Tuesday 2 February 2010

Fat Men Make More Honest Politicians Than Fat Women?

More to the appearance factor in politics: The Daily Telegraph reports that a study shows people preferring fat male politicans, but wanting women politicians to be thin.

"Voters believed that overweight male candidates were more reliable, honest, dependable and inspiring than their thinner counterparts...They also thought they would be better able to cope with the stresses and the strains of public office. The direct opposite was true for female politicians," the study, directed from the University of Missouri, found.

Seems unfair, doesn't it?

3 comments:

Martin Langeland said...

Prejudice is where we find it.
That is: Almost everywhere we look.
--ml
By the bye I am currently re-reading "Roughing It" by Mark Twain in a nice Dover edition. Amazing how little essential change there is in a century or so in how we deal with the other. And it is still funny!
--ml

Meredith said...

It *is* unfair. But what's new? (Should I be so cynical already? What will I do for an encore when I'm in my dotage?)

Martin Langeland said...

Correction: I am re-reading "following the Equator" Fascinating observations on Australia and New Zealand.
--ml