Friday, 6 January 2006 - 5:49 AM CST

Along your Darwinian stream of thought, there is another possibility. If (theoretically speaking only, of course), a certain group of women were terribly ugly, fat and hairy, concealing themselves from prospective mates, with the added security that said mates cannot see them until they have committed themselves (become trapped), would give this group of hideous beasts an advantage, evolutionarily speaking, in that without their disguise, no male would be able to stomach the thought of procreating with them.

Or, maybe the men in power chose to adapt their religion to mandate the hiding of such beasts under the pretext of holiness.

Friday, 6 January 2006 - 6:00 AM CST

But in societies where women are physically and personally concealed...

So this is why there was so much inbreeding in Victorian society, short-circuiting of chemical signals?

Now, if you are talking about the veil or burka in some Muslim societies, these are worn by married women. Young women in conservative Muslim societies do wear head scarves but they do not cover the face.

I believe rates of mental illness are roughly constant across all cultures.

Sunday, 8 January 2006 - 11:53 PM CST

Well, that's the thing of it: hotness isn't being selected for in those societies.

Sunday, 8 January 2006 - 11:58 PM CST

It isn't just the concealment, Rider; it's the extreme segregation and second-class citizenship and the concomitant influence on these women's physical, social, and emotional well-being.

I hope we break the cycle of their oppression by infecting their societies with democratic liberties.

Monday, 9 January 2006 - 7:04 AM CST

But you have also just described perfectly the situation of women in Victorian England.

Monday, 9 January 2006 - 2:14 PM CST

I think this theory also applies to women who use cosmetics and cosmetic surgery to alter their appearance. You may have a child and wonder why it has a gigantic nose or why it looks nothing like its reconstructed mother. Humans generally defy nature, anyway. Rather than coupling with the most likely to survive real-world dangers, modern people tend to couple with people who could survive social tests, i.e. people who are cool enough, or who exhibit "strengths" which have no natural purpose.
Our species could find itself evolving into the Vogons from Douglas Adams' books--disgusting disfigured creatures who fawn over their own horrible poetry.

Monday, 9 January 2006 - 8:15 PM CST

And, as they were English-speaking white Christian women, that's supposed to disprove my brilliant theory?

Tuesday, 10 January 2006 - 12:03 AM CST

NO.NO.NO.NO....
The muslim societies are sexually repressed. This is a big part of Islam. The young men are constantly trying to catch a whiff of trim. They shag like slimy fag scum. I witnessed these fudge packing cocksuckers in the Saudi Army when I was stationed around them. Anyone can tell you this is the truth.
Also, with a few exeptions, their bitches are ugly and stinky.
No fukkin' makes people crazy. If I couldn't tear off an occasional piece of ass in my late teens and early twenties I would have strapped some c4 to my ass and gone off too.
--- this moment of sensitive cultural education was brought to you by SLUGGCO. "We make bruises"