photo #8055210

In this internet age where everyone’s got an opinion, I stumbled on a post slamming women for ‘deceptive’ makeup. I tossed in my two cents: it’s no different from a man’s beard. Both are masks we shape and style. I’ve worn a beard five years—not to scheme, just ‘cause I wanted one. Deceptive? Sure—it hides my face, same as makeup remakes hers. Tattoos, piercings, hairstyles, even lifting for bulk or tone—they’re cousins in crafting how we hit the world. Shave my mane, and I might go from Thor to Pee-wee Herman. Makeup? Plain Jane to flawless siren with a brush. Hair you grow, blush you dab, muscle you build—it’s all a filter. History proves it: pre-mascara, women wove flowers into hair, pinned jewels, shaved legs for allure—Cleopatra even rocked perfume. Today, men and women hit the gym to flex, sometimes for swagger, sometimes for motives. That’s when it turns manipulative. Are you polishing up for gain or a hookup? Woman cakes on foundation to snag a guy—same deal. Lift for mass to flex at the bar? Sweat’s honest; steroids or implants? Deceptive if it’s unearned, manipulative if it’s bait. Tattoos can shout rebellion or hide scars; piercings flirt or just sit pretty. All tools, all wielded. I leaned on Grok to back me up, but got hit with dumb questions: ‘Is a haircut the same as makeup?’ No, duh. Ask it right—‘Are beards, tattoos, piercings, hairstyles equivalent to makeup?’—and yeah, they are. So, your self-expression: trickery, or both? You tell me.