On Saturday night, I had the privilege of attending The Capitol Steps Comedy show. The Capitol Steps, a political comedy troupe based out of Washington D.C., provided a frolicking revue, full of laughter and gaiety, putting the “mock” into democracy as they say on their website.

The format of the show consisted of 15-20 sketches that featured witty dialogue and musical numbers poking fun at political leaders of all different levels, ranging from McCain and Obama to the Supreme Court justices. Politically, they seemed to lean left a little bit, but all in all I would say that they weren’t a respecter of persons. Whether you’re Democrat or Republican, a good time will be had by all.

What fascinated me about the whole night was the concept of the evening: political comedy. It got me to thinking that we are perhaps the first country in the history of the world to parody all of our political leaders so widely. I won’t say we were the first to do it. After all, during the Italian Renaissance, commedia dell’arte troupes would travel from town to town, go to the town squares, and blatantly mock the council, mayor, etc. of the town. Not to mention, playwrights like Oscar Wilde and Anton Chekov would subtly satire the aristocracy in their works.

But with the advent of television and the Internet, this brand of comedy has been taken to new heights. I saw a YouTube video the other day, originating from MadTV, making fun of both McCain and Obama:

In the days of old, Kings, Caesars, Pharaohs, etc. were considered to be divinely appointed leaders, or even divine beings themselves. To make fun of them in a public arena would mean certain death. However, here in the U.S. of A, we elect our leaders, thus we have the right (the 4 1/2 Amendment, I think) to mock our elected officials, if we so choose.

It seems that both parties are on the receiving end of a lot of punchlines these days, and who can blame citizens for being angry. With a falling economy and distorted truths abound, it’s easy to see why the American people think that if they can’t control their government, they may as well get a laugh at their expense.