Where Celtic Paganism and Kylie Jenner's...Work Collide

In case you’ve been living under a rock...or you have a life and reflexively roll your eyes when you hear the name Kardashian, there was a big reveal this week: Kylie Jenner admitted she got her boobs done.

Yes, yes, I know.  You must be shocked.  Who would’ve thought that a Kardashian actually had cosmetic surgery!?  Unthinkable that one of their ranks, you know, the ones who wear a pound of make-up before stepping outside and have a lighting team on hand 24/7, would violate their commitment to natural beauty.  You might also shrug your shoulders and say, “Who gives a f#@#!?”  For point 1, I offer no evidence other than this photograph:

For point 2, though, I regret to inform you that many people care.  Kylie Jenner’s one of the most well-known celebrities in the world.  As of writing this, she has 398 million followers on IG, is a near-billionaire, and has worked alongside many top luxury brands.  She’s also been in two mind-numbingly stupid "reality" shows that got big ratings - "The Kardashians" and "Keeping Up with the Kardashians."  Therefore, what she does has an outsized impact, especially on her young and often insecure fan base, desperate for direction and role models in a fractured and unmoored culture.

The Problem

Her reveal is stirring up a lot of controversy, and justifiably so.  The problem isn’t that she got a boob job.  Cosmetic surgery has been the norm for celebrities for decades, and the social stigma around it has waned.  The controversy is because she and her entire family have gaslit the public for over a decade with nonsense excuses like, “I just grew into my face” or “my body just filled out naturally - at 27.”  They have emphatically denied having any plastic surgery done.  That’s right, Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner have never had any plastic surgery. Right.

The deception and gaslighting are a problem because these women have been global trendsetters for years.  Their looks, fashion, and mindset dominated the media, captivated hundreds of millions of young girls, and pushed parents to acquiesce to its demands.  This wouldn’t have been a problem if they promoted good stuff, like self-love, a healthy lifestyle, and a resilient spirit able to endure all the crap that life throws your way.  Sure, they might’ve paid lip service to those values, but what they really sold was opulence, beauty, drama, and being famous for being famous.  Not exactly the heights of human potential.

The Kardashians added multiple layers of masking to their public image.  They heavily photoshopped their posts, sported world-class make-up every time they stepped outside, and underwent numerous surgeries to shape their face, add curves, and polish away the imperfections of time.  All the while, they claimed themselves 100% natural.

Many saw through their rouse but not all.  The most vulnerable victims were the young girls that avidly followed them and could swallow an “I just grew into this massive booty at 20 because…nature, you know.”  The result: an epidemic of poor body image, depression, and suicide among young girls.

Look, I’m not saying that the Kardashians made all those girls cut their thighs with box cutters in their bathrooms because they didn’t feel good enough.  However, they contributed to a culture that valorized unrealistic beauty standards while gaslighting fans that the look was natural.  The Kardashian’s lies also discouraged other celebrities from telling the truth.  If a celebrity had the gall to admit they had a nose job, it would cost them their career.  They’d be the fake ones tainted with the sin of artificial beauty.  The Kardashians and others who refused to admit the truth would retain their aura of effortless splendor.

Worse, the Kardashians frequently have remarked how they want to be good role models for girls, use their platform to promote worthy causes, and push the culture in a better direction.  Yet when faced with the most relevant issue to their brand: beauty, they chose to remain silent to continue to benefit from their otherworldly mystique and splendor.  It’s shameful.  Absolutely shameful.

Kylie Jenner’s story doesn’t exist in a vacuum.  It’s a story that speaks to deeper cultural trends that should be brought to light, discussed, and pushed back against.  After all, the press and media companies knowingly ignored their lies, and the broader culture lacked the courage to confront them for their bullshit.

There are three topics worth diving into here to make sense of what’s going on and the way forward.

1. Cowardice and Dishonesty
2. The Sacredness of Truth
3. The Power and Limits of Beauty

1. Cowardice and Dishonesty

Right now, we’re in a crisis of cowardice.  Businesses get bullied by frothing Twitter mobs over slight offenses and cave.  Schools are run by adult-sized children that throw fits to get what they want.  Companies fire employees at the slightest hint of blowback.  Two cases demonstrate the culture of spinelessness: 1) Fox pushing the stolen election lie and 2) the removal of the SAT by many colleges over fears of racism.  Both are ridiculous.

