YOUR COMMENTS ON MY COLUMN ABOUT AMATEUR CARTOONISTS
Wow, we sure got a lot of comments on my column about amateur
cartoonists (below) Here
are some selections:
Sorry that you are inundated with people that want to share
their ideas with others. I feel you are throwing the baby out
with the bathwater. I am sure thier are many cartoonists out
there that are worthy of recognition. I send my cartoons to my
friends and aquaintainances and they seem happy to received them.
I have no intention in going to competition with you but you
sound like 'I've got mine and the door is closed'. Nlot very
nice. Bert Rechtschaffer thank you for giving
me some insight into a profession my daughter thinks about entering
in her future
yours is one of the emails i eagerly anticipate seeing in my
inbox to give me information and laughter
i'll look for your PayPal address on your site
regards, chandler wilandI promise. No submissions
from me. Keep up the good work. It really does the soul good
to see others who get what's going on as well.
Sal BovosoYours is not the only profession or
job that is going to disappear. My grand children and great grandchildren
will pay to change a faucet what I paid to se a doctor any kind
of job that have to use your hands is junk and they will not
touch it. And thanks for your cartoons sometimes you make some
body's day. VMSI am an aspiring artist so I can
understand frustration, but I know I have to be different than
everyone else! My work looks like some others I have seen and
that will not get me anywhere. You have to standout and create
your own style to move in the direction you want. Maybe I don't
have the creativity to move where I want, but that's life. The
wannabes need to realize this and maybe understand being a cartoonist
isn't really the direction they need to go. As you said a cartoonist
is a dieing field and really need to look at themselves if they
want a change in their lives. Maybe being a cartoonist isn't
the change they need. It could be something else altogether.
Good article.
Bob KlinkhammerBad day at the office then......
Alan BrownYou make it sound like a tough business....and
I'm sure it is, but if it weren't for the professioanl cartoonists
to show us the humor in our day to day lives....Jesus....what
do we have left? You guys are great! Please keep it up. - Judy
WhitfordMay you never fade away. John VrugtmanDaryl
Cagle,
You want to complain about losing your
job? I lost mine two years ago. If it goes away, life will somehow
go on. Don't whine, Daryl.
Run for President. You'd probably do as well or better than some
of the folks who now want the job or who have had it.
At least with a cartoonist President, Al
Queda would have a real target and maybe it is also about time
we had a President with a real sense of humor, unscripted.
Bob Baumann
New York CityThanks, you stopped me cold in my
tracks, I was just about to send you a really, really, really
funny cartoon idea concerning an outhouse on the White-House
lawn.
SharonDaryl, I want to thank you for today's column.
I have been a wannabe for some time now. I do follow politics,
can draw, and have what I feel is a intuitive nature.
I also have a very good "day job". So I can cross Editorial
Cartoonist off of my to-do-list and just enjoy the work of others.
Warmly, Don MorrisI do write, but I can only draw
flies, so I exercise my primary abilities--reading and laughing!
Thanks for all you do to feed this life-enriching addiction.
Now I'm making these words more than lip flapping by buying one
of your books... Paul FreyDaryl,
I'm so relieved to have read your column... I was just on the
verge of sending you a suggestion that the three parties now
wrangling over the dead body of Anna Nicole Smith be "somehow
illustrated with a game of 3-card Monte." Whew! Glad I didn't do it! ;-)
Gene HalpernI hope you're wrong - I think you
guys portray more intelligence in a single cartoon than some
writers with a 2 page article in Time, plus they are enjoyable
- what a bonus. I really enjoy this website and I hope you continue
it.
All I do is build more and more retail stores in America's malls
- you do know we don't have enough?
Sincerely, Ron GriffinYou should run for President.
You really do have a clue, you can see the big picture;
it would be nice to be able to say that about our fearful leader.
Seriously, I love your cartoons.
Judy Gosnell, ORSTAY!
Your profession can in NO WAY fade away! Why do you think
people like myself look for the second section with your cartoon
and editorials before even glancing at the front page?
Anne Starritt GunnisonWow Daryl, bad day?
It saddens me to hear you say your profession is dying and print
media is being crushed.
I'm trying to do my part by subscribing to two daily papers.
Just want to let you know, you and your cartoonist brothers are
appreciated.
Best always JHHey, it's ok, man. Sometimes, 'ya
just gotta vent
Patrick TuethYou could write a weekly column just
on the subject of BEING a cartoontist...that was really very
funny, Cagle and don't worry i KNOW i don't have any talent (except
the wash-tub bass and the kazoo) ...keep up the good work and
write if you get a raise!
Micheal MooreWow, Daryl, do you LIKE getting hate
mail from paranoid whack jobs? Or are you starting a letter-bomb
collection? I have a couple of suggestions:
- stop opening your mail, right now.
- offer to testify against a mafioso; better,
offer to testify about an al Qaeda sleeper cell in the vice-president's
office. The paranoids in D.C. will believe anything about sleeper
cells -- if they were obvious, they couldn't be sleepers. This
will get you into the witness protection program and give you
the opportunity to keep you and your family safe.
- post your cartoons to the syndicate using
a gmail account. or a hotmail account. or a yahoo account. Open
a new account every couple of weeks.
- you don't really want a phone, do you?
Seriously, thanks for the newsletter. As
an ex-pat in New Zealand, it's great to get your postings, cartoon
collections, etc. I weep for your profession and it's prospects.
(And the political cartoonists for the
Dominion Post here in Wellington are singularly unimpressive;
perhaps you should emigrate. Do protected witnesses get to leave
the country?)
Kind regards,
Edward C. Horvath, Ph.D.Mr. Cagle,
Why do you think that your profession is 'fading away'? Surely
there is as much (or more) room for editorial cartoons on the
web as threre ever was in print...
Good luck,
Dave Mr. Cagle:
Your commentary on unsolicited submissions from aspiring, if
untalented cartoonists, was remarkably arrogant, and lacking
in compassion.
I'm sure that it must be boring, frustrating, and generally unrewarding
to be deluged with offerings that have no place in your mailbox,
but your elitist, condescending tone is downright annoying. Perhaps
you've lost sight of the fact that your success rate as a "professional"
isn't always 100% either. How much would you enjoy it if nothing
but withering disdain were heaped on you, every time one of your
cartoons fell short of the mark?
The sort of remarks you have made, may well have their place
at the family dinner table at the end of a long and frustrating
day, or when engaging in "shop talk" with your fellow
cartoonists, but your tirade against those who are not fortunate
enough to have professional, or even high amateur levels of talent,
really diminishes my opinion of your professionalism. It was
at best, unnecessary, at worst offensive.
Capping off your tirade against the artistically challenged,
with a polemic about the state of political cartooning, and the
decline of it's habitat in the print media has me wondering,
have you ever sought help for depression?
I hope you feel better tomorrow.
Sincerely,
Greg WoodYou are hilarious!
And you make think in pictures, but you do pretty good with words,
too!
Thank you for working hard on a pittance of a salary to help
amuse us. It's sort of like my job, exec. director of a non-profit
theatre company. Except I don't draw.
Don't stop--ever--we need you.
