Think all that matters is what's on the inside? That might be, but apparently what's on the inside has a hell of a lot to do with what's on the outside. Marginal Revolution points to this quote from Ugly Criminals, which argues that unattractive individuals are more likely to become criminals because they are penalized for their unattractiveness when competing in the labor market:

These results suggest two handicaps faced by unattractive individuals. First, a labor market penalty provides a direct incentive for unattractive individuals toward criminal activity. Second, the level of beauty in high school has an effect on criminal propensity 7-8 years later, which seems to be due to the impact of the level of beauty in high school on human capital formation, although this second avenue seems to be effective for females only.

Once plastic surgery becomes simple, cheap, convenient, safe, and free of pain, beauty will transfer from being a type of core asset -- meaning something you can use to differentiate yourself and build a competitive advantage -- to being a type of context (meaning something you need to do just to stay in the game).

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