Prez May Be Hip, but Says No To Hipsters

He's hip: He sips beer, wine, wears flip flops, he smokes and even eats at local burger joints from time to time...but he draws the line at his jeans

A Commentary By Black Urban Times Senior writer, Alicia Cruz

Don't like Obama's "mom jeans"? Too bad, says the President Obama. In case you missed it (like me), President Obama threw the opening pitch at last weeks All-Star baseball game...............but it wasn't his pitch that made headlines... it was the jeans he sported. Crazy, huh? That's what I said as I laid in bed cleaning my incision and listening to the news radio.
These so-called fashionistas called the Commander-in-Chief's faded-look jeans everything from "nerdy" to "mom jeans." What dimwit has nothing better to do but to take the leader of the free world to task for his choice of jeans.

He may be President, but Barack Obama still finds time to kick back at an occasional NBA game with a beer and his fellow fans (Photo Below Left), just like us at a Chicago Bulls v. Washington Wizards game on Friday, Feb. 27, 2009.

Number one: They weren't baggy or hanging off of his derriere. They weren't dragging the ground. They weren't dirty or tattered, but they weren't tight enough. It's a shame to hear this at a time when we've been crying about grown men...well, men period, wearing jeans and pants six sizes too big and wearing them hanging off of their derrieres.

Number two: The President's jeans were a nice fit and looked great for the occasion. I don't want to see my President in anything so darn tight I can see his derriere breathing. I know that some country-westerners wear their jeans air tight and that's fine...for them, but not our President.

On the "Today" show, President Obama told Meredith Vieira, "I'm a little frumpy," after she mentioned the fashion police’s critique of his jeans.

"Those jeans are comfortable," Obama said. "For those of you who want your President to look great in his tight jeans: Sorry, I'm not the guy.""I'm not 20," the President joked. He leaves style icon duties to his wife, who he says "looks fabulous" and used to give him grief for having only four suits in his closet until a few years ago.

It's a sad thing for people to think you're a ninny...it's embarrassing for you to open your mouth and remove all doubt. And it should be criminal for people to be shamelessly hypocritical. If President Obama had appeared anywhere in tight fitting jeans, a pair of Pumas, a tight tee-shirt and a fat rope chain everyone from the fashion police to SCLC to the Republicans would have called for his head on a platter and screamed "Dress your age, Mr. President! You may be charming, hip and handsome, but hey, you're no spring chicken!"

No matter how great I may look for age forty, 110 lbs and wearing a size 2, I still know that there are some outfits that just are not appropriate for a woman my age and in my profession. I can still hit a night club or two on the weekend (when I'm not riddled with stitches and high blood pressure pills), but I'm no longer 22 and certain outfits will never again grace my frame. And that's ok.

Sure, I know some 40-year-old men (and older) who wear the same outfits that my 17-year-old God-child wears and that's fine for them. If they're comfortable in them, I say knock yourself out. But just know that being comfortable and looking appropriate are two different things. You might think you look good, but how you actually look is a completely separate thing.

It's all about choices, personal opinions/preferences and then there's that 'ol kill-joy... reality. In my opinion, there's nothing more sad or silly looking than a 40+-year-old man in baggy jeans, Timberlands - unlaced -with a bandanna and a shirt that looks to be six sizes too large. The same goes for an obviously grown woman in an outfit that's three sizes too small, showing every roll and a stomach or her panties and every stretch mark she owns. There's nothing attractive, hip or cool about either description. Some call it "keepin' it real." Yes, I agree...real dumb. A fashion faux pas is one thing, the descriptions above are just plain criminal.

Kudos to the President for being comfortable in his skin and with his fashion choices. He has my vote...once again.