Updated: Weekend Cartoons
I have so much to get to, and I haven't posted anything substantial in the way of cartoons in two weeks, so while I gather my blogging materials, videos and stories together to bring you lots of posts later on today and early next week, I thought I would post super-sized edition of Weekend Cartoons. There have been lots of significant political happenings in the last few weeks, and regrettably, I haven't been able to post as much as I would like. However, I'm done teaching for the school year - all that is left are final exams, so I've got lots to comment on. Please stay tuned.
As usual, my comments are below selected cartoons. Enjoy.
This one is about as sage of a cartoon as I've seen in a long time. As usual, the press is focusing on the sensational, as it's wont to do, and not focusing on the many systematic abuses by this administration, including the subversion of our Constitution, and the use of the Justice Department (among many other offices and departments) for partisan political purposes. If John McCain is elected, the best we could hope for is that these abuses would stop (and I wouldn't be holding my breath at that); and at worst, none of the abuses by Bush and his cronies would be investigated at all. Actually, if McCain gets elected, we will see both - a continuation of Bush's imperial presidency in many ways, and Bush's misdeeds being swept entirely under the rug.
The Gas Tax Holiday is one of the goddamn dumbest proposals I've heard that has come out of Washington since... since... Bush wanted to privatize Social Security, wait, how about a missile defense system, or how about invading Iraq? I digress.
Anyway, this gas tax holiday is a total sham - a bullshit maneuver designed to pacify very angry voters in an election year, and nothing more. Any person who even passively follows the economy can predict with a high degree of accuracy what will happen if this passes Congress: 1. Gas will never actually go down by the 18-cent federal tax amount. Is there a rational, non-right-wing zealot in America who believes that Big Oil won't simply take up the slack and raise gas by that same amount? Puleeze - this is Bush and McCain's way of lining the pockets of a wantonly disgraceful industry even more. And the only power we have to do anything about it is making our voices heard to our elected representatives in Congress to NOT pass this stupid idea.
2. Our crumbling infrastructure will crumble even further. Does anyone even remember what happened in Minnesota last year? A bridge collapsed and killed over 30 people. Bush's suggestion? Use already allocated money for highway projects to fix urgent problems. Pretty bold and courageous of Bush to have made such a non-proposal proposal when the bodies hadn't even gone cold yet. Our infrastructure is simply another in a long list of America's problems that Bush is kicking down the road to fall into the lap of his successor. By the time financial and other costs come due from this administration's criminal negligence regarding our infrastructure (and other programs), Bush will be playing windshield cowboy at his "ranch" in Crawford, collecting millions in speaking fees (will he be criticized as harshly as Clinton? Doubt it.) and he'll have his $1 billion monument to himself in the form of his presidential library. Thanks, Dubya.
The Gas Tax Holiday ought to be renamed the Common Sense Holiday. I strongly urge all of you to write your legislators and urge them to deep six this stupid, blatantly obvious election year ploy, NOW.
This one was easily the best cartoon I've found yet on Reverend Jeremiah Wright and what the Republicans, and sadly, Hillary Clinton, are trying to turn Obama's association with him into. My full thoughts on this warrant a separate post, which is at the top of my list when I have time to blog later today.
Bush hit his comedic high point the other day when he held a press conference (which I have video of and I'll post later today) last week - he went out of his way to not say the word recession. As if that's going to do anything. I'm sick to death of the media, and our "leaders" in Washington, debating incessantly over whether we actually are in a recession, or not. Ask any American who works for a living (that would leave out most elected people in Washington) and you would indeed find out that things are very, very bad, and likely to get worse in the weeks and months to come.
Unlike the national media, I'd much rather see the Democratic Primaries play themselves out, even though it's pretty obvious that neither candidate is going to secure the nomination on votes alone. DNC Chairman Howard Dean's ruling that the Florida and Michigan votes won't be counted is one of the dumbest decisions the Democrats have made on a national level in years, and it could come back to bite the party big time in the fall election. It's not hyperbolic to say that it could even in fact make John McCain president (heaven help us).
