E-e-ehhhfff

I dont know if the people at Fashion TV are immune to irony but this morning, in a segment called Fashion and Music, where they showcase music-video-inspired fashion trends, they chose, of all videos, Pink's Stupid Girl, which pokes fun at the fashion industry, albeit not directly. It directly pokes fun at, among other things, the superficiality of women who choose to define themselves with the fashionable clothes they wear. In fact, as a parting shot, the video shows a little girl, on being faced with the decision on whether to play with Barbie dolls and everything they stand for, or a football, wisely chose the latter.

FTV is arguably one of the stupidest channels on cable. It's a tribute to superficiality. Even their rare interviews with fashion people are superficial. The entire fashion industry is a scam targetted primarily at the middle class, with all their class insecurity; their fear of being accused of being baduy, of being masa or jologs, and therefore not one of the Beautiful Ones, the in-crowd, the alta sociedad, hence their penchant to follow the trend and suppress their individuality, in hopes of dressing up like what they think the upper crust dresses like. Only the upper crust, the really rich ones, dont dress like that. The upper crust doesnt care. They can show up at parties dressed in the frumpiest clothes and they won't give a hoot. They dont have a single class-insecure muscle in their bodies.

The middle class is the only strata of society that isnt in on the joke that is the fashion industry, despite the blatant hints that some fashion designers are giving them. Open your eyes, people. The designers are giving you a clue. Watch a fashion show on FTV. After the parade of models whose sole purpose is to tell you what to wear next season (while also telling you that youll never look that good), the designers come out and take a bow. If theyre one of those designers whose consciences dont permit them to be cruel to the middle class who're giving them their rent money, who're kind enough to let the middle class in on the joke if only they'd get it, theyll show up in t-shirt and jeans, or in the frumpiest, grungiest outfits they could find. That's their way of saying, "Gotcha! It's all a joke, get it?" Designers like Valentino, who show up impeccably dressed are the cruel ones. They know theyre making fun of you and revel in the fact. They have no compunctions about taking the middle class' hard-earned cash.

But after all that, I have to confess I'll tune in to FTV again like I do everyday. Two words: Underwear models.