CHECKOUT STAND NO PLACE FOR WOMEN'S MAGAZINES.

Byline: Ray E. Hardesty

I like looking at beautiful women. I'll even admit that I enjoy looking at pictures of beautiful women. I don't think I have to apologize for that.

Recently however, I have begun to feel uneasy about the proliferation in supermarkets of so-called women's magazines, featuring boldly erotic cover photos and blaring headlines on every imaginable aspect of sexuality.

For one thing, while I like looking at beautiful women, when I go to buy groceries I do not particularly appreciate having to deal with supermodel Claudia Schiffer in a dress cut from the tips of her lovely shoulders to four inches below her navel, with all that that implies. Yet, that is probably just my own crankiness. Two things seem more important to me.

First, the cultural environments we create and the cultural symbols with which we surround ourselves have to have some impact on the ways in which we treat one another. Even more significant, supermarkets are places frequented by families and children of all ages.

What does all of this public sexuality say about our concern for nurturing our children, as they try to grow into responsible adults and define their identities, including their sexual identities?

But what are we really talking about? Cosmopolitan, which featured the aforementioned Claudia Schiffer on its June 1998 cover, always seems to lead the pack in terms of visual erotica, but on any day, in almost every supermarket, there are at least half a dozen other women's magazines featuring beauties in bikinis or revealing designer gowns.

If Cosmo takes the prize for visual erotica, the prize for verbal overtness has to go to Women's Own. Its crowded July 1998 cover featured a decorous picture of lovely Kelly Packard from ``Baywatch'' surrounded by a blizzard of headlines. A partial list: ``Would He Still Love Me if He Knew?'' ``100 Women Talk Men, Sex and Size,'' ``Sex Toys He'll Love,'' ``Does He Make the Right Moves? - A Famous Sex Therapist Tells How to Spot a `Keeper,' '' ``How to Seduce Any Man,'' ``A More Loving, Passionate Partner in 24 Hours - Guaranteed!'' ``Sexual Artistry: Score a Perfect `10' at Man's (sic) Favorite Sport,'' and ``He Makes Me Feel Special: Help for the Woman Tempted to Stray.'' A full night's reading, indeed.

Perhaps the worst effect of this trend is that it has bled down to the teen magazines. The cover of Seventeen, a magazine obviously aimed at young girls, normally features an attractive teen-ager made up to look 28. Unfortunately, the magazine's headlines often seem to convey the same intent. In June the magazine had its ``Guy'' issue, with a picture of Jonny Lang on the cover. Beside his shoulder: ``Love And Sex Survey: 500 Guys Give up Their Secrets.''

I wish I could muster just a sad sigh and move on, but with a preteen of my own, and having seen the devastating effects of teen pregnancy in a sibling's life, I find it hard to do that. The link here may not be clear-cut, but if we refuse to recognize that there is a link, are we doing all we can to protect the welfare of our children?

So, what's the conclusion? Maybe it's time to relegate the most declarative of the women's sex magazines to the liquor stores and convenience marts, along with Penthouse and Playboy. As for the teen sex magazines, let's move them from the checkout stands to the magazine racks in the supermarkets. A small thing, but it might signal that as a society we are not wildly enthusiastic about teen sex.

It might take some courage to talk to your local supermarket manager about it, but in the end we are the customers, and there are always other places to shop. If enough people brought the subject up, it would surely get back to the magazine distributors who supply the stores.

It's worth a try.