online petitions never work
...thank the lord.
Fans decry tennis gal's breast-slash plan
Rising Romanian tennis star Simona Halep is facing popular opposition to her plan to reduce her breasts, which she describes as an "uncomfortable" impediment to optimum performance on the court. The 17-year-old junior French Open champ - whose vital stats are: height 5ft 5in; world ranking 264; cup size 34DD - confirmed: "This …
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Friday 29th May 2009 23:01 GMT Anonymous Coward
How on earth...
... is a straight read blooded bloke supposed to comment on a story like this without risking a lifetime ban from the Moderatrix?
Well, I couldn't play tennis that well if I had those things bouncing around in front of me. I have enough trouble with the middle aged spread bouncing around...
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Friday 29th May 2009 23:06 GMT Anonymous Coward
After reviewing the evidence...
I agree that from our* point of view the reduction surgery is going to be a real shame. If only she could go for helium additions to reduce the weight *and* ensure perkiness in the future! Alas I'm guessing it's the momentum more than the weight which is causing her issues.
Real fans of the lass should go for a different approach.
Set up a fund with enough cash in it for her to reverse the surgery. If she gets to 200th position she gets the cash, if she doesn't the fund gets used as suggested.
*male interested in the female half of the species
PH - because deep down inside we're all in favour of women getting on top
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Friday 29th May 2009 23:06 GMT Anonymous Coward
This looks to me like
Entrapment. You draw our attention to a woman tennis player's breasts (so far, so meeting the readership's needs of news from the cutting edge of IT) and entice us to make comments.
I just know if I do comment I'll get pounced on by la moderatrix. You're not getting me like that again. I thought the resolution and date transfer rates of the youtube video were pretty poor, although I recognise traffic rates affect the user experience.
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Friday 29th May 2009 23:06 GMT Chris C
Hypocrisy
"Rising Romanian tennis star Simona Halep is facing popular opposition to her plan to reduce her breasts, which she describes as an 'uncomfortable' impediment to optimum performance on the court."
I find it intriguing that we (society) have no problems with women inserting silicone or saline into their bodies to increase the size of their breasts, and we have no problem with women removing fat from their body to make them slimmer, and yet, for some reason, we have a problem when a woman wants to reduce her breast size. Why? I know that a lot of men think "bigger is better", but is that the only reason? Why do we care at all?
Being a male, I can only imagine how uncomfortable an impediment it is. As well as the discomfort and added strain on her shoulders and back, it provides real physical disadvantages, specifically inertia. As she moves, her breasts move; when she stops, inertia will cause her breasts to keep moving, effectively exerting additional force on her body, pulling it in the direction of the movement. A super-heavy-duty sports bra may help, but I would think that would cause even greater discomfort and restrict her movement.
Simply put, it's her body, and she needs to do what's right for her, not what society wants her to do.
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Friday 29th May 2009 23:10 GMT Pete
Ahhhh... I get it Lester
"And before the curmudgeons among you start start banging on about the IT angle and remove El Reg from your bookmarks, the Daily Mail reckons Halep fans have started an online petition urging her to reconsider"
The Information Technology Angle or TIT angle
Anyway, I can't see anything wrong with her swing.
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Friday 29th May 2009 23:14 GMT anarchic-teapot
Re: sports bra?
She's obviously wearing one already, and it still looks bloody uncomfortable to me. A 'C' cup is bad enough, is the poor soul really cursed with a DD?
Actually, the tennis angle is probably just an excuse. Very few women actually enjoy men staring at their tits all the time, despite what your favourite movies might indicate.
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Friday 29th May 2009 23:14 GMT LaeMi Qian
While I don't have the issue myself,
I know from friends that large breasts are VERY uncomfortable for any vigorous activity (well, outside the bedroom anyway) if not properly restrained.
I do feel that the poster further up is right that a sports bra manufacturer might be able to offer a less surgical solution, however in the end it is her body and career and not many people complain when a woman gets enlargement surgery for far less reason.
...
And I know plenty of guys who prefer things there a manageable proportion too. I guess they weren't put on bottle-feeding in infancy? :-P
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Friday 29th May 2009 23:14 GMT JassMan
@What about the Amazon warior women?
I think you'll find most amazon toxophilists were right handed so they would have to remove the left jubbly.
Still - 'twould be a great shame to mutilate herself for a short-term gain in a sport where her career may only last 10-15 years. Better to go for that really BIG sponsorship deal then follow Kournikova.
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Saturday 30th May 2009 09:55 GMT Anonymous Coward
I don't believe she said that
"This fall I'll have a breast reduction operation"
Why would a French person say "fall"?
