One of the challenges I face in teaching kids to write like journalists is to break them out of the mindset they learn in school: That there is a “right” answer, which is to say, the answer you are expected to come up with, and so the trick to getting good grades is to find, […]
Arsalan Iftikhar, a senior editor at The Islamic Monthly, opines that there are essentially five reasons why artists draw the Prophet Muhammad: The moral of the story is that people will continue to draw cartoons of our beloved Prophet in the future whether we like it or not. For these reasons, it is important for […]
Author and illustrator Mark Pett has released his second picture book today entitled The Boy and the Airplane. It’s a wordless story about a boy who receives a toy airplane as a gift. He plays with it. He loves it. He throws it. In throwing it, he finds it stuck on a nearby roof. The […]
In the current Doonesbury story arc, Zonker is considering joining a strike against the restaurant where he works.Such base ingratitude! Such disloyalty!I’d like to see the Venn diagram of people who don’t want to raise the minimum wage and those who think we spend too much on welfare and other entitlement programs. Based on public […]
It’s been a year since Sacramento Bee editorial cartoonist Rex Babin passed. His friend and successor Jack Ohman penned a poignant piece on the anniversary of his death and following his footsteps in Sacramento:I don?t know what I believe in, honestly, in terms of heaven, or hell, or afterlife, or anything. I describe myself as […]
Retail uses April 1 to focus on the obvious.Today is the day you are permitted to play the fool and have it dismissed as “play.” But as Val correctly points out, it may be difficult to distinguish the people who are simply being fools in honor of the day from the large number who train for […]
I’ve got to admit, he’d end up in my cooler, too.Sherman’s Lagoon includes a strong element of conservation and often manages to sneak a fair amount of education on the topic into the gags. But it also exhibits a healthy streak of realism.It’s been quite a few years since I have done any fishing, but […]
In today’s Candorville, Lemont addresses the matter of “executive orders” with a pretty reasonable explanation: Facing a hostile, do-nothing Congress, maybe Obama is forced to issue more executive orders than other presidents.I like the explanation and I think it’s something conservatives should consider.Because they’re not likely to be swayed by someone pointing out that, in […]
AAEC convention host and Salt Lake Tribune editorial cartoonist Pat Bagley and author/illustrator/cartoonist Mark Pett and I did a bit of recon work last night hitting several nightlife locations. Despite Utah’s Mormon/squeaky clean image, downtown Salt Lake has a vast array of bars, brewpubs and restaurants with liquor licenses. We’re just trying to be thorough. […]
“Between Friends” is more a “chuckle of recognition” than “burst of laughter” strip, a genre which takes a certain touch of insight if it’s going to rise above “guys always leave the toilet seat up” observational so-whatness. Sandra Bell-Lundy, fortunately, has that touch.Which is to say, sometimes it’s more of a sigh than a chuckle. […]
I’m purposely choosing to ignore one aspect of today’s The Brilliant Mind of Edison Lee to focus on the other.The issue of Facebook privacy gets a bit of a shrug from me because, well, in the language of the law, I have no reasonable expectation of privacy. And there are ways to insulate yourself to […]
Jumble cartoonist Jeff Knurek was interviewed by WFYI Art of the Matter (Indianapolis) about the puzzle and his new music album “Risk Taking Is Free!”Skip 12 minutes in to the interview.
Interesting silent video of Milt Caniff, creator of Steve Canyon, Terry and the Pirates.Via Mike Lynch
Arctic Circle points out a certain degree of imprecision in the risk assessment capabilities of our food and drug safety regulators.Though, actually, they’re quite accurate in assessing who swings a big bat and who doesn’t, which is what truly matters.Regulation of food safety (and making sure it is what it claims to be) became part […]
Legendary editorial cartoonist Pat Oliphant will be honored at this year’s AAEC convention in Salt Lake City (June 27–29). The feting will be held at a special reception in the Sky Gallery and roof patio of the Natural History Museum of Utah on Friday June 28. Attendance will be limited to those registered for the […]