The November 7th elections made history, as control of Congress changed hands for the first time in 12 years and the President’s party was soundly defeated across the country, resulting in resignations by both the Secretary of Defense and the chairman of the Republican party. But of course, that wasn’t the big news of the day.

The big news was that Britney Spears announced she wanted a divorce.

In this respect, things haven’t changed a lot since the first performance of Richard Sheridan’s The School for Scandal in the late eighteenth century. Surrounded by war and revolution, the smart set of London still devoted considerable energy to gossip, tabloid journalism, and bedroom intrigue.