Alice B.Excellent article. too bad the same can
not be said for the so called "real journalists" that
somehow seem to get their articles publish regardless if anything
they write is true.
You could have at least given the "wannabes" some kind
reasoning as to how to go about getting published. Surely, they
can't ALL be bad.. maybe they are...
I sure like yours though and thank you for your honesty.
I am not a wannabe cartoonist, nor do I wanna be one... i am
glad you are though.
Sincerely,
Ben FullerDaryl,
I am saddened when you comment on the demise of your profession,
as it should have a place in every newspaper and many magazines
around the world. I am amazed that the readers don't respond
and encourage the papers to keep or increase the content that
you & your colleagues provide. It will be a sad day if &
when your demise becomes reality. I hope it never does!! I enjoy
reading your cartoons every time - whether I agree with the point
or not. And I have enjoyed the fact that you share your podium
with others, as it helps open my eyes to others in your profession
who might have a different take on an issue.
Hang in there, as I know you will!!
Maurice A. MillerI truly love the cartoons, not
all of them. Some are EXCELLENT, most are very good. In time
i suppose the really good cartoonists, like the Middle class
will just fade away. Undoubtedly our government does NOT appreciate
cartoons. The politicians would love them if they the cartoons
would make them the politicians wealthier. If gives me a lot
of pleasure when you people depict the Politicians as they really
are, NOT what they think they are.. Keep on annoying the government
fools,,,,,they deserve it. Al Mellenyo,daryl,
loved and hated your piece on the state of the political catooning
proffession.loved it cause it was well written...hated it because
it was true!
best wishes, john larter
Justin Bilicki sent me the comment below. See Justin's cartoons here. Justin is a winner
of the Locher Award as best collecg editorial cartoonist of the
year.
Hey Daryl,
Wow. Your rant (below) on the reality
of editorial cartooning was brutal. I agree with every point.
Even though I draw 5 cartoons per week, I also work 50+ hours
at my day job as an advertising art director. Could I survive
on the daily toons and still eat? No. Do my cartoons suffer because
I frequently draw them after a twelve hour workday? Yes. The
question I've yet to answer is why do I still do it if it pays
less than working at Wal-Mart. I guess that answer is editorial
cartooning is not a "job" but a passion. The luckiest
few find success if they can combine the two and live comfortably.
If those aspiring cartoonists knew what it really takes, they
may put their crayons down and continue doing something else
they think they're good at.
Take care,
Justin.
FEBRUARY
24, 2007
Too Many Cartoonists, Too Little Time By
Daryl Cagle
Whenever cartoonists get together we complain
about syndicates (the businesses that sell our cartoons to newspapers).
Cartoonists are no businessmen -- we want syndicates to be like
mothers to us, selflessly nurturing our careers so we don't have
to sully our minds with yucky business thoughts, when we'd rather
be thinking about cartoons. But syndicates don't act like mothers,
and cartoonists have some very colorful names for the syndicate
executives who sell their work - in fact, some of these colorful
names include the word "mother."
In addition to being a political cartoonist
myself, I run a small syndicate that specializes in editorial
cartoons; I see that there must be one thousand aspiring cartoonists
for every working professional, as I'm deluged with unsolicited
submissions that are truly awful. At times like this, when people
are passionate about politics, the inner political cartoonist
emerges from the psyche of the talentless "wannabe."
Many wannabe cartoonists recognize that
they have no drawing talent, but it seems that everyone thinks
they are a writer. I get many submissions from writers who are
looking to collaborate with editorial cartoonists. These writers
want to send me gags, or want to find cartoonists who will draw
their gags. Here is a typical gag submission:
"So, we have President Bush standing
there, and he says, 'Things are improving in Iraq' and behind
him you see two massive armies, the Shiites and the Sunnis, about
to fight each other, and the sky is filled with thousands of
U.S. helicopters, then, in the next panel ..."
These are people who think in words, not
pictures. For some reason, this group of wannabes includes lots
of lawyers who think they are funny. I think lawyers are funny,
but I laugh at-them, not with-them; and it is a dark humor that
makes me want to go take a shower afterwards. These guys just
don't get it. The cartoon writers often send obvious or trite
gags that they think are brilliant and original. Sometimes the
writers follow up with angry mail when they notice that another
cartoonist has "stolen" their gag.
The second group of wannabes do their own
drawings, but can't see how truly awful their drawings are. These
guys like to use computer fonts in their cartoons instead of
hand lettering. Often they will use clip art in their cartoons,
or lift photographs from the web, or they will use simple objects
like squares and circles, and then have these objects making
comments in speech balloons. These wannabes frequently don't
know how to work their scanner and will send murky gray images
that show crinkled paper backgrounds from the napkins they drew
their cartoons on.
One thing aspiring editorial cartoonists
have in common is paranoia. I get inquiries like this: "I'm
really funny and I have some great ideas, but I need to know
how to get them copyrighted first so you won't steal them."
I have a notice on our syndicate web site
that that says: "We do not accept and will not review unsolicited
submissions from cartoonists." Often the submissions come
in with a note saying, "I know you don't accept submissions,
but ... "
Ambitious
aspiring cartoonists see syndicates as gatekeepers, guarding
a barrier to the success they deserve. Sometimes the passion
and perseverance of these wannabes can be frightening. They find
my home phone number and my home address. Drive and perseverance
in the face of adversity is a virtue, so their quest never ends.
Some horrid amateur cartoonists are convinced
that the world of professional cartooning is a closed shop, an
old-boy's network where success is a matter of who you know.
Wannabes try to be friendly with my employees or cartoonist colleagues,
hoping that the relationship will get them past the barrier.
Many terrible submissions are forwarded to me by friends.
When I was an aspiring cartoonist I thought
the syndicates were arrogant for sending form-letter responses,
or for ignoring submissions - but now I understand why. For many
wannabes, any response is an invitation to argue. The aspirants
are convinced that their work is great and anyone who doesn't
"get it" needs educating. Giving a polite brush-off
sometimes fuels their anger.
Ironically, editorial cartooning is a terrible
business. Newspapers pay only a few dollars a week for packaged
groups of talented cartoonists who are, in turn, poorly paid.
The professionals compete for fewer and fewer staff cartoonist
positions at papers that are cutting back, as the internet crushes
print. More and more professional cartoonists can't make ends
meet. The syndicates aren't really a barrier to success for the
aspiring cartoonists, just a hurdle on the road to more frustration
in a dying profession.
My profession is fading away, I'm poorly
paid and there are thousands of rude, talentless wannabes who
want my job - but Britney Spears shaved her head - at least the
life of a professional editorial cartoonist has its little pleasures.
Time Magazine
has stopped running editorial cartoons again. The last time they
dropped cartoons was after 9/11, when Time's narrow perception
of editorial cartoons as jokes seemed inappropriate in light
of the tragedy. Now the cartoons are gone because nobody cares;
Time tells us that they haven't gotten any reader complaints
about cartoons being dropped from the magazine..
