Miss Universe Ireland 2010 Rozanna Purcell

LivingDeadGirl

I think Miss Poland is gorgeous!! :eek: Miss Ireland looks too pouty or something.

IzzyWizzy

She is very pouty. I wonder if those are her natural lips? She looks like Angelina Jolie before she got all weird looking.

El_Drago

LivingDeadGirl wrote: »

I think Miss Poland is gorgeous!! :eek: Miss Ireland looks too pouty or something.

IzzyWizzy wrote: »

She is very pouty. I wonder if those are her natural lips? She looks like Angelina Jolie before she got all weird looking.

After all the opinions about her so-called beauty so far,I was starting to think I was on my own there. She looks fairly average to me.Miss Spain is where it's at!

baby and crumble

To be fair, is it any different to a person who is naturally intelligent and academic going up against 40 other people for a PhD scholarship programme? They will have had a combination of natural academic intelligence, and hard work for year honing their particular skills. No different from a naturally beautiful woman entering one of these contests and working hard on her appearance coming up to it. The end result is broadly speaking the same, a chance to fulfill their potential and get a job out of it at the end.

El_Drago

zoegh wrote: »

To be fair, is it any different to a person who is naturally intelligent and academic going up against 40 other people for a PhD scholarship programme? They will have had a combination of natural academic intelligence, and hard work for year honing their particular skills. No different from a naturally beautiful woman entering one of these contests and working hard on her appearance coming up to it. The end result is broadly speaking the same, a chance to fulfill their potential and get a job out of it at the end.

Well,most PhD scholarships don't have stripping down to swimwear as a prerequisite for being selected.These ladies are primarily selected on the basis of looks,you can't refute that. Essentially what this contest suggests is that the better a woman looks in a dress and swimwear, the more suitable she is for humanitarian work. More often than not,the "heart-felt", ghost-written speeches are the same as Barack Obama winning the Nobel Prize for peace-all talk!

baby and crumble

El_Drago wrote:

Well,most PhD scholarships don't have stripping down to swimwear as a prerequisite for being selected.These ladies are primarily selected on the basis of looks,you can't refute that. Essentially what this contest suggests is that the better a woman looks in a dress and swimwear, the more suitable she is for humanitarian work. More often than not,the "heart-felt" speeches are the same as Barack Obama winning the Nobel Prize for peace-all talk!

True, but if the women put themselves up for it, and they are at the pinnacle of their looks, I don't see how it's 'worse' or the women are not as worthy of respect... I'm a PhD student, and while I didn't have to strip down to my undercrackers (thank god!) I do have to open myself up to critique of the way I think all the time, as soon as I open my mouth or my head onto the page... But I chose that. Nobody plucked these women from their sitting rooms and told them to enter. They did that themselves, and I think they're actually pretty smart for using their looks... Most people assume things about good looking people in general- might as well get some money and a chance to travel out of peoples assumptions.

Eve_Dublin

El_Drago wrote: »

Essentially what this contest suggests is that the better a woman looks in a dress and swimwear, the more suitable she is for humanitarian work. More often than not,the "heart-felt", ghost-written speeches are the same as Barack Obama winning the Nobel Prize for peace-all talk!

See this is a good point. If these women want to enter this contest because they think they're gorgeous enough to win it, then go for it. I certainly couldn't do it because I'm not as beautiful as they are.
Just don't dress it up as something it's not. Don't ask them questions that judge them on their intelligence...this is a beauty contest and nothing more. I'm not saying they're not intelligent but it's not a prerequisite for the contest. They have to be extremely gorgeous and sexy and that's it.

To be honest, I find the demeaning part comes into play when they ask them what they'd like to change in the world (or however the question is phrased). What kind of stupid question is that anyway to ask someone wearing a bikini in front of millions? Why in God's name are these girls expected to have a genuine answer to that? It's a beauty contest. You see clips over the years of stupid answer ("Feed the starving babies in Africa" and "World Peace" etc.) and they're played and pulled apart by the media so everyone can have a good laugh...once again people don't want to see these girls having it all. Brains and beauty? It doesn't exist so lets ask them a question, expect a stupid answer and think, "Awwww she hasn't a clue (metaphorical pat on the head)....now go get your knockers out, love!". The Irish contestant is 19 years old. She's very young although she might look older. More than likely she's not going to have some intellectual response to the question that will blow everyone away but she IS very good looking...that's where her skills/talents/good genes lie.

