THE WEEK IN EDITORIAL CARTOONS
This weekly diary takes a look at the past week's important news stories from the perspective of our leading editorial cartoonists (including a few foreign ones) with analysis and commentary added in by me.
When evaluating a cartoon, ask yourself these questions:
- Does a cartoon add to my existing knowledge base and help crystallize my thinking about the issue depicted?
- Does the cartoonist have any obvious biases that distort reality?
- Is the cartoonist reflecting prevailing public opinion or trying to shape it?
The answers will help determine the effectiveness of the cartoonist's message.
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Hobson's Choice
Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Note: This is a very large file which I have to post piecemeal as I've done for several weeks now. There are 18 sections in the diary plus the diary poll.
The complete diary is now posted. Three sections which the system would not accept (Afghanistan, Iran, and Sports) are posted in the 'Comments' Section.
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Introduction
In recent decades, the Republican Party seems to have appointed itself as the sole proprietor of patriotism and love of country. So, it was funny too see them rooting against the City of Chicago in its bid to secure the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. The editorial cartoonists, instead of being giddy about Chicago's inability to become the host city, saw the bid as another one of the many (largely) policy obstacles President Barack Obama has to overcome over the coming months and years. The fact is that since the inaugural 1896 Olympic Games in Athens, the United States has already hosted the summer games more than any other country. It has done so four times -- St. Louis, MO in 1904, Los Angeles, CA twice in 1932 and 1984, and Atlanta, GA in 1996. With the 2012 Games, London will joins Athens as having hosted three games apiece. Not only that, the United States has also hosted the most Winter Olympics. Since 1924, the U.S.A. is first with four games in Lake Placid, NY in 1932, Olympic Valley, CA in 1960, Lake Placid, NY again in 1980, and Salt Lake City, UT in 2002. France is second with three winter games.
Olympic Spirit
R.J. Matson, Roll Call
With Rio de Janeiro's winning bid for 2016, this will be the very first time that a South American country (Brazil) will host the games. I'm happy for Rio to have the opportunity to do so. It certainly won't be lacking in colorful fun!
Sarah Palin's book 'Going Rogue' is due in November 2009 and reminded me of the time when in 1993 former Vice President Dan Quayle announced that he would be writing his memoirs. I recall David Letterman asking rather sarcastically that night on his show, "I wonder what will be on page two." The cartoonists weren't much kinder to Palin and, in many respects, treated her book announcement with derision and, not unlike Quayle, mocked her as an intellectual lightweight.
With the 8th anniversary of the War in Afghanistan approaching, Obama's recent high profile national security strategy session to weigh his options on what to do next in Afghanistan continues to be high on the radar of most cartoonists. Public support for the war is waning with Congressional support lukewarm at best -- particularly amongst liberal Democrats. Once he settles on a comprehensive strategy and set of attainable goals, will it largely be a counter-terrorism, counter-insurgency, or a nation-building strategy? It may be several weeks before we know. The cartoonists are keeping on top of this very important issue.
A Convergence of Interests
Clay Bennett, Chattanooga Times Free Press
Healthcare reform is in its final stages, with five bills having cleared committees for the first time in political history in both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives. Whether or not the much-desired Public Option will survive the final cut in conference committee remains unclear. Since confusion reigns and contradictory statements issued virtually every day from various White House and other sources, some of this uncertainty is also reflected in many of the cartoons. By and large, though, the cartoonists back a robust public option as an effective means to offer competition and also to counter the influence of unethical insurance industry lobbyists.
A Marriage Made in Heaven?
Joel Pett, Lexington Herald-Leader
Communist China's 60th anniversary was greeted with some skepticism as human rights aren't much better in that country compared to the turmoil of a few decades ago. Iran's nuclear ambitions received notice as perhaps no topic concentrates the minds of newspaper columnists and cartoonists than the proliferation of dangerous nuclear weapons. Still, meetings to resolve this issue diplomatically have begun between Iran and the United States, with China and Russia also expected to play a pivotal role in these negotiations.
From Communism to Pseudo-Capitalism
Manny Francisco, Manila Times (Manila, The Philippines)
Texting while driving received a lot of attention as it is increasingly becoming a deadly activity. Through an executive order, federal employees were banned from texting while driving government vehicles earlier this week by President Barack Obama. David Letterman's stunning confession involving extortion and sex resulted in some funny cartoons but wasn't seen as particularly damaging to his career. And former New York Times Columnist Bill Safire was remembered as a contrarian conservative who revered language and was particularly adept at using it.
