Why Should Women not be Permitted to go Topless in Public?

[Dave-W]

As far as the insurance issues go...after a month of toplessness, no one will notice !

Ya really think so? Guys that have oogled and drooled over large bust lines for decades?

"after a month of toplessness, no one will notice.."

Some guys - probably.
Most guys - possibly.
But those oogle monsters - never.

 

[grandvizier1006]

I don’t support it.
1. It would tempt me to lust. The last thing I need is a bunch of women making my lust struggles worse by going about their daily business. Granted, in a topless society maybe I’d “get used to it”, like in some non-Western cultures where the breasts aren’t considered sexual. But those cultures hide women’s thighs for the same reason we hide women’s breasts. If women really want their breasts free they can just not wear a bra.
2. People of Wal-mart, as seashale said. I don’t want to see my female relatives topless, or a bunch of old women doing that. You don’t think they wouldn’t do it?!?!?
3. Erogenous zone. I know I’m going to get a bunch of people saying, “But men’s nipples are erogenous, too!” yeah, yeah. But not that much. A man can’t get an [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse] from nipple stimulation. A woman can (I think). If we’re going to let women go topless then we might as well tell guys to “let it all hang out”. Parts of the body that are very easily stimulated for sexual stuff just shouldn’t be displayed like that, since a person could grope you, and I think it would be harder to stop people from masturbating if everything they can touch for that can be visibly seen and felt.
4. It encourages sexual exhibition. People claim that “if we all just got naked, all of our class differences would subside!” Well, some people like the individuality fashion gives, and I know that with men if we all saw each other’s penises there would at some point be a desire to “compare” (because whoever has the smallest dick is just a loser, apparently ). Couldn’t the same thing happen with women and their breasts? I wouldn’t want a culture that placed people in an unofficial hierarchy based on sexual attractiveness.

As much as I can understand Darkhorse’s sentiments, nudity in this culture is very sexualized. I kind of blame the sexual revolution for that, and for me personally the correlation has been psychologically damaging.

 

[Wryetui]

If our christian culture developed by wearing clothes why would we take them off now? The high temperatures argument sounds crazy to me, it's not like they will melt if they don't go topless, I don't melt by having a shirt on summer and trust me, I know what a hot summer looks like. What about what happened on the garden of Eden? Adam and Eve got ashemed because of their naked bodies, souldn't it tell us something? Shame is something inside the human nature since they ate from the banned tree, and they took knowledge of good and evil.

 

[SuperCloud]

Actually, women working outdoors in rural areas sometimes go topless for the same reason men do: because it's cooler. I've seen women and girls topless in the central valley of California on hot days, helping their husbands stack wood or feeding dairy cows. It's not common, but it happens.

As far as the insurance issues go...after a month of toplessness, no one will notice!

Eh... that "cooler" concept is a myth. If that were the case, to better prevent deadly heat exhaustion, the US Marines in California would be running around nearly naked, and so would most of the men an women of the deserts in the Middle East.

Loose clothing covering the body actually keeps you cooler as it protects the sweat on your skin which helps cool you.

Clothing also protects your skin from sunburn.

While in "the rear" (e.g. around barracks) Marines during warm and hot weather seasons will wear their sleeves of their top blouse rolled up, nonetheless, when in the field we always wore them rolled down, long sleeve. Protects the skin from various plant life.

But one of the best if not best protection from heat is to keep water in the body, being well hydrated.

 

[SuperCloud]

If our christian culture developed by wearing clothes why would we take them off now? The high temperatures argument sounds crazy to me, it's not like they will melt if they don't go topless, I don't melt by having a shirt on summer and trust me, I know what a hot summer looks like. What about what happened on the garden of Eden? Adam and Eve got ashemed because of their naked bodies, souldn't it tell us something? Shame is something inside the human nature since they ate from the banned tree, and they took knowledge of good and evil.

There were cultures--like some of the Amerindian nations the Conquistadors encountered--were women walked around topless and nearly naked.

I don't know that I'm against topless cultures for women. They have them at designated topless swimming pools in Las Vegas regarded as "European style."

And there are the Muslim Afar women in Ethiopia that walk around topless.

