I believe there is a little bit of Imelda in each of us. We love shoes, we hoard clothes, we slave for luxury, we love beautiful things. And who doesn't?

I've watched a portion of Ramona Diaz' film which features the "steel butterfly of the Philippines," La Imelda. I think she's funny, beautiful, and yes, intelligent in a skewed way.

I'd like to write her off as someone who breathes and lives for all things beautiful, and I can live with that. What becomes unacceptable is when you go beyond what is moral and humane in order to possess it. Like plundering a country or killing thousands of people for instance. That for me is unacceptable, simply unforgivable.