Why would a UK website translate it to "fall" instead of "autumn"?
I'd delete my reg bookmark except that I was fully prepared to have to post "Where are the pictures?" but instead found full video...to my very pleasant surprise :-)
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Saturday 30th May 2009 09:55 GMT Chris C
@Frank Bough
"There's something very wrong with the world when a woman will mutilate herself for such a ridiculous reason."
Please define "mutilate". Do you consider breast enlargement surgery to be mutilation? Liposuction? Botox injections? Nose jobs? Any kind of cosmetic surgery? LASIK or other type of eye surgery? Tooth fillings, caps, crowns, or implants? Gold teeth? Braces? Tattoos? Piercings? Knee or hip replacements? Organ replacement? Heart bypass surgery? Appendix removal? Titanium pins or plates to replace missing bone? Mastectomy? Hysterectomy? Tonsillectomy? Gastric bypass? The point is, one person's definition of "mutilation" can be far different from another's.
I can speak only for myself, but I would guess that a large number of people do not consider a person's career to be "a ridiculous reason". Do you think training every day of their lives is "a ridiculous reason" for an Olympic medalist or a classical musician? Advancement of one's career is a very valid reason for many choices, especially when it coincides with other reasons.
Stop being a male chauvinist pig and start being a human.
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Saturday 30th May 2009 09:55 GMT Anonymous Coward
@ChrisC
"I find it intriguing that we (society) have no problems with women inserting silicone or saline into their bodies to increase the size of their breasts, and we have no problem with women removing fat from their body to make them slimmer"
Well, I for one object to both of those, along with botox and painting your teeth white before going out, as currently suggested by a TV advert.
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Sunday 31st May 2009 10:13 GMT JC
@ Chris C
At the tender age of 17 it is hardly a career yet.
Mutilate would be any surgery that is not meant to improve health or restore one to their intended physical state (for example taking an appendix out, disfigurement from a fire or car accident).
On the other hand, every now and then I hear rumblings from the tin foil hat crowd that today women have breasts larger than they were supposed to be due to drinking too much milk from scientifically tweaked cows.
Lions and tigers and bears, oh my. Why'd I have to go and talk about drinking milk in a topic about big boobs? I'll be getting my coat...
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Sunday 31st May 2009 15:49 GMT John Smith
This operation is pretty risky
Heard of 19 YO old decided to get this done and flatlined at least once on the table.
Breast reduction is nowhere near the *relatively* straightforward job an augmentation is.
However if your looking at a world class career in tennis then this is a potential disadvantage. Substantial forces are being exerted and anything able to restrain her two perky friends is likely to reduce her flexibility for reaching those high shots over the net. I'll hope she re-considers but it is her choice.
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Sunday 31st May 2009 15:49 GMT David Moore
Best
bouncy bouncy
ooh such a good time
Bouncy Bouncy
White socks slipping down
Bouncy Bouncy
Stilettos are a no no
Bouncy Bouncy
Ooh
Bouncy Bouncy ooh
Everytime I bounce I feel I touch the skyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy
BTW. Love the holier than thou, 'thou shalt not mutilate' commentators. It's a pretty drastic thing to do to yourself, but it's her body, she can do what she wants to it. Who cares, really?
PARIS, cause she could make use of the offcuts. (too far? :)
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Sunday 31st May 2009 16:12 GMT Anonymous Coward
A good friend....
... had exactly the same thing, breast reduction to aid her career.
On this occasion though she is a commercial pilot and her baps got in the way of the control column!!!
I think she is a bit miffed now as she flies fly-by-wire with a joystick instead so she could have kept the puppies :(
Crimes against pervality!!
Hasn't stopped her though, she is now a Captain, flying to exotic locations (ok then, and New York) and staying in hotels miles from anywhere with the absolute minimum of rest time.
But is she happy?!!
ttfn
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Monday 1st June 2009 09:21 GMT Frank Bough
@ Chris C
"Do you consider breast enlargement surgery to be mutilation?" Yes.
"Liposuction?" Yes.
"Botox injections?" Yes.
"Nose jobs?" Oh yes.
"Any kind of cosmetic surgery?" Pretty much, yes. Obviously, maxillofacial surgery is quite different.
LASIK or other type of eye surgery?" You mean ELECTIVE, UNNECESSARY, OCCASIONALLY QUITE DAMAGING eye surgery? Yes.
"Tooth fillings, caps, crowns, or implants?" This is for maintenance of proper function so, no. "Gold teeth?" Again, no. Gold has qualities that make it a suitable material for such a role.
