With my colleagues competently covering the Court and Tom DeLay’s court troubles, a different topic caught my eye. There is an interesting discussion over at IWF where the two Charlottes always have interesting things to say. The topic is Bridezilla extravagances and the Irish journalist Mary Kenny is cited arguing that over-the-top blow-out bridal festivities provide welcome evidence that romantic love and family commitment remain highly prized. She seems to think that they are organized in order to celebrate these traditional values. I have a different theory. It seems to me that when couples share their digs and mortgages before they’re married, when a ceremony seems ho-hum given that the couple has been living as though married for years, they belatedly attempt to create something special about their belated marriage by staging a huge wedding – preferably the “destination” kind so their guests can celebrate the event, if not the union. Discuss amongst yourselves – I’m off to West Virginia. Will try to find out if the locals are serious about re-electing Robert Byrd.