Sagging is the new tightness

Whose arse fails to look good in a well-fitted pair of jeans?  We have all admired a well-clothed derrière, even if it is only really achieved by A&F models.  Despite the low-cut tops, the risk of cameltoe and escaping of god-knows-what, should seams break, it seems to be the arse that attracts the most attention.  I would love to say that this is because there is quantitative data suggesting the attractiveness of the average rump has improved but I just cannot—take a look around any pub in the south of England if you dissent—sadly it is that the decency police have strayed into clothing once again.

            Admittedly Karl Lagerfeld would balk at the idea of parading anyone but the best in low cut jeans in the pages of the glossies, but that does fail to address the point.  Wearing jeans ‘below the waist’, now called sagging,  has been fashionable since before the next crop of eighteen year olds were born, in fact before most of the next lot of 25 year olds were born – we need only look at the ‘Back to the Future’ films (the first one came out in 1985) for this.  Having said that, how much of that is down to the 'sagging' fashion being presented in the film by a doe-eyed Michael J. Fox, has not been calculated. 

            Whatever your view, the arse—or at least the boxers—being on show is irritating most of the western world, it seems.  Obama does not like it (“brothers should pull up their pants”), and there have been some moves to serve ASBOs for showing their underwear over here.  Apart from the fairly obvious point that we all know that this annoys so it is going to happen on those grounds alone, and whether or not it is nice to look at, it is a pretty victimless crime.  It raises an interesting question though.  As this has been going on for 20 years it is no longer shocking, nor is it difficult to organise, nor is it easy to ignore or eclipse.  So why the response?

            One possibility is a backlash.  Europe and north America are in something of a downturn I am sure you have noticed and so some might say that this is reflected in our general behaviour, with a greater austerity all round.  Perhaps this is even supported by the fact that older people remember a time when it was basically unknown, or embarrassing, and so it is associated with the slackness of the 80s and 90s, quite literally.  This fails to hold water though, as the fashion appears to have survived the downturn in the 90s in any case and was worn through that anyway. 

            Perhaps it is because it has permeated to such a variety that it is no longer the reserve of the attractive and is now use to the point at which it is more unattractive than attractive.  This would not be the first time this has happened.  Facebook has suffered this indignity.  When it first appeared in Britain it was only used by students at London and Oxbridge Colleges.  Now every 13 year old—not to mention silver surfer—between London and Inverness has an account, seemingly regardless of either their literacy or social grace.  No one likes to look at something unattractive, either on facebook or on someone’s lower half. 

            Certainly it cannot be legislated for.  In the positive sense I mean.  Any kind of uniform—school, work etc is unlikely to make provision for the type and colour of underwear to be worn, with jeans showing it off.  Perhaps that is the point, in doing this there is a chance to give a bit of greater expression to wearing clothes, especially on males.  Grayson Perry ‘drags up’ because he wants to break the conventions and sterility of male clothing.  I am not sure how much showing our arses helps his cause, all I would say is that if we are going to, male or female, we should make sure we wearing something worth looking at and you have spent more time at the gym than in Chicken Cottage.  Deal?