Comic Strip of the Day

CSotD: Random Rants

I wasn’t going to do any Trump vs. the Press cartoons today, having pretty well exhausted the topic for a while, but Telnaes introduces a new character that cracks me up.

The term “work wife” came up with George W and Condoleezza Rice, and I have no doubt that W was faithful to his wife and Condi was no fool and they got along very well but without any messing around. However, Natalie is clearly infatuated and Dear Leader doesn’t have a lot of self-discipline and who knows?

Then again, who cares? Moscow doesn’t have to plant an agent in the Oval Office because they’ve already got a blabbermouth there who will tell them anything they want to know. If Natalie functions as a work wife, good for her, but I’m putting her more in the category of comic relief, in which case Telnaes captures her brilliantly.

Juxtaposition of the Undead

So Mitch is back, or at least as “back” as he’s capable of being, under the circumstances. Given that his term ends in four months and he’s not running for reelection, his return is puzzling, though I suppose Gov. Beshear would have appointed a Democrat to serve out the tail end of the year, and Dear Leader has been having enough trouble keeping his sheep together.

But most of what I’ve seen in the way of reaction is people pointing out that Mitch opposed sick leave but took three months of it himself. That could have resulted in his shifting in support of the concept and apologizing for not having understood before, but I wouldn’t stand on one foot waiting for that to happen.

As Two Bulls points out, he seems to be functioning largely as a vote, not a speechmaker and certainly neither a visionary nor a leader. Ehlers may be joking about setting him up with a ventriloquist, but Two Bulls seems to be completely serious about him playing the role of Dead Man Voting.

I guess it would be important if he had more than four months left in office. Or on the planet. Whichever.

I guess I somehow missed Day by Dave yesterday, because I wasn’t aware that it was National Batman Day. Perhaps I was distracted by having largely missed Talk Like A Pirate Day two days earlier, not because I felt obligated to talk like a pirate but quite the opposite: I remember when it was a big deal and was struck by how little it matters anymore.

I suppose that was why Turner Classic had a slew of swashbucklers, but I didn’t see any Batman movies yesterday and lord knows there are plenty.

On the other hand, I did see the following tribute and it seems to fit the mood better than it might have when I was 10 years old.

And speaking of narcissists, here’s another

Juxtaposition of the Day

The critical factor here is that we were all distracted by Trump kicking out the press, so that his lunatic description of his Arch de Nitwit slid by, which is a tribute to Steve Bannon’s theory that if you just keep doing insane things, people won’t be able to focus on any particular screwball idea.

But in this case, all Artley and Buss had to do was to draw what Dear Leader described and the nutty insanity would speak for itself.

Yesterday, I said the plan suggested that Trump expected to have to face mobs of rioting revolutionaries, though it isn’t clear why they’d be attempting to capture Arlington National Cemetery. However, Trump has more control over military bases than tourist attractions, so perhaps he wants to put guns on the arch so he won’t need as much permission to build it.

Now I’ve seen someone suggest that it’s because in the War of 1812, Canadians marched into Washington and burned the White House, which is sort of true except that, while they declared revenge for the burning of York, they were mostly British regulars, and the lesson to be learned was that the Second Amendment, which preserved militias, was pointless.

As the fellow who had written it but was president during that war noted

I could never have believed that so great a difference existed between regular troops and a militia force, if I had not witnessed the scenes of this day.

Madison had ridden out of town to Bladensburg, Maryland, where he got to see the militia run like rabbits. Similar failures by militia at Sackets Harbor and Fort Erie made the first order of business after the war being to scrap the concept and build up a regular army.

(Where are the Swift Boat Veterans when we need them?)

Just be grateful he only pictures himself dressed up like a general and not as Batman.

Morland notes that Dear Leader will be addressing the UN today, and while he hasn’t demanded they put his name on it (yet), he reportedly has some good ideas of how to make it much more effective that mostly involve doing things his way, and, because this extravaganza is happening in NYC, the networks will be covering it, since the ban and boycott only apply to White House events.

In other words, the whole world will be watching, whether you consider that a good thing or not.

He’s expected to discuss Iran and to talk about the nuclear arms they were on the verge of developing, as he faces an audience that knows about the treaty he tore up and is certainly up to date on how far Iran was from developing anything resembling armaments.

My guess is also that they also know how many dead we’ve suffered, despite that being swept under the flag, along with how much damage has been inflicted on American bases in the Gulf, since they are not dependent on the news being approved and released from the White House.

A lot of people don’t realize there’s a B in Bruno Mars

I have no idea why this little girl mentioned this particular song, but it seems vapid and self-celebratory enough to fit today’s overall theme.

Don’t believe me? Just watch!

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 15

  1. It is fairly well-known that Washington D.C. has diagonal avenues named for every state, and traffic circles at many locations where those avenues cross the grid at “normal” intersections. Many of those circles now harbor decorative gardens, fountains, or colossal statues, but it is less well-known that one reason for the original layout was the option to station heavy artillery in the circles, which would then be able to defend the city in six (or even eight) different directions.

  2. Batman day was the 19th. as a fan, just sayin’.

    1. That’s the 21st in Canada. They’re metric.

  3. Comic Strip of the Day: Come for the insights, stay for the comedy.

    1. It might be the reverse…at least on my “I give up” days.

  4. I find the return of Mitch very ominous, as it probably indicates the retirement or disappearance of some Supreme Court Justices within a timescale that will require their replacements with extra-deplorable ones (yes, it’s time to reintroduce that word) in a way that perhaps could not be done after the midterms.
    Also, the militarized arc de Trumph is going to be protecting (or protecting from) the dead of our many wars. At least he isn’t planning to relocate them for the sake of their real estate, so far as we know.

  5. snipers and drone ports overlooking Washington tourist attractions??? what a wonderful world delusional demented donny has planned for us

  6. sniper platforms and stockpiles of sniper ammo at his arch?
    omigod, go ahead and dress him up like Batman, he’s bats*** crazy.

  7. Boy, am I getting old.
    When I was their age, the most sung songs were “Happy Birthday To You”, “Mary Had A Little Lamb” and “In A Gadda Da Vida”.

  8. It’s dumb enough to turn the White House into a military target by putting a drone port on the ballroom roof and a bunker in the basement, but at least that *kinda sorta* makes sense… kinda sorta

    But there’s no valid reason to put drones and snipers on the Arch Deluxe for any reason other than he’s a paranoid lunatic.

    1. Or it’s just another “look over here!” moment.

  9. FYI – KY Legislature removed the ability for the Governor to appoint an interim Senator a few years ago (response to – HORRORS! – a Dem being elected Guv) – instead there has to be a special election OR just wait for the general election, which would be the case if Mitch was to die or retire early (or be judged incompetent – which I am not sure who decides that issue) since he term is up in Jan 2027 & he did not run for re-election.

  10. But where will the ray guns be located?

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