"Braces?" Yes, though braces can be used to correct damage done as well as to 'perfect' teeth.
"Tattoos?" Thrice yes.
"Piercings?" Yes, though a pretty harmless and perfectly reversible mutilation in most cases.
"Knee or hip replacements? Organ replacement? Heart bypass surgery? Appendix removal? Titanium pins or plates to replace missing bone? Mastectomy? Hysterectomy? Tonsillectomy? Gastric bypass?" Is it possible that I'm the first person to introduce you to the difference between medical and non-medical surgical procedures?
"I can speak only for myself, but I would guess that a large number of people do not consider a person's career to be "a ridiculous reason"." You're right, a large number of people are quite stupid.
"Do you think training every day of their lives is "a ridiculous reason" for an Olympic medalist or a classical musician?" No, but cutting off parts of their bodies is quite different to training. Some might even call that cheating. Would you be happy to see a swimmer lop his ears off to make his head more hydrodynamically efficient?
"Advancement of one's career is a very valid reason for many choices, especially when it coincides with other reasons." Indeed, the drug dealer can often advance his career prospects by gunning down a rival.
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Monday 1st June 2009 09:21 GMT The Jase
point
She does have a point, those things sem to have a life of their own.
Breast reduction surgery is a big deal, its major surgery. If she is serious about a career in sports, she should have the operation (all that bouncing around leading to strains, stretch marks, etc. not nice. And yes, it does thorw her game out too), but if she is not, she should not have the surgery.
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Monday 1st June 2009 09:21 GMT Anonymous Coward
this is a technology challenge.
To all those materials engineers and designers of sports equipment, think of the marketing opportunity from sorting that out. If you can buy adaptive suspension on a Porsche, why not here? This could make more spin-offs than the Apollo program. Surely one for DARPA funding eh Lewis?
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Monday 1st June 2009 09:21 GMT Sarah Bee
Re: @ Chris C
Now, I haven't been moderating these myself, but what's all this? A debate about acceptable surgery? Whuh?
Do what you like to yourself, I say. Most women who have breast reductions don't do it out of vanity (although if you want to do it out of vanity, why not?) - it's because it's physically and/or psychologically uncomfortable. (Not that enormojugs get undue attention or anything - I mean, look at all the admiring comments in this thread, who could possibly complain?) This woman is doing it because it's physically incompatible with the life she wishes to lead.
Women having toes removed to fit into tiny shoes is fucked up, to my mind, but it's up to them. This isn't fucked up, to my mind.
Sorry, I meant to say - woo! See them jubblies fly! It's a crime against nature to lop 'em off! Send her over here, if she can't make money at pro tennis I'll see her right! etc.
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Monday 1st June 2009 09:27 GMT Sarah Bee
oh, and Frank
>>"Advancement of one's career is a very valid reason for many choices, especially when it coincides with other reasons." Indeed, the drug dealer can often advance his career prospects by gunning down a rival.
Ha! I've been moderating here for 18 months or so and this is possibly the most uproariously daft and pompous comment I've ever seen. Do you belong to some sort of nature cult? I feel inclined to go out and get a great big tattoo and the laser eye surgery I've been toying with the idea of. Also, the ear thing - not a bad idea, I'd say.
Incidentally now I'm back in the chair I am damming this tide of drool. You've had your fun, boys.
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Monday 1st June 2009 10:26 GMT Jonathan White
Return of the Mod
With all due respect Sarah, ido you really have grounds to take umbrage with the comments posted in this thread given the story in question is virtually a fishing exercise to get them. Did you really expect to get any other sort of comment? In fact doesn't the story kind of apologise for itself on exactly the same basis?
Not that I approve of them I think they're pretty crass in the main. However, if you don't want lots of outrageous comments about a young woman's breasts maybe not posting a story about a young woman's breasts - with embedded video for Pete's sake - might have been a better option? Seems very slightly hypocritical of the reg (as an organisation, not you personally) to me.
On the subject of the woman and her apparent plans, It's not unusual for athletes in any sport to have operations which will repair injuries or the like to allow them to continue in competition even though they could continue to function in normal life perfectly well without the surgery. This seems to me to be a rather extreme case of that. It's her choice to do as she will, assuming she understands any long term effects it may have.
Jon
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Monday 1st June 2009 10:27 GMT Sarah Bee
Re: Return of the Mod
Untwist your knickers, Jon. I know how it works - a story goes up (and I'm not the editor, I don't decide what gets published) and I wrangle the comments. It's my job to decide when to start filtering out the repetitive dribblings. So that's what I'm doing.
