By Vikki L. Washington

Is it me or does it seem in recent weeks there’s an unusual proliferation of photographs of celebrities showing their…errrr…ahem…guns? I’m not talking about the AK-47s, the .357 Magnums or that famous duo that goes by the name Smith & Wesson.

I’m speaking of the phenomenon called “going commando.” If you look up the word “commando” in a dictionary, it means, “a member of a military assault unit or team trained to operate quickly and aggressively in especially urgent, threatening situations, as against terrorists holding hostages” (thanks, dictionary.com!).

But there’s another dubious definition: not wearing underwear of any sort. That includes bloomers, knickers, sexy thongs, g-strings and the Granny panties.

Believe it or not, there are medical reasons for shedding the undergarments. Conditions such as vulvodynia, which means “painful vulva,” can create such hypersensitivity to the vaginal area that some women cannot stand to wear underwear at all. Wearing tight underwear or those made with fabrics such as spandex or nylon can be responsible for many fungal infections, because of the lack of ventilation.

Lack of ventilation is also another reason why doctors recommend against women wearing underwear to bed. Besides, as another friend points out, “why let your undies ride up your butt while you’re tossing and turning?” Also, going commando isn’t an exclusive women thing. Men do it too, most notably to combat the issue of low sperm count that could be caused by wearing too-tight briefs.

Of course, there are personal reasons why the choice is made. For the fashion conscious, showing panty lines is akin to a death sentence. Certain outfits would reveal embarrassing outlines of underwear, such as a low cut dress with a slit. Some women like the feeling of freedom, as a friend of mine would attest: “I like for everything to be free! If I could go bra-less, I would!” However, she is careful to note that she makes sure she wears appropriate outfits, such as long skirts, and “I’m really careful about walking up stairs and getting out of cars.”

Which leads me to my rant about certain famous people going commando:

Where is their common sense of decency or sense? Did it fly out the window along with their Victoria’s Secret panties? Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, and Paris Hilton are just a few of the many celebrities recently caught exposing their goodies to the eye-candy hungry public. If my friend, as well as many others, has the sense enough to be cognizant of her movements while going commando, what’s their excuse?

Spears made a paltry attempt in my opinion to justify her actions on her official website.

Here’s an excerpt:

It’s been so long since I’ve been out on the town with friends. It’s also been 2 years since I’ve even celebrated my birthday. Every move I make at this point has been magnified more than I expected, and I probably did take my new found [sic] freedom a little too far.

Ok, we get it, Britney…you filed for divorce and decided to star in your own version of “Girls Gone Wild.” Scratch that. It should be called “Moms Gone Wild.” After all, you have two kiddies at home to set an example for.

Oh that’s right…according to basketball legend Charles Barkley, celebrities shouldn’t be considered role models. At the risk of getting pounded by the “Round Mound of Rebound,” I disagree. For better or worse, whether they like it or not, celebrities are placed on a pedestal of sorts by legions of children around the world. Their actions can be and usually are imitated. So judging by the snapshots of Spears’ private parts, she could use some brushing up on her hygiene habits lest some little girl thinks it’s ok to have some angry red bumps down there. A father of a friend even commented, “Oh, I can see she had a C-section”.

So I feel these recent displays of the art of commando are teaching young girls to not have much respect for their precious bodies. In turn, young men may take this as a sign that they don’t need to respect women, if they don’t respect themselves. It makes the responsible parents’ job that much harder to fight against that particular perception. And that’s a shame.

Spears added, “Thank God for Victoria’s Secret’s new underwear line!” Honey, Victoria’s Secret isn’t the only game in town. There’s a plethora of underwear choices out there on the Internet to help Spears keep her own Britney’s Secret. Can you say, “Google it?”

Disclaimer: DeafDC.com is not responsible for any outage or crashes to the website due to the onslaught of angry commenters.

Vikki L. Washington is a Production Coordinator/Artist for an advertising agency in downtown Washington DC.