Is there some rumor about George Bush’s alleged marital infidelities that I’m supposed to know about but don’t? I keep seeing these veiled references in places like Newsweek’s Conventional Wisdom Watch, but no details. Please, help me get hip. Half the time I don’t even get Doonesbury these days. –Elizabeth A. Clarke, Chicago
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I know the feeling. If you’re not wired into the media gossipnet (and even I take a week or two off occasionally just to detox), getting through the trendier magazines is like trying to read code. The rumor you’re supposed to know about refers to one Jennifer (with a J, not G) Fitzgerald, a 60ish longtime aide to Bush. Described as domineering, she was unpopular with co-workers but could do no wrong in her boss’s eyes. This led some to conclude that the two had something going, although you could use the same reasoning to prove Bush had an affair with John Sununu.
Marilyn vos Savant recently answered the following question in her column in Parade magazine:
But that’s not what Marilyn has in mind. She interprets the question this way: Would you rather have your $10,000 annual salary increased $1,000 each year, or your $5,000 half-year salary increased $300 every six months?
