Of course, Hitchens can't resist injecting himself into the review in various obnoxious ways, from the name-droppy ("Perhaps here is the moment for me to say that I used to see a good deal of them both in Washington, beginning with my writing a profile of him in 2002, and that we have been on friendly social terms in each other's houses. I think I may refer to her as "Elizabeth" rather than "Mrs. Edwards" from now on.") to the intellectually snobby (mocking the book's publishers for inserting an explanation of who Edmund Wilson is, as though we didn't all know). He also indulges in some annoying gender stereotyping when he discusses Edwards's mourning for her son, killed in a car crash at the age of 16. He writes,

As to the other great supposed cure for isolation, the consolation of religion, Elizabeth is at the same time vulnerable and skeptical. In describing the dreams and superstitions and fantasies that assailed her when she lost her boy, she confirms something that I have long thought to be true about the apparent conundrum of female religiosity: Why is it women who keep up the congregations in male-dominated places of worship? That's easy: women do all the childbearing, and they will try anything-anything-to ward off the illness or death of an infant. They will also grieve over and commemorate such a catastrophe long after the menfolk have "moved on."

Does Hitchens really need to make Elizabeth Edwards stand in for all women in opposition to "menfolk," especially when her particular story is so tragic and captivating? To his credit, though, Hitchens's review paints Edwards as a tough-minded woman with a complex view of both grief and human nature. He writes that she "unflinchingly records her mother's conviction that the gallant captain had been unfaithful to her while she was 'buried in babies'" and that she "remarks tenderly" that her father's flirtation with a nurse in his assisted-living center is an expression of his will to live. Hitchens also says,

In the unequal battle between life and death (as she understood in her father's case), Eros has its part in warding off Thanatos, and if this really was-as I believe-her husband's first lapse, it might have been partly because of the death-haunted context in which, for all his money and charm, he found himself.

My first reaction to this was outrage: so John Edwards cheated on his wife because he was afraid of death? What about her? But I don't actually think Hitchens means to excuse Edwards's behavior here. Rather, I think he's putting it in a larger context that Elizabeth Edwards herself establishes — that men are more than the sum of their sins, and that fear of the abyss can manifest itself as prurience just as easily as "religiosity."

That it did so in John Edwards is inexcusable, but Resilience focuses more on Elizabeth Edwards's grief over the deaths of her father and son than on anything her husband did. Hitchens writes of her approach to grieving, the antithesis of "any too-Oprah-like search for comfort or 'closure.'" And he mentions, perhaps surprisingly, "how much the Internet came to her aid, first when her son was killed and second when she discovered that a term had been set on her own life." He adds,

The importance of this medium in bringing about a great unspoken social reform-the abolition of loneliness-has not to my knowledge been better evoked.

Of course, the Internet may add to Elizabeth Edwards's loneliness as well, especially today, when several sites are reporting the results of a paternity test showing John Edwards to be the father of Rielle Hunter's child. Elizabeth Edwards's fame is a mixed blessing — Hitchens calls her "quite a darling of the Democratic rank and file," and perhaps she has benefited from the public outpouring of support during her battle with cancer. But it's hard to imagine — despite widespread sympathy for her — that having to negotiate her husband's infidelity in the public eye has made her life any easier. In her circumstances, a decision to retreat into private life would be more than understandable. But just as the Internet made her less lonely, perhaps her book will do what David Foster Wallace said all good writing should — help people "become less alone inside."

The Pain Of Elizabeth Edwards [The Atlantic]
Report: DNA Test Proves Edwards Fathered Videographer's Daughter [FOX News]
John Edwards Secret DNA Test Proves He's The Daddy [National Enquirer]

Earlier: Sex & The Single Homewrecker: Caitlin Flanagan Slams Rielle Hunter, Helen Gurley Brown

Sotomayor said in 2001, "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life." The LA Times asked several Latinas for their reactions — below, a few excerpts.

Rossana Rosado, Publisher of El Diario:

I think most women in this country embrace the concept that you bring something as a woman that you don't bring as a man. "Better" in the context of that speech was fine. I think surely that if you knew something you said today was going on the record for something very important you were going to do years from now, surely you would say it very differently. But as we have watched a panel of predominantly white men questioning her, it's no surprise that they might be put off by that description.

