Boys in skirts

When I was in high school (Teaneck High School, in New Jersey no less), this kid totally wore a skirt and it really wasn't that big of a deal. It wasn't every day, I think he did it once.

"Skirting: The Issue" by Robin Givhan, Washington Post - she argues that he should have the right to wear a skirt, but the aesthetics are wrong, and even brings in Hillary Clinton and Laura Bush to make her point. Me - well, it's the rare day you catch me in pants, and if and when you do I get really flustered about it.

This week in New Jersey, a male high school senior won the right to wear a skirt to school. The Associated Press reported that Michael Coviello's skirt fight began when he was barred from wearing shorts. His school district prohibits shorts from Oct. 1 to April 15. But it seemed reasonable to Coviello that since girls could sport skirts and show their legs then boys should be allowed the same privileges...

Coviello's adopted style calls to mind Axl Rose during his heyday with Guns N' Roses. Coviello is wearing the costume of disgruntled youth. Kurt Cobain may have preferred the baby-doll dress to make his point, but the skirt and T-shirt send a similar message of being disenchanted with the system.

Where Coviello's ensemble goes wrong, however, is with the scuffed New Balance sneakers. They take the tough, rebellious edge off the look and send it spiraling into the land of soft-serve suburbia.