Today The New York Times published a profile of Edith Windsor, a friendly-looking 83-year-old New Yorker in pink and pearls whose fight against the Defense of Marriage Act, which “requires the federal government to deny marital benefits to gay and lesbian couples who live in states that allow such unions,” has made it to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The article covers Windsor’s 40-year relationship with her late wife Thea Spyer and touches on the tricky matter of why the couple’s lasting commitment made this the ideal case, whether we like it or not, for lawyers to win over conservative judges:

…Legal experts said that [Windsor’s] age, the length and depth of her relationship, the way it can be viewed as a ...