While I didn't have any time to think it over yesterday, I did notice Glenn's link to the seemingly horrendous development in men's fashion now being promoted at Brooks Brothers.

If you think the one Glenn linked was bad, by all means check out these other outfits. (The last one is a real killer if you're a boyish Oscar Wilde, or just want to look like one!)

While I'm much too old (and probably too dignified) to dress that way, I have to say that it doesn't necessarily represent the end of WASP culture -- because, as I explained in this post, similar looks used to be mandatory in various boys' schools and still are in some countries. Moreover, grown men in Bermuda have had a penchant for dressing that way for generations and still do. It might not meet my standards (and Ann Althouse has long frowned on men wearing shorts, so have I), but it's not really the death of WASP culture; the argument might even be made that it's a way of rolling back the clock.

This is not to say that there aren't guys who might look "cute" that way. This morning Glenn Reynolds was nice enough to link my earlier suggestion that the PeeWee Herman look might be a fashion "go" for Glenn Greenwald. (Maybe even as good as it gets in Greenwald's case.)

But as to the knickers and the shorts, well, it is my considered opinion that because the new Brooks Brothers look is basically a revival of private boys school attire, it's logical to think that it would look better on boyish men -- especially attractive boyish men.

Now, I don't mean to insult anyone here, but while both PeeWee Herman and Glenn Greenwald could be called boyish, neither would be a fit as the type of model Brooks Brothers has in mind. After all, Brooks Brothers is a men's store, and they know that most men (especially those who aspire to the category of "real men") aren't going to suddenly start running around sporting a schoolboy look that was abandoned in the U.S. in the 1960s -- especially if it is being promoted by a PeeWee Herman "type."

However, some of the more boyish men might -- but they need reassurance that real men can dress for success that way.

So, it is my considered opinion that these new outfits cry out for a model who not only looks boyish, but in an attractive way, and in a way suggestive of the power elite. I'm not running Brooks Brothers' marketing department, but I have come up with a suggestion for a possible model.

Fortunately, today's technology allowed me to try out the various "vintage boys look outfits" on him. Here's the one Glenn linked yesterday:

And if that doesn't quite send my male readers who want to be vintage boys straight down to your nearest Brooks Brothers, just wait! Because, here's another stunning outfit!

OK, now that's obviously a summer outfit. And the one with the knickers is clearly a fall outfit.

Still, just as private school boys used to wear shorts in all seasons, there's no reason that real men who want to recreate the look can't do the same. So do not despair.

Here are the winter outfits for when the weather gets cold, in places like icy Iowa....

Good for year 'round campaigning, eh?

I don't mean to totally knock Brooks Brothers, as I try to dress well and I've bought clothes there for years. (This was one reason I avoided using Greenwald as a Brooks Brothers model. Some things go too far.) And in Brooks Brothers' defense, I have to say that most of the outfits which are pictured aren't Little Lord Fauntleroy, but are vintage early 1960s looks -- this being a perfect example of what was once standard attire for young college age men. If they think they can bring stuff like that back, more power to them, because I think college age kids generally look awful.

However, shorts worn with coats and ties are too much of a stretch for most men. This is why I think they need to enlist a serious boyish man.

(If only I could figure out how much of this post was satire....)

MORE: Anyone who thinks Brooks Brothers is responsible for the "shorts with sport coats trend" should read the Wall Street Journal's piece on the subject from last September:

Reluctant to admit they are following a trend, many American designers insist the collective emergence of shorts this week is mainly just a coincidence. John Bartlett, who showed three models with shorts wearing dress shirts and ties, says he had the idea at least six months ago, before the European shows. "It seems really hot right now," he says. "There's something very old Connecticut, very Bermuda about that look."

The idea actually is at least five decades old. Bermuda shorts were a '50s fad, and some men wore them in the summer with sport jackets, ties and long socks. Andy Gilchrist, a California fashion consultant who has written a book on men's clothes, notes that the look was often seen in fashion magazines of the time.

Narciso Rodriguez, who planned this week to present elastic-waist shorts with a silver wool suit jacket, says he has always just liked wearing shorts, even in winter.

Mr. Lim, the designer, says he is showing shorts because he likes wearing them himself and wore a lot of cutoffs this summer. The fact that most of his colleagues are doing the same thing does strike Mr. Lim as odd. "I always find it funny. How does everyone know? Did they all have a meeting or a design summit or something?" Mr. Lim asks. "I just did it because I like shorts."

Some of their fans aren't on the same wavelength. "Shorts with a suit jacket would make me feel a little too Little Lord Fauntleroy," says Tony Green, a 41-year-old Chicago management consultant, who tries to keep up with the latest styles.

That is why the dressy shorts trend could flop, says John Mincarelli, a men's costume historian and professor of merchandising at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. "No grown men are going to wear that seriously," he says.

Is this a question of "POOF goes the culture"?

(As I said, the POOF is in the putting.)

AND MORE: Commenter Papertiger thinks I may be helping John Edwards:

Johnny actually pulls this look off rather well. You getting him votes. It gives him an edgy rough and tumble look that those of us who are in the know, would never ascribe to Mr. Edwards.

MORE: Glenn Reynolds' response to one of the winter outfits was "Ugh."

Ah, but had John Edwards been the model, I think Glenn's reaction would have been quite different!

MORE: Thank you, Glenn Reynolds for linking this post! Welcome all!

However, with my gratitude comes an apology. I am sorry that Glenn is sorry.

On the bright side, if we all work together, we can stop the rise of this new form of fashionism dressed up in little boys' shorts.

Or should I say we can redefeat fashionism?

(What? Do I need to point out that shorts were worn by the Hitler Youth, or would that violate Godwin's Law?)

MORE: Regarding that last remark, the answer is that it would not.

UPDATE: My thanks to Gerard van der Leun for the link -- and especially for the very generous observation about my sanity!