They're not just for women and Shatner anymore

I know my readers pretty well, so I know you'll be interested in this story about international underpants:

As Japanese waistlines expand, so is the market for girdles -- for men.

A new line of male underwear that flattens the stomach and lifts the hips proved so popular when introduced on a trial basis last month that some stores quickly sold out.

Lest you think this is just a Japanese thing, this article from a Indiana newspaper mentions that "Under Armour, a Baltimore maker of stretchy exercise clothes, is doing a brisk business with boomer men, some of whom wear the company’s shorts as girdles under trousers."

But back in the Land of the Rising Sun...

"Men are getting so much more fashion conscious these days that they're starting to pay attention to the lines of their body and their silhouette, just like women," said a spokeswoman at Triumph International Japan, a leading underwear firm.

Triumph marketed two different types of "long girdle" -- one from the navel to the knees, and the other a "hip hugger" version to be worn with low-waisted pants.

You're probably aware that I'm a pretty conservative guy, but what the hell is going on in the world these days? I mean, it's bad enough that men are wearing girdles, but hip hugger girdles for low rise jeans? I think I'll stick to my regular boxers and khakis, thank you. Sheesh.