A lot of people are not going to like this cartoon. That’s OK. Honestly I don’t like it that much either. I didn’t want to ignore this story and knew I couldn’t draw a cartoon on it with my usual humorous take.
I’ve been threatened before. I’ve had letters, emails and blog comments threatening to beat me up, slash my tires, kill my dog and kill me. I had a member of the Nation Of Islam write my editor to tell me God was going to take me out soon. When I was a photographer I once had a state trooper in Mississippi threaten to arrest me for taking photos at crash site. Usually I’m working from the safety of a drawing board and most threats for a cartoonist are laughed off.
This week I’ve drawn two cartoons on journalists facing threats while doing their job. I’ve actually drawn two in a row. From the safety of a drawing board I can’t imagine the Hell and fear journalist James Foley went through…as well as others.
I know it’s another culture. They don’t understand the way of life in the West. But ISIS surely knows terror won’t sway U.S. policy. Killing Foley will incite more action from the U.S. military. Since they know that then killing Foley isn’t a strategic option…it’s just sheer brutality.
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