Is Colbert an Avatar?

[Lightning Rod]

More Comedy In Congress

Stephan Colbert’s testimony before the Congressional Committee on Immigration was a welcome relief from the recent pomposity and bad circumstances exhibited in that building. It’s heartening to see that our democracy is secure enough to allow its fools to frolic and our legislature can endure a bit of well-intended ridicule. We need more of it. Yet we hear some congressional voices muttering that it was ‘out of line’ to have a comedian mock the hypocrisy of our hypocritical immigration policies right in their own living room. But that’s Colbert’s schtick, to mock even mockery.

Political satire is certainly older than our nation. The word satire itself comes from the Greek ‘satyr’, the mythical beasts who taunted and made fun of the gods. In ancient Persia it is said that poets could kill by hurling satires instead of spears. Eskimos had duels of satiric phrases, sort of like the dozens, where the losers were exiled or even killed. In Elizabethan England satiric insults were banned by law. Satire can be a powerful thing of which even kings must beware. Laughter has been called the Thorn of Crowns.

At least one of our Founding Fathers was a black-belt satirist. Benjamin Franklin used many pen names besides Poor Richard and made relentless fun of everything from witchcraft to the persecution thereof. He wrote satires about race and religion and immigration. He ridiculed the English Empire for decades before our Declaration of Independence with such satires as Rules By Which A Great Empire May Be Reduced To A Small One which humorously enumerated many of the same complaints mentioned in the Declaration. Humor as a political tool is part of our national tradition.

So, The Poet’s Eye sees it as a sign of good health that we occasionally allow the clowns into the court. In fact it is my modest proposal that we amend the Constitution to create a special honorary State in our Union complete with two Senators and at least one Representative, call it the State of Hilarity or some such and let it represent every American with a sense of humor.
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[Lightning Rod]

neo,
you sound like you have a positive grip on satire
we welcome you to the Absurdist Party
it's good that there is Studio Eight where we can make fun of anything we want (except Doreen of course.)

[Doreen Peri]

LOL!!!

I don't think congress liked him very much. But I like him a lot! I'm going to the rally in DC at the end of October.

[Steve Plonk]

Colbert ain't no avatar, he just a tomfool.