Pretending it's something more than a beauty contest at the expense of the dignity of these women is the part I hate.

Terry

WindSock wrote: »

She looks much better unphotshopped.

It's kinda like an award for having two good looking parents who successfully mated...

I disagree.
My parents were ugly as sin, but I'm a handsome bastard.

Silverfish wrote: »

I don't know, I know a few girls who fall out of bed looking like these girls. No time, no effort, some people just have good genes

I demand proof in the form of pictures.
Thank you.

I had a look through the bikini pics and the airbrushing made half of them look like emaciated women with men's heads.
They're all a bit too skinny for my taste.

coffee_cake

IzzyWizzy wrote: »

She is very pouty. I wonder if those are her natural lips? She looks like Angelina Jolie before she got all weird looking.

I thought she looked like AJ too - but I don't think it's a bad thing

Wibbs

Eve_Dublin wrote: »

Pretending it's something more than a beauty contest at the expense of the dignity of these women is the part I hate.

This bit I agree with alright. I remember watching a fitness contest for women(I think that was its description anyway, wasnt bodybuilding anyway) and it was all about the body honed over many sweaty hours in the gym. The interview consisted of questions on training methods, with the odd nod to what they did for a living. It was more honest in that sense, even though they looked like slightly larger, much more defined versions of the beauty pageant women. They weren't as pretty in the face, but again that didnt matter as the woman who won was pretty plain compared to some of the others.

There would be a lot of work involved even with the beauty types. The dieting, the gym time etc to get down to that level of bodyfat for a start. And even the "curvy" ones have low bodyfat. Having been up close to a few at a regional spanish pageant a few years back they are a bit of a different species Then you have the plucking and prodding and according to a programme I watched on Columbian contestants a fair bit of cosmetic "adjustment". Plus they can do really well financially out of it and kick start modeling careers. So while it does little for me as its all very vapid, they have the choice if they want to pursue it.

WindSock

El_Drago wrote: »

After all the opinions about her so-called beauty so far,I was starting to think I was on my own there. She looks fairly average to me.Miss Spain is where it's at!

Therein lies the problem. How do you judge a person for their beauty, it is totally subjective.

IzzyWizzy

El_Drago wrote: »

After all the opinions about her so-called beauty so far,I was starting to think I was on my own there. She looks fairly average to me.Miss Spain is where it's at!

I didn't mean I thought she looked bad, it was meant to be a compliment. I think AJ was stunning when she was younger. I actually think Miss Ireland is one of the best looking contestants this year, she's really quite striking whereas some of the other girls are just pretty.

To be fair, is it any different to a person who is naturally intelligent and academic going up against 40 other people for a PhD scholarship programme? They will have had a combination of natural academic intelligence, and hard work for year honing their particular skills. No different from a naturally beautiful woman entering one of these contests and working hard on her appearance coming up to it. The end result is broadly speaking the same, a chance to fulfill their potential and get a job out of it at the end.

No, I don't think you can compare the two at all. In the PhD interview, you're talking about all the academic work you've done, the Masters/undergrad thesis you've done, you're grilled about academic theories, the content of your future PhD. Lots and lots of hard work and preparation. In a beauty pageant, you're judged on your looks alone and preparation involves getting a tan, getting your nails done and keeping fit by going to the gym or whatever. It would be a nice ego boost to win but I wouldn't see it as a personal achievement.

jasonb

Interesting to see that all of the Swimsuit Pictures have 'Retouched' at the end of the descriptions.

While it's good to see them admitting that the photos aren't real, it also makes them seem even more pointless! It's like saying 'This is a photo of the contestant*'


























*Not a real photo


J.

coffee_cake

jasonb:
reminds me most of ads for mascara.
"volumise your lashes and look like this!!"*


*lash inserts used. Lashes touched up after shooting ad.

jasonb

Exactly! I know it's getting off topic, but if they're selling something, and then admit that it's not actually what they're selling, then isn't the ad pointless?

And the answer is no, it's not, as people will still believe and want it anyhow...

