Don't be stupid.

Has Schaller spent much time around humans? Mocking each other is part of our evolution. It's in our bones and blood. Comedian is a profession because we appreciate people who are good at it. They didn't need Bush & Co. - it just made their job easier. But never fear, every year gives us a new congressman, Govenor or preacher willing to have an affair, bribe someone, or take meth. But just incase we have a dry year, it's nice to know the Daily Show can always put out:

http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=114509&title=Raging-Bully

http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=126548&title=Dwarf-Shortage

http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=115115&title=Box-Lunch

http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=128987&title=Tickle-Me,-Emu

http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=114748&title=The-Man-Who-Loved-Cat-Dancing

He will eventually leave TDS, and become a majjor player behind the scenes, perhaps replacing Lorne Michaels at NBC. In addition to his role as "anchor" of TDS he's done a great job of finding and developing talent.

There has been plenty of material on the left. Come on, Gaffe-per-minute-Joe-Biden is on the ticket. But Stewart has been playing to an intolerant audience, similar in make up to the Salon posting base. Recall the furor that erupted here when Camile Paglia dared to express a few positive comments about Sarah Palin. In the same way we can't stomach anything positive about the Right here on Salon, Stewart's viewers won't tolerate criticism of their annointed one or humor at his expense.

The Capital Steps hit both sides of the aisle, as do Parker & Stone with South Park. Howard Stern, much as I dislike him, was once able to do it, too. Him sending Stuttering John to the Genifer Flowers' press conference was pure genius because it mocked both Clinton and his adversaries (Flowers & the press) in one swoop.

Actually, I've always thought it was the writer's strike that allowed Obama to gain his original foothold as a candidate. Without the late night comedians pouncing on him during his presidential infancy, he was able to emerge as a serious, stable, sober alternative to the usual suspects of national political embarassments.

Once the strike ended, he was established and deemed "unfunny" or "a difficult target" or whatever. The truth is that he would have been an easy target at first if anyone had been aiming.

I think it's a testimate to the real quality of comedy writers that nothing is funny without them.

However, I am glad Obama was not burdened with ridicule as he found his sea legs. I think the country will be better off without a joke for President for once (I hope).

But I do love the Daily Show...

If you caught the Alfred E. Obama issue of Mad Magazine you can get a slight taste of what lays ahead for Obama.

Remember, modern comic burlesque turned a Rhodes Scholar into a feckless pot head, an Ivy League MBA into a simpering Man Child, and can easily turn Obama into a teenager in an ill fitting suit trying his darndest to be a President. A 40 year old political virgin if you will.

Your options for Obama are to play up is youth and inexperience, or to play up his holier than thou persona, or to mark him as the ever cool gladstone gander lucking his way through life.

Really, from a burlesque and sketch ponit of View Obama is easy, as to satire, the use of ones own words and image against oneself, that naturally enough writes itself.

The parsing of phrases, the manipulation of words, what the meaning of is is, and so on, these are things that regardless of who you are mocking you will always be able to mock.

And if Obama is so controlled and never gives a single thing, that becomes the joke, the plastic candidate, with prerecorded answers to your questions. Pull the string and watch him charm.

It may not play with some of the audience, but it will play the with the great unwashed center of our nation, and that's the meaty part of the demographic anyway.

If the British experience is anything to go by, the American satire business will go bust if and when Obama is elected. For real good comedy of that kind you absoluty need strong right wing often angry loonies on which to get a handle. Half the writing is done by what they say and do.

When the dreadful Maggie Thatcher ruled over England like she was the frigging Queen was a great time for satire. In fact we had a Saturday Night Live program of our own. A stand up only needed to grab the mike and say, "You heard about that Margaret Thatcher, have you?", and we'd all start laughing before he said anything else. The wretched neocon cow was gods gift to comedy.

It followed in a British tradition. During the Second World war a lot of comics got a break on radio because of Hitler - he was another one who was so easy to take the piss out of.

As he said on Election Eve 2004: "Go out and make my job harder."

He can take it.

Fucking hilarious, dude.

Great satire.

You made it seem just like you were one of those morons.

With regards the 'Satirical Military Complex, here's a song from way back that could now be re titled, "In Every Sub Prime a Heartache."

The blow up doll spoken of in the song could be a metaphor for the American consumer dream that once shagged to often and roughly has now exploded leaving a blasted landscape covered in shredded plastic, rubber, cum and toxic debt.

With lyrics tweaked for our changing times I'd like to hear Marilyn Manson do a cover.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=LSniBxXjK_8&feature=related

I agree with Mr. Schaller that "the satirical industrial complex may be headed for a long-overdue haircut when the Bush presidency comes to its merciful end," and like many of you readers I'm not worried that humorists will run out of material.

Many of these posts display cynicism about this worry itself ("They said irony died on 9/11 and it wasn't true," etc. etc.), and with good reason. In addition to watching the phantom issue of the Satirical Fodder Crisis take up way too much time at the New Yorker Festival panel on political humor, I've encountered a handful of articles (okay, some of them are satirical) on this same fear. People will always be afraid on behalf of comedians and humorists, because they are doing something--getting people to laugh--difficult and risky to their self-image, but now that we're celebrating the actual election of Barack Obama I can only say to these people what they can't help but say in NH: Jeezum crow, guys.

Schaller quotes Todd Hanson from The Onion, saying, "The role of a satirist is to point out things that don't make sense." A better description comes from Lee Siegel's New York Times article "We're Not Laughing at You, or With You:" "[The satirist] has always taken as its target conventions, sentiments and injustices that are universally recognizable and complacently accepted." In this light, we (or rather, all of you journalists who've been worried) have little to fear.

WE ARE ALL OF US CRAZY. In what way? Stay tuned to the humorists. Now that Obama's won the election, they're freed up to say.