To the editor:
I was very disappointed to read an article last week about Playboy's visit to Auburn.
Inasmuch as Auburn is family, all Auburn women are my sisters; men, ask yourselves, do you really want to see your sister in an issue of Playboy?
I find the fact that young ladies would allow themselves to be viewed in such crude ways by men disheartening, but even worse might be that women often don't realize the way in which men see them.
This is because men are more physically (i.e. visually) oriented, whereas women are more emotionally oriented, and there is nothing wrong with that. In fact, there is a beautiful complementarity in it, but it prevents women from understanding how pornography affects men.
There is nothing intrinsically wrong with the human body, which is beautiful and reflects the creator; the problem is some people's reaction to it.
When men view pornography, and Playboy and similar magazines are definitely pornography, they inevitably reduce women to mere body parts--objects to be used for pleasure. Pornography leads men to have unrealistic expectations that real-life women cannot live up to.
This attitude translates over into all areas of life with a host of terrible consequences: rape, abuse, unfaithfulness, the inability to respect women, etc..
This, in turn, leads women to dress more provocatively in a misguided attempt to compete against this fantasy woman for man's affections.
Ladies, you might be hesitant to believe this, but I know men who have overcome addiction to pornography, and that's exactly what happens.
In short, Ms. Dollarhide's initial impression of Playboy was correct.
Chances are that anyone who reads Playboy for the articles goes to Hooter's for their hot wings, too.
I invite all men who care about the dignity of women to join me and many others in standing fast against Playboy and all similar institutions which reduce women to sexual commodities.
--Michael LaPointe, senior, mechanical engineering
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