Sometimes, like when a friend of mine in London sends me a nice picture of her new baby in a cute t-shirt that says “My parents are pro-choice,” I feel that there is indeed hope for the future. Other days, friends send me links to news items in New York Magazine about nipple tint:

In just one more sign of the stripperization of the Everywoman, Benefit’s Benetint, conceived in the seventies for an exotic dancer to color lips and cheeks, is now also being sold at Sephora and elsewhere as a “kiss-proof and water-resistant” nipple tint. “Women want nipples to be pert and fresh-looking, and this shade makes them appear that way,” Benefit spokeswoman Alison Haljun says. “For a long time, the idea of a ripe, rosy nipple has been considered appealing and alluring.’’ But aren’t the nipples usually undisplayed? “Even if you don’t show it off, you know they’re rosier and more perky,” she says.