Time for a laugh

After the euphoria of Barack Obama's victory, we can move on to the next "Obama phases".

As I said here recently, it's probably only a matter of time before Obama-boom turns to Obama-bust. That might take two years, four years or even eight years. Possibly it will never happen. But I think that's unlikely.

Before the bust there will be other phases. One is Obama-boredom. There is a limit to the number of times the average person can see his face on the front of a magazine and still feel excited.

This is unfortunate, because Obama hasn't even taken office yet. There are two more months before he becomes president. That's why the British system of an immediate takeover is better: the new leader can ride the wave of euphoria while it is still in full flow.

This weekend, for example, we have the ludicrous situation of a lame-duck president leading a meeting of 20 of the world's leading nations in Washington as they try to find solutions to the current financial and economic crises.

We will also experience the "Obama-joke" phase. As a figure of authority, Barack Obama will be the subject of the same satirical humour that all other leaders have to endure. Neither his skin colour nor his popularity will spare him that pleasure.

My favourite joke so far is the one that says that racism is still alive and well in the US: after all, they've given the worst job to a black person. Obama may not be laughing at that one.

I also expect the new president to feature in Britain's Christmas pantomime season. For those of you who don't know about pantomimes, traditional children's stories such as Aladdin or Cinderella are turned into musicals, with silly jokes, current references and men dressed as women. Another key feature of these pantomimes is that the audience shouts out its disagreement with those on stage.

So look out for the pantomime Obamarella, with Barack playing one of the ugly sisters. And when he/she says "We can go to the ball. Yes, we can", the audience will shout back in unison: "Oh, no you can't!"

I can hardly wait to book my tickets.