Miss Congeniality

Tonight I'm seeing a lot of reports saying that Jenna Talackova "lost" the Miss Universe Canada beauty pageant.


First of all, I don't think anybody who enters such a competition "loses."  After all, there are plenty of women (including moi) who will never be in one.   


Second, I have to admit that I feel it's a victory for me and lots of other people simply to see her in such a competition. After all, she had to overcome a lot of hassles and stonewalling to get there.  Officials tried to bar her from the contest, even though there is no written rule--at least for Canada's contest-- stating that transgender women can't compete.  So the officials who tried to keep her out were, to be charitable, afraid of something that even they couldn't explain to anyone.  If I didn't want to be charitable, I'd say they're pure-and-simple bigots.


Judgments in such contests are subjective.  So who's to say who is really the most beautiful, or most representative of Canada (or the universe) in such a contest?  That said, I don't see how anyone could not find Ms. Talackova at least a little teensy weensy bit attractive.  


Plus, she is articulate and outgoing.  She seems friendly and intelligent. So it's no surprise that they crowned her Miss Congeniality.  I've always suspected that pageant judges gave that title to the one they really wanted, but couldn't bring themselves, to crown Miss Universe (or Miss whatever).


So I declare her a winner.  After all, we all know Miss Congeniality is really the one you want to know better!

My Thing Is Bigger Than....Well, Never Mind!

I'm going to break a promise to myself.  I didn't make the promise to anyone else, so I guess it's okay to break.  Kinda sorta maybe?


Anyway...The soap opera about Miss Universe continues.  First Donald Trump, who owns the pageant, said he's all right with Janna Talackova competing as long as she meets the requirements.  But the Miss Universe organization tried to bar her, claiming that she would violate the rule that all contestants must be "natural born" females.  


So Talackova hired Gloria Allred, the famed civil rights attorney.  Allred said Talackova "did not ask Mr. Trump to prove that he is a naturally-born man, or to see the photos of his birth, to view his anatomy, to see that he was male.  It made no difference to her.  Why should it make any difference to him."


I always knew Trump was a boor.  But he went beyond that:  He turned into a cross between Howard Stern and Rush Limbaugh.  "I think Gloria would be very, very impressed with my anatomy," he said.

The only thing worse than a guy who has to prove to all of the other guys that his thing is bigger than theirs is a guy who has to prove his thing is bigger when there aren't any other guys in the room.  Was Donald Trump born that way, or did somebody or something make him so?

It's Against The Rules--Whatever They Are

"It's against the rules."

"Which rules?"

"You know, the rules."

"Which ones?"

"I dunno.  But I know it's against the rules."

"Where can I find them?"

"Get outta here!"

Somehow I can imagine Jenna Tackalova having such an exchange with Donald Trump or one of the executives of the Miss Universe contest.  At first, contest organizers told her she couldn't participate.  Then, in an official statement, they told her she can compete, provided she meets "the legal gender recognition requirements of Canada, and the standards established by other international competitions." 

Talk about a weasely, waffling, wishy-washy answer! Worse, the statement did not elaborate on what the standards are.  Trump, who owns the Miss Universe competitions, at least said she could enter Miss Universe-Canada because under the laws of that country, Tackalova, a Vancouver native, is a woman.  However, Trump also said that each country has its own rules for the competition and that under the rules for the Miss Universe competition, contestants must be "naturally born-females."


Those rules are not posted anywhere on the Miss Universe website. Furthermore, no one seems able to find a copy of them.  Now Gloria Allred is calling on Trump to give "a clear answer--not a wimpy or wishy-washy type of answer."  She wonders whether he "will eliminate this abhorrent rule"--which no one can seem to find in print or online.  


Jenna Tackalova still is left to wonder whether or not she can compete in the Miss Universe-Canada contest, and what rules might be preventing her from doing so.

What Is Denis Davila Afraid Of?

Would you let Jenna Talackova compete in your beauty contest?

If not, what are you afraid of?


I'd like to ask the latter question of Denis Davila, the National Director of Miss Universe Canada.  He claimed that only "natural born" women are qualified to compete in the pageant.  


However, Maria Keisling, the Director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, claims that she read the rules and couldn't find any prohibition against transgenders.  "It seems that they made (the rules) up on the fly to disqualify her," she explained.


In defending the ban on Talackova, Davila said, "Just because she can't compete doesn't mean we stopped loving her."