J.

baby and crumble

I suppose yeah, the hypocrisy of it is a bit much, plus it's a pity that there are so many women who will see this as the only worthy way of being attractive to someone, when most people I know find intelligence a lot sexier than skinny chicks who look like they need a daycent sandwich and a bag of tayto before they faint. (honestly, what is with the airbrushing out of NORMAL bodyfat in those pictures?)

I still say so long as they've entered themselves, I don't see what the big deal is. I also dont see a problem with being confident in your looks and using your best assets to get a job/ career. We all do it, whether that's modeling or writing novels or painting pictures.

Eve_Dublin

By the way, I think Miss Ghana and Miss Ukraine are the most beautiful and I'd say they look gorgeous when you take away all the photoshopping and make up as well.

IzzyWizzy

zoegh wrote: »

I still say so long as they've entered themselves, I don't see what the big deal is. I also dont see a problem with being confident in your looks and using your best assets to get a job/ career. We all do it, whether that's modeling or writing novels or painting pictures.

I suppose it's that winning a crown for looking pretty isn't really an achievement. You look pretty, you have good genes, great. I don't think keeping in shape and looking good counts as hard work or talent. I get what you're saying, that some people are born amazing artists or writers, but it's still a talent, something can can do. Standing there looking pretty in a swimsuit isn't really comparable. It's sort of like going to a museum and complimenting a painting directly (as opposed to the artist). The painting has done nothing but let itself be painted and now looks pretty. To me, beauty queens are very similar (even in that they're 'painted' by make-up artists to look as glamorous as they do) in that they are totally objectified, judged only on outward appearance as opposed to anything they've actually done. Bad comparison I know but it's the best I can do on 3 hours sleep.

Malari

If you put her name into a Google Images search you get some varied pictures of her! Some she looks great, 13-esque (from House), some are like that picture of you on a night out in a club when you looked "hot" at the start and when the photo was taken you just look "hot and bothered"

One thing's for sure, she looks better than Rosanna Davidson.

Their bodies in the swimsuit pics all look very similar. Great, but don't know how you would judge them Some girls faces are just...odd looking. Some are nothing special. I think the Irish girl is an unusual beauty.

panda100

zoegh wrote: »

True, but if the women put themselves up for it, and they are at the pinnacle of their looks, I don't see how it's 'worse' or the women are not as worthy of respect... I'm a PhD student, and while I didn't have to strip down to my undercrackers (thank god!) I do have to open myself up to critique of the way I think all the time, as soon as I open my mouth or my head onto the page... But I chose that. Nobody plucked these women from their sitting rooms and told them to enter. They did that themselves, and I think they're actually pretty smart for using their looks... Most people assume things about good looking people in general- might as well get some money and a chance to travel out of peoples assumptions.

But won't your PhD actually add something good to the world?

What does this contest, that doesn't allow mothers, married women,those under 27, who in the end are judged on their ability to give Donald Trump an erection when wearing their bikini's, add to the world in a really positive sense?

Beauty contests in themselves are not wrong in principle, If they are defined as events that apppreciate beauty,in its widest sense, of the human body. The human body,both male and female is equisite and should be appreciated for its diversity and variety.

All the women in Miss Universe look the same,it has turned something as individualistic as beauty into a cattle mart of hair extensions and bleached teeth. Its such a narrow defintion of what being beautiful is, and these contests are giving such huge media attention, that it is damaging to how women percieve themselves. I had dinner with my 35 year old sister yesterday who was almost in tears due to the lines she's finding under her eyes , and the link to the bikini round just reminded me of how many women admitted on the LL that they are ashamed and afraid to do something as simple as swimming of fear of how they will look in their swimming costume.

Whats depressing about is If she does win we won't hear the end of it for years,like Rossanna Davidson all over again. It would just be nice for a young women to be exultated in the Irish media on something other than her looks for once. Our culture is saturated enough with message that being pretty is still at the top of the list when it come to important attributes in women.

hatful

Poor girl she doesn't stand a chance against that lot. Miss Canada looks like 6 from Battlestar Galactica.

southsiderosie

I just see beauty pageants as something campy and weird...like Eurovision, but less entertaining. So my only interest is the ridiculousness.

