Clowning around

The circus serves candidates by distracting voters from asking questions.

- Jonathan Kronstadt

When I was a kid, and televised entertainment consisted of three networks and something we referred to as the "weird channel", I used to watch a fair amount of professional wrestling. Unsurprisingly, this found its home on the weird channel. The characters were all preposterous, the costumes outlandish and the commentary wildly over the top, all of which was absolutely appropriate for the goals of the enterprise.

Unfortunately, US political campaigns have become disturbingly reminiscent of this circus-like relic of my childhood. Take, for example, the first Republican presidential debate last month. The broadcast blasted open with wall-to-wall red, white and blue pyrotechnics and patriotic music. The moderator opened with, "Tonight, the race for the White House takes flight", as if the candidates were blasting off on a mission to Mars. If only. The eight hopefuls were introduced under a Jumbotron video display to disturbingly wild applause from a studio audience that seemed seriously overcaffeinated.