And I was taking umbrage, if at all (I think 'issue' is more apposite) with Frank, whose comment was nutty. So hush your mouth.
Ah Monday.
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Monday 1st June 2009 11:19 GMT Anonymous Coward
RE:So she's allowed surgery to improve her game?
This is exactly the point i was going to raise, why would it be acceptable to surgically alter yourself so that you are better suited to competing in a sport, when it is considered completely unnacceptable to chemically alter yourself so that you are better suited to compete.
Sports are supposed to be about people working hard in order to be better than the rest, having surgery just to be better because you're body is naturally unsuitable* for your chosen sport, seems a little like cheating.
*don't start on the paralympics and artificial limbs etc, there's a big difference. Also i realise she probably started playing before this was an issue.
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Monday 1st June 2009 11:50 GMT Matthew Coulson
@Frank Bough
With uncorrected vision, I can see clearly up to 6 inches from my face.
Contrary to what adverts say, wearing contact lenses day in day out becomes incredibly uncomfortable after a while. Glasses are a pain in the rear end too. While you certainly can get all types designed for various activities, nothing beats a pair of eyes that work properly in the first place.
If surgery existed that could provide new limbs to those that have lost them, or were never born with them - would that also be mutilation?
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Monday 1st June 2009 21:11 GMT Martin
Surgery or steroids?
How is surgical modification to her body to improve her game any different from taking drugs to improve her performance?
For the record, I have no opinion on whether or not she should have the op done. My question is solely in regard to the governing body's decision about her future play. If it were up to me, she'd be ineligible, just like if she took steroids.
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Tuesday 2nd June 2009 10:12 GMT Frank Bough
@Sarah
"Women having toes removed to fit into tiny shoes is fucked up, to my mind, but it's up to them. This isn't fucked up, to my mind."
I think you need to spend a bit of time thinking seriously about this. Surgery is FUCKING dangerous. Having breast reduction is significantly more risky than lopping a toe off - you could probably do the latter at home with a few medical supplies. Your attitude to this is both flippant and inconsistent, and quite what you mean by your "nature cult" comment is beyond me; I'm a scientist, engineer and geek; but one that has the proper respect for tinkering with biological machines that we don't fully understand and cannot successfully reboot.
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Tuesday 2nd June 2009 15:19 GMT Seán
@Frank Bough
Though you admit you know absolutely nothing about medicine you're scared of it. Hey that's ok, people have irrational fears all the time, you're like an american frightened of socialism. The important thing is that you don't make a complete tool of yourself in front of normal people.
@ChrisC You may be male and self identify as a man but you're not really cut out for the job. Perhaps you should get some surgical augmentation yourself.
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Tuesday 2nd June 2009 15:42 GMT Anonymous Coward
one hundred and thirteen comments
I guess that's the most comments ever for an elREG article .. :)
"And before the curmudgeons among you start start banging on about the IT angle and remove El Reg from your bookmarks, the Daily Mail reckons Halep fans have started an online petition urging her to reconsider"
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Tuesday 2nd June 2009 22:20 GMT Pierre
Horse racing
This pair of puppies is clearly a problem for her career. It's admittedly an extreme case, but it's probably not fair that she has to undergo such a risky procedure just to stay in the game. This, by the way, applies to all athletes. Maybe it's time to look at what we can do to level the field... maybe it's time to reintroduce the good old "handicap" system: before each match, various measurements could be done, and the less "naturally handicapped" of the athletes would then have to bear an "artificial handicap" (in this case, a wobbly pair of Jello-filled balloons?). Of course, this could be adapted to other sports. Someone already mentioned Linford Christie I believe. Also, have a look at that (French-like lingo alert): http://www.tetesaclaques.tv/la_natation_vid711)
Mine's the one with the referee's phone number in the pocket.
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Wednesday 3rd June 2009 09:34 GMT Frank Bough
@Seán
Firstly, this is the Reg, there are no normal people reading this. Secondly, I know a tiny bit about medicine, which is only a smidgen less that the medical profession in my extensive experience of it. Going into hospital is one of the most effective ways to become ill yet devised, and going under general anesthesia flirting with death itself. Two members of my extended family have died from surgical complications while undergoing routine operations that were theoretically medically useful - to elect to go under the knife for so stupid a reason as to improve your fucking forehand is asking for trouble. If you'd had any GA surgery you'd know that you have to sign a disclaimer before you go under which essentially says 'I know this operation might kill me and I don't mind'.
Coming after the absurd "Russian blows off ex-boyf's todger with firecrackers" story I'm beginning to wonder whether the Reg has any respect for life at all.
This topic is closed for new posts.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
