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Comic Strip of the Day

CSotD: They inhaled

Published: August 23, 2012 1 minute 4 comments

It's not uncommon for a comic strip to reveal its lead time by riffing on a specific event.

But the only conclusion to be drawn from today's comics page is that somebody left a huge tank of silly uncorked a few weeks ago and cartoonists inhaled the fumes in large numbers. Most of these don't inspire a lot of ponderous commentary (you're welcome), but they certainly inspired a giggle.

Maybe I'm the one who's been inhaling something. Anyway …

Wprep120823

Okay, I'm a sucker for bathos. I also think that Donna  Lewis has a wicked way of simultaneously celebrating and skewering egocentricity.  Today's Reply All was a sweet distaff take on the "guys sucking their guts in at the beach" gags.

And, having promised to keep the commentary low, I will instead send you to this very funny but not entirely joking discussion of women and shoes. I can't tell quite where Donna Lewis stands on the topic of Carrie Bradshaw, but I'm pretty sure her character, Lizzie, stands there in something fabulous.

 

Dp120823

Meanwhile, over at the Duplex, Glenn McCoy proves that the right spin can make a slightly shopworn gag brand-new and sparkly. Applied to "I read a study about smoking" or "I read a study about eating fats," the "stop reading" conclusion is, well, meh.

But the wasting time element completely redeems it. Don't throw anything out. You just never know.

It also helps the gag that most of us have been forced to sit through "make a list" and "recite your goals" lectures at various business luncheons or conventions, in which some insufferable over-age National Honor Society veteran tells us how obsessive-compulsive tightass behavior is the key to success.

A graphic emerged on Facebook the other day that divided successful and unsuccessful people by their traits. On the successful side were things like "making lists" and "maintaining a Day Planner," while, on the unsuccessful side were things like "enjoying life" and "having sex."

Or something like that. I probably should have filed it properly so I could refer back to it in the future as needed. (badaboom)

 

Tas120823

Anyone want to bet that the Argyle Sweater's Scott Hilburn maybe lives on the East Coast? Well, wherever he lives, the sudden switch from fantasy people to real siblings caught me completely by surprise and put me on the floor.

Yes, I'm sure it helps if you're a football fan. Preferably from, oh, Houston, Tennessee or maybe Jacksonville. But niche humor has its place and, yes, Denver fans, this will still be funny in January.

 

Rc120823
This Reality Check is just really stupid. Except that I'm laughing. Probably because stupid works really well, as long as it's really stupid.

Also — like the fourth panel of the Argyle Sweater — the gag comes completely out of left field. The next cartoonist who riffs on John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt won't get nearly the same laff. 

But it sure worked today.

 

Crkca120823
Here, Ken Catalino takes a shot at the whining Republicans who refuse to admit that, yes, successful industries are built from public investments in infrastructure, utilities and services, and who are, at this very moment, planning to whimper and sulk over the concept at their upcoming convention.  (Heard a great new term for this, by the way: "poutrage.")

We all know that no "Leminade" stand owner in history has ever bought his own lemons and sugar, or the pitcher they were mixed in, or the ice, or the paper cups, and that obtaining the wood for the stand didn't involve scraping up your allowance and going to Home Depot. Nor do they pay rent for the lawn space on property for which somebody else is paying the bank.

And yet seven-year-olds throughout recorded history have proudly sat at the curbside, not just feeling that they "built this themselves" but with no intention of paying back Mommy and Daddy for the lemons, sugar, paper cups, etc. before pocketing the proceeds.

This is a hilarious send-up of the childish attitude of plutocrats who refuse to acknowledge their debt to the public!

(Did I mention that I also really enjoy sarcasm?)


And, finally today …

Bizzaro

Someone asked me if I had a Twitter account. And it wasn't the first time.

Unlike the chap in today's Bizarro, I actually do, but I've never used it much because, well, I've never felt the need to tweet anything relevant.

The site updates every morning, usually no later than 8 a.m. Eastern (US) Time. Has now for two and a half years. So, um, what's to say? Come on by, or set an RSS feed. We're open for business.

But, what the hell, it doesn't take much effort to say so. For your daily dose of "Here I am again!," plus a handy link, set your Twitterometer to @ComicStripOTD.

Mahalo!

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.

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Comments 4

  1. I appreciate good humor. I like all the comic selections that you have chosen. However, i have a question for you. Did you create your blog and forum? Did the artists create their work and dream up new uses for old ideas? Yes they did. To say that an entrepreneur owes some one for the road or for the utility plant and such is a twisted use of logic. Did the laborors who built the utility plant get paid? How about those who built the roads? We are all paying for the roads. Those individuals who made their business sacrificed and took risks. Those that are successful employ people by wealth creation. You sound like Andy Capp. When the bar owner was smiling because the brewery gave the pub a bonus. Andy requested his share and claimed “those who stand and drink also serve!”
    Years ago this was hilarious because everyone knew what a assinine statement Andy made. Today you want us to believe just the opposite.

  2. Dann, first of all, I acknowledge the contribution of public funding to, for instance, create the Internet on which my blog resides. (Though I pay for hosting.) But have I said I didn’t want to pay taxes? No. I acknowledge that, what I have done, I have done with help with public funding. And I’m wiling to pay it back. Tax me — please!
    And I like the idea of having public funding — taxes — help build not only the Internet but things like airports and highways and rail lines and bridges and other pieces of infrastructure that make it possible for private industry to market their products.
    And I have sat in meetings where business people promoted the need for public expenditure on infrastructure to sustain local industry.
    So when they turn around and whine about taxes and refuse to contribute and have the goddam nerve to deny that public expenditure helped them build their business, yes, I’m gonna call them on their bullshit.
    Because it is bullshit. And not just street-grade whoops-I-didn’t-think-of-that bullshit, but genuine, I don’t care about the truth, I just want to be a greedy son of a bitch bullshit.
    I don’t like bullshit in general. But I particularly hate hypocritical, purposeful, in-your-face, I-think-you’re-too-stupid-to-see-what-I’m-up-to bullshit.

  3. (I don’t think that was Dann-with-two-n’s, Mike — not only spelled differently, but doesn’t sound like the same voice to me. New foil, I think.)

  4. Right you are. Probably landed a little harder out of surprise, since, as you note, it wasn’t the usual voice and struck me as a little more pugnacious than usual (or needed).
    No retraction on the response itself, but a regretful hat tip to Dann-with-two-n’s for thinking it was he and a slight one to Dan-with-one for being a little harsh on a new voice.

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