Words.
Fail.
Me.
From the brilliantly twisted mind and elegantly restrained pen of that Bob Newhart of British politics, Jon Henley in The Guardian:
In possibly life-changing Valentine’s Day news, we are pleased to report that the many and varied attractions of Birmingham have just been enhanced by the addition of all-male belly-dancing classes. According to the Birmingham Mail, belly-dancing for blokes helps “trim porky stomachs, achieve ramrod straight backs and turn themselves into sex gods”, and while there are drawbacks – you have to wear a “tight top” so the teacher “can see your belly rolls” – we can, at this late juncture, think of few better ways to show her you really love her.
raincoaster 
and Birmingham wonders why it has lost out to Manchester as England’s second city. None of that rubbish up here.
Not so unusual if you know the history of it (check out shira.net). It’s just a folk dance. (Yes, I took lessons for about a year)
The perfect gift for John Prescott.
What defrostindoors said.
http://www.amulya.info/bellydance/misconceptions.html
Except I haven’t taken lessons, of course, barely being able to walk down the street without frightening children and nervous people.
I do that all the time: it keeps them docile.
But it’s my understanding that the men took it up only because women didn’t publicly perform the dance, it being a rather intimate, female thing. So the men were essentially drag performers the way Shakespearean actors playing Juliet were. It’s a johnny-come-lately thing relative to the original. And let’s face it, men doing the shoulder shimmy are just less interesting all around.
Philipa, I shall never forgive you for putting that image in my head. Now I have to go bleach my brain.
Aha! You’ve hit on something that I know something about.
Belly dancing is liberating and empowering! It’s definitely for me because I love dance, movement, music and beladi history.
Danse du ventre. Raks sharki. Beladi. Belly dance. What is it? What does it mean? Danse orientale, or belly dance, is an ancient dance form. Its origins are rooted in the Middle East, being performed by temple priestesses in honor of the Mother Goddess.
Historically in the Middle East, women were forbidden to dance before men as dance incorporates the essence of fertility. Thus in the beginning women dancers, or rakkase, danced only before other women. However, over time the male populace also wished to enjoy the aesthetics of dance, so during the Ottoman Empire in Turkey, rakkas, or male dancers, began performing raks sharki.
When a belly dancer dances, that dancer is embracing what it means to be alive, to be a woman or man, and to celebrate the gift of life. For example, beladi, a folk dance version of raks sharki, is commonly performed by women of varying ages who are circling a woman in labor as a form of celebration and solidarity. In fact, the movements taught in Lamaze classes have a direct tie to the movements in beladi, or belly dance. On the other hand, the movements of rakkas, or male dancers, can often imitate warrior movements, such as those used when hunting and other such aggressive stances.
Video, please? Surely there’s some of this up on YouTube. If it’s hysterical, so much the better.
So, how does this all explain Kevin Federline?
He must have a huge talent.
Yes, huge. Bigger than Britney’s [talent].
Well I’ve heard you can stick two babies and a career up Britney’s talent and STILL have room for Federline’s.