In case you needed a reason to loose that self-esteem again, Hungary is holding a beauty pageant for women who have had plastic surgery. Umm...

Photograph by: Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/MCT

Does any one else find this a bit disturbing?

Here is a quote from the press director of the pageant, Reka Bodis:

"The whole thing is about harmony, that's what the contest seeks to emphasize," Bodis said. "Let's not forget that there are ladies who have had new perspectives open up for them thanks to plastic surgery, who could get rid of their complexes with an operation and can now have a more complete life."

So now that they have restored their self-esteem by giving themselves some cosmetic confidence, what better way to help them continue to shed their complexes than pitting their plastic bods against other enhanced/altered women to determine who is the most appealing, the most beautiful? Does anyone else think that this could maybe lead to more women having plastic surgery, thus boosting profits for Hungary's plastic surgery industry, one of the world's cheapest places to obtain a cosmetic procedure? Maybe someone else out there has a different take on what beauty pageants do for young women and their self-esteem and self-worth, but I think that those who argue that beauty pageants are judged based on personality and talent are completely disillusioned. It is called a beauty pageant, after all. And this is targeted at young(er) women: According to the article from The Windsor Star, "The contest is open to women aged 18-30 or above 30 in the "dame" category." Maybe it's just me, but there is something terribly wrong with women obtaining surgery for purely cosmetic reasons when their bodies are not even completely settled into their adult form. And the encouragement of women to participate in such practices is just as terribly wrong.

So now, these women who have spent thousands of dollars on procedures (that's the catch: a woman can only enter the pageant if she has had a significant alteration done to her body. "...a plain botox injection will not suffice. 'The entry requirement is a surgical procedure done under general or local anesthesia,' said Reka Bodis, press director of the pageant.") will be comparing themselves and will be compared to other women who have done the same if not MORE to their bodies, and then at the end of the day go home a beauty winner or loser. And these women who have lost who have already spent thousands on "improving" themselves will possibly have a mind to spend even MORE to ensure that they are indeed the most beautiful they can be.

What I am interested to find out is which company is actually sponsoring this pageant. I attempted to do some poking around on the Miss Plastic Hungary site, but I think that the English version does not have as much information as the Hungarian version. I have a fairly pessimistic inkling, however, than the company hosting this event has something to do with the medical supply industry...Please, please prove me wrong. That would just be too evil.