so, well, yes, quite. this post could well, look you see, be seen as me "going off on one". ranting, perhaps, but hopefully not too much rambling. as ever, feel free to disregard or disagree and do get on with your life. or, you know, read.
it was some 35 years ago that Nigel Tufnel, he who can do smart guitar solos with his feet (well, one foot), asked the question what's wrong with being sexy? delving into an understanding of that "fine line between clever and stupid", time was taken to explain the difference to Nigel, composer of songs, between or if you like betwixt sexy and sexist.
yes, indeed i do understand that Spinal Tap are not routinely seen as a source which informs society, and further that, with the deepest of regret as such, This Is Spinal Tap was not actually a real life documentary. but, all the same, how strange that we seem to have reached a point where the explanation given to Nigel Tufnel on the difference is one which corners of society would do well to heed.
this indeed relates to the puritanical approach on the go these days; one somewhat quite at odds with the reported rise in atheism and rejection of any social, sexual "rules" or guides generally associated with organised religion. also, or perhaps, it's just simply a case of doing something rather trivial to make it look like the powers that be are "doing something" over some problem, concern, or other.
a ban, or cancellation, or scrappage scheme, has come into effect then, for the darts on the tele. with the given reason a fear of sexism or abuse or doing something against the accepted standards of society as decreed by either a vocal minority or vocal majority (i do not know which) on that there social media stuff, two models of a female gender (actual or "i identify as") shall no more accompany the darts players to the oche on the darts.
this all, of course, happened in the wake of allegations from something called the Presidents Club at the Dorchester Hotel; an establishment i believe to be quite posh. make no mistake, the allegations - those of somewhat refreshed with the sauce, getting on in years wealthy businessmen groping hostesses - are serious. whereas one hopes the actual culprits of any wrongdoing are brought to book, not helping matters is that certain corners of the political system have used the incident as an ideal excuse to get rid of troublesome people, despite no evidence of guilt. just ask Lord Mendelsohn, to give another link to Metro as a thanks for the screenshot.
a precedent being set means nothing if no one follows, of course. sure enough, them what do the fancy cars that go round in a circle - Formula One - have elected to "axe" the so-called "grid girls" from their sporting endeavours, as apparently they do not "tie in with their brand" or something.
oh, i agree, now is the time to see my calendar for the month of February 2018, especially if you are someone who for some reason uses my blog for calendar updates.
so far as i can tell, and this is based on limited following of the story, a great many people are upset by this rather draconian sacking of a lot of models whilst a very loud minority are absolutely delighted. to my knowledge a number of models have come forward upset and distressed about losing jobs they loved on the basis of someone else taking offence on their behalf.
a knee jerk reaction, then. so far as i can tell, the net result of this questionably pious move has been to make the darts players look silly as they walk to the oche flanked by security only, to distract the fans by making a fuss out of the fact that the walk on ladies are missing and, most importantly and damning, to put people out of a job.
them models, as is the case with all models, male, female or however their heart feels they should identify, work damned hard to get them jobs. many sacrifices and efforts are made for the career they want. at least one of the ladies summarily fired to prove a point of "doing good" is distressed, as their goes her income for her and her child. also gone is the massive exposure from being on the tele that could land other jobs.
what did i think of the walk on ladies? not a lot, really. they looked like they were having unenforced fun doing the job, and added some glamour to the games. darts players, on the whole, are not, after all, the most photogenic or stylish of people in this world.
my concern would be this heavy handed puritanical approach. yes, there are some very serious cases and allegations out there of sexual assault, bullying and all sorts of horrible things. they need to be investigated and justice sought. what's happening instead is that they are, and this is fuelled of course by the media as "social networks", being allowed to overshadow everything. this is all to the point where i, and surely i am not alone, am now left asking, just like Nigel, what's wrong with being sexy? there is a difference between y and ist. surely our world, filled as it is with many faults, is now not so dumbed down that those who cannot tell the difference are in the majority.
first rule of advertising, promotion, etc - sex sells. that has always been the case. it does not have to be overt. adding a touch of glamour to something like the darts is not, or rather was not, no bad thing. what was the worst to happen? fragile gentlemen with nothing better to do tuned in to the darts purely to see the ladies? would that have not added to the viewing figures, which ultimately is the aim of such a commercial venture?
i would be more inclined to accept the moral high ground of those who made this decision if they had, at the same time, announced that they were cancelling all gambling, betting and alcohol sponsorship of the darts too, lest they have a negative influence. but, of course, such a move would cost them, whereas firing some people saves them some coins.
be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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