Kamloops’ own Mr. Blackwell weighs in on premier’s cleavage

Having been dubbed The Mr. Blackwell of Kamloops today by TV7’s Sandy Heimlich-Hall for my column on Kamloops fashion last week, I feel qualified to comment on the Twitter storm over Premier Christy Clark’s attire in the Legislature.

Former NDP MLA and current blogger David Schreck tweeted yesterday questioning her choice of neckline. “Is Premier Clark’s cleavage-revealing attire appropriate for the legislature?” Schreck asked.

Well, there have been plenty of answers to the question, including many from Liberal MLAs defending their leader. Others responded with comments like, “Yes, let’s have all women dress in Burkas. Moron alert!”

A delighted media couldn’t resist headlines such as “Clark’s cleavage spurs tempest in a C-cup” (CTV) and “Busted on sexist remarks” (Vancouver Sun).

Today, NDP leader Adrian Dix criticized Schreck. “Schreck’s comments were wrong,” he said. “I completely disagree with him.”

Everybody’s entitled to an opinion, and Schreck has a right to express his, but I wonder if he doesn’t get out much anymore. Clark’s cleavage was of the most modest variety, clothed in a black top with a beige jacket over top.

If she had dropped something and bent over to retrieve it, it’s physiologically possible that more would be visible, but probably not much. The fact is that a modicum of cleavage is considered acceptable in the work place these days. You can go into almost any office building and see more than Clark exhibited during question period. I can tell you there’s more of it in this very office some days than there is in the legislature.

It’s true there are many women out there who would be better off not revealing any cleavage at all, but that’s their choice. Certainly, the premier was not guilty of a fashion blooper.