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One of my very favorite indie cartoonists, Tom Tomorrow, was recently interviewed by Michael Cavna of the Washington Post.
Here is an excerpt
MC: How's the alt-cartoon landscape look from your vantage point these days?
TT: There's way more competition for eyeballs. Now we're not just competing with other cartoonists -- we're competing with every single person who has one clever idea to put up in a YouTube video of a singing cat. Cartoonists are now competing with water-skiing squirrels.
MC: Do merchandising and book sales boost your bottom line much?
TT: Political cartoonists don't tend to have good merchandising. [Laughs] ..... If I had to live off even my books, I'd have to work at Wal-Mart.
MC: So the Internet: friend or foe?
TT: The rise of the left-wing blogosphere has basically rendered a lot of what I used to do completely irrelevant -- that whole facet of: "Look at this! Why isn't anyone in the media paying attention to this?!"
Read Tom Tomorrow's entire interview
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1. CARTOONS OF THE WEEK
George Orwell Would Be So Proud!
Tom Tomorrow, This Modern World, see Letters to the Editor in Salon magazine
Abell Smith, Fighting Words
Mike Peters, Dayton Daily News
Matt Davies, New York Journal News, see reader comments in the newspaper
Clay Bennett, Chattanooga Times Free Press, see reader comments in the newspaper
Tom Toles, Washington Post
Tim Eagan, Deep Cover
Lalo Alcaraz, LA Weekly
The Loss Of Civility
Matt Bors, Idiot Box
Cal Grondahl, Utah Standard Examiner
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Read this very interesting article in the Washington Post about the depths to which the conservative movement has fallen to. In it, the writer bemoans the lack of intellectual voices in the Republican Party. In the past, authors and intellectuals like William F. Buckley, Milton Friedman, and Paul Weyrich provided the intellectual and policy framework which filtered down to Republican politics. Today, instead of advancing its agenda, the party has been taken over by unelected rightwing populists who are doing considerable damage. So, who does the writer see as the voice of sanity amongst the rightwing noise machine? Yes -- you guessed it -- FOX talk show host Glenn Beck. Indeed, that Glenn Beck!
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2. Roguish Palin: Literary Lioness
Chan Lowe, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, see reader comments in the newspaper
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In an interview, Sarah Palin gets the Steve Schmidt treatment. Read the rest of Schmidt's interview in Marc Ambinder's blog in the Atlantic magazine
Steve Schmidt, John McCain's former chief campaign strategist, said today that if former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin were to be the Republican nominee, it would be "catastrophic" for the Republican Party.
"I think that she has talents, but my honest view is that she would not be a winning candidate for the Republican candidate in 2012, and in fact, were she to be the nominee, we would have a catastrophic election result."
Lowe simply points out the truth that many traditional Republicans are acutely aware of
Somehow the words "book" and "Sarah Palin" don't fit comfortably in the same sentence.
Oh, well...if George Bush Sr.'s dog could pen a best-selling memoir about his years in the White House, I suppose anyone can.
Jimmy Margulies, New Jersey Record
Mike Keefe, Denver Post
Mark Streeter, Savannah Morning News
David Cohen, main.nc.us/cartoons
Pat Oliphant, Universal Press Syndicate
Larry Wright, Detroit News
Jeff Danziger, New York Times Syndicate
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3. Anti-Government Wingnuts and Other Destructive Forces
Ed Stein, edsteinink.com
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Stein raises an excellent question that Democrats have asked themselves on many an occasion: if Republicans hate government so much, why do they even bother to be a part of it?
It’s a mystery why so many elected officials who hate government work so hard to stay in it term after term, and why so many self-professed government haters want to get into it election after election. I suspect it’s a lot of fun having the power to deny everyone else the benefits they enjoy, but that can’t be the only reason. But I digress.
I decided to apply the term "government-run" to everything I could think of, just to see how scary it sounded. While it’s indeed terrifying that we have a government-run military, government-run road building, government-run trash collection, government-run police and fire departments, none of these have the essential fright-factor I’m looking for. I had to go back to the very source of government itself; hence, this cartoon.
Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Pat Oliphant, Universal Press Syndicate
David Fitzsimmons, Arizona Daily Star
A Michele Bachmann Fan Amongst the Taliban
Tim Goheen, McClatchy Newspapers
Charlie Daniel, Knoxville News Sentinel
August J. Pollak, Some Guy With a Website
Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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4. Healthcare Reform: The Final Stretch
Paul Szep, Daily Szep, Huffington Post
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An article in Rolling Stone magazine details a secret effort to derail Healthcare Reform. Using Karl Rove-like sleazy political techniques, a coalition of insurance industry lobbyists, pollsters, and other special interests aligned with the Republican Party orchestrated faux outrage this past summer to create havoc at town hall meetings
"The insurance industry is up to the same dirty tricks, using the same devious PR practices it has used for many years, to kill reform," says Wendell Potter, who stepped down last year as chief of corporate communications for health insurance giant CIGNA. "I'm certain that people showing up at these town halls feel that they're there on their own — but they don't realize they're being incited, ultimately, by the insurance industry and the other special interests."
John Darkow, Columbia Daily Tribune
R.J. Matson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL)
Paul Szep, Daily Szep, Huffington Post
Jeff Danziger, New York Times Syndicate
Claim Denied
Clay Bennett, Chattanooga Times Free Press, see reader comments in the newspaper
Paul Szep, Daily Szep, Huffington Post
Steve Breen, San Diego Union-Tribune
Joel Pett, Lexington Herald-Leader
Matt Wuerker, Politico
A Politician's Prayer
R.J. Matson, St. Louis Post Dispatch
Tom Toles, Washington Post
R.J. Matson, Roll Call
Help is on the Way
Nick Anderson, Houston Chronicle, see reader comments in the newspaper
Matt Wuerker, Politico
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5. The Republican Party: Under Friendly Fire
Chris Britt, State Journal-Register (Springfield, IL)
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Unless the leaders of the Republican Party repudiate the bizarre behavior of a considerable part of their nutty political base and put forth a positive policy agenda, everyone knows it stands little or no chance of regaining political power anytime soon. New York Times columnist David Brooks goes hard against the wingnuts in his own party
Just months after the election and the humiliation, everyone is again convinced that Limbaugh, Beck, Hannity and the rest possess real power. And the saddest thing is that even Republican politicians come to believe it. They mistake media for reality. They pre-emptively surrender to armies that don’t exist.
They pay more attention to Rush’s imaginary millions than to the real voters down the street. The Republican Party is unpopular because it’s more interested in pleasing Rush’s ghosts than actual people. The party is leaderless right now because nobody has the guts to step outside the rigid parameters enforced by the radio jocks and create a new party identity. The party is losing because it has adopted a radio entertainer’s niche-building strategy, while abandoning the politician’s coalition-building strategy.
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Vic Harville, Stephens Media (Little Rock, AR)
Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune
Bruce Beattie, Daytona Beach News-Journal
Rex Babin, Sacramento Bee
Steve Greenberg, Freelance Cartoonist (Los Angeles, CA)
Tom Toles, Washington Post
Dan Wasserman, Boston Globe, see reader comments in the newspaper
Rex Babin, Sacramento Bee, see this diary by Land of Enchantment which gives details on the corruption history and indictment of former Republican Congressman John Doolittle (R-CA/04)
Bruce Plante, Tulsa World, see reader comments in the newspaper
Joe Heller, Green Bay Press-Gazette
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6. Barack Obama's Olympian Effort
Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune
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The Washington Post applauds Obama for at least making a good-faith effort to bring the Olympic Games to Chicago. Meanwhile, Greg Saunders, writing in This Modern World, wonders if it would have been worthwhile to get the 2016 Olympics to Chicago in the first place
While conservatives are laughing themselves silly over Chicago’s failed bid to host the 2016 Olympics, deluding themselves into seeing their own rabid hatred of Barack Obama reflected in the eyes of the IOC, let’s take a step back here. Putting aside for the moment that Rio is an excellent choice to host the 2016 games, if I was on the International Olympic Committee, I dunno if I’d be so keen on hosting the Olympics in the America either. I don’t know how much American news the Swiss receive, but if they saw one of the gun-toting mobs of tea baggers holding signs of the President’s face Photoshopped with a Hitler mustache, it probably wouldn’t do much to help them forget that the last time the United States hosted the Summer Olympics, a right-wing domestic terrorist planted a bomb in the middle of the Centennial Olympic Park...
I’m not saying this is why the IOC didn’t chose Chicago, but if I had to chose a venue for the Olympics, the recent explosion in right-wing lunacy would certainly make me think twice about whether or not it’s safe for the United States to host another Olympic Games.
