Mystery Career #15: Who Am I? Can You Guess My Job?

My job has existed since civilization first began. It has been documented since at least 500 B.C. during the days of the ancient Greek democracy of Athens. Back then, it was illegal to outwardly criticize the heads of government. No matter. Poets and playwrights still found ways to write about the absurd events going on at the hands of corrupt government officials. They entertained these bloated heads of state while barbing them at the same time. Can you guess what I do for a living?

Even now, thousands of years later, there is never a shortage of material for me to work with. The moment I read the front page of my daily newspaper or watch television commentary, the material gushes out at me like water through a hole in a dam.

It is actually getting easier to write, now that so many people in so many high places have cast aside their sense of propriety and social filters to indulge in the "it's all about me" psychology of today's society.

My biggest obstacle is delivering the message before one of my competitors points out that the "Emperor of the day" is wearing no clothes! Have you guessed what I do for a living yet?

My workplace is wherever I chose it to be, wherever it needs to be for me to gain a perspective on the events and people that define America. I need only my laptop and Wi-Fi amenities and I am fully prepared to do my work.

I consider myself to be an outgoing, friendly person and a good listener. Still, I am not very well liked, especially by people in government, all of whom could potentially become caught in my crossfire by their lemming-like affiliations (that "jump off a cliff because they did" mentality). No matter. I like to think that doing my job often embarrasses politicians into rethinking their actions when "polite society" seems unable to hold them accountable.

If you still can't guess what I do for a living, perhaps the names of some of my famous colleagues from the past will help: Jonathan Swift, Mark Twain, and Will Rogers. In addition, I would be remiss if I didn't mention Mort Sahl, my personal hero and role model, now in his eighties.

Still haven't quite got it? This clue should give it away: My profession was the theme of the 1964 movie, Dr. Strangelove, Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, produced and/directed by Stanley Kubrick. This movie did a brilliant job of attacking the nightmarish absurdity of Cold War politics!

If you guessed that I am a political satirist, you are absolutely right! I prefer to be called a political watchdog. Some call me a troublemaker, mainly those whom I write about, of course. I don't let it get to me. As my mother always said, "The truth hurts!"

To read the previous Mystery Career Installment, click here

Sources:

1. "Dr. Strangelove, Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)," filmsite.org/drst.html.

2. "Political Humor Has Long and Storied History," newsweek.com/id/158301.

3. "NOW with David Brancaccio. Politics & Economy. Who's Laughing Now? - American Political Satire," pbs.org/now/politics/satire.html.

4. "Athenian democracy," en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athenian democracy.