Yikes!

Poor First Lady Michelle Obama. Now, I'm hardly a fan or anything, but it strikes me that this pre-wax sculpture by Madame Tussaud's top man, Colin Jackson, has a Goya-esque flavour to it.

It errs, perhaps, a little too close to truth than to flattery.



Mrs. Obama is a woman whose face in repose hovers between "grim" and "aggressive". As such, a photographer or plastic artist must be careful to show her when her face is more relaxed lest a portrait become a caricature.

In this clay rendition, which will serve as a basis for the figurine, her massive underbite and chiclet-sized front teeth are overly apparent, not to mention the lack of subtlety around the mannish jaw area. As depicted here, she looks like a truck driver, or PE instructor, yeesh. All she needs is a whistle...

And is it me, or do they have her looking like Greta Van Susteren?

Either way, it's not a good likeness. Hopefully, the Washington Museum (which has only showcased Democratic First Ladies, Jacqueline Kennedy and Hillary Clinton) might have time to rectify their artistic license.

She needs to look good next to her hubby, in March, after all. Mighty fine, mmm-mmm.

Holy Massive Guns, General Dunwoody

"There is no one more surprised than I — except, of course, my husband. You know what they say, 'Behind every successful woman there is an astonished man.'"

General Ann E. Dunwoody

With these modest words, the US Army got its first full, or "four-star", general.

General Dunwoody's meteoric rise in the nation's oldest armed force didn't seem inevitable when she first joined in 1975. She wasn't a graduate of West Point, nor of course being a woman, did she have a formal combat role -- traditionally the path to the rank of general.

But this skillful woman had a military past: her father was a brigadier-general, Harold H. Dunwoody. Her father's family had been in their country's service since the 1860s, and a member of her overall family, since the 1700s.

She had spent most of her youth outside of the United States as a military brat, in Germany and later Belgium, even graduating from SHAPE (Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe) American High School in 1969.

All her siblings were likewise in the military. Her sister Susan, in fact, was only the third woman to become an Army helicopter pilot. Her niece, Jennifer, is a fighter pilot and the veteran of several missions over of Afghanistan. Amusingly, given the normal roles of the genders, her brother Buck (a graduate of West Point) left the Army as a first-lieutenant.

It was in the first Gulf War where the master parachutist came into her own. She was a battalion commander, handling logistics for the 82nd Airborne Division in Saudi Arabia.

Given her rather haggard appearance at the promotion ceremony, since she is only 55 years-old, I wondered what the young Ann Dunwoody had looked like. I went to the official Army Flickr page and to my astonishment, this ripped babe stared back, a full 17 years after the photo was taken.

Good God...



...Madonna would kill to have those guns, instead of the disgusting, zero-fat, muscle pads she calls arms. Ick.



Her female colleague is leaning into then Colonel Dunwoody, who looks somewhat masculine (understandable given her career and circumstances. The last thing you want to be, is a pert miss like Private Benjamin). Dunwoody had first impressed in her testosterone world because she was a fierce athlete, having competed in gymnastics in high school, and even today she jogs, and plays tennis with ardour.

But I regret to inform the misses O'Donnell and DeGeneres that this accomplished woman is happily married to retired Colonel Craig Brotchie, USAF.

Here they are in Ft. Bend, Oregon, in the 1990s. She looks unrecognisable!



You know, 2008 was a disappointing year for women in power. Not only could we have had either a first female US President, but later potentially the first US Vice-President. Israel could've had its second female Prime Minister too.

None of them panned out.

Moreover, the nation seemed to accept the most egregious sexism I have ever seen, directed to both of these American politicians. The pity is that it was done by people who allegedly champion women by virtue of their more liberal politics.

So this promotion startled me, and actually made me quite happy.

Like General Dunwoody, I too come from a military family (medical military, thus they too are non-combatants). It was always my dream to go to either Sandhurst or West Point, which entrance to Oxford put a stop to. I could've gone on to Sandhurst after graduation, like my own father did, but I didn't. Life took me to other climes, and other circumstances.

But Ann E. Dunwoody was not to be denied. Despite being surrounded by men who allegedly are more narrow-minded than creatures called Chris Matthews, they saw her potential and rewarded it at every turn.

