There’s lots of hate for Swifties, but honestly this crowd, composed largely of college-aged and post-college-aged women was cheerful, friendly, and upbeat.  (There were a few women there who looked to be older than us, but I’d put the mean age at about 25, and the media a year or two younger.)

The Swift phenomenon irritates a lot of people, including a fair number of social conservatives.  But honestly, whatever her overt politics are, simply by existing as a blonde white heterosexual woman with an astonishing work ethic who isn’t ashamed of her self-made billionaire status, Taylor Swift is, in these times, a conservative icon of sorts.

What’s more, as I look at all the ugly news over the past week or two, I think it’s nice that her album release gave a lot of people something to feel good about.  There’s a shortage of that nowadays.  So let the Swifties have their fun, and don’t throw shade.