I have mixed feelings about Time running
political cartoons. It is a great venue for our art form, and
we want more readers to appreciate editorial cartoons, but Time
was as bad as Newsweek in their choices of cartoons, often
picking cartoons that were stale, Yahtzee gags. Their choices
of funny, inoffensive cartoons so closely matched the preferences
of Newsweek that Time and Newsweek would
often run the same cartoon in the same week, which must have
been an embarrassment to them.
Even so, it is sad to see another venue
for editorial cartoons fade away, without so much as a complaint.Cartoonist
Paresh Nath from the National Herald in New Delhi, India had
a short hiatus from our site, now he's back. Click here to see more of Paresh's cartoons.
Welcome back, Paresh!
Paresh
Nath, National Herald, New
Delhi, India
Want to run Paresh's cartoons in your publication? Just e-mail
cari@cagle.com. Visit an archive of the artist's most
recent cartoons in the drop menu at the right. Click on the cartoon
to e-mail it to a friend.
Happy Valentines Day! be sure to visit our Valentines Day cartoon section, click on
a cartoon to email an e-card to a friend!
I'd like to welcome a talented new cartoonist
to the site, Tim Campbell from Indianapolis, Indiana.
That's one of Tim's cartoons below right, you can see his archive
here, and e-mail your welcome greeting to
him at TCampbell5@indy.rr.com
FEBRUARY 9, 2007
AIN'T ENOUGH ROOM IN THIS TOWN FER THE
TWO OF US
Most cartoonists go on a modern pilgrimmage
each Summer to the San
Diego Comic Con, the largest comics convention, held the
last week of July this year. I enjoy it, even though I don't
have anything to do with comic books. The event has grown to
be so huge (well over 100,000 attending) that it encompasses
all areas of cartooning in one way or another. I see lots of
editorial cartoon fans there; I sign books and visit with my
colleagues. It is a fun and busy time for me, even though I don't
draw superheroes.
Why write about a July convention in February? Because it is
almost impossible to get a hotel room in San Diego - even now,
more than six months in advance. This is the week that Comic
Con hotel room blocks became available and sold out immediately,
causing a stir among frustrated cartoonists and fans. The system
works like a radio contest where everyone calls the same phone
number at the same time, the moment that calls are allowed, and
the 106th caller wins. Online reservations were no better. I
ended up finding a modest hotel room through Hotels.com for twice
their normal, retail rate (over $400 a night). Sorry folks, all
the hotel rooms in town are gone now.
We got some goofy entries to our contest,
asking readers to count the cartoons in our Best Political Cartoons of the Year, 2007 Edition
book (BEPY), and compare them to the cartoons in
the competing Best Editorial Cartoons of the Year, 2007 Edition
book (BECY). Hardly anyone took me seriously and
actually counted, but some of the entries were pretty funny.
One cartoonist sent me an accurate count of the number of cartoons
about the Danish Muhammad cartoon issue in the BECY book (12, scattered through the book),
and that was the only accurate count I received. I can see that
our readers are not cut out to be accountants - but they made
me laugh.
FEBRUARY 4, 2007
Read My Column About Political Cartoons
Then Write About Something Else,
by Daryl Cagle
As a political cartoonist, I'd like to
think my cartoons influence public opinion, but that rarely happens.
People love a cartoon that they already agree with, and hate
cartoons that they already disagree with. Editors like to choose
editorial cartoons that they know their readers will like, so
cartoons end up being a reflection of public opinion. In fact,
political cartoons offer a great historical tool, giving a true
picture of the opinions and emotions of a society at any given
time.
Historians seem to have discovered political
cartoons only recently, and I've started seeing a steady stream
of scholarly papers about my profession as college professors
and students suddenly look to my work and the work of my colleagues
to support their political positions. One widely held canard
seems to be popular among the academics: that the world supported
the USA after 9/11 and this support was then squandered by the
Bush administration's adventures in the Middle East.
Academics like to look at the cartoons drawn immediately
after the 9/11 attack where, around the world, almost every editorial
cartoonist drew the same image of a weeping Statue of Liberty.
I drew one too. In fact, most cartoonists are ashamed of their
weeping statues; we wish we could have a "do-over"
where we wouldn't draw the first image to come to mind. Newspaper
columnists all wrote much the same column right after 9/11, but
it is easier to notice matching cartoons than matching columns,
so cartoonists get the bad rap for "group-think." Even
so, our matching cartoons were what the public wanted to see
at that time and I probably received more mail from readers who
loved my weeping Liberty than any other cartoon I've drawn.
International political cartoonists revile
the USA in a uniform drumbeat of daily digs at America. The academics
don't notice that international political cartoons before 9/11
were almost as negative about America as the cartoons now. After
our matching, weeping statues, the American and international
cartoonists diverged. On 9/12, American cartoonists started drawing
patriotic cartoons portraying resolve, strength, and the virtues
of the New York Fire and Police Departments, standing tall as
twin towers. American cartoonists drew scores of images of a
strong Uncle Sam, threatening eagles and a newly militant Statue
of Liberty, demanding revenge.
Just after 9/11 the international cartoonists depicted
the irony of mighty America put in its place. A favorite, foreign
symbol for America is Superman, and we saw scores of images showing
both Superman and Uncle Sam defeated, injured, bleeding and grieving.
The worldwide cartoonists treated 9/11 in the way that tabloids
treat fallen celebrities: with delight in the spectacle of a
beautiful actress who is overweight, or getting a messy divorce
-- or better yet, caught in a drunken scene, screaming racial
epithets so that we can see that the rich, powerful, famous,
conceited, fallen star was a hypocrite all along.
Some international cartoonists wrote to
me about the patriotic cartoons; they couldn't believe American
cartoonists would choose to draw such cartoons by their own free
will; we must have been directed to draw that nonsense by the
Bush Administration. Academics have picked up on the idea of
"self-censorship;" that cartoonists somehow didn't
draw what they wanted to draw because the country wasn't ready
for jokes, or editors didn't want to see criticism of the Bush
administration at a time when we all had to pull together.
In fact, the system worked as it always had: some
cartoonists criticized the government right away, some cartoonists
were joking immediately, most cartoonists held the same opinions
as their readers, editors selected cartoons they agreed with
and thought their readers would agree with. Newspapers ended
up printing cartoons that accurately reflected public opinion,
both here and abroad.
I have a few words for the professors and
college students:
1.) Editorial cartoons show that the rest
of the world didn't like America before 9/11; they didn't like
us just after 9/11; and they still don't like us.
2.) The government doesn't control or intimidate
American cartoonists or editors, now or then. Yes, we really
believe what we say in our cartoons. No, cartoonists are not
hampered by self-censorship.
3.) Please don't ask me to comment on your
paper, thesis or dissertation about editorial cartoons. Just
read this column, then write about something else.
Cartoons above by Steve Breen,
Scott Stantis, Mike Ritter and Gary Markstein. FEBRUARY
2, 2007
You folks send lots of comments, even when we don't ask for comments.
Some of you understood that Tom Purcell's column (below) about
Groundhog Day was "tongue in cheek" and some took it
seriously. Here are examples of comments from thick headed readers
who didn't get it:
FIRST GOD-- THEN FREEDOM OF SPEECH--NO
PRAYERS IN SCHOOL--- NO OPEN SMOKEING-- NOW GROUNDHOG. LEAVE
IT ALONE ALL YOU TREEHUGGERS ARE THE SAME.
