IRS targeted tea party groups

Posted on May 15, 2013 by - free speech, politics

As if the Benghazi story wasn’t enough to keep Congress in hearings until 2016,  we have the Justice Department seizing  AP phone records and the IRS targeting conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status.   The targeting of any group or individual based on ideology is outrageous and goes against everything our First Amendment stands for.  However, it would have been nice if the same people who are criticizing today would have been as vocal after 9-11 and during the Iraq War.  I don’t remember Senator Mitch McConnell taking to the Senate floor to defend anti-war protesters or denounce then Attorney General John Ashcroft. I also don’t recall McConnell challenging former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer for what he said in response to Bill Maher’s comments about 9-11 or defending the Dixie Chicks when they were widely criticized for their comments about President Bush.

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Bob Mankoff, cartoon editor of The New Yorker

Posted on May 10, 2013 by - free speech, politics, society

Look who wandered into Lexington, Virginia:MankoffTelnaesKothWoodzicka

Actually, Bob Mankoff was in town to speak at Washington and Lee University about humor and cartooning.  Brett Koth (creator of Diamond Lil) and I had talked to a W&L class earlier and then joined Bob and his host, Prof Julie Woodzincka, for lunch.  Bob told some great stories about cartoons which never were printed in The New Yorker.  I had just been talking about cartooning, censorship, and “drawing the line” with students in Julie’s class so it was interesting to hear what The New Yorker would and wouldn’t accept in a cartoon.

The issue about horse racing no one ever talks about

Posted on May 4, 2013 by - society

The Kentucky Derby is today and besides the various articles about the hats and specialty cocktails, some writers dig a little deeper and bring up the darker side of the sport.  They’ll talk about the doping, the horses breaking down and euthanized during races but I rarely hear anything about the age of these animals.   The fact is these horses start their careers at age two- way too early to be ridden, much less galloped at full speed down a racetrack. Horses shouldn’t be started under saddle before age three; some breeds mature late and are started at four.   Their bodies haven’t fully developed so injuries are common and many of them end up as broken, unwanted horses on their way to the slaughterhouse.  Wonder why they’re started so early?  Because if the minimum age a horse could be raced was increased to four, that would mean more care and board cost for the owners and trainers.  It’s pure greed.050508HorseracingPractices

Texas governor Perry attacks Ohman cartoon

Posted on April 29, 2013 by - free speech, politics, society

Last week the Sacramento Bee published this Jack Ohman cartoon:

Screen shot 2013-04-29 at 1.20.05 PMGovernor Rick Perry, who obviously doesn’t understand the point of the cartoon, felt the need to write to the newspaper and demand an apology.  Jack eloquently responded to the governor’s letter here.

Texas Lt. Governor Dewhurst  added his thoughts on twitter:Screen shot 2013-04-29 at 11.36.08 AMA couple of colorful tweets from readers who don’t care for the cartoon:

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Jack’s a big boy.  He can handle criticism; it comes with the job.  The sentiments above are not the problem.  However, he has been receiving threats -which is not ok.  I don’t care what people think the cartoon says or doesn’t say, everyone has the right to express an opinion without fearing for one’s life, editorial cartoonists included.  If you’re angry or offended by a cartoon, you have every right to criticize it- write a letter to the editor, tweet your outrage, draw your own cartoon.  What you don’t have the right to do is threaten or intimidate people for what they say or draw.

For those people people who are still confused  I suggest taking a look at our First Amendment (it’s right before that Second one).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What makes an editorial cartoon an editorial cartoon

Posted on April 24, 2013 by - free speech, society

It’s not news to anyone who follows editorial cartoons that the art form is going through some tough times here in the US.  Because of newspaper closings and the fact that more people are getting their news online, editorial cartoonists are finding it hard to find jobs and decent pay for reprints.   However, It’s also doesn’t help the profession when a cartoon syndicate starts offering the same editorial cartoon with two completely different viewpoints.  Screen shot 2013-04-24 NoneOfThemScreen shot 2013-04-24 AllOfThemThis is a clear case of a cartoon syndicate trying to maximize profits by offering the same artwork but changing a few words to address both ideological sides of an issue.  An editorial cartoon is supposed to have a clear point of view.  Let me repeat that: an editorial cartoon is supposed to have a clear point of view; it should reflect the opinion of the creator.  Otherwise, it’s not an editorial cartoon but just a cartoon. Distributing this kind of work demeans and devalues the profession.

2 bombs explode at Boston Marathon

Posted on April 16, 2013 by - politics, society

Terrible news- 2 bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon yesterday, killing 3 and injuring over 100 people.  Events like this send the television media into overdrive, filling airtime with speculation rather than actual news and facts.  Let’s hope the coverage doesn’t spiral into non-stop, emotionally driven, 24 hour reporting.  I’m not hopeful, though.020203ShuttleColumbia

Thomas Jefferson and the Separation of Church & State

Posted on March 31, 2013 by - free speech, human rights, politics, society

C-Span opened its Washington Journal program this morning with the question “Should religion play a role in politics?”,which led me to think about  Thomas Jefferson’s letter to the Danbury Baptists and the issue of Separation of Church and State.  Several years ago I was fortunate to see at the original at the Library of Congress:danbury_2Very cool.