You will know them by their gestures

We were watching the news recently when we started musing about the silly gestures that many politicians make as they speak. What got us going was U.S. Senator Carl Levin, a Democrat from Michigan, who balances his glasses on the end of his nose like Benjamin Franklin. But we doubt wise old Ben did a hatchet chop every time he tried to make a point.

In the course of talking for three minutes, Levin made enough hatchet-chop motions to cut his wood supply for the winter. By golly, the man must have points to make galore! Hatchet chop. And he wants you to know that each and every one — hatchet chop — is important. Hatchet chop.

Seems to us that politicos used to point their index fingers more often than they do now. We can picture John F. Kennedy doing it, though he probably didn't point his finger straight at his audience, but at more of an upward angle to inspire us into space. The finger-in-the-air method seems to have been used by firebrand Theodore Roosevelt, too, judging from photos of a century ago.

Finger pointing got a bad name, however, from self-righteous politicians who, like some old-style preachers, pointed their fingers at voters and told them what to do. It's a short step from pointing and saying "Ask not what your country can do for you" to more forceful pointing and scolding, "You people ought to act right!"

Bill Clinton solved the finger pointing problem by removing his fingertips. If you watch Clinton in action, his finger is usually bent back so he's really only waving his knuckle and no one feels threatened or on the spot.

Ronald Reagan, sometimes called "The Great Communicator," rarely pointed his finger and typically spoke in a conversational manner. His was more a "fireside chat" style like that of Franklin D. Roosevelt, another great communicator. Jimmy Carter also tried for this, but couldn't quite pull it off. Of course, Reagan knew all about image and personal style, having long worked in Hollywood.

You can really understand the importance of politicians' body language and unspoken messages by turning off the sound during a political debate. For instance, there was something school-marmish about Hillary Clinton's campaign style last year while John McCain came off closed-in and angry. In the battle of images, Barack Obama won out, just as he did in the battle for votes.

Hatchet chop.