I am trying to imagine what is was like for Ariel Levy, a matter-of-fact married lesbian, when Cindy McCain’s pastor said of homosexuals, “We would want to help a person who’s struggling with any of those life issues and find a healthy way to resolve it.” In reply, Levy, who was reporting a profile of McCain for The New Yorker, asked the pastor for an example of another such life issue. “Stafford replied, ‘Materialism.’” Well, hey, that’s not so bad! Levy must have laughed her fanny off at the irony too. This pastor who claimed he could “resolve” her homosexuality clearly had zero success in getting Cindy McCain to “resolve” her materialism. Or maybe he never tried. For what clergyman has an interest in counseling a rich congregant to give up materialism, so long as he rides in the private jet?

Just because a design team dresses like studio artists; and just because said design team cultivates an outsider image that includes living with their parents; and just because there are a dozen other similarly quirky nuggets that add up to a great story, does it all add up to great clothes? Because even if the story of Rodarte and their artistic process makes for pretty compelling reading in the Sunday Magazine, I’m not quite convinced by the end result. Specific thoughts:

This looks soup-to-nuts stressful.

If you live in The Matrix, this is what you wear when you want to crack some skulls.

This looks like DVF overreaching, but lovely nonetheless.