George WrightTom,
You're an idiot.
S/F,
Chuck Corpening
St. LouisI just read your article on Puxatawny
Phil in my local newspaper.
I'm born and bred Pennsylvania Dutch. I'm one of the "small
minded people" who enjoys Phil and his prophesy on Groundhog
Day.
If the only thing you have to complain about is a groundhog,
then you have way too much time on your hands. To you and your
other liberal ACLU friends I say "*&%$ You".
Bill Fava
And here are some of the comments from
our readers who are not satirically challenged:
Dear Mr. Purcell, (& Cari)
I like the way you think and write!
The Cagle Newsletter always makes me laugh and think but your
soliloquies make it better!
As a single woman, living alone, unmarried at 40 (with NO CATS
thank you very much!), I will definitely take your request under
advisement about needing to take care of all y'all single guys
by getting married.
::grin:: In fact, find me a good guy and I'll go for it!
Have a lovely day,
Julie BechtelI laughed my ass off! (Looking back..)
Oh... no wait... there it is.
Wendy SkainsTruly enjoyed the article on why Groundhog
Day should be ended.
Very funny. Also liked the cartoon.
EKWWay to go Tom.
Frank Norton
Beautiful. I'm just living to see rebuttals . ...
Field Ops CPE, Alan Schneider, Dallas TXThe
crazy thing is, in this day and age, I don't know if you are
serious or not.
BarryOptimisticROFLMAO
Yea and verily, Groundshrub Day it should be forthwith!
Cassandra KyleYou're funnily twisted, Tom.
Madelyn TohMr. Purcell, Your take on "Groundhog
Day" is brilliant.
Thank you, Lawrence (of Alaska) NoderThat's very
funny. Great image. Could be a Woody Allen short-story or a bad
country-western tune
Jim LahnerSpeaking as one of the few athiests
with a profound respect for the Christian traditions upon which
this country was founded, I can only say kudos.
Don PrestonOn this day when I needed a laugh,
you provided one for me........THANK YOU!!!!
Dennis Moore
FEBRUARY 1, 2007
Remember Jose Varela - the nutty cartoonist
who took over the offices of the Miami Herald with a toy gun?
He got off with no jail time. Read all about it on E&P.
Why Groundhog Day Should Be Outlawed
By Tom
Purcell
Punxsutawney Phil must be stopped. The
lovable little groundhog must be stopped.
You know Phil. Every Feb. 2, Groundhog
Day, he is yanked from a tree stump in Punxsutawney, Pa. If he
sees his shadow, his organizers allege, there will be six more
weeks of winter. If he doesn't, spring will be just around the
corner.
Millions have enjoyed this primitive ritual
for years, but now there's a problem.
Groundhog Day evolved from Candlemas Day,
a Christian tradition commemorating the purification of the Virgin
Mary. As this tradition evolved in Germany, it got ever more
colorful.
Germans soon believed that Candlemas Day
could also predict the weather. Somewhere along the line they
began yanking a hedgehog out of a tree stump, and the tradition
was born. When German immigrants settled in Punxsutawney in 1887,
they brought the tradition with them.
Now we have a problem.
How, in this day and age, can any government
body impose on our diverse society any celebration that has its
roots in a Christian faith? Aren't the people of Punxsutawney
providing their de facto support of one religion over the others?
Isn't their outmoded event offensive to those who practice no
religion?
Isn't this annual event, then, out of sync
with the American tradition of separating church and state? If
Santa Claus and Christmas trees are being banished in public
squares, how can Groundhog Day not follow suit?
Groundhog Day is guilty of numerous other
offenses. In Punxsutawney, the event is managed by a group of
men known as the "Inner Circle." These are the fellows
who wear top hats and tuxedos and yank Phil out of the tree stump.
As usual, it is the men who are exploiting
a helpless little creature for profit and greed, and men who
have kept women out of leadership positions within their Inner
Circle clique.
The hypocrisy of these allegedly Christian
fellows is staggering. They talk of how they pamper Phil. That
he lives in a heated home and is fed delicious treats. But then
they boast about one especially disgusting tidbit.
Phil has a harem.
The Inner Circle provides Phil with three
nubile female companions to take the edge off his lonely bachelor
existence. That's right, this band of middle-aged pimps is trafficking
in "woodchucks of the night."
For these reasons, I cannot understand
how, in these progressive times, such an offensive primitive
ritual continues to be celebrated every year.
Sure, I understand that small-minded people
believe such traditions enrich our lives and bring levity to
the hearts of millions.
I understand that American traditions evolved
from a hodgepodge of cultural influences, and that the best of
them celebrate our common humanity.
But still, Groundhog Day as we know it
must end -- or at least be drastically modified.
For starters, we must set Phil free. No
innocent animal should be kept in captivity so that he can be
exploited by greedy capitalists. We must release him back to
his natural habitat immediately.
We can replace him with a less offensive
living entity, such as a tree or shrub. Trees and shrubs cast
shadows, too, and holding them in captivity is much more humane,
since their roots keep them from roaming freely anyhow. (Perhaps
we can call the event "Groundshrub Day.")
Most important, this event should be entirely
secular. Any reference to the Christian past must be deleted
from the official Web site. I was shocked to find such references
on the existing Groundhog Day Web site.
I'm confident that if the men in the Inner
Circle make these needed changes and if they begin admitting
women to leadership positions immediately -- the Groundshrub
Day tradition will continue for many years to come.
If they don't the ACLU is likely to take
these suggestions seriously and file suit within the week.
Tom Purcell is a humor columnist
who is nationally syndicated exclusively by Cagle
Cartoons. For comments to Tom, please email him at Purcell@caglecartoons.com
JANUARY 30, 2007
ENTER OUR CARTOON COUNTING CONTEST!
Our readers surely know our Best Political Cartoons of the Year (BPCY) book which we plug incessantly on our
site - but did you know that there is another, competing book
called the Best Editorial Cartoons of the Year (BECY), that just hit bookstore shelves? I
thought this would be a nice opportunity for a comparison cartoon
counting contest.
Contest Part One!
Our BPCY book has more cartoons than the BECY book, 80 pages more, with more cartoons
packed into each page, on average. Here's the first part of the
contest - the first two readers to count all of the political
cartoons in both the BPCY and BECY books and give us the accurate counts
will win a copy of any of our books with an original drawing
by ME on the back page (see the books here). E-mail your accurate
cartoon counts to my loyal editor Cari, at cari@cagle.com,
if you win, Cari will e-mail you back and ask for your book preference
and mailing address.
Contest Part Two!
