Benazir Bhutto was a Hottie!

It was a shock this morning to read of the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. She was a forceful, articulate and charismatic champion for a democratic process in a part of the world that has too little respect for the rights of the individual. And she was a woman in a context where women are ill-regarded as leaders.

I think the death of a public figure is a greater shock when that person is a Hottie. Bhutto was a Hottie! That was especially the case years ago when she first came to power. Educated at Harvard and Oxford and the daughter of a powerful, then martyred head of state, she was a dashing figure. She had added weight in the intervening years but her inherent beauty was still apparent.

The shock is greater when we lose a famous Hottie than when the loss is someone who looks and acts more pedestrian. Maybe it is because the expectations are that Hotties can’t do cool things and make a difference in the world. Maybe we are more in awe of the successful and charismatic Hottie. That was certainly the case with Princess Diana. Would we have felt as much shock if Margaret Thatcher had been killed? Probably not. She has those bad British teeth which Christopher Hitchens has now repaired. It is hard to be a rake with bad teeth.

No one in polite society will talk about a powerful public figure such as Bhutto and use the Hottie term. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is still a Hottie at age 65. She must have been a real Hottie when she was younger. I think that Hotties are more exciting. They exude more sexual energy. And surprise, humans are sexual beings and we respond to human sexuality. Hilary Clinton is not a Hottie. Never has been. Never will be.

We need more Hotties active in the political arena. It energizes and invigorates the dialogue. It adds spice to the humdrum banality of most politics. And, it is a great way to stick a lascivious finger in the eye of the moral crusaders, be they born again evangelicals or turbaned mullahs. The assassination of Benazir Bhutto is a great loss. And, a Hottie has left the world stage.