Last night Bill Maher deplored what he called the Bipartisan Pro-Fat Movement on both the left (anti-fat-shamers) and the right (relentless celebration of burgers, fries and bacon). Which amounts to bipartisan tolerance of a national health crisis. In liberal circles the worst thing you can do is mention weight, because that’s fat-shaming. Despite obesity being the cause of 18% of the deaths in America and a huge chunk of our health care bill, among shaming police the most important message you can send to any calorically challenged person is that your body is perfect the way it is.

Can I turn this into another plug for Patti Cake$? Despite my agreeing with Maher 110%, I still tumbled for Geremy Jasper’s Bergen County fable. Despite the reliance upon underdog-trying-to-make-it formula, it won me over. And as I’ve said before, this means something when coming from someone like myself. Who saw Patti Cake$ last night, and whadja think? How was the room while it played, and what was the feeling on your way to the parking lot?