Our stimulus checks are on their way - thank God! We can all breathe easier now - like magic, all will be well with the economy by July 4. Sigh. Yea, sure, Mr. President. I heard earlier this week that Congress isn't ruling out another stimulus check for late summer or early fall. Sure, I could use the money, believe me, but how politically transparent would such a move be, right before the election? And that's not to mention how reckless such a decision would also be, considering the government would have to borrow the hundreds of billions to pay for such a move. Big Oil must be laughing its collective ass off - "Woo Hoo! Now Americans have more money to pay our inflated gas prices! C'mon, Congress! Pass another Big Oil Retirement Fund Economic Stimulus Package!"
It should surprise no one that ethanol is NOT the solution to our energy crisis - not by a long shot. But, politicians have been grandstanding on the issue for years now, and Bush is high on the list among them. Democrats aren't innocent , either, especially since the Iowa Caucuses are first on the long list of presidential primaries and caucuses. Farmers who have been beaten to death in this country for a long time have had honey poured in their ears about ethanol and what it can do for the farmer. There has to be, must be a better solution for energy than burning our food so we can drive our cars around. Our politicians must be nuts.
I was encouraged by the increased visibility of Earth Day activities this year - it seemed more omnipresent than ever, and that's not a bad thing. What's more, citizens who really wish to do something to make a significant impact on the environment have more options than ever before, but, we still have light years to go to solving the climate crisis. Sadly, but not surprisingly, it's going to have to wait until the next president and Congress are in office for anything more than political grandstanding to take place. Of course, now Bush has his legacy to think about, and part of that legacy is being one of the most environmentally unfriendly presidents in history, so now he's trying out all sorts of window dressing to dumb down the criticism. Wow, we're going to do something about our greenhouse gas emissions by 2025! Wooo! Pardon me if I don't pop the champagne. Hell, it might be too late by 2025 to do anything about the climate crisis. What's more, it's just like Bush to place the burden on his successors, when he's done NOTHING to improve the environment, and so much to actually worsen it.
I was outraged, but certainly not surprised at the recent Supreme Court decision requiring voters to show I.D. when showing up at a polling place to vote. This is the conservative court's blatant voter suppression tactic, bar none. And if McCain gets elected, we can expect more democracy-subverting decisions like this one. More on this in a separate post.
Air America Radio host Thom Hartmann has been screaming about this issue for years, and rightfully so - the real election issues in this country are paperless voting machines that can be easily hacked, and most importantly, ELECTION fraud, not VOTER fraud. Take a quick guess how many election fraud cases have been prosecuted in the past two years. G'head, take a guess.
...
...
Three! But, the Supreme Court agrees to hear this, and then makes a ruling clearing the way to make it more difficult for millions of elderly voters to actually vote. It's not a coincidence that most of these voters skew Democratic in elections. Nor is it a surprise that a conservative-led court ruled in favor of its own party. This should be a RED FLAG to everyone - if there's another Gore v. Bush situation, circa 2000, it's no mystery which way this disgraceful court would rule. Get out there, get registered, get active, and most of all, VOTE in November. Be a loudmouth about it, too; this is no time for subtlety.
Thank GOD the Pennsylvania primary is over - I was growing weary of all the political ads and commercials. I have to admit that I was very wrong about one thing - that Pennsylvania wasn't going to have a voice in who the Democratic nominee is, and it looks like the results of Pa. will loom very large in making Hillary the nominee, or preventing Obama from getting the nod for the fall election. However, I still contend that if Pa. had moved its primary forward to Feb. 5, maybe we would have a nominee by now. Count the presidential primaries as one in dozens of things that Pennsylvania, unlike most other states, just can't seem to get right. Hey, at least we'll be major players in the fall election. I intend to be PLENTY active once the Democratic nominee is decided, and I'll keep you all up to speed on all my activities.
The food crisis also deserves a separate post, which I will post later today or tomorrow. The bottom line is that yes, there is a global food crisis, and the U.S. is not completely innocent of being a major factor in the causes of it. Undoubtedly, we still don't realize how lucky we are in this country. We are paying higher prices, and those prices really hurt, but at least we have food and, and most of us have the means to buy it. Many countries can't say that.
Howard Dean is on record as saying that the Super Delegates will be pressured to pick a side after the last primaries on June 3. Sounds like a plan to me, Howard. I worry if he'll pull this off, though, since he's screwed up so many other times in the recent past. Here's hoping that by the end of June, the presumptive nominee is raising money, and going out on the stump against McCain.
