The moment that stood out for me in the first 2016 presidential debate was when Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton told the story of Alicia Machado. GOP nominee Donald J. Trump was clearly surprised that Ms Clinton knew that he called the latina actress "Miss Housekeeping" and mocked her weight.

The next morning, I learned more about Machado's story. She was a teenager when pudgy Mr. Trump took Ms. Machado into a gym with reporters and humiliated her by saying "this is someone who likes to eat" while she worked out. As the Executive Producer of the Miss Universe Pageant, Mr. Trump didn't lift a barbell in his trademark suit and tie. (http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/28/us/politics/alicia-machado-donald-trump.html)

That's disrespectful regardless of gender.

So, I was delighted to see a different type of beauty pageant being promoted on one of my favorite blogs (fstoppers). Three years ago, a Romanian travel journalist Mahaela Noroc quit her job and set off to travel around the world. She took pictures of beautiful women and captured their stories wherever Noroc met them - in markets, in refugee camps and in their homes. Her project is called Atlas of Beauty.

Noroc reminded me that everyone and all things are beautiful by nature of the miracle of creation. No one, especially a presidential candidate, should call anyone else "Miss Piggy."