The competing BECY book has a reputation for not running
strong cartoons that might offend someone - an editorial policy
that is easy to see this year. We devote a large part of our
book to the potentially offensive, Danish Muhammad Cartoons issue,
including the original Danish cartoons along with lots of cartoons
that cartoonists drew about the Muhammad cartoons. I'm not sure
if there is a single cartoon about the Muhammad cartoons controversy
in the competing BECY book. The first two readers to give
me an accurate count of all of the Muhammad cartoons and cartoons
about the Muhammad cartoons in our BPCY book, and in the BECY book, will win a copy of any of our
books with an original drawing by ME on the back page (see the books here). E-mail your accurate
Muhammad cartoon counts to my loyal editor Cari, at cari@cagle.com,
if you win, Cari will e-mail you back and ask for your book preference
and mailing address.
Here are the rules: We won't look at any
of the e-mails until next Monday, so the date that you send your
e-mail to us doesn't matter, so long as it is before Monday;
we're just looking on Monday at all the e-mails we have received
and picking two winners in each category. Our selections are
final. Our choice of the cartoon count is final, and I understand
that there may be some question about whether a particular drawing
in the book constitutes a complete cartoon or not, and I don't
want to argue about the number, so our selection is final without
regard to whether or not you agree with the exact number. (Hey,
the prize is just a book, don't get upset.)
If you have comments about the books after
making your counts, please send them along and we'll post the
most interesting comments here. And, no, I have not counted the
cartoons in the books myself. I don't know how many there are.
And you don't have to buy the books to do this! You can stand
in the book store and count!
Here is an interesting column about women
and marriage, from our Cagle
Cartoons columnist, Tom Purcell. The Cartoon below is by
Cam Cardow.
Women Without Husbands
By Tom Purcell
All right, ladies, the gig is up. It's
time for all of us to get married, including you.
I refer to The New York Times' recent report.
After sorting through U.S. Census data, The Times determined
that for the first time in American history the majority of women,
51 percent, are living without a husband.
The story tore through the media like a
lightning bolt. A slew of "I am woman, hear me roar"
stories hit the airwaves. The storyline was clear: Women are
finally free and independent now, and the last thing they need
is some sloppy spouse who leaves his socks lying all over the
house.
Well, nuts to that. Look, ladies, deciding
not to marry for your own well-being is one thing, but it is
we you're not marrying in the process. Your decision is killing
single men -- literally.
Single men partake in more risky behavior
than married men. We eat badly, smoke more, and avoid doctors'
offices. We die younger. And we're far more likely to wake up
in a pile of crumpled newspapers still clutching the tequila
bottle we began sipping from two days before.
The reason why is not complicated. We are
social animals. Men and women are very different creatures, but
we were made for each other. The Catholics call it complementarity
-- a man and woman, in union and harmony, round each other out.
Men need to be rounded out, too. Take dust.
Because our brains take in less sensory detail than a woman's,
we don't notice dust the way women do. Thus, married men tend
to live in orderly, dust-free homes, whereas single men, says
P.J. O'Rourke, clean up their place about once every girlfriend.
Though it's not like single women are faring
much better.
The Times article quoted independent women
raving about their freedom and flexibility. A 32-year-old woman
had already lived with two boyfriends and said that if she ever
did marry, she might opt to keep her own place. Another said
she likes being able to sleep on either side of the bed.
Oh, just admit it, ladies. You need us,
too. Sleeping next to a burping, snoring lug of a husband may
not be the stuff dreams are made of, but it sure beats sleeping
alone. And when you hear a prowler rattling the door knob in
the middle of the night, whom do you send to investigate? Your
cat?
I know The Times is eager for a more progressive
society to take hold -- one in which the stodgy traditional marriage
is kicked to the wayside -- but the fact is marriage, imperfect
though it is, is good for us.
Married people are happier, says the Pew
Research Center. They enjoy life more -- they enjoy sex more,
too. Children raised by married couples fare better. Society
fares better. Successful civilizations are built on the stability
that traditional marriage brings.
But despite these simple and obvious truths,
we keep trying to reinvent our nature. We keep trying to prove
there are better ways to fulfill our simple needs -- keep trying
to leave every option open, so that we can be "free"
and "independent" forever.
And we end up alone.
I can't imagine what old folks homes will
be like 40 years from now. There will be an unprecedented number
of elderly single people living alone. No children or grandchildren
will visit them -- no spouse will care for them. I wonder if
The Times will do a front-page piece on that trend, too.
All I know is that my life would certainly
be better if I woke every morning in a full home in which my
children are laughing and my wife is smiling, rather than the
way I often wake now -- with a throbbing noggin' because my single
friends and I over-enjoyed our freedom and independence at the
pub the night before.
Like I said, it's time for all of us to
get married.
Tom Purcell is a humor columnist
nationally syndicated exclusively by Cagle Cartoons. For comments
to Tom, please email him at Purcell@caglecartoons.com
Here are a few comments from our
readers:
I loved your column "women without
husbands". Yep, marriage is great. I find that I no longer
have to think for myself my wife does that for me. I eat healthier
too (when she's not around) and after she goes to sleep I can
watch whatever I want on the TV as long as I have the earphones
in, even the scary shows that I'm not allowed to watch when she's
watching with me.
My dog likes it that I got married too, well it used to be my
dog now it likes my wife best but I still have to take the ungrateful
mutt out to the bathroom.
Don't get me wrong I really do love my dog and I love being married
,most of the time.
I'm just kidding, my dogs not an ungrateful mutt, and I don't
really mind taking it out to the bathroom.
StanIt sounds nice...that getting married idea.
I go through stretches where I think I might try to find someone
again. But then I remember the first husband, the subsequent
"room mate," and the "I can't make up my mind
what I want" after that. It comes down to how much effort
one wants to put forth, and frankly, most of you aren't worth
the effort. I took care of myself plus them so I might as well
be alone and take care of myself. Besides, most men after age
45 don't want women their own age--they want someone who looks
like their daughter. If you all would grow up and act like mature
adults, maybe more of us would be married. Until then, I'll eat
whenever I'm hungry, move the furniture myself, sleep on whichever
side of the bed I choose, and send one of my cats to check out
the strange noises.
But, hey, thanks for the chuckles!
Kathy
Harrisburg, PAThanks for the article; I hadn't
realized I was in the majority. Now I can heckle my married friends
about not being single, right?
My deepest fear is being without family
at the end of my life. It's almost making me want to reproduce.
Nice to know that if my nightmare becomes reality I won't be
the only one. Let's all hope there are bars in retirement homes
by then. I think consumer demand will require it.
Cheers
Jessica Glebke
Missoula, MTDear Mr. Purcell,
I enjoyed your comments to Mr Cardow's cartoon (no-sex marriage).
Ever since the young women have become emancipated, jobs for
men have diminished. Many professions which were formerly reserved
for men have been taken over by women.
The birth-rate has diminished in Germany and other industrial
countries because women prefer to seek a profession and there
is no time to raise a family. Maybe someday there will no longer
be any men and women will have to live by themselves.
Best wishes from a cartoon admirer.
Roland St.Pierre
GermanyMen need to stop expecting women, wives
to take care of them like a mother. It is a share and share alike
world not a chauvinist's dream.
