Kabul's Bare-Legged Woman.

To paraphrase the Frank Zappa song, Big Leg Emma, there's a big dilemma about a barelegged woman, uh-huh, oh yeah .

The photos of Kabul's barelegged woman, taken by Afghan journalist Hayat Ensafi, hasn't caused so much as a ripple in the U.S., but the Australian news sites appear to be in love with the story.

I first came across the story of the young woman who has sent shock waves through Afghanistan, via The Sydney Morning Herald, but a Google search of 'Hayat Ensafi' reveals the story has found a home on news.com.au, 9news.com.au and dailylife.com.au as well.

According to the Afghani journalist who took the photos, the woman was walking very quickly and would not speak to him when he tried to engage her in conversation. The talk in Afghanistan is whether the woman was making a political statement, or merely mentally unbalanced.

The Australian news sites maintain that the photos have gone 'viral', but I'd have to question that. Although everyone in Kabul is talking about the woman, the photos certainly haven't gone viral in Afghanistan, where internet usage is practically non-existent.