Maria Elena Durazo, Executive secretary-treasurer, L.A. County Federation of Labor:

For me, a wise Latina means diversity. I think she brings the experiences of people of color, the experiences of families struggling from lower socioecon backgrounds. She brings the experience of overcoming enormous obstacles to go to an Ivy League school and graduate cum laude. It's a very good experience to bring to the judiciary because her background represents more people in this country than the background of those members of the court who come from well-to-do families.

Antonia Hernandez, President and CEO of the California Community Foundation:

Many years ago, one of the first times I went to court, the bailiff stopped me and said, "Excuse me, you belong on the other side with the interpreters." At least he didn't think I was the defendant. You learn survival skills from this kind of experience. You learn how to bridge; you learn how to be entrepreneurial. It's a cliche, but we are framed by our experiences.

Josefina Lopez, Author of Real Women Have Curves and Hungry Woman in Paris:

Many people seem to assume that because Sonia Sotomayor's an ethnic woman, or because of the wise Latina comment, she's going to be biased. That's racist. They're assuming they aren't biased and that she is because she's an ethnic person. All these white men who were on the Supreme Court for the first 200 years were supposed to be impartial and unbiased, but for 200 years they upheld laws that supported segregation and discrimination. You kind of have to laugh.

So when most people in the government are white, relatively well-to-do men, and most people in the country are not, it might be nice to have a Supreme Court justice who has shared some of the struggles of people without much political power? And sharing these struggles doesn't cloud her wisdom, as some Senators seem to suggest, but enhance it? What a concept.

On Sonia Sotomayor: Words From 'Wise Latinas' [LA Times]

Steinem talked with Amy Richards, the author of Opting In: Having a Child Without Losing Yourself, about Sonia Sotomayor, Sarah Palin, affirmative action, the importance of equal parenting, and the future of feminism. The entire discussion is excellent, and well worth listening to, but for those who don't have the time, here are a few highlights.

On being a feminist icon:

I have problems with the icon part, because it raises images of iconoclast right away. And as they said in the suffragist era, a pedestal is as much a prison as any other small space.

On the media treatment of Sonia Sotomayor:

I think the attention to her qualifications, her words, her decisions, that's all been very appropriate. But to the extent that she's been treated very differently from, say, Clarence Thomas, you can see that her opponents are using affirmative action as if affirmative action lowers standards when in actual fact it raises standards, in a way that they did not with Clarence Thomas because they agreed with Clarence Thomas.

On the folly of ignoring America's second class citizens:

If we ever wanted to see what we had been missing all these years in terms of talent, look at the presidential election. Look at Obama, look at Hillary Clinton, look at the quality of those two individuals. And they are just a small view into the talent we've been missing and are just beginning to tap.

On Sarah Palin's recent resignation speech:

I think her statements were so opaque that anybody can read into them what ever they wish, and it remains to be seen. I don't want to see her written about in a sexist way either, and the Women's Media Center, of which I am a part, has on its website complaints about the specific kinds of sexist things that were said about her…What was interesting to me was the degree to which sexism was used against Hillary Clinton and for Sarah Palin, because Hillary Clinton's appearance was used against her. That her legs weren't good, that's why she was wearing pantsuits whereas Sarah Palin was a babe and had great legs. Again, if you look for the wizard of Oz person behind the curtain, it's about what they stand for, and therefore there is a differential way in which sexism is used, but it's important to look at how it is used.

On her decision not to have children:

In my generation it was perceived as a choice: either you gave birth to someone else or you gave birth to yourself.

On her relationship with her father:

I've only in adult life come to realize how important that was, that I actually saw a nurturing male…Even those of us who intellectualize about it and know how important it is that men become equal parents of children, if you've never experienced it, it's hard to have faith in it. In retrospect, I probably should have thanked my father for this, that he showed me that.

On world peace:

Men raising children, as much as women do, is the key to world peace. The cult of masculinity, which is the major cause of violence on earth if the violence is not in self defense, will only humanize and dissipate and come to value life through nurturing and through fatherhood.

And finally, Gloria Steinem on contemporary feminism:

Ultimately we won't need a word like feminism or women's liberation because it will be, and should be, just life. Because there is still a power difference and a visibility difference, we need to have names that make us see things in a new way.

Feminism Across The Generations: A Conversation With Gloria Steinem And Amy Richards [KUOW]

Actually, the dress she wore to the congressional speech is mentioned, but there's so much more — from who walks Bo (she does in the morning; the President does the "last walk" at 10pm) — to what Michelle misses about her life "before." ("The anonymity of just living your life and making choices and decisions, and moving through the world without sort of constant commentary. That was nice.")

