Now, I applaud the Obamas for many reasons, but today, it's related to their decision to host an afternoon for young people and a night for adults that is devoted to celebrating American poetry. I love their willingness to embrace the arts and intellectual pursuits, and their dedication to celebrating literature and music.

As Percy Bysshe Shelley once wrote in his Defence of Poetry, "Poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world." How nice to see them get just a bit of acknowledgement after all.