Posted on 09/13/2006 5:49:08 AM PDT by shrinkermd
"...Sweet Sixteen events have exploded in size and popularity at the same time that the Hispanic tradition of the Quinceañera, a party thrown for a girl of 15 to mark her transition into womanhood, is receiving more attention. Though both events are more secular than Bat Mitzvahs, they bear a similar social function to the Jewish tradition. The host and her family -- rather than a committee of ladies-who-lunch -- make the decisions about attendees, decor and entertainment. As a result, the party may be an expression the family's status and wealth -- rather than a rite of passage for young people to join a particular segment of society.
The newly individualistic and excessive nature of the Sweet Sixteen party has received national attention thanks to MTV's documentary series "My Super Sweet Sixteen." In it, American teenagers allow (or, perhaps, beg) film crews to witness the preparations for their birthday blow-outs. There are the outrageous shopping trips, the bitter arguments, the poodles dyed pink. The main events look like nightclub soirées with emcees, DJs, fireworks and fog machines. Among the most outlandish entrances to these televised parties include a young girl arriving on a camel, one on a divan hoisted by bare-chested men and one on stage with a group of back-up dancers. The only constant is the screaming and cheering of the friends-turned-fans in the crowd
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
Thorstein Veblen's "Theory of the Liesure Class" still has legs I guess.
The parents obviously WANT to raise bitchy whores.
Paris Hilton really needs to open that franchise of mall stores called "Stupid Spoiled Whores" as was portrayed in South Park.
Quite an interesting dynamic at the parties too...the granduer and excess are sort of 'in your face' to the fellow teens...like the display will bring instant popularity. But, even with editing, you can still see where the Party Princess is at in the HS food chain. It really is something to watch (if you can get past the whining and tears).
Another example of the 21st Century "how to be a star without having to do anything to earn it" mentality.
It sounds like an Indian Potlatch. Isn't that where some tribes in the Northwest would compete in assembling their most valuable good and then destroy them to show who's best?
Rock Yer Trailer Park!
Yes, except it's our entire culture they're destroying.
My Super Sweet Sixteen Party was getting a job.
Where's the betting pool for how long before these girls become cokeheads or the next in line at the abortion clinic (although both might apply already given the behavior they exhibit)? Every time I watch this show I want to vomit.
Beyond the obvious amazement that any parent would blow 6 figures on a freaking birthday party, I am always amazed at the way these brats treat their parents. They cuss at them, scream at them, whine at them if Mom chooses the $500/table flower arrangement instead of the $1000/table flower arrangement (Omigod, just make me live in a trailer park why don't you Mom). And if Dad dares think about buying them the safer but square car, God help him. (He usually relents by the end and buys them the cool Beamer or Lexus -- or in one case just buys both the safe SUV for the week and the convertible for the weekend). I don't know what's worse -- these nasty brats or the parents who are setting their kids up for failure in the real world.
Scary, scary, scary...
Depends on the tribe. Sometimes the items were destroyed, in a display of "excess" wealth, and other times the host was expected to give all his most valuable things away.
LOL! My parents stopped my allowance when I turned 16. I lived on babysitting receipts for the next two years - neighborhood with lots of little kids.
Our priests won't do a Quinceañera unless the family is actively Catholic and the person is baptised and confirmed.
A nation of sluts? Sex addicts? The parents obviously WANT to raise bitchy whores.
Who says these things? There is obviously a lack of knowledge regarding HPV. Talk to your family doc for some clarification. Who do you think these girls are having sex with? Each other? NO, the guys nobody talks about. This has little to do with promiscuity in a great deal of cases. No test even exists for men with respect to HPV. Because HPV lies dormant in your system, a male can pass it to any female at any time and so on, making it nearly impossible to know who transmitted it to an infected individual. For me, it was one of only 2 people (at 26 years old) who I could have received it from: my first long-term boyfriend, or my ex-HUSBAND. Any parent- of teenagers especially- will tell you that you can do all the right things and your child will do what they're going to do. Part of being a parent is accepting your child for who they are and loving them unconditionally. A "tough lesson for the girl and parents to learn"? No parent wants to lose a child regardless of what they're being "punished" for. There is a plethora of information about HPV available on internet medical sites. I suggest you do some research before you make snap judgments and title ALL females with HPV "sluts" or "bitchy whores," especially since these females could be your sister, wife, or daughter, and she- let alone YOU- may not even know.
This thread is about bitchy princess whores (and the parents who raise them).
Not one mention of HPV.
Please stay on topic.
If you wish to discuss cervical cancer (the cancer most frequently caused by promiscuity and ALWAYS associated with the sexually transmitted disease HPV or genital warts) please go to that thread:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1700554/posts?page=20#20
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1700554/posts?page=21#21
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1700554/posts?page=36#36
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1700554/posts?page=41#41
The only thing that might "have legs" from that book was the catch phrase "conspicuous consumption" that he coined.
Click Here for a list of his writings.
I particularly like:
"The Mutation Theory and the Blond Race" and "The Blond Race and the Aryan Culture"
Blond Race????? Since when is "Blond" a race??
You don't suppose Hitler read Veblen do you?
LOL
He was such a good looking guy too
So intelligent looking.
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