Through her 50 years on toy-store shelves, Barbie, the ectomorphic doll who goes Hollywood starlets one better by being made entirely of plastic.(The Week)(Brief article)

Through her 50 years on toy-store shelves, Barbie, the ectomorphic doll who goes Hollywood starlets one better by being made entirely of plastic, has been a vehicle for girls to act out their fantasies--and for adults to project their anxieties. Some grown-ups say her unrealistically slender proportions cause girls to be weight-obsessed, though they never say Weebles cause obesity, or Raggedy Ann bad fashion sense. It was once suggested that a pull-string Barbie who said "Math class is tough!" kept girls from mastering differential equations. Selling Barbies has actually been banned in Iran (not very surprising) and Montpelier, Vt. (even less so). Now a West Virginia legislator wants to add his state to the list. The ...