Have A Very Blessed Day --- Cecilia Kuklies, TexasHi,
Tom,
Let's see.....married 30 years.....divorced 8. Definitely prefer
the last 8 years, I think. Would I even consider getting married
again. Not a chance. If I find someone special enough to share
my time and life with....I think I'd still insist on keeping
our separate homes. I never want to feel trapped. I need my own
space. That sounds selfish, but some of us spent our whole lives
taking care of others, sharing everything, doing all we could
to be all we were "supposed to be." Tired now. Relaxed
now. Alone is good. "To everything there is a season..."
I really like the season I'm living in now.
JB (Judy) in Colorado
I could not agree with you more!!! That
said...Will you marry me?!! :-) AprilHey Tom,
How old are you? I'm a young 65 and single, and cute. Are you?.
So I propose that we discuss marriage. I will not complain about
snoring if you don't hog the covers. I have to draw the line
at belching or passing gas, but I will compensate by being a
really good cook. If I point out the dust on the furniture, would
you dust it? I'd be running the vacuum at that time. What do
you think?
Donna
Columbus OhioJANUARY 23, 2007
THE STATE OF THE UNION DRINKING GAME
Here are the rules for the State of the
Union Address Drinking Game, from our Cagle Cartoons columnist, Will Durst.
George W. Bush 2007 State of the Union
Drinking Game
Raging Moderate, by Will Durst
What you need to play:
·Four taxpayers: One rich white
guy wearing a suit. Cufflinks are nice. Two people wearing jeans,
one in a blue work shirt, the other in a white shirt and one
person wearing clothes rejected by the Salvation Army. Belt and
shoelaces removed.
·One
shot glass per person. Everybody brings their own from home and
places it on table. Suit gets first pick for use during game.
White shirt picks next, then Blue shirt. Suit takes last shot
glass as well, and Rags has to beg a glass from other players
when necessary or drink out of own cupped hands.
·20-buck ante for everybody except
Suit who throws in a quarter.
·1 pot of Texas chili and 1 bowl
of guacamole in middle of coffee table with tortilla chips nearby.
Rags has to prepare and serve the chili and guacamole.
·A large stash of beer. Rags gets
the cheapest stuff available. Suit gets whatever import he likes.
Jeans gets any domestic brand as long as it's no more expensive
than Bud, but must pay for all the beer, the bourbon, the chips
and the ingredients for the chili and guacamole.
Rules of the Game:
1. Whenever George W uses the phrases,
"defending liberty," "enormous progress"
or "challenges ahead," last person to knock wood has
to drink 2 shots of beer. If he actually says, "There are
those who envy our freedoms and seek to destroy us," everybody
drinks a whole beer.
2. The first time George W mentions the
tragic events of 9/11, the last person to eat one dollop of chili
off a tortilla chip must drink three shots of beer. The second
time George W mentions the tragic events of 9/11, the last person
to eat one dollop of guacamole off a tortilla chip must drink
three shots of beer. Continue to alternate. If you mis-chip,
drink two extra shots of beer.
3. If George W mispronounces Iraqi President
Al-Maliki's name, drink two shots of beer. If he even attempts
to pronounce the name of Iranian President Mahmoud Amadinejad,
first person to stop laughing is exempt from drinking three shots
of beer.
4.
If George W makes up a word like "9/11ers or "deterrencism,"
last person to yell out "Strategerie!" drinks two shots
of beer.
5. Every time Senators Hillary Clinton
or Barack Obama are shown in the audience, Suit drinks one shot
of beer.
6. The first time George W talks about
immigration, last person to finish three chips of guacamole has
to drink three shots of beer.
7. If either the vice President, secretary
of state or first lady are caught napping, last person to make
snoring noises drinks two shots of beer. If Senator Robert Byrd
is shown awake, Blue and White drink two shots of beer.
8. Everybody drinks two shots of beer if
President Bush mentions Scooter Libby. Three shots of beer if
he mentions Jack Abramoff. Four shots of beer if he mentions
Osama bin Laden.
9. Whenever George W quotes the Bible,
last person to sing the first eight bars of "Amazing Grace"
has to drink two shots of beer.
10. If George W smirks during a standing
ovation, take turns throwing chips of chili and guacamole at
TV. First person to hit Bush's head exempt from drinking three
shots of beer.
11. If George W tells a folksy Texas tale
with a deeper meaning about not leaving before the job is done,
Suit has to drink out of beer-filled hands of Rags, who gets
to dry his hands on Suit's jacket.
12. Predict the number of applause breaks.
After the speech, drink number of shots of beer equal to the
difference between your estimate and the real number.
EXTRAS:
·Anybody who can identify person
giving the Democratic response doesn't have to watch it.
·If George W uses a heartfelt story
of one of our brave troops, white guy gets to kick everybody
once. Twice if the brave troop is a woman. Rags gets to kick
the suit if Bush reveals the subject of the anecdote is in the
audience. Twice if the brave troop is sitting next to an astronaut.
·Suit takes home the $60.25.
·Leftover beer, chili and guacamole
go home with Rags after he/ she is finished washing the dishes.
Political Comic Will Durst is going to
try and sneak into the event disguised as an astronaut.
LOTS OF RESPONSE TO MY "FIELD GUIDE
TO IRAQ" CARTOON!
The mail started flooding in from my latest
cartoon, so I put the cartoon in the newsletter and invited a
huge torrent of response. The cartoon is below, and some responses
are below that. I'll post more as they come in. The first comment,
by a Mike Gannon, was sent out with the newsletter so many readers
responded to his comments. I also find it interesting that many
readers complain that they don't know how to turn the cartoon
over to read the answer - just lift up your monitor and turn
it over. It's not rocket science.
From: mike gannon
Subject: racist cartoon?
your latest cartoon titled feild guide to iraq is basically racist.
your
saying all these differing groups/religious factions all look
the same to
you. mabey if we get to know these differing people of the mid
east instead
of ignoring them youll be able to tell the difference.Actually,
the cartoon is all too accurate.
Sgt R.T. Smith
USMCQ: Who shoots cartoonists?
A: A, B, & H, if he's American, and everybody if he draws
Mohammed. (The Turk will also shoot him if he mentions Armenia.)
Paul BakerI totally agree w/cha and I think your
toon just shows the battle in Iraq as it really is. For those
who say that you are racist just don't see it and never will.
But saying that it is art and art will always be interpreted
in different ways by different people.
Your newsletter is one the greatest e-mail subscriptions that
I have ever Signed up for.
Have a great day,
ShawnYour "Field Guide" is a perfect
illustration of why we don't belong there. Our soldiers and Marines
aren't sure who the enemy is and when they do, God forbid, kill
someone, their own country puts them on trial. Great editorial
work.
Ricky MillerMy five cents worth on the Field Guide
to Iraq cartoon is this: I feel that this cartoon says that the
2003 ongoing Iraq pre-emptive strike war is like the 1970's Vietnam
undeclared war, where the distinguishing between friend and foe
is basically impossible. Too many factions, civilians and soldiers
all involved as fighters, casualties, victims in one way or another.
And that the various racists who do exist in the US government
and the US voting population won't care who's really killed and
wounded as long as they get their agenda. I only know your cartoons,
so I don't know whether I like you as a person or not -- yet
I certainly love the majority of your cartoons and many of your
contributors' cartoons as well. Thanks for putting out the cartoon
newsletter -- it keeps me laughing at the insanity in the world,
and I need the perspective!