It's possible to have these. Though I think in the West where we have winters and cooler seasons, the topless thing would be more of a semi-erotic show off kind of thing you get from topless Las Vegas pools and say... the thong culture of Rio or Miami.

Skin cancer is of some concern here in the West, so, people walking around with any great frequency shirtless would have to take up the personal responsibility of protecting themselves from overexposure to sun rays.

 

[Darkhorse]

Ya really think so? Guys that have oogled and drooled over large bust lines for decades?

"after a month of toplessness, no one will notice.."

Some guys - probably.
Most guys - possibly.
But those oogle monsters - never.

Well, I will rephrase that to say "no one will notice breasts any more than women's many other beautiful parts"

On this, I speak from experience.

Having been a nudist for over 40 years and spending many days with hundreds of men and women wearing nothing but sandals, I can safely say that the sight of breasts quickly becomes commonplace, just as the sight of eyes, ears, hair, arms, legs, and tummies is commonplace in our culture, but not in all cultures.

Regarding the Wal-Mart crowd, do we say "Eeew! I'm not looking at YOU! You don't look like a model! I only look at BEAUTIFUL people!"? Hopefully not; that would be hurtful and rude. If we can handle faces, breasts and backs will not gross anyone out.

It encourages sexual exhibition. People claim that “if we all just got naked, all of our class differences would subside!”

You're confusing exposure of body parts with sex - they are not the same. This is a difficult fact for males in our society to understand unless they have experienced it.

I wouldn’t want a culture that placed people in an unofficial hierarchy based on sexual attractiveness.

Sorry - you already live in one.

 

[Darkhorse]

Eh... that "cooler" concept is a myth. If that were the case, to better prevent deadly heat exhaustion, the US Marines in California would be running around nearly naked, and so would most of the men an women of the deserts in the Middle East.

Loose clothing covering the body actually keeps you cooler as it protects the sweat on your skin which helps cool you.

That may very well be true, but...why do GUYS take their shirts off in hot weather? They think they're cooler, and so do the ladies.

 

[Dave-W]

There were cultures--like some of the Amerindian nations the Conquistadors encountered--were women walked around topless and nearly naked.

There are a few still in the Amazon rain forest that go completely naked all the time. The Zoe tribe comes to mind. Many that only in recent history started wearing clothes; like the Huaorani people of Ecuador who killed missionary Jim Elliot in 1956.

 

[bhsmte]

With the arrival of warm weather in the US, we again face the double standard of allowing men, but--in most places--not allowing women to go topless in public. Why not?

Would those who are opposed to women going topless in public please address the following:

1). At no place in Scripture are women forbidden from going topless in public.

2). 1 Timothy 2:9 tells us that women are to “dress modestly,” however “modestly” is defined as “adorning themselves, not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes.” Going topless is never mentioned. Nudity was actually much more common in Biblical times.

3). Romans 14:13 tells us not to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother, but the allure of female breasts would diminish if women would regularly go topless in places where men commonly go topless. In addition we allow men to go topless in America(something that was illegal less than 100 years ago) with no concern that they might be placing a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of women.

4). Even if Scripture did forbid women from going topless, the US is a secular nation.

5). Men obviously can handle seeing women go topless because women regularly do so in many parts of the world.

6). If we are "created equal," how can we allow men to go without a shirt in public without allowing women to do the same?

Simple answer; cultural acceptance.

This does change with the times however. It used to be culturally unacceptable for women to smoke in public and it used to be unacceptable to wear certain types of clothing.

 

[Strathos]

I thought it's still unacceptable to smoke in public in most places.

 

[SuperCloud]

That may very well be true, but...why do GUYS take their shirts off in hot weather? They think they're cooler, and so do the ladies.

I can't answer for those in other cultures like the Muslim Afar in Ethiopia.

But if you're asking me about American culture I would say it is to show off. Or simply not feeling like putting on a shirt.

I have walked around outside with no shirt on (rarely though) but it wasn't so my body temperature would feel cooler. It was simply because I didn't feel like putting on a shirt and the weather was such that I would not be cold going shirtless.

Even though I have some muscular look to my upper body, I've gotten the sense more than once that men have been offended by me going topless. And I suspect some women have been uncomfortable with me like that.

