It seems like girls have been playing with dolls since the dawn of time. A new website is taking it to a new level and causing quite a controversy. You’ve probably heard of the Bimbo website by now but if you haven’t, here’s a quick recap.

The site was created in France and is aimed at young girls. It allows them to take care of doll-like characters in a virtual world. Girls are able to name their “dolls” as well as dress and feed and take care of them. Keeping them happy is how girls play the game. Sounds innocent enough until you hear this quote from the creator:

Nicholas Jacquart [the creator] says, “What is the goal of the game? What are the bimbos trying to do? To be the most famous bimbo with the most bimbo attitude.”

Girls are encouraged to put their characters in sexy lingerie and keep them super-skinny by use of diet pills, if necessary. They can choose cosmetic surgery to “fix” their appearance and they can find a rich boyfriend to take care of their character. This focus on appearance and the whole idea of women as bimbos is causing quite a commotion with critics of the site. However, not everyone is offended. Over a million people in France have subscribed to the site and 200,000 people in England have signed on.

Hopefully, parents are checking out this site before they let their daughters play the Miss Bimbo game-just like they should with any website their kids are on. Seems to me that this is just one more thing to make us stop and ask ourselves what it is we really value in our society and when-if ever-will young girls and women get the message that looks aren’t everything…unless we truly believe they are?

Maybe it’s because I’m a mom of a boy. Maybe it’s because I consider it a chore to put on makeup. Or maybe it’s because I had to sneak lipstick out of the house when I was 11 because my mom said I was too young to wear it. Whatever the case, an article in today’s New York Times inspired by the trend in little girl makeover/beauty theme parties really bugs me. Here’s just a snippet:

But today, cosmetic companies and retailers increasingly aim their sophisticated products and service packages squarely at 6- to 9-year-olds, who are being transformed into savvy beauty consumers before they’re out of elementary school.

It’s one thing to fool around with fake press-on nails and play dress up with a trunk full of princess costumes, but are there really moms out there who allow — and encourage — their first-grade daughters to wear makeup beyond the occasional theme birthday party? There must be, if a whole new target market has emerged.

I guess it’s in the same vein as taking your little girl to get her hair highlighted or her belly button pierced (ick!). The next time you’re at the mall, take a look at the kids swearing as they walk around in packs with their designer handbags, cellphones, and provocative T-shirts — then look closely at their faces, and realize they’re the same age you were when you still believed in the Tooth Fairy.

Moms, what do you think? Am I being a prude or are kids (especially girls) growing up too fast?