Joe Heller, Green Bay Press-Gazette
Jim Morin, Miami Herald
Scott Stantis, Chicago Tribune
Jack Ohman, Portland Oregonian
Jeff Danziger, New York Times Syndicate
Scott Stantis, Chicago Tribune
Mark Streeter, Savannah Morning News
Brian Adcock, Scotland on Sunday (U.K.)
John Sherffius, Boulder Daily Camera
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7. Barack Obama and the Democrats
Monte Wolverton, Cagle Cartoons
New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine in Statistical Tie with Republican Challenger Chris Christie
Jimmy Margulies, New Jersey Record
Doug Wilder was the First African-American Governor of Any State Since Reconstruction
Clay Jones Freelance-Star (Fredericksburg, VA)
TOM TROUW Amsterdam NETHERLANDS
Pat Oliphant, Universal Press Syndicate
Obama in Lilliput
Rainer Hachfeld, Neues Deutschland (Germany)
Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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8. The Recovering Economy: To Hell, Michigan and Back (Must See!)
Uneven Economic Recovery
Mike Thompson, Detroit Free Press, see reader comments in the newspaper
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FLASH PLAYER REQUIRED to see below animations
Ed Stein, edsteinink.com
Bob Englehart, Hartford Courant, see blog comment about older cars
Mikhaela Reid, www.mikhaela.net
Tom Toles, Washington Post
Our Globalized Economy
Monte Wolverton, Cagle Cartoons
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9. Environmental Concerns
John Sherffius Boulder Daily Camera
Chris Britt, State Journal-Register (Springfield, IL)
Tom Toles, Washington Post
Jim Morin, Miami Herald
Tony Auth, Philadelphia Inquirer
Is There Water on the Moon?
Jeff Koterba, Omaha World Herald
Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune
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10. China's 60th Anniversary
Rob Rogers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
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Has China arrived as a world power sixty years after the Communists took control of the country? Not exactly, according to this article in the London Times
Sixty years ago, his armies victorious, Mao Zedong stood at the Gate of Heavenly Peace in Tiananmen Square and announced a new era for China after a terrible civil war and the horrors of Japanese occupation. The new national anthem urged the Chinese: "Stand up, those who refuse to be slaves!" and the Communists confidently proclaimed the People’s Republic of China, "the people’s government"...
China also has to face up to its world role. Mr Hu made a good start at the UN General Assembly by taking the lead on climate change, and Beijing has another chance to pull its weight today by helping the West to confront Iran over its nuclear programme. Unless Beijing accepts the need for a firm stand on Iran, Zimbabwe or Darfur, it will fail to live up to the world power status it craves. Too often it sees the world purely in terms of its interests and economic advantage. If this is to be "the Chinese century," it must put aside myth and confront its responsibilities. The Chinese people have stood up — but for what?
Stephane Peray, The Nation (Bangkok, Thailand)
Christo Komarnitski, Sega (Sofia, Bulgaria)
Manny Francisco, Manila Times (Manila, The Philippines)
Stephane Peray, The Nation (Bangkok, Thailand)
Patrick Chappatte, Cartoons on World Affairs
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11. Domestic Terrorism
Mark Streeter, Savannah Morning News
Mike Peters, Dayton Daily News
Chris Britt, State Journal-Register (Springfield, IL)
Walt Handelsman, Newsday
Robert Ariail, robertariail.com
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12. David Letterman: Tonight's Top Ten List
Joe Heller, Green Bay Press-Gazette
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David Letterman has never pretended to be one who champions "family values" like so many politicians who do so in public and, yet, their private behavior conveys a totally different message. Letterman's remarkable confession this past Thursday night may set the standard for how to handle damaging personal information about oneself.
According to this article, his smooth confession was something to behold
The most surprising thing about David Letterman's admission on his television show Thursday night that he was being blackmailed as a result of the fact that he'd had sex with some of his female staffers is that, by 10am this morning, only one of my 600 Facebook friends had mentioned it. A famous, powerful entertainer had a few sexual affairs? The people in my world seem unfazed.
Letterman's audience seemed similarly unperturbed. The show was live, and if people had wanted to boo or sit in judgmental silence, they could have. Instead, they laughed and applauded throughout Letterman's confession. Letterman played his riff for laughs when he could ("Would it be embarrassing if it were made public? Perhaps it would – especially for the women."). But he also seemed to appreciate the gravity of what he was talking about, and even seemed chagrined at times that people were laughing when he was trying to be serious.
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Also see this interesting article in which people working in theater in Chicago evaluate Letterman's apology from a dramatic perspective. It also includes a video story about the extortionist being arraigned in a New York City court.