Our immigration policy is a low-down disgrace. In fact, it's near catastrophic. What's even more despicable is how the right is turning this into this year's wedge issue. And it's about time people get mad and really try to do something about it. More on this soon.
As usual, my comments are below selected cartoons. Enjoy.
This one is about as sage of a cartoon as I've seen in a long time. As usual, the press is focusing on the sensational, as it's wont to do, and not focusing on the many systematic abuses by this administration, including the subversion of our Constitution, and the use of the Justice Department (among many other offices and departments) for partisan political purposes. If John McCain is elected, the best we could hope for is that these abuses would stop (and I wouldn't be holding my breath at that); and at worst, none of the abuses by Bush and his cronies would be investigated at all. Actually, if McCain gets elected, we will see both - a continuation of Bush's imperial presidency in many ways, and Bush's misdeeds being swept entirely under the rug.The Gas Tax Holiday is one of the goddamn dumbest proposals I've heard that has come out of Washington since... since... Bush wanted to Anyway, this gas tax holiday is a total sham - a bullshit maneuver designed to pacify very angry voters in an election year, and nothing more. Any person who even passively follows the economy can predict with a high degree of accuracy what will happen if this passes Congress: 1. Gas will never actually go down by the 18-cent federal tax amount. Is there a rational, non-right-wing zealot in America who believes that Big Oil won't simply take up the slack and raise gas by that same amount? Puleeze - this is Bush and McCain's way of lining the pockets of a wantonly disgraceful industry even more. And the only power we have to do anything about it is making our voices heard to our elected representatives in Congress to NOT pass this stupid idea.
2. Our crumbling infrastructure will crumble even further. Does anyone even remember what happened in Minnesota last year? A bridge collapsed and killed over 30 people. Bush's suggestion? Use already allocated money for highway projects to fix urgent problems. Pretty bold and courageous of Bush to have made such a non-proposal proposal when the bodies hadn't even gone cold yet. Our infrastructure is simply another in a long list of America's problems that Bush is kicking down the road to fall into the lap of his successor. By the time financial and other costs come due from this administration's criminal negligence regarding our infrastructure (and other programs), Bush will be playing windshield cowboy at his "ranch" in Crawford, collecting millions in speaking fees (will he be criticized as harshly as Clinton? Doubt it.) and he'll have his $1 billion monument to himself in the form of his presidential library. Thanks, Dubya.
The Gas Tax Holiday ought to be renamed the Common Sense Holiday. I strongly urge all of you to write your legislators and urge them to deep six this stupid, blatantly obvious election year ploy, NOW.
This one was easily the best cartoon I've found yet on Reverend Jeremiah Wright and what the Republicans, and sadly, Hillary Clinton, are trying to turn Obama's association with him into. My full thoughts on this warrant a separate post, which is at the top of my list when I have time to blog later today.
Bush hit his comedic high point the other day when he held a press conference (which I have video of and I'll post later today) last week - he went out of his way to not say the word recession. As if that's going to do anything. I'm sick to death of the media, and our "leaders" in Washington, debating incessantly over whether we actually are in a recession, or not. Ask any American who works for a living (that would leave out most elected people in Washington) and you would indeed find out that things are very, very bad, and likely to get worse in the weeks and months to come.
Unlike the national media, I'd much rather see the Democratic Primaries play themselves out, even though it's pretty obvious that neither candidate is going to secure the nomination on votes alone. DNC Chairman Howard Dean's ruling that the Florida and Michigan votes won't be counted is one of the dumbest decisions the Democrats have made on a national level in years, and it could come back to bite the party big time in the fall election. It's not hyperbolic to say that it could even in fact make John McCain president (heaven help us).
Our stimulus checks are on their way - thank God! We can all breathe easier now - like magic, all will be well with the economy by July 4. Sigh. Yea, sure, Mr. President. I heard earlier this week that Congress isn't ruling out another stimulus check for late summer or early fall. Sure, I could use the money, believe me, but how politically transparent would such a move be, right before the election? And that's not to mention how reckless such a decision would also be, considering the government would have to borrow the hundreds of billions to pay for such a move. Big Oil must be laughing its collective ass off - "Woo Hoo! Now Americans have more money to pay our inflated gas prices! C'mon, Congress! Pass another Big Oil Retirement Fund Economic Stimulus Package!"
