Circus elephants

You might think that the elephant, beloved mascot and lucky charm of the Republican Party for more than 130 years, would be an endangered species after this month's presidential election stampede.

Actually, the trusty old elephant is used to getting the hook.

But this isn't just another monotonous recital about presidential politics.

It's about pachyderms too; the captive ones that do tricks.

And how circus pachyderms and Chicago politics converge in something called a "bull hook."

This is circus month in Chicago (the actual circus, not the election). Ringling Brothers & Barnum and Bailey Circus is in town; now at the United Center after a run in Rosemont at the Arena-Formerly-Known-as-the-Horizon.

For eons, one of the most popular attractions at the circus has been the performing elephants. They wear goofy hats and glittery collars. They trot around the ring, get up on their hind legs and link their trunks to the tails of the elephants in front of them. For many people, it is the greatest part of the "Greatest Show on Earth."

As the elephants prance and dance, the children scream in joy.

What the kiddies don't know, because the circus people don't want them or any of us to know, is how they get the elephants to do those stunts.

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