Jeff Danziger, New York Times Syndicate
John Cole, Scranton Times-Tribune
Dave Granlund, Politicalcartoons.com
Mike Peters, Dayton Daily News
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13. Texting While Driving: Are You a Compulsive Texter?
Chan Lowe, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
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Lowe -- who himself is a texting Luddite -- simply cannot understand why some people would text while they drive, particularly as it endangers other drivers
I have a friend who takes a Darwinian view of people who do dangerous things.
For example, whenever she reads of some hothead on a crotch-rocket who has had a one-vehicle collision with a tree--or a wall--she says, "Natural selection. Not meant to reproduce."
One could put texting while driving in the same category, and just dismiss it as another one of those harmful behaviors -- like eating fast-food burgers and fries -- that Americans love to defend as their God-given right, except for the fact that the compulsive texter may be entering the same intersection at the same time you are from the other direction.
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Chan Lowe, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, see Lowe's earlier blog post about how he believes that texting is corrupting the English language
Tony Auth, Philadelphia Inquirer
Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune
Stuart Carlson, Universal Press Syndicate
Jeff Stahler, Columbus Dispatch
Jeff Parker, Florida Today
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Parker has noticed a significant increase in drivers who text while driving on Florida's highways
Drivers who dial, and have no regard for the safety of other people sharing the same road, are prompting many states, cities and, Federal government to consider crafting new laws banning texting and even cell phone use while driving.
Taking or making calls, and especially texting, while behind the wheel is beyond dangerous, and 90% of the time completely unnecessary. Some studies say it's as dangerous as DWI.
Here's the message I'd love to send (from the safety of the passenger seat) to the next person I see weaving through traffic watching the tiny little handheld screen instead of the road:
HNG UP N DRIVE!!
Steve Sack, Minneapolis Star Tribune
Larry Wright, Detroit News
Walt Handelsman, Newsday
Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Additional Reading
- 'Death by Texting' in The Daily Beast.
- 'Obama to Federal Employees: Don't Text and Drive' in the Washington Post.
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14. R.I.P. William Safire
Mark Streeter, Savannah Morning News
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Along with Pat Buchanan, Bill Safire was one of Richard Nixon's combative speechwriters -- and perhaps best known for coining the phrase "nattering nabobs of negativism" in a speech for then-Vice President Spiro Agnew -- but as an author and longtime columnist for the New York Times, he was also one hell of a writer. He even voted for Bill Clinton in 1992. Today's Republicans could actually learn a thing or two from him.
Former Executive Editor of the Times Howell Raines remembers Safire
In his grasp of political combat and public policy, Bill Safire was one of the smartest men I ever knew. His rigid loyalty to the Republican Party stood in contrast to his intellectual habits, which were liberal in the old-fashioned sense of being comprehensive and open to new information. At the same time, his combativeness and conservative sensibility animated his columns in stark fashion...
Bill was generous also in practical advice for aspiring columnists and book writers. His "Safire's Rules" for opinion writers will, one hopes, transfer to the digital age. As for the books that he churned out for relaxation and money, he said you should always take the highest advance you could get up front and let the devil take the hindmost when it came to subsidiary rights. I shall miss him greatly.
Kevin Siers, Charlotte Observer
Joe Heller, Green Bay Press-Gazette
Scott Stantis, Chicago Tribune
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15. Final Thoughts
Finally, are you a trendy parent?
Dave Granlund, Politicalcartoons.com
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A Note About the Diary Poll
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Chan Lowe, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, see Lowe's blog post on this issue
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No one doubts that Roman Polanski is a great film director. Movies like Rosemary's Baby, Chinatown, Tess, and The Pianist cemented his reputation long ago as one of the best ever. But, he has also been on the run from the law in this country for over three decades on charging stemming from having unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor. Last week, he was arrested in Switzerland and is facing extradition to the United States.
Setting aside the legalities of this case, I am interested in something else. Who is your favorite film director? Not who is the best ever but whose films do you like the most. I've selected fourteen film directors, which means many great ones were excluded. If you happen to like someone not listed, mention the director and films in the comments.
Here is a list of some of the greatest film directors of all-time.
Matt Bors, Idiot Box
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Indie cartoonist Bors expresses his feelings towards Polanski
Defenders of Roman Polanski say his crime occurred a long time ago and we should let it slide. I'm guessing it wasn't their daughter that went to his private photo shoot. All this "move on" stuff sounds like Obama on Bush and Cheney.
Crossposted at Docudharma
