Wig and Hair Tonic Commericals as Anti-Bald Propaganda

[timtak]

Thanks for your email.

Well..........To be honest I am not entirely sure what is going on. It could be that I hurt and other people do not and that I need "support". It does not seem all that likely to me but I entertain it as a possibility.

On the other hand, where I am there are adverts almost every day telling other people at least it is unhappy, unhealthy, worrying to be bald. Even if this message does not affect me (and I think it likely that it does a little), it seems likely to affect people who are not bald, people who are not invested in the issue - they will be likely to take the adverts at face value. It seems to me that no man is an island, and so if people around me are persuaded that being bald is unhappy, unhealthy and worrying, then their impression of me is likely to rub off on me. So I am not sure how I might, how anyone, be devoid of hurt. That is my understanding of the situation.

Are you hurting? If not why not?

I do hurt, a bit. A lot of the time I forget about this issue. I have been bald for a long time and a lot of the time it slips from my mind. But perhaps because I have been thinking about it, due to posting on this forum, when I went into a large classroom recently and someone laughed. I wondered if that someone was laughing at my baldness, and that hurt a little.  

Another thing is that I have for a long time found myself mentioning baldness a lot as if by referencing it I keep hold of the extent to which I do not like it. I don't like being bald much, about as much as I mind my wrinkles say. Both are pretty insignificant. By talking about baldness I think that I am attempting to keep sight of what I believe to be my (slightly negative) appraisal of my baldness, rather than acccept other appraisals which may (or may not) be as negative as portrayed in commercials. But perhaps that is another way of saying that I have a complex about being bald. Again, yes, I think I do have a complex; there is conflict in my mind (complex means conflicting appraisals), but again I am not sure how anyone could not have them, at least where I live, bearing in mind the media climate.

But people do here who are commenting on this thread not agree with me. there is some mis-match with reality going on, and it seems to be with me. I am seeing a problem that does not exist in several other people's minds. I do note though that there are some people here that provide a lot of support (such as your generous self), and but many other people who post far more infrequently saying things more in line with what I am saying and have quoted above.

I would like to hear from the silenty majority (?) Perhaps I should just reread what I have quoted above.

Tim

[Chavster]

But you're whittering away about crusades and commercials on a site which is designed to be a CELEBRATION of baldness. Most of us CHOOSE to be bald. You dont seem to understand that because you're upset about baldness, not everyone else is.

This site is not WOEISMEIMLOSINGMYHAIR.COM. Sure, there are plenty of guys here who are having some real issues with hair loss, and nobody is belittling their feelings, but the majority of us arent. Those of us that arent can hopefully help by offering support to those who are, you included. Some of the men on this site might not have originally chosen to be bald. Some of them were pushed in that direction by hair loss, but are now happy with their shaved heads. Some of us, like me, completely and totally and willingly and purposely CHOOSE to be bald. We're not hurting. We dont feel the pain. We can offer you tea and sympathy and a 'there there dear, everything will be fine', and we can be totally genuine about it, but to reiterate: the fact that YOU are in pain does not mean that I am also in pain, and that applies to the majority of the users of this site.

I'm not sure how clearly I can put this, so I'll do it in capital letters. I AM HAPPY BEING BALD. I DO NOT SUFFER FROM HAIR LOSS. I SHAVE MY HEAD TWICE A DAY BECAUSE I DONT WANT HAIR ON MY HEAD. IF I LET IT GROW, I HAVE A FULL HEAD OF HAIR.

As I said, this is a site which is designed to celebrate baldness. Most of us CHOOSE to be bald. The fact that you're hurting DOES NOT mean that everyone else is. While your own pain and upset might well be important, the fact you're in pain and hurting doesnt mean you can transfer it to the rest of us.

And you keep banging on about adverts (commercials), and thats obviously a cultural issue, because as you've mentioned yourself before, you havent seen any baldness/wig/'systems' commercials in the UK, so if its hurting you so much, then turn your tv off. Or watch BBC World. Or move to Kinshasa or Adelaide or Punta Arenas, or somewhere that doesnt have wig commercials.

You might not want to celebrate being bald, the way most of us want to celebrate it. You might want to talk about your own issues, your own hurt, and your own pain, and thats absolutely fine. There's nothing wrong with that, and nobody would belittle the feelings you or anyone else has about hair loss.

However, to come to this site, ranting and raving, and quite frankly, talking about a lot of crap, and furthermore to insult not only the users but the site itself, thats not the way to make friends, or to receive support.

There's a massive difference between intelligence and smartness. You obviously word your posts to sound intelligent, however I'd suggest inserting some of the latter, because to stop alienating the people you've already pissed off to a massive degree, thats what it'll take.

[buddha]

Are you hurting? If not why not?

I'm not. My main reason for the lack of suffering is that I made the choice to do this and stick with it. Another is the fact that I just don't care what other people think of my "hairstyle". It is of little consequence. I feel like GSGUK said in his most recent post, that SBG is a celebration of baldness. Yet people who have issues or "complexes" about baldness come in from the cold, so to speak, and many receive support and encouragement in this place.
There have also been folks who come in and seem intent on upsetting the applecart and they sometimes have been communicated with in a less friendly manner.
I recommend letting your guard down and talking honestly about your pain. But the choice is yours.

[timtak]

I don't know what to say. Being bald is okay. I think I am being open and unguarded. I thought that I was just calling an apple an apple, a dome a dome, nothing bad nothing good, but heavily derided by a billion dollar industry.

I am told that this site is a "celebration of being bald." I guess that means that it is not cool to talk abou the negatives of being bald. I don't see it as being  particullary negative but saying even that I think it is a little bit worse than full hair is definately "upsetting the applecart" if one is meant to be "celebrating baldness". Having read more posts on the site I do see that there is a strong culture of celebrating baldness and expressing a preference for it, and people who don't particularly like it do not seem to be welcome (poor old yep yep).

I did not even mean to talk about the negatives of being bald (which I see as being very small), only the very strongly negative way that it is portrayed in the media. But to talk about negative portrayal is to cease celebrating, and suggest that forum members might care a hoot which in itself is negative or at least not positive.

Anyway, no one seems to be interested in the topic that I have raised and apparently I am offending people. So it is me that had better sign out.

Unless anyone else is interested in the issue, maybe some time in the future:-)

Cheers!

Tim
http://nihonbunka.com

[timtak]

I wonder if his baldness had any impact upon Andreas Günter Lubitz's actions.