Really, in Milwaukee City and anywhere else in the United States I've been, I would say it is customary for men to wear shirts in public.

Even the shorts American men wear to beaches are longer and more baggy than the speedo-like style of briefs men in Brazil and Europe will wear.

Guys with big muscles tend to be the ones that more often take off their shirts and playgrounds, parks, and beaches. To show off I think. Or simply proud and comfortable with their physique. I don't have big muscles so there is no reason for me to be shirtless in public usually.

 

[Stormy]

You guys do realize in order for this change to happen... You would need a surge of women actually wanting to go topless in public, not just men wishing it were so.

We suffer enough criticism just trying to feed our babies in public.

 

[Skaloop]

You guys do realize in order for this change to happen... You would need a surge of women actually wanting to go topless in public, not just men wishing it were so. We suffer enough criticism just trying to feed our babies in public.

Exactly. Allowing women to be topless doesn't mean that all women will suddenly go topless. I expect that most women would not.

 

[seashale76]

Exactly. Allowing women to be topless doesn't mean that all women will suddenly go topless. I expect that most women would not.

Nope. Just the People of Walmart types. They're more than half-way there anyway. Keep it classy, America.

 

[Cuddles333]

The lead question asks why women are not permitted to go topless in public. I think the reason is due to the Gnosticism rooted in our religion. That anything that might stimulate our animal instinct is evil. It is strange that we overlook this in money, possessions, good looks and power....but not nudity. Swimming pools are the only places appropriate for toplessness. About any other is impractical. Just getting ready to go to those places causes discomfort [seatbelts]. A few years from now there may be no ordinances against toplessness at the pool, where the front can be tanned just as evenly as the back

 

[Rationalt]

With the arrival of warm weather in the US, we again face the double standard of allowing men, but--in most places--not allowing women to go topless in public. Why not?

..

I think that is something to do with men lacking some doubles.

 

[Saricharity]

You guys do realize in order for this change to happen... You would need a surge of women actually wanting to go topless in public, not just men wishing it were so.

We suffer enough criticism just trying to feed our babies in public.

pretty much sums it up right there!!

 

[TillICollapse]

(uh-hum) ... No mention of Mardi Gras in New Orleans yet ?

 

[Archivist]

1. It would tempt me to lust. The last thing I need is a bunch of women making my lust struggles worse by going about their daily business. Granted, in a topless society maybe I’d “get used to it”, like in some non-Western cultures where the breasts aren’t considered sexual. But those cultures hide women’s thighs for the same reason we hide women’s breasts. If women really want their breasts free they can just not wear a bra.

Then shouldn't men also be barred from going topless? After al, don't some women lust when they see an attractive man topless?

2. People of Wal-mart, as seashale said. I don’t want to see my female relatives topless, or a bunch of old women doing that. You don’t think they wouldn’t do it?!?!?

So should we bar fat or old men from going topless? Should it be a privilege that is extended only to good-looking men?

3. Erogenous zone. I know I’m going to get a bunch of people saying, “But men’s nipples are erogenous, too!” yeah, yeah. But not that much. A man can’t get an [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse] from nipple stimulation. A woman can (I think). If we’re going to let women go topless then we might as well tell guys to “let it all hang out”. Parts of the body that are very easily stimulated for sexual stuff just shouldn’t be displayed like that, since a person could grope you, and I think it would be harder to stop people from masturbating if everything they can touch for that can be visibly seen and felt.

wrong--men can get an [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse] from nipple stimulation.

4. It encourages sexual exhibition. People claim that “if we all just got naked, all of our class differences would subside!” Well, some people like the individuality fashion gives, and I know that with men if we all saw each other’s penises there would at some point be a desire to “compare” (because whoever has the smallest dick is just a loser, apparently ). Couldn’t the same thing happen with women and their breasts? I wouldn’t want a culture that placed people in an unofficial hierarchy based on sexual attractiveness.

Then why does this not happen in places where women currently go topless? Topless beaches are the norm in parst of Europe; I don't see this happening there.

 

[Archivist]

Exactly. Allowing women to be topless doesn't mean that all women will suddenly go topless. I expect that most women would not.

And that is the case in the State of New York where women can legally go topless anyplace that men can go topless. Very few do. But at least those who do so can do it without fear of arrest.