It should surprise no one that ethanol is NOT the solution to our energy crisis - not by a long shot. But, politicians have been grandstanding on the issue for years now, and Bush is high on the list among them. Democrats aren't innocent , either, especially since the Iowa Caucuses are first on the long list of presidential primaries and caucuses. Farmers who have been beaten to death in this country for a long time have had honey poured in their ears about ethanol and what it can do for the farmer. There has to be, must be a better solution for energy than burning our food so we can drive our cars around. Our politicians must be nuts.
I was encouraged by the increased visibility of Earth Day activities this year - it seemed more omnipresent than ever, and that's not a bad thing. What's more, citizens who really wish to do something to make a significant impact on the environment have more options than ever before, but, we still have light years to go to solving the climate crisis. Sadly, but not surprisingly, it's going to have to wait until the next president and Congress are in office for anything more than political grandstanding to take place. Of course, now Bush has his legacy to think about, and part of that legacy is being one of the most environmentally unfriendly presidents in history, so now he's trying out all sorts of window dressing to dumb down the criticism. Wow, we're going to do something about our greenhouse gas emissions by 2025! Wooo! Pardon me if I don't pop the champagne. Hell, it might be too late by 2025 to do anything about the climate crisis. What's more, it's just like Bush to place the burden on his successors, when he's done NOTHING to improve the environment, and so much to actually worsen it.I was outraged, but certainly not surprised at the recent Supreme Court decision requiring voters to show I.D. when showing up at a polling place to vote. This is the conservative court's blatant voter suppression tactic, bar none. And if McCain gets elected, we can expect more democracy-subverting decisions like this one. More on this in a separate post.Air America Radio host Thom Hartmann has been screaming about this issue for years, and rightfully so - the real election issues in this country are paperless voting machines that can be easily hacked, and most importantly, ELECTION fraud, not VOTER fraud. Take a quick guess how many election fraud cases have been prosecuted in the past two years. G'head, take a guess.
...
...
Three! But, the Supreme Court agrees to hear this, and then makes a ruling clearing the way to make it more difficult for millions of elderly voters to actually vote. It's not a coincidence that most of these voters skew Democratic in elections. Nor is it a surprise that a conservative-led court ruled in favor of its own party. This should be a RED FLAG to everyone - if there's another Gore v. Bush situation, circa 2000, it's no mystery which way this disgraceful court would rule. Get out there, get registered, get active, and most of all, VOTE in November. Be a loudmouth about it, too; this is no time for subtlety.
Thank GOD the Pennsylvania primary is over - I was growing weary of all the political ads and commercials. I have to admit that I was very wrong about one thing - that Pennsylvania wasn't going to have a voice in who the Democratic nominee is, and it looks like the results of Pa. will loom very large in making Hillary the nominee, or preventing Obama from getting the nod for the fall election. However, I still contend that if Pa. had moved its primary forward to Feb. 5, maybe we would have a nominee by now. Count the presidential primaries as one in dozens of things that Pennsylvania, unlike most other states, just can't seem to get right. Hey, at least we'll be major players in the fall election. I intend to be PLENTY active once the Democratic nominee is decided, and I'll keep you all up to speed on all my activities.
The food crisis also deserves a separate post, which I will post later today or tomorrow. The bottom line is that yes, there is a global food crisis, and the U.S. is not completely innocent of being a major factor in the causes of it. Undoubtedly, we still don't realize how lucky we are in this country. We are paying higher prices, and those prices really hurt, but at least we have food and, and most of us have the means to buy it. Many countries can't say that.
Howard Dean is on record as saying that the Super Delegates will be pressured to pick a side after the last primaries on June 3. Sounds like a plan to me, Howard. I worry if he'll pull this off, though, since he's screwed up so many other times in the recent past. Here's hoping that by the end of June, the presumptive nominee is raising money, and going out on the stump against McCain.
Our immigration policy is a low-down disgrace. In fact, it's near catastrophic. What's even more despicable is how the right is turning this into this year's wedge issue. And it's about time people get mad and really try to do something about it. More on this soon.
Labels: Weekend Cartoons
posted by RJ at 8:13 AM
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