Military Guys Are Rarely As Smart As

I Find Having A Column A Very Difficult Form Of Journalism. I'm Not A Natural Like Tom Friedman And Anna Quindlen.

Yet It's True That Looks Matter In Politics... It Is Also True That Perfecting The Outer Shell Has Become An Obsession In This Country... Mitt Romney, Barack Obama And John Edwards Almost Always Look Good, And Pretty Much The Same, In Dark Suits Or Casual Wear. Fred Thompson Always Looks Crepuscular And Droopy. Often Hillary Clinton Looks Great, And Sometimes She Looks Tired, Heavier Or Puffier.

Americans Want To Be Protected, But Not At The Cost Of Vitiating The Values That Make Us Americans.

Eric Schmidt Looks Innocent Enough, With His Watercolor Blue Eyes And His Tiny Office Full Of Toys And His Google Campus Stocked With Volleyball Courts And Unlocked Bikes And Wheat-grass Shots And Cereal Dispensers And Haribo Gummi Bears And Heated Toilet Seats And Herb Gardens And Parking Lots With Cords Hanging To Plug In Electric Cars.

The Obamas, Especially Michelle, Have Radiated The Sense That Americans Do Not Appreciate What They Sacrifice By Living In A Gilded Cage. They've Forgotten Rule No. 1 Of Politics: No One Sheds Tears For Anyone Lucky Enough To Live At The White House.