Miley Cyrus and Her Vanity Fair Photos

It is coming down to a "she said, they said" battle between Cyrus and Vanity Fair. Annie Lebovitz photographed the 15-year-old star for a spread in Vanity Fair. One shot that has gotten much attention from parents is of Miley in a bed sheet with her back to the camera, appearing to be topless.

While articles all over the internet state that Miley was OK with the portraits at first, those very same articles go on to explain how Miley felt the article coupled with the photos made her appear to be less than who she is. Vanity Fair is sticking to their guns saying Cyrus was more than OK with the photos, and they have done nothing offensive in publishing them. Parents throughout the nation are outraged and some are even considering no longer allowing anything Cyrus into their children's minds.

I have to say this is all so ridiculous. My seven year old daughter is a huge fan of Miley Cyrus and we are Christians who don't agree with certain behaviors. But, the difference is we aren't going to censor Miley Cyrus for actions obviously twisted by Vanity Fair. Do I agree with her choice to allow someone like Annie Lebovitz to take photos of her? No. Do I feel her parents should have set stricter limits for the photo shoot? Of course. But, I'm not her father and I'm not her mother. I have my own kids to worry about and by censoring Miley Cyrus from my children's life, the good, bad and ugly; I am only showing them that they have every right to judge her as a person.

I'm not saying I would ever allow my children to see those photos, but I'm not going to lose my head if they happen upon them. In this society of "tolerance" where everything is permissible, why are we not "tolerating" Cyrus's mistake? She is fifteen years old and unless someone in this country never made a stupid mistake at fifteen, then they really have no right to talk. As for the parents who are censoring her from their lives, ask yourselves: "If your child made a similar or worse mistake, would that give you the right to censor your child from your life or your other children's life?" The obvious answer is no.