There isn't a woman among us who hasn't had to bear the brunt of a thoughtless comment from our friends or relatives regarding our size when we were kids. If you were small for your age, then you fielded comments about being a pipsqueak or about still wearing a training bra when you got your driver's license. If you were chubby as a kid, you probably dealt with playground taunts at school and then sideways references about your weight at home, either thinly-veiled or not.

When I was growing up, I would pointedly change my speech patterns so that I never had to use the words "pig," "whale," "cow," "porky," "fat" or "stomach" because I didn't want to put the visuals in anyone's mind and have them connect me to a large farm animal or invite them to look at me in scrutiny. Relatives would say that it looked like I had lost weight and then smile as though they've just given me the greatest compliment, as though I should be grateful for their attention, but instead I wanted to curl up and die. Relatives aren't supposed to be judging your body when you are 9 years old.

The media has been having a field day with Alec Baldwin's abusive voicemail to his 11-year-old daughter, Ireland. During his diatribe, he says many unbelievable and shocking things, speaking with such anger that it's hard to imagine he's talking to his own child. The anger in his voice is palpable, you can feel it in your stomach and when he reaches the zenith he spits out, "You're a thoughtless little pig."

Words have power. No one can deny that. And regardless of what Mr. Baldwin intended in this choice of words, and no matter that he qualified the term "pig" with "little," what do you think Ireland heard? That he thought she was selfish? Lazy? Or fat? If he had called his son "a pig," would we get the same picture? Clearly sometimes things come out in the heat of the moment, but what a revealing choice of words. I am angry at you. You are repulsive to me. I no longer love you. You are a pig.

To be fair, Mr. Baldwin has apologized to Ireland, or has issued a press release that he had apologized, and although the specifics of this apology are not clear, I wonder if the damage already hasn't been done. Poor kid. As if it isn't bad enough having Kim Freaking Basinger as a mother. --Weetabix

Photo Credit:  Steve Granitz/Wire Image