The Project Rungay boys did a rundown of some of the more over the top "national costumes" with running commentary (Part 1 & Part 2)...It's definitely worth the laugh.

coffee_cake

While I think I agree with:

panda100 wrote: »

It would just be nice for a young women to be exultated in the Irish media on something other than her looks for once. Our culture is saturated enough with message that being pretty is still at the top of the list when it come to important attributes in women

...I have an issue with:

What does this contest, that doesn't allow mothers, married women,those under 27, who in the end are judged on their ability to give Donald Trump an erection when wearing their bikini's, add to the world in a really positive sense?
.

What does it need to add to the world? What does going out getting hammered on a saturday night add to the world? What does big brother or x factor add to the world?
There's no harm in them doing it if they want to, and especially when it helps further their careers. Just because it's not your cup of tea nor mine doesn't mean it should be scrapped. Maybe they might find my line of work bizarre, or half a dozen others.

baby and crumble

I'm pretty sure I agree with bluewolf on this one. Not everyone has to do amazing things that make the world a better place. And hey, a lot of people are happy to look at good looking people. It's not like their ability to be President or something is being based on their looks. Their looks are being based on their looks, if you know what I mean?

Jelly2

caseyann wrote: »

I dont agree with you there. I have seen famous people on street and they look wow frighteningly normal and would not look twice at them. Make up works wonders and if you have determination,body wise everyone can have that to die for body. Also most have work done.

I agree that sometimes famous people can look shockingly normal in real life, but I don't agree that anybody can, with determination, have a 'to die for' body! Sometimes people just don't have the basics - short tree trunk legs that are the result of large bones and thick joints can never be worked into long slim pegs for example, whatever one does!

iguana

zoegh wrote: »

I'm pretty sure I agree with bluewolf on this one. Not everyone has to do amazing things that make the world a better place. And hey, a lot of people are happy to look at good looking people. It's not like their ability to be President or something is being based on their looks. Their looks are being based on their looks, if you know what I mean?

And it also isn't as if being in a beauty contest precludes them from "adding to the world" in a different way. For example whatever your feelings on litigation Erin Brockovitch made a big difference to the lives of those made ill by the groundwater contamination caused by Pacific Gas & Electric in Hinkley. Yet over a decade before she had been crowned Miss Pacific Coast.

Eve_Dublin

bluewolf wrote: »

What does it need to add to the world? What does going out getting hammered on a saturday night add to the world? What does big brother or x factor add to the world?
There's no harm in them doing it if they want to, and especially when it helps further their careers. Just because it's not your cup of tea nor mine doesn't mean it should be scrapped. Maybe they might find my line of work bizarre, or half a dozen others.

True. I agree with this it's just that Miss Universe does pretend to be something more than it's not to a certain degree. The women are asked what they would do to change the world and even the title of the contest itself alludes to something more than just a beauty contest. I mentioned than in a previous post on this thread so I won't repeat myself.

I don't really feel as passionately about it as I probably feel I should actually. I can't say everything I've participated or done in my life has added something to humanity so it would be hypocritical of me to knock this. I just won't be tuning in to the show but best of luck to the girl all the same.

caseyann

Jelly2 wrote: »

I agree that sometimes famous people can look shockingly normal in real life, but I don't agree that anybody can, with determination, have a 'to die for' body! Sometimes people just don't have the basics - short tree trunk legs that are the result of large bones and thick joints can never be worked into long slim pegs for example, whatever one does!

Never in a million years,does it make a difference if you have short legs or long peg ones.Plenty of girls i know with long peg legs and they look terrible.If you work out legs will always look good.
Everyone can have that fit good looking body if they werent born with it easy,then determination will get it there.

davey17

I agree.. I think Miss Ireland is one of the prettiest but i think there is a lot better looking girls in Ireland who wouldnt have the contacts in modeling world to enter the competition...or even know how to enter it! is there auditions or something?

southsiderosie

bluewolf wrote: »

What does it need to add to the world? What does going out getting hammered on a saturday night add to the world? What does big brother or x factor add to the world?
There's no harm in them doing it if they want to, and especially when it helps further their careers. Just because it's not your cup of tea nor mine doesn't mean it should be scrapped. Maybe they might find my line of work bizarre, or half a dozen others.

Any competition where beautiful women would be willing to prance around wearing something this gloriously tacky in front of an audience of millions has to have some redeeming value, even if it's just the LOLs...:P