Washington Is A Place Where People Have

Celebrity Distorts Democracy By Giving The Rich, Beautiful, And Famous More Authority Than They Deserve.

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.

Celebrity Is The Religion Of Our Time.

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.

As Blue Chips Turn Into Penny Stocks, Wall Street Seems Less Like A Symbol Of America's Macho Capitalism And More Like That Famous Jane Austen Character Mrs. Bennet, A Flibbertigibbet Always Anxious About Getting Richer And Her 'poor Nerves.'