Lory in New Mexico :)Why don't we just do what
the Israeli's did to the Palestinians, tell them if they don't
knock it off we are going to bomb them back into the stone age.
Only do a compete job of it and don't stop until all resistance
has ceased. Give them a week to comply and then start carpet
bombing cities (starting with Baghdad) until they remember what
life was like in the open dessert. Then go in and plunder all
their natural resources, seize all their swiss bank accounts,
and leave them without any modern tools. Once the rest of the
region sees the results of this action they will stop all their
senseless bickering.
John ParkerWell well well. I have never been good
at recognizing hate. I still can't recognize it!
Katherine DowningRacist cartoon. Nope, You're
right. You're exactly right! And you should have been part of
the study group! Keep up the good work!
Dennis RodgersI say get our troops the hell out
of there and let A through J all shoot each other! They're going
to do it anyhow, whether we're there or not. Why waste American
lives over there? It's not so much that American lives are worth
more than theirs. We just have the good common sense not to kill
each other simply because we worship the same god differently.
We don't need to get in the middle of crazy people who don't
have that common sense.
Frederick MarvinWhy include the Kurds in this
congregation of creeps? Unless I am missing something, they are
the straight guys. Are they killing Americans? No, even though
we betrayed them. One of their spokesmen was quoted: "We
kill only our enemies". They, unlike the others, have a
legitimate, definable gripe. Their natural homeland is occupied
by Turkey, Iran and Iraq. They have enough problems, without
your tossing them in that bag of bastards.
Chris MaloneThank you so much for putting into
words and pictures the situation into which we are sending our
troops!!!!! This administration is self-serving and the whole
country is being held hostage by the President and his messianic
agenda.
I have put your ed. cartoon on the bulletin
board in my classroom. Please continue to hold our policies up
to a mirror. Your work makes it harder to miss the truths that
many don't want to see!
Sincerely,
Patricia LubitzYou nailed it as usual...Its not
racist, its realistic and true
That is why we can't make any headway over there...keep up the
good work
Michael AtlasYou mean to say we jumped head first
into a bear trap in a briar patch?
Aw shucks.....
Lee GreenbergYou had to know you were going to
get the "racist" blowback on this one in this day and
age where truth takes a back seat to the PC culture club every
time. You hit the nail on the head America and the rest
of the west need to realize the nature of the people in that
region of the world; the individuals that have a moderate viewpoint
in that region of the world have two choices: migrate to the
West or suffer persecution/death. People do not throw off centuries
of indoctrination for something as radical as self-determination
just because we give them the opportunity.
Tony ButlerExcellent cartoon.
Sums up well the problems.You may be wrong on a few of these-
I am pretty certain that "D" and "H" also
hate Americans. I also suspect that many, if not most, members
of "F" and "G" hate Americans as well.
One might say to "W", "it's a fine mess you've
gotten us into now."
Keep up the good work.
Michael Fain I thought this may let you know that
Daryl seems to have it much more together than the cranially
challenged individual who called him a racist.
The situation at hand in Iraq is not now or ever will be, one
with either an easy out or answer. Should we presently decide
to withdraw we will be sanctioning the creation of a new state
in that region of the world, one that includes Iran and Iraq
as a single nation with the ability to control not only Syria
but all of Arabia.
Stay the course? Add twenty thousand troops? Not unless one is
purely political with ulterior motives for personal advancement
within our own government and does not care if we loose that
area to the Iranians. Otherwise put some meat behind our potato
retoric and throw in 100,000 troops and control the area until
they can sort it out for themselves. No war can be won without
control and domination.
Enough...
Greg CroninExcellent cartoon! This is how many
of us see the war in Iraq. It is confusing as heck! We don't
see how the Americans can "win" or how "winning"
would be defined. As for reader accusing you of racism, obviously
he is not fighting the war. Even our soldiers say they can't
tell the good guys from the bad guys. Thanks for your tongue
in cheek cartoon!
Cheers,
Jan HudsonDefinitely puts the political turmoil
of the region in perspective. Great job!
Steve Tabb, Westmoreland, KSFabulous, fabulous.
A simple cartoon highlighting the extremely complicated and discombobulated
(in the American way of thinking) driving forces in the mid east.
Love the newsletter! Keep up the good work cartoonists everywhere.
Who else dares to articulate the truth than those who draw funny
pictures.
Mary KennyI can't read the upside down message.
What does it say?
Bill McGraw, Somewhere South of ChicagoLove it!
Those crazy *&%$s in the middle east would like to think
that they're all distinct, but they're really all the same two-faced
hot heads. They'll be fighting over that worthless pile of sand
long after the oil is gone.
Mike Powers I loved your 'parsing out' of all
the main groups (let's not forget the Turkomen, Chaldeans, Arab
and Kurd Christians, and the odd non-combatant foreigner). What
is a soldier to do? Even (or maybe especially) our policymakers
in Washington and Baghdad can't keep the groups sorted out.
To mitigate the accusation of 'racism' it might be best to hide
them all behind a wall, since many are invisible to the naked
eye and only become identifiable after making claims for IED's,
sniping, or shooting down helicopters.
Keep up the good work.
Eugene Owen, Annapolis, MDTo Mike Gannon,
Jeez, Mike, get a grip. It's a cartoon. Part of the so-called
"humor" (which, if I am not misinformed, is
an integral part of a "cartoon") is the cartoon's
concept that our government doesn't seem to know who is who over
there. That doesn't mean Daryl Cagle thinks all Iraqis, Kurds,
Turkomen, etc. are alike!
Daryl, you have my deepest sympathy, Keep
it up, buddy!
Best,
Susan RogersAnd this is the Shiite who hated the
Sunni who hated the Shiite who hated the Sunni who hated the
Kurd who hated the Sunni who hated the Chaldean Christian who
hated the Shiite who hated the Sunni who hated the Americans
who hated the ... and all in the house that Bush built.
I'm hoping against hope for the day we all recognize that hate
is humanity's common enemy, that we all realize we're all together
on this spaceship called "Earth", and, as the poet
W.H. Auden said, "We must love one another or die".
Enough of dying.
Lloyd Wallisch "Field guide to Iraq is one of those painful
cartoons that pushes your face in something you dont want to
see, or admit to - in this case that we are literally murdering
other human beings who we dont know and cant tell apart, and
can even joke about it. I shudder to think that there are people
who might find this funny.
curt clayDaryl you hit the nail on the head almost
every time you're great
Earl Rhodes All,
Okay, now I finally understand how to exit a quagmire. First,
up the commitment a bit to 200,000 not 20,000 new troops to send
to Iraq. Second, but most important, re-employ Madeline Albright
to provide a few days indoctrination training so every soldier
may learn to befriend each of the characters on the Iraq stage
set as shown below. Ah, yes, then we may soon declare: Mission
Accomplished yet once again. Yep, you gotta have a plan to stay
the course!
LesI don't feel for a moment that you're racist!
That's what I see also. Except the Iranians (Persians) aren't
Arabs. However, their religious leanings are the same.
