Standard of Beauty Around The World

Clip Description
An international cast of gorgeous male models shows just how drastically the physical attributes of the "ideal man" vary across 12 different countries.

Make sure to read the full article, with more in-depth research and analysis, on BuzzFeed.

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Well, even if I am a happily married man, I think the whole bunch of the them are unnervingly beautiful! So even if there may be slight variations in the ideals, I don't think anyone anywhere would actually kick a single one of them out of their bed, except if they had an exceptionally bad smell...

On "VPL" - Updated

My husband Tomais steadfastly insists that he is not funny, but I disagree completely. No man has ever before consistently made me laugh so often and so much as he does.

A couple of nights ago, while we were talking on Skype as usual, Tomais suddenly mentioned the abbreviation VPL, don't ask me how and why because the conversation leading up to it has been wiped off my teflon-memory. 

Jon Hamm,
The King of VPL

My understanding and knowledge of the English language is quite good, even if I say so myself, but it is not my mother-tongue so there are still some unchartered areas that become apparent occasionally. VPL was one of those, I had never heard the expression before so I asked him what it meant.

Jon Hamm, a.k.a.
"The Rosetta Bulge"

"It means ´Visible Penis Line´", my darling told me with a serious voice, as I exploded with laughter.

Then as he continued telling me about the rules I almost croaked, "Underwear, bicycle pants or wet boxers don't count, because anyone can show a VPL in those outfits". (This means that my friend Kandinsky's favorite picture of a Polish bicycle team is out of the contest, see my previous post Re: Bicycle Pants.)

According to writer Christian Zamora at Buzzfeed, when he ranks The 21 Most Important Celebrity Bulges Of All Time: "All bulges are ranked and measured on a scale of zero to five Jon Hamm's. Each bulge [is] evaluated on its outline, girth, and prominence to determine its rank and the number of Hamm's it deserve[s]".

As far as I know there is no equivalent term for this phenomenon in the Swedish language, except possibly the Swedish words for "poseur", "indiscreet" or "show-off". That fact does however not mean that we haven't noticed the phenomenon before.

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Update 2015-06-10
For those who want to see more VPL you should visit the Tumblr-blog "Visible Penis Line", although from what I could see at a quick glance most of the pictures posted seem to fall into the illegitimate category according to "Tomais Rule of VPL´s"

Throwing My Pink Money Around

Pink money - From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

"Pink money describes the purchasing power of the gay community, often especially with respect to political donations. With the rise of the gay rights movement, pink money has gone from being a fringe or marginalized market to a thriving industry in many parts of the Western world such as the United States and United Kingdom. Many businesses now specifically cater to gay customers, including nightclubs, shops, restaurants, and even taxicabs; the demand for these services stems from commonly perceived discrimination by traditional businesses. Worldwide in 1998, pink money was valued at £350 billion ($560 billion) across a variety of sectors — especially entertainment and consumer goods. Purchasing power in 2012 in the United States is expected to increase to $790 billion.

The economic power of pink money has been seen as a positive force for the gay community, creating a kind of "financial self-identification" which helps gay and lesbian individuals feel like part of a community which values them. Indeed, upwards of 90% of gay people support businesses which target pink money, while actively shunning "anti-gay" companies. However, criticism has been leveled at businesses which target pink money from gay groups, arguing that this segregates the gay and lesbian community from society, and holds back gay rights.

It's been considered more often than not a market exclusive for USA, UK and some places in Europe, but its extension covers a large amount of Latin America and part of Asia, making its actual earns larger by year and giving marketing options some impulse and variety."

BuzzFeed - 36 Photos From Russia That Everyone Needs To See
Dan Savage - Why I'm Boycotting Russian Vodka
J.M.G. - 1. Dan Savage: Boycott Russian Vodkas and 2. REPORT: Russian Skinheads Use Social Media To Lure And Torture LGBT Teens

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Well, whatever the pro's and con's may be, I am not going to use my gay money on products or services owned, operated or in any way associated with Russia or Russian citizens or companies until that country's government abandons it's present official homophobic stance and continues to allow and support attacks and assaults on my Russian LGBT brothers and sisters and continues to deny them their basic human rights.

It's my money and I use it as I like, I suggest you do the same.