We’re finally seeing more of Rihanna, but she’s decided to keep her nipples underwraps.

At right, you can see her sporting the neon pink “Sex Pistol” Nippies set under a black sheer top in New York’s SoHo district.

The undergarment company (if these qualify as a garment) claims to be the first and only nipple cover made from real lingerie fabrics for beautiful and functional coverage.

The look is definitely rock star.

But the product is also available in neutrals for the modest or more dazzling crystallized versions for those looking to cause even more of a stir.

One would think that if you’re modest enough to cover your nipples you’d be modest enough not to flash your underwear, but the two concepts are not mutually exclusive.

I have seen great looks of sheer or nearly sheer fabrics with the outline of a pretty bra underneath. I’ve also seen some not so pretty versions of this. But bad taste knows no bounds, you can be fully dressed an look like you were attacked by the slut fairy.

One of my friends is firmly anti-bra and she’s got a very slim figure and a barely A-cup chest that makes this notion attractive. But she can tell you many stories of being accosted by strangers who actually yelled at her to “pull on a bra” or worse, just flat out called her a “hoosier” and walked away.

It makes me wonder if bras are meant to be helpful to women who find going without one uncomfortable, or if they are just another tool to shield the world from women.

There’s common decency and then there’s something else. Something restrictive and ugly.

There was a time, not too long ago, when a proper lady didn’t leave the house without a corset, silk stocking, a torpedo-esque brassiere and a wiggle skirt (so named because you couldn’t stride in the garmet, so you wiggled forward. This was the 40s version of the early 19th century hobble skirt which used to extend toward the ankle and virtually hobble the woman walking in them).

Personally, I like bras, but I don’t think they need to be a societal mandate. Decency comes in many forms and in many cases, it’s relative. I think it’s interesting that the Nippies were inadvertently photographed on Rihanna and the product is marketed as “a patch of freedom you won’t want to hide.”

She’s had some very public troubles that would make many, many people fall out of the spotlight, but there she is flaunting her freedom and living with her choices both good and bad. I wouldn’t wear them myself, but I think they look pretty darn good on her.