There was a bit of hue and cry over the treatment that androgynous Zachery (and apparent tranny) got on “American Idol” that I think is over-blown. First off, remember folks Simon’s role is to be one with the attitude problem. And given a lot of the contestants I’d be snarky too.

More to the point, Zach might have been honest to “People” magazine, but in the audition he told the judges that he was often mistaken for a girl and wasn’t sure why. Not exactly upfront in my book. Frankly, he probably would’ve gotten more respect from the judges if he had—although I’m sure Simon would’ve said something snarky, since that’s his job.

It also bugged me that Zach was so quick to attribute his failure to bigotry (I don’t watch the show, so I don’t how many contestants blame everything but themselves). Let’s face the Zach couldn’t sing and couldn’t really dance either. A big part of what made William Hung appealling was that when the judges called him on the carpet, his response was something of the effect that he given it his best and if that didn’t measure up, so be it.

OTOH, it is nice to see that Zach had such a supportive family.