Let’s take a breather shall we?

Let’s fold our hands, cross our legs in a Yoga position, breathe deeply, and chant “Ommmm”.

One of the problems with delaying the announcement of the election date is that people are getting kind of edgy. Tempers are flaring, and mistakes continue to be made as the pile-ups on the road to Castille continue.

I think we need to relieve this pre-electoral stress with some humour. Wouldn’t it be a relief to see some levity and wit injected into this campaign? Unfortunately, I sincerely doubt whether there is anyone out there brave enough to really poke fun at our politicians or (God forbid!) the election at this precise moment. Our political satire is limited to Ray Calleja simultaneously imitating Gonzi and Sant – they are great impersonations but they do not provide a daily comment on electoral developments.

While watching Charlon Gouder grill Lawrence Gonzi this week, it occurred to me (for the umpteenth time) that when it comes to politics it’s like someone has surgically removed our funny bone. Even when Dr Gonzi attempted to “kid around” it was a feeble attempt, accompanied by a forced laugh, and rather than make the viewers smile, it probably made them cringe. Of course, Charlon was too intense as well (I don’t think he did himself any favours by doing a “Where’s Everybody”, constantly cutting off the PM in mid-sentence.)

What we need to do is lighten up.

For that you need stand-up comedians in the vein of Jay Leno, and daily talk shows like The View, hosted by four female presenters, led by Barbara Walters. Both shows are American and can be watched on-line. Like Malta, the United States is in election mode, because although the national elections aren’t until next year, they are currently in the first phase, which is when the Democrats and Republicans choose their respective presidential candidates. Whether on TV, in the press, websites, blogs or with the help of the now indispensable YouTube, satirists are having the proverbial field day. They poke fun at everything from Hillary Clinton’s now famous “cackle” (her laugh has been compared to that of the Wicked Witch of the North from The Wizard of Oz), to a comparison of all the candidates’ various hairstyles, lack of hair and what it all means (the problem locally is that it’s only Alfred Sant’s hair which people seem to find interesting.)

I also find American politicians have a much better sense of humour than ours do.

Hillary herself drew attention to how crucial a hairstyle can be, and has even used it in a campaign poster (see photo). There is also a lot of wit shown in the creation of their political spots for TV. Showing that she is attuned to popular culture, Hillary and hubby Bill even did a spoof of The Sopranos much talked about final scene in a diner.

This is not to say she hasn’t had her share of flak – from being accused of exposing too much cleavage to being criticised for not knowing her husband was cheating on her (“she can’t be very smart”), Hillary has had to bear the brunt of being the only female candidate.

Perhaps the sight of another Democratic hopeful, Barack Obama, demonstrating his dance moves on a talk show is not the kind of thing we would be comfortable with (I just had a vision of our two front runners trying to dance, and it wasn’t a pretty sight), but Obama happens to be pretty cool so he got away with it. Barack was also the recipient of a tribute by an unknown singer who came out with the “I’ve got a crush on Obama” music video, which became a big hit.

Meanwhile, in a parody of the film 1984, the Obama campaign had Hillary in Big Brother mode talking to robot-like humans. Willingly calling himself the underdog, this candidate even quips that “with a name like mine, you have to be the underdog!” While the televised debates focus on the important issues, the late night talk shows stay on a lighter vein. Barack’s wife Michelle was quoted as saying that he leaves his dirty socks lying around, which he sheepishly confirmed (“my wife is constantly reminding me that I’m not perfect”).

These kind of things might sound frivolous but the American public laps them up – it makes their presidential candidates seem more human and relatable... and in a world which constantly hinges on media image, it is the way you come across on TV which can make or break a candidate.