The big house

I bow to no one in my scorn for John Edwards' politics. He's an idiot who has as much chance of being president as I have of being pope. But let's stay focused on the issues:

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Two homes, two images, one candidate.

Democrat John Edwards, who has made an anti-poverty message the theme of his 2008 presidential campaign, is taking heat for the lavish home he has constructed in Orange County, N.C.

In December, Edwards chose the modest backyard of a New Orleans woman who had lost her home to Hurricane Katrina as the image that best underscored his campaign theme.

Now voters are seeing another, sharply contrasting image of Edwards: his own home.

Sitting on 102 secluded acres -- surrounded by trees and defended by no-trespassing signs -- the 28,000-square-foot estate that Edwards and his family call home has presidential privacy.

How John Edwards chooses to spend his money is irrelevant to the question of his qualifications for the presidency; hypocrisy is not exactly a negative in politics. This does indicate a certain cluelessness on Edwards' part about how things look, but that's not exactly in short supply in Washington, either.

I must say, though, that this makes me think even less of Edwards, if that is possible. I went through my "big house" phase when thinking of ways to spend tons of money, should I ever have it. Now, I realize that's just a very superficial way of showing off -- to prove to people that you came from meager beginnings and can now flaunt your wealth. All a house needs to be, to become a home, is a sanctuary from the outside world. That depends on what you put into it, not how big it is.