Women like General Dunwoody don't come often. As she takes up her Materiel Command this month, she can be truly proud of what she has accomplished. But her story has a moral embedded with the honours.

“You can live a humdrum, everyday life or live it for all it’s worth,” General Edmunds said. “She lives it to the fullest.”

So ladies, there you have it.

Live life to the fullest, because not only is that your own doing, but no one can take that away from you.

P.S.: The military is without a doubt, the fairest of all professions. It is socially egalitarian, and has a democratic ethos -- one which protects the man or woman to the right or left of you. There is no need for affirmative action programmes there. If you're good, you're good, and you'll go far. It is a severely maligned profession, by those who only boil it down to the evils of bloodshed.

Glamour's Women Of The Year 2008

Carnegie Hall in New York City was a sight Monday night, as it hosted the honourees in this year's Glamour magazine "Women of the Year". The full list of women honoured, and the reasons why, are directly below.

-- Nujood Ali and Shada Nasser -- With the help of human rights lawyer Shada Nasser, 10-year old Yemeni child bride Nujood Ali took the stand against her husband in court, and was granted a historic divorce. Together Nasser and Ali are committed to saving other little girls from early marriage.

-- Tyra Banks -- One of television's fiercest female-power icons, Banks promotes diverse beauty and realistic body images on her shows. Her charity, the TZONE Foundation, funds organizations that encourage and support young women.

-- Hillary Clinton -- This year the New York Senator, already the first First Lady of the United States elected to major public office and the first woman elected independently statewide in New York State, became one of the first female candidates for President of the United States, earning 18-million votes. In addition to inspiring generations of women and girls with her presidential run, she continues to advocate for improved health care and opportunities for women and children.

-- Maureen Chiquet -- As global CEO of the Chanel brand--and one of the few female CEO's of a major international corporation--Chiquet has pushed the company to new heights by extending the Chanel legacy.

-- Jane Goodall (Lifetime Achievement) -- Revolutionary primatologist, Goodall has devoted her life to bridging the human and animal worlds starting with the groundbreaking chimpanzee behavioral research she began nearly 50 years ago, which continues today. Through the global Institute that bears her name, she has established community-centered conservation and development programs in Africa. A UN Messenger of Peace, Goodall also created Roots & Shoots, an international humanitarian and environmental youth program.

-- Nicole Kidman -- The Oscar-winning actress is using her star power as a Goodwill Ambassador for UNIFEM, the United Nations Development Fund for Women, where she is dedicated to raising awareness about violence against women, a human rights issue that affects as many as one in three women and girls worldwide.

-- Kara Walker -- A world-renowned artist, Walker wrestles with this country's legacy of slavery in her provocative black paper silhouettes that have been seen in museums around the world.

-- Nobel Women's Initiative -- The NWI is made up of six of the seven living female Nobel Peace Prize laureates: Shirin Ebadi, Mairead Corrigan Maguire, Wangari Maathai, Rigoberta Menchu Tum, Betty Williams and Jody Williams. Since 2006 these women have been using their clout with world leaders to get them to take a stand against violence and to work for peace and human rights for all people -- especially women and children.

-- Condoleezza Rice -- As U.S. Secretary of State, Rice has championed the rights and health of women around the world, and put women's issues on the front burner of U.S. foreign policy. In 2008 she announced The One Woman Initiative, a $100 million effort to empower women in Muslim countries.

[ed. vbspurs: Had you heard about this? Because I hadn't...]

-- Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh -- These women have game. The beach volleyball duo have dominated the sport as the only beach volleyball players in history to win back-to-back Olympic gold medals--which they did without losing a single set.

What a list, eh? Where else can one see Nicole Kidman, Condi Rice, Rigoberta Menchu, Jane Goodall being honoured alongside Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh (!).

Here is Senator Clinton, looking every day more and more like Martha Stewart, don't you think? I think it's the eye area that does it.



But Condi, wow! Spectacular dress and short-short hairstyle. She either wears a wig, or this is a brand-new look for her (as in she cut her hair today).



ADDED: One more, showing Condi with the other gliteratti.



(Via Rap Up) L to R: Glamour editor-in-chief Cindi Leive, actress Mary Steenburgen, news anchor Katie Couric, Fergie, and Condoleezza Rice.