But the best parts are when Michelle is talking about her status as a role model for girls, for women, and for people. She tells the story of growing up on the South Side of Chicago and not knowing anything about the University of Chicago:"It was sort of like another world that didn't belong to me," she explains.

And there are so many institutions like that around the world, and so many kids like that who are living inches away from power and prestige and fame and fortune, and they don't even know that it exists. And the White House, all these wonderful buildings, these monuments and capitols ... I'm sure there are children who feel that way. I'm sure there are people in this country who feel the same way about these places that I did about the University of Chicago.


And I have probably dedicated more of my life to trying to break down those barriers for people. I think that might be one of the small themes in my professional life, is to try to be the bridge so that more people feel like they have access; that their voice, that their faces, that their worlds count in places like this, and that there is understanding across those divides. And as I grew up and came to work in those places, right, and got to know them, I realized that the misunderstanding or the disconnect goes both ways; that folks outside of these communities have no idea what goes on within these institutions, and sometimes the people in the institutions have no real understanding of the people who live outside. You know, everybody is dealing in these misperceptions about one another because there is no bridge.

Michelle also discusses how she'd like to inspire females: "How powerful would it be for young girls to come into this space and hear from other really powerful, impressive, dynamic women, and to have that conversation go on here in the White House?"

But the First Lady is emphatic about the fact that she is not that special, fairly normal, really:

My mother said this in an interview and I completely agree with her, and it's something that, you know, I want young people to remember, is that ... my mom said in this Essence article, Michelle and Barack aren't new; there are thousands of Michelle and Barack Obamas all over this nation. And that is true ... I know them, I've gone to school with them, I live with them.

So the truth is, is that there are thousands of role models like me. I just happen to be the First Lady. So that's why I feel like I have a responsibility because people see me, but every single day there are people doing what I'm doing. When I visit a health care organization or a youth center or a service project, those heroes are working, they're serving on their boards, they're packing the boxes, they're teaching in the schools. And again, those are the people who have the real opportunity to impact because they'll be with those kids each and every day.

…It's just reminding us as a nation that you don't have to be the First Lady, you don't have to have the title to do the work and ... because it's happening all over the place.

And of course, on one hand, she's right. If you look, there are inspiring stories of smart, successful people — many of them people of color — all over this country. But of course, no one is as high-profile as the Obamas right now. Yet, by spinning her story as an American story, the First Lady demonstrates what is so awe-inspiring about her: The intelligence, the humility, the elegance with which she conducts herself.

Of course, the interview wouldn't be complete without an awesome "Mom in Chief"-type anecdote: When discussing the First Dog with her daughters, Michelle proclaimed:

I said it's on you if Bo eats Tiger or Blankie, which are two beloved characters in the household. It's on you. [Tiger and Blankie] have been members of the family for a long time.

So I just sort of told them, I said, you've seen what he does to stuff. He's a puppy, he doesn't know the sentimental value of your things. And if you leave your stuff somewhere, it will be destroyed, and there's nothing I can do about it. (Laughter.) So you can either close your door ... and they close the doors, religiously. So he's been good. But we try to set him up for success.

Interview with the First Lady [Time]
Related: The Meaning of Michelle Obama [Time]

Pulling An Amelia Bedelia: The act of baking something delicious in order to makeup for a major screw-up at work.
Ex: "I totally bombed my performance review, but then I pulled an Amelia Bedelia and brought in some pumpkin-ginger cookies and now I'm getting a raise!"


Going From Zero To Piggle-Wiggle: Using a psychologically twisted "magical cure" to make your point.
Ex: "My boyfriend refused to recycle, so I went from zero to Piggle-Wiggle and turned him into a giant aluminum can. Just before I threw him in the garbage can, he admitted he was wrong about recycling and promised to change his ways. He won't be throwing cans away anytime soon!"


Kishi Style: A method of keeping one's addiction under wraps by hiding incriminating evidence in secret places.
Ex: "I know I said I threw this Backstreet Boys cd out 10 years ago, but I've really been hiding it, Kishi Style, behind my bookcase."


