WHY DOES RALPH LAUREN PISS ME OFF SO?
Now, even the smallest of children can be pretentious, poser pricks

Now, don't get me wrong, I enjoy fashion as much as the next guy. Project Runway is one of my secret, guilty pleasures, and not just because Heidi Klum is so adorable. And, I normally flip through my wife's Vogue or Nylon while visiting the lav.
But, for some reason, for many years, I have really disliked the work of Ralph Lauren, and I am not even sure why. The Lauren lines exude a smug and superior attitude that I just cannot get past. Yesterdays NY Times front page ad for RL kids again peeved me right off.
I guess the part that rips me is that the clothes are intended to look rugged and outdoorsy... sort of an LL Bean look but for people with soft hands. Forbes says RL is worth almost $5 billion, making him one of the 200 richest people in the world. The two youths I have included here... why, what a jolly pair of characters they are.
On the left is Oliver...Oliver what?!?!? Oliver Twisted? Gimme a break. The look is totally Robert Redford in the Sting from what, the frickin' 1970s? Portraying what, the 1930's? And this other numb nuts in the red plaid? What's his deal? Larchmont Lumberjack? Montauk Mountaineer? Danbury Deerstalker? Lauren is projecting this look as luxe, when it is really derivative of 1970's rural discount store crossbred with Carhart.