I'm sure we look the same to them....Baptists vs Church of Christ
vs Catholics.
Linda Anderson, Conroe, TXSome of the people who
have reacted to your cartoon have used the word 'racist'to depict
what you have published.I do not think your pen,or any other,can
show how the men depicted look any different from what I or most
other Americans(or most of the World)have seen on in our Media
for the past 30 plus years,(Iran Embassy Hostages,Palestinian
Terrorist takeover of planes,Jihad here,Jihad there...)One of
my thoughts on 9/11,as I watched the Towers Fall,and Americans
died, for some type of Islamic/Arab hatred of Our Country, that
this was as much a 'racist'attack on America as any religious
or political attack.
Please keep the PEN mighty,it helps keepus ALL Thinking,and ALL
Free.
Thanks, Al Kempf, N.Y.You done good!! Your cartoon
showed, in a few well-chosen strokes, the many factions involved,
the complex relationships between us, them, each other, their
government and neighboring countries... and the difficulty knowing
friend from foe...
Thanks, Athena MizelleFinally, someone with a
clear view of the war...but it still begs the
question: how do we get out without getting shot?
Michael MooreThank God someone has finally figured
it out! Please tell George.
Mom in the DesertJust because you used the same
image does not make this racist. We cannot tell the people apart
perhaps, but not because they look alike..............it is because
they do not want us to know...............
This field guide is a very good illustration of why we (or the
"they" in gov) don't or can't really understand what
is going on and why.
Kristina A.Sir,
As a Vietnam Vet I can honestly tell you that the cartoon "Field
Guide to Iraq" brought back memories of the problems faced
with telling the "good guys" from the "bad guys"
there. Some may call this a racist cartoon but I would ask, can
anyone really tell the "good guys" from the "bad
guys" walking down any street in any country? Even in cities
of our own?
--Dcrusoe gardener of litlonePLEASE PRINT ANSWER
RIGHT SIDE UP for those of us who are a tad handicapped
But then I am one of the few who believes it should read WHOM
do you shoot!
Thanks for this cartoon. It does seem to say what is happening.
Cheers,
Patricia Daryl,
It's tough to be right.
In my opinion, your cartoon captures the hate-filled Mideast
accurately. Religion breeds intolerance.ALL religions but
some have more extremists than others.
Mike CollinsWhether I love or hate you depends
on who's ox you happen to be goring that day. Can't resist taking
a look not matter what.
Fran Whitaker"A picture is worth a thousand
words."
To quote the late, beloved, 'Lord' Buckley, in God's Own Drunk,
"'cause it was just like a jitterbug dance,
it was so simple it evaded me."
Thomas Glenn, in La Union, PhilippinesOUTSTANDING!
It captures all the conflicting alliances, allegiances, purposes,
etc & they all look the same! Great editorial cartooning.
Ginny Wright
Lincoln, NEI believe that should be whomdo you shoot?
My answer is: Do what we've always done before - let them
shoot each other until only one is left. Then send foreign aid
to the last one standing..... unless he's Al Qaeda
Dick Cheney's answer: Shoot anybody or anything
that moves.
Natalie's (of the Dixie Chicks) answer would be to shoot.....oh,
hell. We know who she would shoot.
Dubya would shoot himself...in the foot.
Great cartoon(s). Keep 'em coming.
Lonnie Wilson While the P.C. issues are easily
seen here, this IS a political cartoon, so nobody should take
it as any direct reference to the various groups represented.
What this cartoon DOES do very well is explain the unfathomable
quagmire the U.S. has been inserted into by the decision to topple
Saddam. Many thought it a big mistake at the time, and hindsight
is clearly supporting that argument more every day. I think this
is one of the very best and most astute political cartoons in
quite some time.
David E. Wilhite I think that referring to the
cartoon as racism is missing the point.
Of course you made everyone look alike, because that is just
the issue.
The differences in these points of view and loyalties are impossible
to keep straight unless you live there, know the players intimately
and stay alert. US soldiers don't have a clue who they are to
shoot. They were just dropped in as exterminators. I think it
makes the point that we should not be there at all and definitely
should not be shooting anyone. The cartoon points out our cultural
stupidity and indifference.
Glenna,
I really enjoy your cartoon news service.Answer:
Don't shoot any of them; just get the hell out of there....NOW!!!!
Nathan Booker, Belgrade, MaineDaryl,
I found your chart to be very accurate. I don't know if the person
that referred to it as a " Racist Cartoon " has ever
been in a war where your fighting a country's whose people look
more alike than not. As in Vietnam you couldn't tell one from
the other when you were in a close fire fight. You just prayed
you shot a bad guy.
Splinter6Daryl,
Your cartoon is right on. Your readers who think you are being
racist might do well to remember that in the good ole days of
traditional warfare, armys wore uniforms in order to distinguish
friend from foe.
Given the fact of a civil war is in progress between various
religious and political factions of tribal arabian groups in
Iraq, to
FEBRUARY
24, 2007
Ambitious
aspiring cartoonists see syndicates as gatekeepers, guarding
a barrier to the success they deserve. Sometimes the passion
and perseverance of these wannabes can be frightening. They find
my home phone number and my home address. Drive and perseverance
in the face of adversity is a virtue, so their quest never ends.
FEBRUARY 4, 2007
Academics like to look at the cartoons drawn immediately
after the 9/11 attack where, around the world, almost every editorial
cartoonist drew the same image of a weeping Statue of Liberty.
I drew one too. In fact, most cartoonists are ashamed of their
weeping statues; we wish we could have a "do-over"
where we wouldn't draw the first image to come to mind. Newspaper
columnists all wrote much the same column right after 9/11, but
it is easier to notice matching cartoons than matching columns,
so cartoonists get the bad rap for "group-think." Even
so, our matching cartoons were what the public wanted to see
at that time and I probably received more mail from readers who
loved my weeping Liberty than any other cartoon I've drawn.
Just after 9/11 the international cartoonists depicted
the irony of mighty America put in its place. A favorite, foreign
symbol for America is Superman, and we saw scores of images showing
both Superman and Uncle Sam defeated, injured, bleeding and grieving.
The worldwide cartoonists treated 9/11 in the way that tabloids
treat fallen celebrities: with delight in the spectacle of a
beautiful actress who is overweight, or getting a messy divorce
-- or better yet, caught in a drunken scene, screaming racial
epithets so that we can see that the rich, powerful, famous,
conceited, fallen star was a hypocrite all along.
In fact, the system worked as it always had: some
cartoonists criticized the government right away, some cartoonists
were joking immediately, most cartoonists held the same opinions
as their readers, editors selected cartoons they agreed with
and thought their readers would agree with. Newspapers ended
up printing cartoons that accurately reflected public opinion,
both here and abroad.
·One
shot glass per person. Everybody brings their own from home and
places it on table. Suit gets first pick for use during game.
White shirt picks next, then Blue shirt. Suit takes last shot
glass as well, and Rags has to beg a glass from other players
when necessary or drink out of own cupped hands.
4.
If George W makes up a word like "9/11ers or "deterrencism,"
last person to yell out "Strategerie!" drinks two shots
of beer.