A recent op-ed in the New York Times suggests that being dishonest with children about ugliness (their own or others’) does them a disservice—some people are just better looking, so why not tell it like it is from an early age? It’s an interesting theory, but a tricky one to apply in real life.

Once, on a blind date in my twenties, a guy I instantly didn't like realized this and said something hilariously awful by date's end: "You're a bitch, and you're not even pretty enough to be a bitch." It's funny because I totally was pretty enough. No, it's funny because HE LOOKED LIKE AN AARDVARK. Actually, it's…