The only right answer for Miss USA

I feel so badly for Miss California USA, Carrie Prejean. Clearly, she should have watched my daughter Amy’s favorite chick flick, “Miss Congeniality,” before entering the Miss USA competition. That way she could have studied the scene where Sandra Bullock, playing the role of FBI Agent Gracie Lou Freebush, completes the interview portion of the pageant and remembers that the only right answer in a pageant interview is “World peace.”

Instead, Miss Prejean was asked a loaded, politically charged question about her opinion on the national availability of gay marriage -- a question posed by an openly gay judge, entertainment blogger “Perez Hilton.” Hilton clearly believed there was just one right answer to his question, and it wasn’t “World peace.”

It also wasn’t, “I was raised to believe that marriage is between one man and one woman,” which is what Miss Prejean said. What ensued, in case you have spent the last week in a cave, was a media maelstrom in which a perfectly reasonable opinion, freely and respectfully expressed, was used to facilitate a vile and vicious attack against an individual.

I may be getting a little cynical in my midlife, but I have to ask if Hilton considered the fact that this particular contestant was a student at a Christian college when he tossed his political salvo. Hilton is a lot of things, but dumb isn’t one of them. And the biographies of the contestants were at that point well known.

After Prejean responded – in exactly the way one would expect a Christian woman to respond – Hilton unleashed his now famous invective, which included the “b-word” and other more vulgar insults. In addition, previously undisclosed compromising photos also were conveniently unearthed on the internet (some real, some apparently digitally fabricated – there’s a shocker). If there was a way to come back at this young lady, the folks who didn’t like her answer found it.

Yesterday, to his credit, pageant owner Donald Trump affirmed that Miss California USA will keep her title. He defended her right to free speech, and as well noted that many others share her opinion about gay marriage, not the least of whom is our President.

Why is it that Hilton lashed out so violently at Miss Prejean but hasn’t said anything about the fact that President Obama also is opposed to gay marriage?

Why hasn’t he called the president names over his statement that marriage is between one man and one woman, a belief that stems from his personal faith?

Could it be that Hilton surmised Miss California was not just a Christian, but also a conservative?

Could it be that Miss Prejean suffered such unjust treatment because she had the audacity to express her personal beliefs, and to believe that in doing so, she would be treated fairly in a competition that was not intended as a referendum on her politics, but was supposed to judge her beauty and poise?

This little culture clash reminds me that our world is filled with problems that are both real and surreal. The very notion that a Miss USA contestant could be vilified for audaciously expressing the opinion that marriage ought to be reserved for one man and one woman strikes me as Dali-esque.

What’s the answer in such a surreal situation?

Why, world peace, of course.