Today's moral outrage: Bikini waxes for 8-year-olds

But sometimes, things are just too ridiculous to get mad about.

Published April 7, 2008 3:55PM (EDT)

I know that you love it at Broadsheet when we get really steamed, and our faces turn red, and we break all the plates. That's fun. For everyone! However, sometimes, you just can't get all that worked up over the ridiculous stories you read, because you would be red-faced constantly and knee-deep in shards of broken china. That's the attitude I've had toward all the stories about those fancy salons for little girls, where they give mani-pedis to 3-year-olds and microdermabrasion to preemies or whatever. They sound creepy, but can you really get all that angry about it? I was reminded of this by a story recently in Philadelphia Magazine exploring this "pretty baby" trend. The article, however, did have one truly jaw-dropping detail. We're talking, of course, about bikini waxes for 8-year-olds. From the story:

"'But … there's nothing there, right?' I ask Engle. 'I mean, at eight? Am I forgetting something?'

"'Nope,' she says. 'There's not. Doesn't matter. That's when the mothers are starting them these days.'"

OK, everyone, let's all agree: This is demented. Need we say more? Eh, I'll break a plate. Just for old times' sake.


By Sarah Hepola

Sarah Hepola is the author of the New York Times bestselling memoir, "Blackout: Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget."

MORE FROM Sarah Hepola


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