It's Loud and It's Tasteless, and I've Heard It Before

There's a brand new dance but I don't know its name
That people from bad homes do again and again
It's big and it's bland full of tension and fear
They do it over there but we don't do it here

Sometimes it's tough to keep the narrative straight. Perhaps you might remember this. Back in the distant past, nearly two weeks ago now, we had it on good authority that those who were protesting Obama Care were somehow inauthentic. The way to tell? They were too well dressed. In fact, we learned that they were part of a "Brooks Brothers Brigade." The president's press secretary, the always-dapper Robert Gibbs, explained the dynamic thus:

Mr. Gibbs compared the protesters with the "Brooks Brothers Brigade" that he said appeared in Florida after the 2000 presidential election.

"I seem to see some commonality in who pops up at some of these things," he said, without elaborating. "You can see quite a bit of similarity between who shows up where."

Two weeks later, the town meetings have been happening throughout the country and now a different picture emerges of the protestors. Turns out the protestors aren't Brooks Brothers people at all. In fact, they aren't fashion forward in the least. They are a mob. And not very well dressed at all.And our betters don't approve. Here's the measured response of Robin Givhan of the Washington Post:

By and large, the shouters are dressed in a way that underscores their Average Guy -- or Gal -- bona fides. They are wearing T-shirts, baseball caps, promotional polo shirts and sundresses with bra straps sliding down their arm. They wear fuchsia bandannas and American-flag hankies wrapped around their skulls like sweatbands. A lot of them look as though they could be attending a sporting event and, as it turns out, the congressman is the opposing player they have decided to heckle. If not for the prohibition on signs and banners inside these meetings, one could well expect to see some of these volatile worker bees wearing face paint and foam fingers, albeit the highlighted digit would be one expressing foul displeasure rather than competitive rank or skill level.

The nerve of these people, huh? Why can't they be like their betters? Givhan then provides some useful context:

The elected officials stand in front of a lectern or roam the hall -- making sure not to stray too far from the protective reaches of their security detail, just in case a yeller lets a right hook fly. At the town halls hosted by Sens. Arlen Specter and Claire McCaskill, both legislators dressed for business. Specter was in a dark suit and tie. McCaskill wore a chocolate brown jacket with a narrow standing collar. Sen. Ben Cardin wore a dark suit with a navy striped tie to his meeting with his health care mob. They all peered at the irate speakers in some combination of stoic disbelief, subdued annoyance and preternatural calm.

Here's a guess: if the assembled mob/throng/yellers were making a Congressional salary and had the perks that a typical Congresscritter enjoys, they might not need to wear "promotional polo shirts." And let me confess: I've been known to wear a promotional polo shirt myself. The stitching on the left sleeve of the red polo shirt I am wearing right now provides an unmistakable advertising message for one of my former employers. It's a fine shirt and makes excellent weekend wear. But it is the mark of my inferiority. If you're going to wear a polo shirt, it really ought to have a polo pony or a crocodile or somesuch on it.

What's really happening here is a very old story, of course. This is a matter of class. Our betters have worked hard to achieve their station. They have gone to top-flight universities and soaked in the verities they have learned and have applied these life lessons quite diligently. They know better than to wear the togs of the sales rep, the middle manager, the line worker. They've long since learned the importance of rejecting the ethos of such people, the forgotten middle class they'd prefer to forget. They've gotten beyond that. It's an occupational hazard; facing the rabble they represent/transcend is a difficult thing, indeed. But it's something that must be done, no matter how distasteful the process. The middle managers and sales reps and general contractors aren't a resource to learn from: they are a cash crop to harvest.

And please understand, our betters love people, even though the people are so damned slovenly. That's why our betters are endeavoring to provide something as important and necessary as Obama Care. They understand that this is Kabuki theater, of course, and that town halls and other listening events are part of the process. Of course you get a listening tour. Just don't expect anyone to hear anything.