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Sunday Jul 13, 2008
It was our turn to host Charlie, the school rabbit for the weekend.
It died.
Seeking to comfort my distressed children, we went to WH Smith, a large stationary shop to buy some colored pencils.
'Imma, there's Charlie,' my little one shouted. "They've put him on the pencil case. Look he's on the folder as well.'
There, in full view, next to Minnie Mouse was the eponymous Playboy symbol plastered over a range of children's stationary.
'Can I have the pencil case?' my little one asked.
'What about Winnie-the-Pooh? It's so cute,' I replied.
'I want Charlie.'
Could Hugh Hefner ever imagined that one day, little girls would aspire to own Playboy branded stationary, blissfully unaware of its associated connotations?
'But darling, it's not Charlie. It's a different rabbit - what about Minnie?'
'Minnie is an idiot. I want the one with the rabbit.'
'But don't you understand, DARLING, you've been conned by this whole pink glittery thing. Can't you see that even your sweet young kodesh teachers, freshly minted from a year at sem, are walking around school carrying pink folders, furry pencil cases and packets of cute mini neon highlighters suggesting a permanent state of infantile sexuality. Playboy represents the exploitation of women's bodies and promotes a sexualized view of women that frankly, I find quite offensive. Don't you see that by putting this cute logo on everything, the company is seducing unwitting young children into supporting this adult brand. Parents who buy this stuff are just colluding with the sex industry.'
She's looking at me strangely. 'What?'
'Nothing. Choose something else - the rabbit is naked - it's not very tznius [modest] and your teachers won't like it in the classroom.'
I always play the modesty card when I am stuck. I am pathetic.
A newspaper cites Louise Evans, the head of media relations for WHSmith. "Playboy is probably one of the most popular ranges we've ever sold. It outsells all the other big brands in stationery. . .We offer customers choice. We're not here to act as a moral censor."
Of course not, that's my job - Moral Mother. If only I had the same courage as Reverend Tim Jones - a vicar who found his 15 minutes of fame in the national media when he initiated a petition objecting to the sale of these goods to his local store and moved all the Playboy products to an empty shelf. This could have been an excellent spot of interfaith collaboration, but a rabbi-t was nowhere to be found.
We eventually settled on Minnie Mouse. After all, when Minnie and Mickey debuted together in the film Plane Crazy, she did not agree to his request for a kiss in mid-flight. Further, when Mickey eventually forced Minnie into a kiss, she heroically parachuted out of the plane. Minnie definitely had the makings of a Beis Yakov icon. Shame her skirts were just not long enough.
Modesty Blasé can also be read on www.lilith.org/blog where some other doubtful Jewish women appear.
1 | chaya jerusalem, Monday Jul 14, 2008
I'm glad to see someone else object to this merchandise! people here just don't realize what they're buying. my daughter recieved a blanket with a bunny on it for a gift from one of her friends & I won't let her use it. we triedto find out where they bought it in order to exchange it but were unsuccessful, so we're stuck with it. I'm hoping soon my daughter will soon agree to throw it out!
2 | Tzvi Nokam/usa, Tuesday Jul 15, 2008
Should have went to a pet store and bought another rabbit.
Anyhow why do Jewish kids bring home non kosher rabbits, what next porky the pig?
3 | JGeoGirl/Israel, Tuesday Jul 15, 2008
To Tzvi/usa --> It's not like the kid is going to eat the rabbit! It's an animal that's nice to have in classrooms and have been in classrooms for several generations. Don't make too many fences/barriers for your kids, otherwise they'll end up with no life experience!
4 | S. Budah, Tuesday Jul 15, 2008
Hey Tzvi, I'm pretty sure these kids weren't planning to eat it.
5 | Joseph, New York City, USA, Tuesday Jul 15, 2008
Looks like there is a niche for a tznius stationary store. How long before somebody opens one?
