"I’m sure many a Miss America has gone under the knife," said Katie Drummond in True/Slant, but the "Hungarians are taking cosmetic 'enhancement' to a new level. They’ve actually got a crown and sash reserved especially for Miss Plastic Hungary." It's part of a push by Hungarian cosmetic surgeons to promote their industry—to be eligible, contestants have to prove they've had breast enhancement or other surgical "tweaks and tinkers" (watch an AP report on the Miss Plastic Hungary pageant).
How "degrading to women," said blogger Meg C. in Associated Content. It sends the wrong message to women everywhere to suggest that they need to resort to surgery to be beautiful. Besides, "Hungarian women already possess an exotic beauty, with high cheekbones and almond shaped eyes," why in the world would they need a plastic surgeon's help?
"Unnatural beauties" want to show off, too, said Nick Sabloff in The Huffington Post. The organizers of the Miss Plastic Hungary pageant—won by Reka Urban, 22—say they're just trying to show that "cosmetic corrections" aren't only about "oversized breasts, bulbous lips, and skin stretched to near tearing point." Plastic surgeon Dr. Tamas Rozsos said that plastic surgery has a "bad reputation" in Hungary, and the pageant is intended to show women there's no shame in "restoring harmony" to their looks.
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