pictures available and that which was available on the genderqueer scale, I included with the captions that came with the photos identifying those women as they preferred to be identified.
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RollsRoyceRevenge
06/23/09

@veronykah: Except, you know...(whispers) homosexuals.
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JerseyGrrrl
06/23/09

In reply to Sex Workers Are Different — Similar - The World Over
On February 6, 2009, and a month after it came into force, a Norwegian law banning the purchase of sex has nearly eliminated street prostitution, but for the few sex workers remaining, working conditions have become much tougher. 'The clients are extremely nervous. Most of them don't dare come here,' says Nadia, a 22-year-old from Oslo who has been a sex worker for eight years. Since January 1, men who buy sex face up to six months in jail, pay a fine or face both. The law prohibits the buying of sex but not the sale, so the prostitute goes free.

It seems like, if you're going to enact a law against prostitution, this is the way to do it, U.S. Punish those with power and take away the demand. But it also seems, in reading these brief captions, that the majority of these laws seek to end the sale of sex but, unless it's been left out of the captions, offer little to sex workers in the way of support.

If you're intent on taking away someone's means of employment, I think you must provide them with adequate support to find another, especially in an industry populated by workers who often explain they are without other options.
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bowleserised
06/23/09

@JerseyGrrrl: They do this in Sweden, but the sex workers are unhappy with it because it means that (a) if they want to work, they have to do it somewhere out of the way where the Johns feel safe (b) it often means that onlly the truly nutty Johns are left, and they can't pick and choose their clients.

Since similar laws were introduced in Scotland, the number of assaults on sex workers has soared.
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JerseyGrrrl
06/23/09

@bowleserised: I wonder why a similar law would increase assaults on sex workers...My naive brain doesn't make a connection here. But that's very interesting.

Also, you seem well informed on this.... do you have a site/resource that routinely informs on this subject or do you follow this yourself? I would like to know more is why I ask. And occasionally seeing random stories on global prostitution issues in the NYTimes doesn't really keep me feeling in the loop.
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bowleserised
06/23/09

@JerseyGrrrl: I've done a load of research lately for a work project as England wants to change to this system too. Sex worker unions are good sources of detailed info, for a start.

Here's something about the situation in Scotland.

There's also a big debate on trafficking, as the statistics - even those from the UN - are fudged. There aren't nearly so many women doing forced sex work in the West (Asia might be another story) as it's commonly believed. However, anti-trafficking laws are used against immigrants who are operating as sex workers in the UK, even though they chose to do what they're doing.
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bowleserised
06/23/09

@JerseyGrrrl: And here.

Most sex worker unions support legalisation + the provision of support services to help women who want to leave the profession. Unfortunately, the law in the UK is messy and about to get messier.
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CollegeCamel
06/23/09

In reply to Sex Workers Are Different — Similar - The World Over
The caption for the one in Camden, NJ, is so scary. And not just because the photographer's name is one letter away from "Spencer Pratt."
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angelheadedhipster
06/23/09

@CollegeCamel: Every time they post one of his photos in a SJ I have to do a double take...
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