Could Have Been Renesmee: A helpful phrase used when a friend announces that she is naming her child or pet something fairly ridiculous.
Ex: "Gillian has decided to name her daughter Shampoo, and she's going to spell it Schampooh. I guess it could have been worse. Could have been Renesmee."


Granger Danger: What one finds oneself in when they insist upon correcting their friends and acting like a general know-it-all on a daily basis.
Ex: "I love her to death, but providing me with the alternate pronunciation, word origin, and proper spelling of every word I say is sending her in to serious Granger Danger territory."


Golly-Up: If you write something down about someone you know, and they find out about it, be prepared to "do two things, and you don't like either one of them. 1: You have to apologize. 2: You have to lie. Otherwise you are going to lose a friend."
Ex: "I didn't make that blog post private, so now I'm going to have to Golly-Up and apologize to her."


Remember The Egg Fad: Words of advice to a friend who insists upon following stupid trends, and is on her way to ending up with egg all over her face, Ramona Quimby style.
Ex: "Dude, I am telling you, the no-pants trend isn't worth it. Remember the Egg Fad!"


Feel free to add to this list in the comments!

Walker, who also gave a reading yesterday in honor of the inauguration, said:

I would advise you to remember that you did not create the disaster that the world is experiencing, and you alone are not responsible for bringing the world back to balance. A primary responsibility that you do have, however, is to cultivate happiness in your own life. To make a schedule that permits sufficient time of rest and play with your gorgeous wife and lovely daughters. Not to mention your brave and precious grandmother.* And so on. One gathers that your family is large. We are used to seeing men in the White House become juiceless and as white-haired as the building; we notice their wives and children looking strained and stressed. They soon have smiles so lacking in joy that they remind us of scissors. This is no way to lead. Nor does your family deserve this fate. One way of thinking about all this is: it is so bad now that there is no excuse not to relax. From your happy, relaxed state, you can model real success, which is only what so many people in the world really want. They may buy endless cars and houses and furs and gobble up all the attention and space they can manage, but this is because it is not clear to them yet that success is truly an inside job. That it is within the reach of almost everyone.

Whether or not success is an "inside job," we can all agree that nobody wants to see Sasha and Malia sad. [Newsweek]

Hidden amongst the vapid muck are a few genuine pearls of wisdom, like this quote from Clint Eastwood:

As you get older, you're not afraid of doubt. Doubt isn't running the show. You take out all the self-agonizing.

And Eminem’s secret to a happier life:

If you don't overlook the fact of what you look like, then no one else will.

And then there’s this little gem from Shepard Smith:

Facts are good things to have when making decisions. If Sarah Palin didn't know that Africa was a continent, I think that's information that people could have used.

While Chloe Sevigny does not offer any significant insight about the meaning of life, she does hit on something that has bugged us before:

I always found it distracting to be watching a movie and there was a love scene and the girl had her bra on.

On the other hand, we have Paris Hilton:

The best thing I've ever bought with money is my house. I call it my Paris Palace. It's beautiful. Every room has beautiful crystal chandeliers and amazing moldings from Italy. When people come over they say, "Hey, this looks just like you."

And Jeb Bush:

The best thing that's happened in my brother's eight years in office is that since September 11, 2001, we haven't been attacked on our soil. Given the fact that there are a lot of well-financed people in groups whose organizing principle is to destroy America, I would say that's a pretty good accomplishment.

But the wisdom of Dwight Shrute (why is he on this list? Does Esquire think The Office is reality TV?) falls into a category of its own:

The difference between sex and love can usually be complicated, but I think I've found a way to keep them straight in my head: You love your parents, but you sex your girlfriend. I have it written down in a couple of places.

From Hollywood To Washington, 10 Celebs On The Meaning Of Life [Esquire]

On why he thinks of himself and Kate Moss as kindred spirits:

We're both working-class slags from crap towns.

Hokey street theatre...I think I invented disgustingly messy windows

They were self-invented, unconventional, and had no preconceived ideas about parenting [and] a stratospherically high tolerance for unconventional behaviour.

[They] should be taken off to internment camps and forced to become artists to see what a drag it is... artists agonise over their line quality and window-dressers agonise over their fashion accessories.

Most celebrities are as boring as shit. The way they look, the way they cavort themselves - they look like a bunch of dreary Republican wives going to the country club.

Simon Doonan: All In The Worst Possible Taste [Telegraph]

Earlier: Five Quirky Quips From Wonderfully Wacky Simon Doonan