First, Fox knew that the election results were legitimate, yet knowingly ran cover for Trump for fear of political blowback and an inability to resist the big ratings.  During the defamation trial, emails and texts from Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity surfaced, showing the two of them mocking their audiences for their stupidity and complaining about the ridiculousness of the Stop the Steal movement.  Fear won the day and forced them to go along with the nonsense.

This lie has caused so much damage to faith in American political institutions because they didn't want to upset Trump and his political allies.  Pitiful.

On the other side, many universities have caved into screeching DEI groups that see the SAT as racist, even though it’s repeatedly been proven to predict academic and life outcomes accurately when used with high school GPA.  The universities should be the bastions of free- and good-thinking, not kowtowing to an ill-informed, venomous, screaming mob.  Many universities have reversed their decisions once the political pressure weakened, but that’s neither leadership nor reason.  That’s cowardice that cost many deserving applicants their spots.

Kylie Jenner’s response and the whimper of indignation it’s caused in the media is another testament to the widespread spinelessness of our culture and the normalization of lying.  Before I go after Kylie, though, let me start by saying that it’s good that she admitted some of the truth.  It requires courage to walk back a lie you’ve told publicly for years, and I admire her for that.  But it’s also not good enough.

First, she never acknowledged and apologized for years of gaslighting the public.  In the interview, she simply says it like it’s always been the case.  People picked up on the change in messaging and pointed out the hypocrisy, yet she’s not come out and formally apologized and admitted wrongdoing.  It’s cowardly.  Take it on the chin, say you made a mistake, and go forward.

Second, she refuses to take responsibility for the unrealistic beauty standard she and her family have pushed for decades.  As shown, this has had catastrophic consequences for a generation of young girls.  Some, like Kylie, got their noses, boobs, lips, and butts done in the pursuit of seductivity (I know it’s not a word, but I like it, so it’s staying in).  Many, like her, regret it, and their blood is on her hands.

This isn’t to say that other people aren’t at fault.  The girls who decided to have the surgery, the parents who paid for it, the social media companies who promoted such content for profit, and the other leaders who did too little to challenge this nonsense share in the blame.  But she’s still a leader of a trend that left so many girls broken in its wake.

Finally, she did not admit to all of the other work she had done.  It might take a few more years before she can reveal it all due to the threat of psychological and financial ruin.  I get it.  It’s difficult to come out and admit, even obtusely, that you were lying for years, but she is lying and continues to lie.  This is not good enough.

What’s so disheartening about this, though, is that she’ll likely face very few consequences for disgusting, immoral behavior that’s poisoned the culture and shattered many lives. Being a dishonest coward is now normal, and without social and financial costs, behavior like this will continue.  Kylie Jenner might fade from the spotlight or have a change of heart, but other influencers will take her place and the reigns of the culture.  Until we demand courage and honesty from them, it’s unlikely anything will change.

2. The Sacredness of the Truth

Let me change gears up a little bit here and go old school.  Don't worry; I'll bring it back around.

The Brehon Laws, Ireland's indigenous legal system, testify to the Celtic reverence for truth.  In a world where might made right, the Brehons, legal scholars and arbitrators, sought justice not through force but through law, litigation, and wisdom. Central to this was the inviolable truth. Truth wasn't a mere factual representation; it was a moral compass that guided the soul toward honor and away from disgrace.

The ancient Irish epics reinforced these values, recounting stories of men and women who spoke truth even when faced with ruin. Cú Chulainn, for instance, is as famed for his martial prowess as he is for his commitment to honor and truth.

But why was truth so sacred? At its core, the ancient Irish worldview integrated the weave of fate, the harmonious balance between man, nature, and the cosmos, and the intricate dance of relationships.  All of these relied on truth as their cornerstone. To lie or to distort was not merely to misrepresent a fact; it was to disrupt this delicate balance and sow chaos into the fabric of existence.  The truth was the lifeblood of Celtic culture and the north star of a life of honor and righteousness.

