In news apparently important enough to make the top 20 results on the Google News “Entertainment” page, Taylor Swift has gotten a kitten and named it after a Law & Order: SVU character. “Meet Olivia Benson” read the caption on the photo Swift posted to Instagram. Everybody assumes this means Swift named the kitten after the character Mariska Hargitay plays on SVU, but we were wondering if perhaps she had changed her own name to Olivia Benson. We were unable to reach Swift for comment, so who knows, really?
Observe, though, the framing of this photograph. Clearly, it’s taken by a mysterious photographer, as Swift’s attention is focused entirely on the kitten, whom we’re going to call “Liv.” (Is that okay, Liv? It’s okay. Sure. Right. Cool. Liv.) Swift’s hand is raised casually, as if to brush her hair back and/or capture rainwater. The kitten is following her gesture, looking up at her like “What the hell?” but we all know Swift and Liv are going to get along just swimmingly when the time comes. Everything in this photo points away from conflict and toward unity. Liv looks up. Swift looks down. In the middle, there is understanding, a greeting between like souls. If we had Internet Film School’s Scott Eric Kaufman here, he could draw some laser eyes on this for us, and you’d see what we mean.