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Subject: Tired of the Script Author: No name [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] Date Posted: 21:09:43 09/22/15 Tue Am I the only one who is tired of hearing time and time again "the reason I participate in the Miss America organization is scholarships for college?" I can't imagine that I'm the only one out there who knows good and well that many of the girls competing...and the past few who have won...are by no means in this for the money. Sure, the idea of scholarship is great, but let's get real. Many of the girls have been competing in pageants their entire life, some before they could even walk. Wearing a crown is all that has mattered to them their entire life - not "community service" and "scholarship" haha, please. I just don't understand why people don't see some of the winners for who they are, a bunch of fakes who are clearly in this for themselves and their selfish personal gain. It's got nothing to do with "serving a community" or "being a role model to young girls" it's about getting as famous as possible, for being a size 2 and "pretty" (if having fake plastic surgery on your face makes you pretty). I just don't get all the hype surrounding how wonderful and spellbinding many of our recent winners have been, when it's so painfully clear they have an endgame. Maybe some of you don't know the recent winners personally, but if you knew the history of some of these girls, you wouldn't be so in awe of how "shocked" by the outcome that they claim to be. I just wish pageants would own what they are, and stop pretending to be something they obviously are not. It's a system in which young women are built to compete with one another and tear each other down (sorry, I don't fall for the "51 new sisters load"), while keeping their bodies emaciated and pretending to know about current events, when they clearly do not. If "scholarship" is the end game, something that focuses on a human's brain and intelligence, why are all these women parading around in their underwear and two thousand dollar dresses wanting us to "judge" them. Anyone who takes scholarship and education seriously in any way laughs at this. I know how members of this forum will react to this post, upset that I raised a point that doesn't agree with their own. I just ask you to think from an outsiders perspective of just how fake our winners are. Take a look at the Miss USA pageant, its a total spectacle, because it owns what it is, a silly and sexy beauty contest. Miss America, take a pen out and realize that you are the same (yikes, I know nobody wants to read that, but think about it...maybe someone reading this will). [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ]

Replies:

[> Subject: Re: Tired of the Script Author: No name [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 05:40:54 09/23/15 Wed Ouch, this was brutal. I am sure there are contestants that do not fall into this description. And I say that because I know some personally. They needed money for tuition and they won because they were talented, pretty, and comfortable in interview. Also, they were not raised doing pageants at all. They were raised to be caring, and respectful to themselves and to others. Maybe that was what the judges saw in interview. I'm not upset with you or your post. I feel some will agree with you. I just can't see where a blanket statement about a group of young women is helpful. [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: Tired of the Script Author: No name [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 07:13:44 09/23/15 Wed I think you make some good points. Many girls spend more competing and training than they ever win. But that is the chance they take. We spend thousands on our sons for sports, camps, lessons, equipment, travel teams, uniforms, travel expenses and neither played past high school. They wanted to but they were not good enough. They played intramural sports and fraternity sports and now still play some with friends or church league and city league. We would have loved if they got a college scholarship. But we would do it all again. And we are middle class not wealthy. The friends they made and the life lessons they made were worth every penny. Plus, it was a family adventure with them. Our daughter did dance and piano and fell in love with pageants after doing Junior Miss. So although she did not grow up with them from high school on she was hooked. She loved making friends, she loved performing, her interview skills are far superior to her brothers and all three were excellent students and graduated with honors but my sons had NO interview practice. She did. She only made top ten at Miss Alabama once and she won scholarship money at locals and at Miss Alabama all three years. She won in kind scholarships and that was huge. She would never have received those had she not competed. When we added up what we spent on pageants one time (wardrobe, coaching, training, etc.) she earned more than we spent. (We sold her wardrobe the month after she gave up her last title. She kept one gown that she altered into a cocktail dress. No, when you add up all her training for years she did not earn more than that but she never took those lessons to be in a pageant. She was doing that while her brothers played ball. We would do it all again. We might spend a little less the first year if we were starting over again. When I know people competing now I tell them to borrow and rent and buy second hand from girls again out. Then if they continue on they can buy designer gowns or whatever. And the interview dresses they were now are way less expensive than the suits our daughter wore. [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: Tired of the Script Author: No name [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 09:08:39 09/23/15 Wed So many careers require a person to be comfortable in front of others with all eyes on the individual - like teachers , sales, news anchors, lawyers, doctors, nurses, pharmacist, entertainers, engineers - well every career does. This program requires the participant to be comfortable in front of others, it teaches how to handle being told no, and that success comes out of effort. Great friendships are made and yes not everyone gets a crown which is refreshing in this era of entitlement . The participants here find value in the process well beyond their years of competition. Not everyone wants to experience what pageants offer and that's fine, enjoy what makes you happy. . [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: Tired of the Script Author: No name [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 21:56:48 09/23/15 Wed At the end of the day, all contestants are in it for themselves.Whatever the reason for entering, they all want to win. Only a handful will win enough scholarship money to cover their tuition and fees over four years. Most local scholarships aren't enough to make a significant dent in the cost of just one semester. Of course there are exceptions to the rule, but we all know most contestants spend much more on gown,ss training,and other preparations that costs much more than the amount of scholarship money they win. [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> [> Subject: Re: Tired of the Script Author: No name [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 06:55:37 09/24/15 Thu That's all true. And at the same time the contestants know the program is more than a crown, after all there is only one girl out of thousands who want that will take home the Miss America crown. That reality is no secret. If it were only about the crown girls would have stopped trying for the impossible a long time ago. And true the money offers are better for some contestants than others. That reality is also quickly understood by participants so the desire to continue to participate comes from another motive. Bottom line is that the girls enjoy speaking to others about an issue they care about. They enjoy making public appearances as an act of service, they enjoy the activities required to keep them physically fit to look good in their wardrobe, they enjoy having an opportunity to share a talent they have worked hard to have ready for an audience, and they enjoy meeting other young women who are like minded to share this experience. How many young adults do you know who volunteer 100s of hours annually to non profits like Children's hospitals, Habitate for Humanity, American Cancer and many more? How many young adults do you know who raise thousands of dollars to give away so someone else's life might be made better. These girls do knowing that the win might not be theirs but the journey is theirs and they accept the challenge to become a better person through the opportunity to join in and take part. [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: Tired of the Script Author: No name [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 07:32:00 09/24/15 Thu Wow, that is an amazing POST! [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> [> Subject: Re: Tired of the Script Author: No name [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 11:36:21 09/24/15 Thu Learning to give is more important in the grand scheme of life than any crown can afford. All these girls are winners!!!!! [ Post a Reply to This Message ]