Correct me if I'm wrong AND The new rule

While bar hopping for a friend's birthday last weekend, I was in the presence of the most elegant, ladylike top I've ever laid eyes on. It was sensual and yet understated. A white cotton tank top that bore the most stirring message since Martin Luther King yapped on about his dream. In black lettering, surrounded by glittering jewels (Swarovski crystals, I'm sure) were these words: "No job, No pussy."

Eloquent in it's brevity, no? Pure poetry for the eyes. I wanted to go out and buy one for myself. I could wear it when I attend my most fancy parties. Perfect for church services, court appearances and cocktail parties. This garment truly carried a sentiment for the ages.

The above piece of biting sarcasm is not just mean for meanness sake (don't get me wrong, I still love being mean for meanness sake). But I do have two points to make here. Yes,two unsolicited opinions for the price of one. Aren't you lucky?

The first point may be obvious: I think the shirt is disgusting. Of course I respect this chick's right to wear whatever the hell she wants. The same way I expect anyone reading my blog to respect my right to rant and rave. Free speech is a wonderful thing. And yes I was at a bar, everyone there was over the age of 21. I'm sure anyone who saw her shirt has said, heard, or read worse including myself. It's not a word I use often, but I have uttered it and I understand that it exists in the English vernacular. Moving onto why it actually bothered me: Does your vagina have a price tag hanging from it, sweetheart?
You're saying that if a person is unemployed, they are automatically denied sex? Conversely, one could argue this means that anyone with a job gets a turn, right? It felt like by standing by that statement, she was reducing her body to a commodity. Trashy trashy nasty white trash. And also sad. I understand she probably slammed down her Natty Ice and made some slurred statement about "not messin' 'round wit broke ass dudes no more." More power to ya, girl. That's a great attitude to have. Now go smoke a Pall Mall and give yourself a perm.

If you really respected yourself enough to hold out for a nice, decent, employed gentleman, you wouldn't need to wear that tank top. You are totally selling yourself short.

Or, am I wrong? Am I too quick to judge her? Is this the new girl power? Is "No job, No pussy" today's "I am Woman, hear me roar?" Does being able to wear a top like that with pride mean we as women have achieved something? I respectfully disagree.

To the woman in the trash-tastic shirt: you completely undermined your own statement. By projecting that image to the world (OK, the bar. You know what I mean.) you're saying that your body is up for sale, and all one needs to enter the auction is a W-2. Anyone else see the tragedy in this thinking, or am I just being a prude?

This also raised another question: What is the new "rule" when it comes to potential dates and their employment status? Is "No job No pussy" a realistic goal? Before the economy took a dive, you had to try to not have a job. It seemed everyone had something going for themselves, and it was downright easy to make money.

I know for me personally, one of my non-negotiables has always been that a potential date had to have a job. Period, end of story. I've worked steadily since I was fifteen and gone to school. In my mind there was NO excuse for a man to be unemployed. Sure, I've dated some that were marginally employed or that didn't make as much money as I did. But to just be not working? No way. I felt it necessary to be with someone who was doing something, at least working toward a goal of some kind.

Now, people from all walks of life find themselves unable to work. It's not just the guy who prefers to sit on his mom's couch and smoke weed while killing XBox zombies. It's the guy who worked for the state and got laid off, or the owner of the small business that went into foreclosure. There's also not as much money being passed around in the form of loans and grants for college, so even a man with ambition may not have the means. His MBA or Ph.D. might have to wait, and that can be really frustrating. Times are tough out there, so should I soften my outlook? Does he deserve more leniency? Maybe, maybe not. But I still wouldn't be caught dead in that tank top.