Yay, Spain!

Nice work, Spain. The Spanish government is worried about the pressure on young girls to be thin and is banning rail-thin models from runway shows. All models used for Madrid's upcoming fashion week shows are required to have a normal Body Mass Index. Cathy Gould, of New York's Elite modeling agency, opposes the rule, apparently concerned "about discrimination against the model and what about the freedom of the designer," adding that the move could harm careers of naturally "gazelle-like" models.

Here's the situation. An average NYC model is 5'9" tall and weighs 110 pounds. According to this BMI calculator, in order to work at Madrid's fashion week, a 5'9" model has to weigh at least 125 pounds. Ghastly, isn't it? What will become of the fashion world if we allow a 125 pound PORKER on our runways? Seriously people. A 5'9" person still has a "normal" BMI at 168 pounds. So even though she's "normal," a 123 pound woman is still quite thin. It's not like those poor designers will be forced to use <*gasp*> plus size models! Oh, the horrors!

Besides, those skinny girls can still get plenty of work in the U.S. It's not like we're ever going to decide anyone's too thin.