Miss America

Kirsten Haglund, just crowned the new Miss America, talks movingly about her recovery from anorexia at age 16 here.

She doesn't talk about how much she weighs, to avoid triggering other teens. She does talk about having curves, and liking them. She alludes to the horror of anorexia without going into other details.

I'm no fan of the whole Miss America pageant thing. Still, I'm with her right up until the line where she's quoted as saying that while she isn't about to "let myself go," she won't be skipping any meals.

Kirsten, you have the chance to do a lot of good as an emissary from the hellish lands of eating disorders. Please, next time, skip judgments like this. Remember that bodies come in all shapes and sizes, and that many of the young women you'll come into contact with this year will never, can never look like you. And that that doesn't mean they've "let themselves go."

Use your powers for good.