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The Belly Watcher’s Society
Am I the only one that thinks it’s odd that a woman in Hollywood can’t even enjoy a nice, hearty meal without speculation that she’s pregnant?
Oooh she has a baby bump! Ooo is that a baby bump? Is she fat or showing her baby bump?
I know that the media caters to peoples desires to obsess over celebrity life so that they don’t have to deal with what’s really going on in the world; but this belly watching thing is getting annoying for several reasons.
1) I don’t care what you say, every woman’s stomach isn’t flat. It doesn’t matter how many situps, crunches, or hours of cardio that are (or are not involved) everyone’s stomach isn’t going to be a washboard. Just because a woman has a little volume to her midsection it doesn’t mean she’s pregnant. It’s as if roundness is becoming associated with pregnancy and that type of roundness is good; but if you are round and not pregnant then there’s something wrong with you, you lazy fat pig!
2)I kind of think of pregnancy as a private thing. I may be alone in that sentiment but if I was pregnant, I wouldn’t tell the whole world as soon as I got a positive test result. Why should a celebrity woman be expected to hold a press conference? It’s as if people get angry if a couple doesn’t make a formal statement. They get accused of “hiding things” and being dishonest.
3) It’s too close to negative body criticism. This goes back to number 1. I’ve seen a few pictures of celebrities who weren’t pregnant, but people circled their stomaches with photoshop and blogged it all over the place.
I will always have a problem with negative criticisms about women’s bodies. How would you like it if someone dissected you piece by piece and plastered it all over the internet. That’s why women are so insecure about everything now. Everything about a womans appearance is subject to scrutiny.
As an interesting sidebar, the Washington Post blogged about the history of the term “baby bump.”
Apparently I’m not the only one who finds it to be quite a stupid term. Celebrity Baby Blog publisher Danielle Friendland put it:
“I never cared for the term myself (so we try to use it minimally at CBB) as I find it cutesy, obnoxious and juvenile. I complained about the term four years ago…”
Still, I wonder if her blog partakes in the obnoxious practice of “baby bump” speculation.
This goes to #3 and the speculation that Kate Hudson was pregnant just yesterday/day before - because she was seen in a t-shirt that had a bump. Then just a few hours later, she was seen in a bikini w/o the t-shirt and no bump. Just goes to show you what jumping the gun is.