women then and now: has there been any difference?

When Pink guested in Oprah (some time ago...), I think it was about time that someone has to say something about women being continually objectified. Pink's songs are okay, but I never considered myself a huge fan. However, after watching Pink on Oprah, I think she deserves a kudos for opening our eyes to an issue which we continually turn our other cheek to. According to Pink, ""In the '50s, women were supposed to just smile and stay in the kitchen," the singer says. "Now, we're supposed to just smile and run around and look sexy. The big difference is, instead of men telling us to do this, we're telling it to ourselves." Her song entitled "Stupid Girl" from her latest album "Im not Dead" has raised eyebrows, but then again, it makes a point. Pink asserts that "it's only the media who've gotten caught up in (which celebrities the song is about). The public got the message." Sadly, this hasn't proven to be a commercial success in the Billboard charts, but who cares? It was an eyeopener atleast to those who have seen that controversial episode of Oprah. As Oprah puts it, we live in a celebrity obsessed culture. Though this may not be such a bad thing, the celebrities the young people often tend to (blindly) emulate are those who give out the wrong message that you have to reduce your weight, your clothes and your IQ to be liked by men. It all comes back to the 50's (the Stepford wives Era, as I look at it) when women are supposed to look happy serving men and all of their whims. When women must always blindly say "Yes dear" to her husband or boyfriend. When women's looks are valued more than what they have to say. When you try to look at it, Has women really gone that far from the 50's? Yes, there may have been changes. We've had women presidents taking over the government or over large corporations and we have the likes of Angelina Jolie and Natalie Portman to be perfect examples of "Beauty and brains", but compared to the likes of certain celebutantes like Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie, they don't make much of an impact to the young girls. Scary thought but the trend of having a sex tape has become an easy way to propel oneself to popularity has slowly become a reality. I mean, afterall, it's partly the reason why Paris Hilton is now a star. Sex sells indeed. Added to that, the continuing rise of cases of eating disorders. Thin is in, as the media often emphasizes. Have you ever seen Lindsay Lohan gone beyond 100 lbs lately? I don't think so. And this is exactly who the young girls try to imitate. And newsflash, it's not only the teeners who go to such extent to achieve a size zero. Even girls as young as 8 are contemplating on dieting. Sad isn't it? Shocking but true: We women are no better than the women of the 50's. What, with these "role models" the young women look up to? We are forever doomed to be no more than an objects of men's sexual fantasies. Soon enough, we'll be priced like them cars instead of being loved and respected as a human beings. And the worst part? It's us women doing this to ourselves...