I am a mother to a seven-year-old girl. My daughter received Squinkies and Littlest Pet Shop toys in her stocking this Christmas.
What did yours get? A liposuction gift certificate? A voucher for a boob job?
Being an American, this was my first time hearing about Sarah Burge, AKA "The Human Barbie," who gave her daughter these mind-boggling gifts.
Is there any way to not see raising a girl with such a warped sense of what is important as some form of child abuse?
It just seems like Parenting 101 -- strive to raise a healthy, happy, independent and self-confident human being. Support your child in becoming who they want to be.
How has today's reality become so twisted as to create women who not just want to make themselves beautiful at any cost, but their daughters too?
Burge believes being a good mother in 2012 means raising a daughter to believe that all that matters is looks and that her daughter's greatest goal should be to marry well, be a pop star and spend lots of money.
Is there really nothing we can do to stop the insanity of not just bad mothering, but train-wreck mothering?
Don't get me wrong; I'm very liberal and all for parents raising their children as they see fit as long as it isn't hurting the children. And I certainly don't claim to be the perfect mother.
But how can anyone with a conscience not see the possible future awaiting this seven-year-old girl who is being raised to look forward to the day she can legally have cosmetic surgery?
Before her body has even had a chance to mature, she's learning that how she looks and who she is, is not enough.
As a former stripper I understand there is pressure in certain fields to look a certain way, but I grew up. I realized that living as a slave to my looks was destructive and that I would do everything in my power to raise a daughter who could love herself for exactly who she is.
My daughter does not yet know about my past because it's not age appropriate for her to know. She doesn't even know what a stripper is, let alone liposuction or a boob job. These aren't topics we've needed to address.
Is there anything we can do as a society to take Ms. Burge by the virtual arms, shake her gently, put her in front of a mirror to examine what she's become and ask -- is this what you really wish most for your daughter?
But in Ms. Burge's world, how she looks is the most important goal in life, so she would look in the mirror and believe she was doing the right thing, protecting her daughter from the misery of living a possibly fameless life, an ordinary life -- a real life with warts (or small boobs) and all.