6 | Hadassa, Israel, Wednesday Jul 16, 2008
I sympathize with Modesty. Every year while looking for school calendars for my children, the kind with enough lines on which to write ALL of their homework assignments I was faced with immodest or otherwise disgusting choices of covers and sometimes text. Some years I bought regular notebooks with pretty (I don't have sons school age) covers and apologized to my girls that would have to write the dates themselves. Currently they attend a school that distributes calendars with the schools name, an attractive cover/ inside pages and useful information inside: Jewish holidays, math formulas etc.
7 | Tirza, Jerusalem, Wednesday Jul 16, 2008
I used to like Hello Kitty and enjoy buying these products for my daughters. Everyone knows that though cats are not kosher animals, they represent tsnius and encourage modest toilet training habits, as our Sages taught. Unfortunately the Sanrio company of Japan has trashed poor Kitty's overalls and blobby shirt in favor of hip-hop belly-baring tart attire and Hawaiian hibiscus bikinis. What's the world coming to? Another reason Hello Kitty is appropriate in representing us frum women: she has no mouth.
8 | Tal, Wednesday Jul 16, 2008
Dear Tzvi,
Are you recommending that children bring home, a cow, a goat, a chicken or some geese?
9 | Sam H US of A, Wednesday Jul 16, 2008
The Blog just shows us how we are all inundated with "sexual materialism". Just watch the movies, television, advertisemenets for every product. Every magazine has pictures of women and men in a "pre-sexual" positions. There is big money in sex! Our kids see all this garbage...and don't kid yourself. All this sexual content affects our children's behavior. Just see the polls and reports on sexual activity among kids 9 to 15! And add that with the general problems with many families today with devorse and single parenting. .
10 | refra france, Sunday Jul 20, 2008
you sound like islamic prudes diluted version. grow up . really silly to have problems with rabbits and cats and pigs and short skirts and and and.....pity those who are that strict on mostly silly non scientific matters simply cause the old religion dictates that. use science logic and your heart not arbitrary rules purportedly comming from supreme entities etc. but i do agree with you about excessive commercialismand consumerism
11 | Rachel, NYC, Sunday Jul 20, 2008
As a mother/educator what are you going to do, though? Tell kids what it stands for in order to let them know why they shouldn't be sporting this character? Do kids even know what this character symbolizes?
12 | Gary, USA, Monday Jul 21, 2008
From the book 'Creeping Compromise' copyright 1977: "We are seeing three factors at work today which have never operated before in human history at the same time...1) The Women's Lib Movement, whose declared purpose is to interchange the roles of men and women in much of our social, economic, and religious life. 2) The pantsuit fashion revolution, which has led the majority of women to abandon the traditional feminine dress styles. 3) The growing tendency of men to dress in frills, with feminine hair styles, and accompanying demasculinization." Inch by inch, we reap what we sow.
13 | Mordechai, Netivot, Monday Jul 21, 2008
To ' refra france ' . About your comment ' use science logic '. No thank you. Science gave us Germany, one of the most scientific countries, who, based on logic decided to do the world a favor and get rid of the less than perfect humans. They only helped nature along with its natural selection of the best and the brighest. I would rather stick with the ' old religion ' as you call it. The one that teaches love and respect for all life and especially for women, not to commercialize them and destroy families in the process. Non Jews also have a mitzva to have happy, healthy, honest family life.
14 | Velvel, Friday Jul 25, 2008
Refra, what does it mean exactly that a desire to maintain common decency in a now overly sexualized society is considered "non scientific thought." Not everything has to do with science. Is "non scientific" supposed to be an insult? Overexposure to sex is a negative influence that can erode a society and family structure, whether you want to be "religious" or not. It should be a concern for all people interested in maintaining some kind of red lines and boudaries in society and some degree of common decency.
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About this blog
Modesty Blasé
And G-d created Modesty. And Modesty grew up to be an Orthodox Jewish housewife and mother in London. She has a Pesach kitchen and a Polish cleaner. Her skirts are long and she often sports a trendy baseball cap with a fake ponytail. But lately, Modesty has been having some doubts. This is her commentary.
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