February 02, 2004

My, what a flap

It was obvious that there was going to be talk, talk and more talk - not to mention speculation - about the Janet and Justin moment from yesterday's halftime show. However, the anger and criticism has gotten way out of proportion to the deed in my opinion. This story fills in some of the "What happened?" gaps pretty well (and seems to confirm my theory that the red part of the outfit was supposed to stay in place...if in fact full-on flashing wasn't planned) and touches on the furor it has caused.

I feel that the threat of investigations and fines is so typical of a TV society that is okay with violence, even in shows for children, but is so uptight and repressed about sex that one moment of one bared breast causes a storm of controversy. (Do you hear that sound? Yep, it's all of Europe laughing its collective ass off at how stupid this whole thing is.) However, ads about making sure that men can have erections -- doesn't get much more sexual than that, does it? -- are hunky-dory. I happen to have been a lot more annoyed by the immature ads featuring horse flatulence and crotch-biting dogs than I was by what I saw somewhere referred to as Breastgate. Not to mention that the entire batch of the non-Janet performances at halftime were utter crap. (That's what MTV should be apologizing for!)

So, in the spirit of saying *nyah!* to all the outraged ninnies and hypocrites who made calls to CBS over the whole thing, here's some background on what it was Janet was apparently wearing under her ripaway bustier. Forget pasties, girlfriend was sporting a nipple shield! I knew she had a piercing (at least one), and is fond of wearing chains connecting said piercing to...wherever...but I'd never personally heard of a nipple shield. Being the curious sort, I did a little more looking and, in case you were wondering, here is how they work. (Yes, it has pictures. If you're easily offended, be smart and don't click on it.) Not really my cup of tea, but I can appreciate the decorative nature of them if you've already gone down the breast piercing road. I'd take that over an eyebrow piercing any day!