This might seem like some quaint, idyllic fantasy, but the Brehons weren’t wrong.  A brief survey of Western history reveals the high costs of deception.  Some recent examples include:

• The Iraq War. Based on the now verifiably false claim that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction, the Western powers invaded and conquered Iraq.  Millions were displaced, trillions spent, and hundreds of thousands injured or killed.   Had Western countries been honest, there would’ve been no way for them to ram this war through Congress and acquire the massive budgets and sacrifices required.
• Catholic Church Sexual Abuse Scandals.  The Catholic Church child molestation scandal came to public attention in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, casting a long shadow over one of the world's most venerable institutions. Revelations that numerous priests had sexually abused minors, coupled with evidence of systematic cover-ups by the Church hierarchy, not only destroyed countless victims and their families but also eroded the moral authority and trustworthiness of the Church. The scandal led to significant financial losses from lawsuits, declining attendance, questioning of the Church's role and governance, and a pivot towards secularism.
• The Facebook Leaks.  In 2021, Francis Haugen blew the lid off of Facebook’s years of gaslighting the public about the effects of its platform.  With thousands of pages of internal documents, Haugen proved that Facebook knew that its platform harmed users' mental health, particularly women’s, and boosted divisive content to increase engagement.  The culture’s still grappling with the fallout from this bombshell, but there’s already been pushback from schools, businesses, and even younger generations against social media.

Finally, consider your own life.  How many disasters could’ve been averted if you or your loved ones were honest about what was going on?  How much time have you wasted on undeserving, selfish people who lied to fool you?  How much money's been wasted on fake or over-hyped products?

Given the extraordinary costs of deception, those caught should be shamed and punished for their behavior; it’s also fitting that those who uphold the truth, especially at high personal cost, be praised and glorified for the heroes that they are.

Kylie Jenner and her family are not heroes.  They are self-serving liars who gaslit the public for over a decade to make more money they don’t need.  In the fallout, many ruined lives now lay.  They shouldn’t be condemned for getting a boob job or shaving their cheekbones, but they should be pilloried for their dishonesty.

We must make honesty sacred and deception shameful again.

3. The Power and Limits of Beauty

There’s nothing intrinsically wrong with cosmetic surgery and the pursuit of physical beauty.  The ancient Greeks and Romans saw beauty for what it was: a virtue that could captivate and lead men onward toward greatness and glory or a vice that could lead to foolishness and ruin.  After all, Paris chose Aphrodite (beauty) over Athena (wisdom) and Hera (power) and catapulted the Trojans into war.   Beauty is power; the issue is whether that beauty leads to virtue and nobility of spirit or vice and ignominy.

Look at the statues of Praxiteles, Bernini, and Michelangelo.  Patrons paid huge sums to display such magnificence in their homes, and artists spent decades developing the skillset which allowed them to sculpt life from a slab of rock.  It’s tragic, then, that the same artists that will fly to France to spend a week at the Louvre luxuriating in its beauty fail to see their own bodies as works of art.

As museum-goers spend tremendous time and money visiting the most beautiful paintings and sculptures, we should strive to have a beautiful body.  Your body is with you wherever you go - at the mall, in the office, or on the street.  If you love art, what better way to honor it than make yourself a living, breathing hymn to Mother Nature? What better way to bring art to your friends, your co-workers, and the strangers you meet on the street than to be stunning?  And we should expect beauty from those around us, as we expect it from our homes, music, and literature.

Be beautiful.  Dress smart.  Keep your hair trimmed and styled.  Have a sculpted, delicious body.  Eat food that makes you glow from the inside out.  Light up the room with your presence.  And, if you feel so called, craft it with the surgeon’s knife—no need to feel ashamed.  Put in the effort and be proud of your flesh.

As with everything, balance.  Beauty can become a destructive obsession; it shouldn't eclipse other goods, like health, wealth, relationships, and virtue.  As Plato said, beauty comes from properly apportioning parts, including how you manage your own life.

But let’s be real here, beauty matters.  Studies show that beautiful people get lighter sentences, higher grades, and better pay.  For any career that requires your face on the screen, it also pays big to look good.  Looking good also pays in other jobs, ensuring that you command more attention, be treated more leniently, and have more doorways open.  The problem comes when there’s no substance and ability beyond the look.

