CSotD: Weekend Update
Skip to comments
I really wanted to be non-political today.
Not "apolitical," because what thinking person could be these days? But I wanted to take a break after the last two days of heavy topics.
So here's a juxtaposition I found kind of amusing, though both cartoons are thought-provoking, if you're the sort of person whose thoughts are easily provoked.
John Deering also does political cartoons and he could readily have used that gag in a commentary on health or educational funding or just about any of a number of policies and factors that … okay, never mind.
And god knows the whole "until death do us part" aspect of marriage is long gone and, yes, many people seem to go into it these days with a set of demands and conditions rather than starry-eyed romance.
So maybe this is a "Juxtaposition of Cartoons I Took Too Seriously."
But I knew we were headed for trouble when I chuckled over the Argyle Sweater and then popped over to Wikipedia to check out Marlee Matlin's biography.
Because Scott Hilburn could have just captioned it "Marlee Matlin: The Early Years," but he didn't.
Never mind the fact that she has a history of — besides winning an Academy Award for a very serious and touching role as a deaf woman — doing jokes about the topic, though that's a good defense against the Easily Offended Outsiders who invariably hate this kind of humor.
But in February, 1973, she'd have been seven and a half, so "circa 1973" is just the right age for the gag.
And her father's name was Donald.
Who the hell does that kind of research for a silly gag like this?
Which brought to mind how much I hate political cartoonists who comment on talk-radio memes that have no factual basis, or half-understood first impressions of things anybody with an ounce of professional pride could Google and get straight on.
Which brought to mind two hack cartoonists in particular who are on my daily list because they aren't quite so lazy and incompetent that they don't occasionally get something right, but are far more likely to go off on topics they clearly haven't …
Dammit, I can't even laugh at a little deaf girl without getting political these days.
Oh, well, wotthehell.
I already knew Ed Hall's mashup of Salvador Dali and the Yellow Submarine was going to get in, as much for its artwork as for its insight.
This is something he should almost be sorry he did, because it's sure gonna be hard to top.
Still, editorial cartoons have a longer shelf life than daily strips. I was hoping to be silly today and maybe save the politics for tomorrow.
That plan sure gang aft agley.
So never mind the pair that led off. Here's your actual, official
Juxtaposition of the Day (1)
There are people you talk politics with and people you don't, and I was surprised yesterday when a friend at the dog park who, while a very kind and decent person, is pretty socially conservative and with whom I would avoid political topics brought up Trump's news conference and was aghast at the goings-on in the White House.
It's way too early for things to have come to this.
When Nixon became president, Herblock specifically stopped drawing him with a five o'clock shadow out of respect for the office, though he didn't take his eyes off the man or fail to hold him accountable.
But despite his "Tricky Dick" reputation, his whining Checkers speech and the ugliness of his Senate campaign against Helen Gahagan Douglas, the depth of Nixon's depraved indifference to honesty and good stewardship as president only slowly emerged.
And there were some nasty cartoons early on in Obama's presidency, but they were largely drawn by extremists with fairly obvious covert objections to the man.
Perhaps sparked in part by the unhinged lunatics who insisted he was born in Kenya, one of whom is currently seated in the Oval Office, or would be if he didn't take every freaking weekend off.
Though the deplorables are standing by him, Trump is losing support nearly everywhere else. Even Time Magazine, hardly a partisan journal, is featuring the chaos on its cover this week. (Michael Cavna has an interview with the artist.)
There is even informed speculation that the Russians regret having assisted him in his campaign.
Juxtaposition of the Day (2)
Trump's fine-tuned machine needs a bumpersticker that says "Watch Out For Flying Parts."
And Jeff Danziger may be jumping the gun a bit here, but certainly we're seeing cracks in the GOP wall that has been protecting Dear Leader and, again, it's stunning to see how quickly even the small defections are appearing in what was a solid chorus of "Yazzum, Boss."
Here's a potentially comforting notion: You may not like Mike Pence, but he's no Spiro Agnew. Agnew was Nixon's safeguard against impeachment until he was disappeared, but Pence would likely be seen as an improvement over the incumbent.
Besides, we've never had a president named Mike.
It's a name I'm particularly fond of.
(The Brilliant Mind of Edison Lee)
Back atcha, Orville:
Mike Peterson has posted his "Comic Strip of the Day" column every day since 2010. His opinions are his own, but we welcome comments either agreeing or in opposition.
Comments 6
Comments are closed.