Bush thumbs up for beach volleyball women

President George W. Bush temporarily switched roles Saturday from commander-in-chief to cheerleader-in-chief at the Summer Olympics, stopping by to offer support for the American volleyball and softball teams.

He made a surprise visit to the beach volleyball venue, where he watched the U.S. men's and women's teams practice. But it took a little coaxing to get Bush out on the sand court.

source: Reuters

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Is it just me but does this picture look kind of compromising?

Kind of bummed; beach volleyball bikinis

Ever wondered why female beach volleyball players wear micro-bikinis? Four-time Olympian Natalie Cook has provided a straight answer. While the rules of the sport have changed to make it more pacy for television coverage, 2000 Olympic gold medallist Cook said the bikinis are not about audience eye candy but all about the conditions.

"...we wear a bikini because it is hot out there most of the time,'' Cook, the first female beach volleyballer to go to four Olympic Games, said.

If a woman wants to play under the auspices of the International Volleyball Federation, she better get out her tape measure; women's uniform bottoms have to be two and a half inches wide on the sides. The federation, based in Switzerland, decided the uniforms should be standardized. It says beach volleyball is played on the beach, so swimsuits are in keeping with the sun and fun atmosphere.

Apparently the 'fun atmosphere' only applies to women; male volleyball players are now required to wear shorts that fall a bit above the knee.

"I'm kind of bummed; I like my tights," said the sport's most famous player, Gabrielle Reece, who is known for wearing black Lycra tights rather than a bikini suit while playing.

Despite Natalie Cook's 'straight answer'; I'm still wondering why female beach volleyball players wear micro-bikinis. If this ruling is not simply about providing eye candy for TV cameras, surely male beach volleyball players should be made to wear skimpy bikinis too.

Roberta's Underbelly

she devil Roberta Williams

Roberta Williams, former wife of crime baron Carl has posed for men's magazine Zoo Weekly in a bikini. Carl and Roberta have practically become household names since featuring as key characters in the hit TV series Underbelly. The shoot has also been covered by A Current Affair. The press has commented that Roberta has sunken to a new low by posing for a tacky magazine. How can this woman who for years benefited from the proceeds of drug dealing and murder be allowed to profit from her notoreity? How deplorable? How sordid? Really?

Has Roberta really sunken to a new low by posing for a few photographs in a bikini? If Underbelly is anything to go by, she was well aware of most of her husband's illegal activities. How else did he come by such a huge fortune when he had no job or other means of income? After initially complaining about her portrayal in the TV series, Roberta is now reaping the benefits of her new found celebrity. Scandal mongers like A Current Affair and Zoo Weekly are very happy to cash in on her fame, and large numbers of consumers are just as happy to lap it up. After living association with drug dealing and murder, posing in a bikini hardly seems 'a new low'. Descriptions of Roberta as 'a tragic figure' seem a bit melodramatic. Her bank account is likely to be anything but tragic. Perhaps we should just be grateful she spared us doing the photo shoot nude.

It's interesting that as soon as a woman comes into the public eye; almost the first thing she's asked to do is take her clothes off for the camera. I doubt Carl will be asked to pose for a photo shoot in his speedos if he ever gets out of prison. Women are always sex objects first and people second (if at all).

Benefiting from the proceeds of crime; sordid, tacky, deplorable: maybe. Surprising? No.