The immortal bunny

» Why a lack of nudes won't kill ‘Playboy’

Ed Appleby
Illustrator

remember my first Playboy;

I was a tender 14 years old
on a trip to Disneyland with
my family, and discovered it
stashed under the sink in our
hotel bathroom. Like several
generations of young cisgender
straight men before me, this
began my sexual awakening.
So it is with mixed feelings that
I learned that, after 62 years,
Playboy plans to stop publishing
nudes.

The logic behind this

decision can’t be argued. Ina

new world where high-definition :
: published in Playboy is second
: only to the New Yorker.

pornography of every type is
only a few keystrokes away,
tastefully airbrushed bunnies
just cannot compete. Even in the
past, Playboy's nudes couldn't
hold a candle to the graphic
nature of Hustler or other
magazines, where titillation
was the driving force. And

by providing such imagery,
Playboy had been placed on the
back shelf, out of the hands of
younger readers for years. And
most social media have very

: strict rules about what you can
: share, so Playboy gets cut out of
: that market entirety.

So why continue at all?

: Without the ability to display
: perfect mammaries, what isto:
: stop Playboy from becoming just :
: another GQ or—heaven forbid— :
: Maxim? Believe it or not, it’s :
: because of the articles.

The nudes in Playboy were

: a provocative product of its

: time, and through the ’50s and

: 60s Playboy was the standard

: bearer for the sexual revolution. :
: Playboy has also published short :
: stories from up and coming :
: novelists such as Ian Fleming, —:
: Margaret Atwood, and Arthur C. :

Clarke. For a cartoonist, getting

The Playboy Interview

: series, a collection of extensive
: and in-depth interviews with

: contemporary movers and :
: shakers has been so riveting that :
: some of them have even been

: expanded into full books. The

: articles themselves have always
: been a well-written source

: of opinions and information,

: ranging from somewhat sexist

: male bravado to full-on feminist. :
eI : Although we shouldn’t rule out

  

: reflections on society.

And even though the

: nudes will be done away with,
: Playboy has promised a little
: bit of titillation with racy but
: tasteful photography aimed at

their primarily male audience.

: nakedness altogether, pick up

: any European edition of GQ or

: Esquire and you are sure to see a
: couple of nipples popping up to
: say hello.

The Playboy brand is one

: of the strongest and most
: recognized in the world. By

 

Image illustration by Ed Appleby

: dropping the focus on nudes

: they can rightly take their place

: as a dignified and sexually free

: source of entertainment and

: information; more of a racy New
: Yorker than a magazine aimed at
: getting you off.

 

It's how you say it

» Talking down to friends, family, and teammates can only weaken the links

Elliot Chan
Opinions Editor
4 tS opinions@theotherpress.ca

%

he act of belittling another

verbally, whether it’s in a
work environment or in a social
setting, is so offensive that
often I regret not responding
physically. True, we might have
messed up, dropped a ball
here or there, but regardless
of the situation, neither you
nor I should be talked down
to. However, we must also be
cautious to not ridicule and
belittle others.

We've all had to work
with someone who didn’t have
the same level of skill ina
particular task as we did. When
I say work, I also include other
team activities such as sports.
Life is all about teamwork,
and the old adage rings true:
“You're only as strong as your
weakest link.” While you may
think that calling out another’s

publically in front of their peers

is an effective way of motivating

them to improve, it is not!
What you must understand

is that not everyone shares

the same level of interest or

passion as you in any given

: project. Believe me, if you

: shame someone enough

: times, especially in a team

: environment where trust and

: loyalty is paramount, you've

: lost them. They’ll find new

: friends, get another job, and

: avoid you completely. Nothing

: you do is special enough to

: mistreat others over. People

: will get fed up, angry, and often
: retaliate. This can be incredibly
: destructive.

If you think that others

: should pick up the slack, you

: should really look in the mirror
: and ask yourself: Are you the

: top performer? Are you the best
: on your team? Are you literally

: better than everyone else you

: work with? If you are, what the

: hell are you doing with these

: losers? Go pick on someone your :
: own size. If not, then shut up!

: This looking down on people is
: the same vain and arrogant way
: of thinking that makes you ugly,
: regardless of how you look.
shortcomings or ridiculing them
: can push other people before
: they push back. If you don’t

: establish camaraderie first, then !
: there is no balance between

: the team. There is a reason
why in every creative writing
: class students are encouraged

There is only so far you

i

 

 

: to note something good before

: mentioning something bad. It’s

: not because we are sensitive and
: we need things sugarcoated. It’s
: because we are human and we

: have feelings. We are all equals

: in the grand scheme of things.

: We all know how it feels to

: be talked down to. You may have
: been on the receiving end of a

: situation I described above, with
: a team member or friend telling
: you you weren't good enough.

: Asa younger adult, like many

—

An
: college students are, I often feel
: that the older generation—those :
: with full-time jobs, children, :
: anda retirement plan—cannot
: help but lecture me. I’m not

: talking about helpful advice;

: I'm talking about critical,

: judgmental assessment of

: my values, pursuits, and

: character. Some of them speak
: as if I’m entitled, inconsiderate,
: disrespectful, ungrateful, or

: unmotivated. Ultimately, a

: conversation with these older

 
   

Photo via Thinkstock

: people becomes a vicious assault

of guilt and shame.
Life is too short to spend

your time being put down by an
: employer, spouse, boyfriend or

: girlfriend, or teammate. Life is

: too short to be spent with people
: who don’t appreciate you for

: your efforts. If you find yourself
: in defence mode all the time,

: get out of the situation now. The
: best way to retaliate to those

: talking down to you is to leave,

: completely.