Fashion Fairness

The Inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States was a truly historic occasion in American politics and the crowds that came out to witness it are proof. It was a festive occasion for those in Washington DC (over a million) and for many in other cities as well, but especially for those attending the gala balls and luncheons held all through the day and most of the night in our nation's capital.  

As I was reading today's USA Today this morning on the festivities however, an article struck a chord with me. "A real departure for first ladies" talked about the first lady's bold choices in both colors and designers. Now my fashion sense is probably not what it should be. In fact, the only thing that I know about fashion for sure is that I should have been more complimentary (or at least noticed more) with the clothing choices that my two ex-wives wore over the years. My critique here therefore is not about what Michelle Obama wore or who designed it for her. 

In fact, it is about something that was not mentioned in this piece. It did mention the outfit for the Inaugural train trip, for the Kids Inaugural Ball, for the "We Are One Concert", for Inauguration itself, and for the formal evening ball. It mentioned the designers themselves, some of whom are relatively unknown (except to me, to whom they were all entirely unknown). It even mentioned the bags and shoes that the first lady wore with them (something that I have been given to understand is very important). What it did not mention was the cost.  

That struck me because of the furor raised during the campaign over the Sarah Palin ensemble. Both the Democrats and the Republicans were in an uproar during the campaign over the $150,000 worth of clothes that the Republican National Committee purchased to supplement the Governor Palin's wardrobe as she sought the office of Vice-President. Even when we later learned that she was not going to keep those clothes after the campaign, it was not enough to deflect the criticism, outrage, and vitriol cast in the way of the Republicans in general and Mrs. Palin in particular. And all of this occurring before we knew the full extent of the impending financial crisis that the country was facing. 

I know that I am probably setting myself for criticism and attack by asking the following question then, but I can't help it. Even when we are all supposed to be carried forward in an ecstatic wave of hope and change, the Court Jester has to ask why the emperor is naked. I am that Court Jester, and in the spirit of Fashion Fairness, I therefore have to ask: "How much did the first lady's clothes cost, and who paid for them?" (I'm guessing that we'll never know. )