You might argue that not everyone’s born beautiful.  True.  Some people are short, some have Down’s Syndrome, some are blind, some are strong, some have incredible memories.  That’s nature, but it’s also nature for you to take practical steps to improve your beauty.  You might not be Meghan Fox or Brad Pitt, but with effort, everyone can up their beauty score by a few points; cosmetic surgery expands that range.

I don’t subscribe to the “just be natural” philosophy because body modification is natural.  Here are just a few examples from throughout history:

• Neck elongation.
• Tattoos.
• Feet binding.
• Piercings.
• Cranial modification.
• Scarrification.
• Tooth filing.
• Tooth coloring.
• Branding.

These are all permanent changes done to the body in pursuit of beauty.  Similar choices are found in the natural world along a much slower time scale via evolution.  The peacock’s prismatic feathers, the kingfisher’s flashes of blue, or even human breasts are all modifications done in pursuit of beauty, not utility.  Body modification is in our DNA.

The question isn’t whether it’s acceptable but whether a particular body modification’s benefits outweigh its costs, especially when you can spend that same time, energy, and money on other areas of your life.

Here are some points to consider regarding cosmetic surgery

1. The hamster wheel of satisfaction.  We humans are terrible at staying satisfied.  Kept in check, it’s not a bad thing.  That hunger keeps us motivated and ever-improving, but it also means we have to moderate our expectations when it comes to cosmetic surgery.  Most likely, in 6 months to a year, you’ll feel the same way you did before the surgery.  The same holds for winning the Noble Prize or lottery. [study]  If you win the Nobel Prize, going back on the hamster wheel isn’t much of a problem because you pour yourself back into research and create something new.  With your body, it’s different.  You can easily end up addicted to surgery, endlessly chasing a beauty that eludes you.  Worse, you can only get so much work done before you start to look like a Star Wars character.  Because of this, don’t do cosmetic surgery to feel better about yourself.  If you do it to make yourself objectively more beautiful and improve your career prospects, fine.
2. The risk and costs of failures.  Many of the celebrities you see on screen went to world-class surgeons for their face-lifts and nose jobs, not some random doctor you found online.  There are many horror stories of botched surgeries, some resulting in death.  Other surgeries don’t turn out the way you expect.  Fixes can cost you tens of thousands more and become increasingly risky with each round.
3. Changing beauty standards.  What’s beautiful today will likely not be in 10 or 20 years.  Big boobs and booties might be all the rage now, but in the ‘90s heroine chic was in.  And like the tribal shoulder tattoo or tramp stamp, once enough people get a look, it can go from hot to trashy fast.
4. Long-term medical costs.  Most surgeries will negatively affect your health in the long run.  Breast implants a woman's ability to breastfeed and increase their chances of certain cancers.  Nose jobs can weaken the structure of your nose, making you more vulnerable to respiratory problems and breaks.  Plus, these surgeries can malfunction 10, 20, or 30 years later, leaving you with a hefty bill to keep the goods looking good.
5. Arms-race mentality.  There also should be reasonable limits on the extent of cosmetic surgery you’re willing to undergo for your and others' welfare.  As with weight-builders, extensive, long-term deviation from your body’s natural state carries heavy costs.  It might look and feel good in the first 10 to 20 years, but costs are waiting down the line.  By rushing to attain the look you long for - no matter the costs, you’re also contributing to a culture that normalizes excess.
6. Pursue less invasive ways of beauty.  Eating well, exercising regularly, dressing sharp, and caring for yourself can go a long way in enhancing your beauty.  It also carries little risk and depends on having glowing inner health rather than superficially looking good.

Yet instead of offering sensible advice to navigate these complex issues, Kylie Jenner and her family remain silent.  I expect more self-absorbed drivel, more ducking responsibility, and few, if any, informed takes coming.

Beauty is good, and cosmetic surgery is fine, given you choose prudently and honestly.  It is shameful to lie about it, gaslight millions for years, and set up unrealistic beauty standards that doom women to failure.  Pursue beauty, but keep it real.