|
Cagle Privacy Policy
|
 |
FEBURARY 27, 2007
YOUR COMMENTS ON MY COLUMN ABOUT AMATEUR CARTOONISTS
Wow, we sure got a lot of comments on my column about amateur
cartoonists (below) Here
are some selections:
Sorry that you are inundated with people that want to share
their ideas with others. I feel you are throwing the baby out
with the bathwater. I am sure thier are many cartoonists out
there that are worthy of recognition. I send my cartoons to my
friends and aquaintainances and they seem happy to received them.
I have no intention in going to competition with you but you
sound like 'I've got mine and the door is closed'. Nlot very
nice. Bert Rechtschaffer
thank you for giving
me some insight into a profession my daughter thinks about entering
in her future
yours is one of the emails i eagerly anticipate seeing in my
inbox to give me information and laughter
i'll look for your PayPal address on your site
regards, chandler wiland
I promise. No submissions
from me. Keep up the good work. It really does the soul good
to see others who get what's going on as well.
Sal Bovoso
Yours is not the only profession or
job that is going to disappear. My grand children and great grandchildren
will pay to change a faucet what I paid to se a doctor any kind
of job that have to use your hands is junk and they will not
touch it. And thanks for your cartoons sometimes you make some
body's day. VMS
I am an aspiring artist so I can
understand frustration, but I know I have to be different than
everyone else! My work looks like some others I have seen and
that will not get me anywhere. You have to standout and create
your own style to move in the direction you want. Maybe I don't
have the creativity to move where I want, but that's life. The
wannabes need to realize this and maybe understand being a cartoonist
isn't really the direction they need to go. As you said a cartoonist
is a dieing field and really need to look at themselves if they
want a change in their lives. Maybe being a cartoonist isn't
the change they need. It could be something else altogether.
Good article.
Bob Klinkhammer
Bad day at the office then......
Alan Brown
You make it sound like a tough business....and
I'm sure it is, but if it weren't for the professioanl cartoonists
to show us the humor in our day to day lives....Jesus....what
do we have left? You guys are great! Please keep it up. - Judy
Whitford
May you never fade away. John Vrugtman
Daryl
Cagle,
You want to complain about losing your
job? I lost mine two years ago. If it goes away, life will somehow
go on. Don't whine, Daryl.
Run for President. You'd probably do as well or better than some
of the folks who now want the job or who have had it.
At least with a cartoonist President, Al
Queda would have a real target and maybe it is also about time
we had a President with a real sense of humor, unscripted.
Bob Baumann
New York City
Thanks, you stopped me cold in my
tracks, I was just about to send you a really, really, really
funny cartoon idea concerning an outhouse on the White-House
lawn.
Sharon
Daryl, I want to thank you for today's column.
I have been a wannabe for some time now. I do follow politics,
can draw, and have what I feel is a intuitive nature.
I also have a very good "day job". So I can cross Editorial
Cartoonist off of my to-do-list and just enjoy the work of others.
Warmly, Don Morris
I do write, but I can only draw
flies, so I exercise my primary abilities--reading and laughing!
Thanks for all you do to feed this life-enriching addiction.
Now I'm making these words more than lip flapping by buying one
of your books... Paul Frey
Daryl,
I'm so relieved to have read your column... I was just on the
verge of sending you a suggestion that the three parties now
wrangling over the dead body of Anna Nicole Smith be "somehow
illustrated with a game of 3-card Monte."
Whew! Glad I didn't do it! ;-)
Gene Halpern
I hope you're wrong - I think you
guys portray more intelligence in a single cartoon than some
writers with a 2 page article in Time, plus they are enjoyable
- what a bonus. I really enjoy this website and I hope you continue
it.
All I do is build more and more retail stores in America's malls
- you do know we don't have enough?
Sincerely, Ron Griffin
You should run for President.
You really do have a clue, you can see the big picture;
it would be nice to be able to say that about our fearful leader.
Seriously, I love your cartoons.
Judy Gosnell, OR
STAY!
Your profession can in NO WAY fade away! Why do you think
people like myself look for the second section with your cartoon
and editorials before even glancing at the front page?
Anne Starritt Gunnison
Wow Daryl, bad day?
It saddens me to hear you say your profession is dying and print
media is being crushed.
I'm trying to do my part by subscribing to two daily papers.
Just want to let you know, you and your cartoonist brothers are
appreciated.
Best always JH
Hey, it's ok, man. Sometimes, 'ya
just gotta vent
Patrick Tueth
You could write a weekly column just
on the subject of BEING a cartoontist...that was really very
funny, Cagle and don't worry i KNOW i don't have any talent (except
the wash-tub bass and the kazoo) ...keep up the good work and
write if you get a raise!
Micheal Moore
Wow, Daryl, do you LIKE getting hate
mail from paranoid whack jobs? Or are you starting a letter-bomb
collection? I have a couple of suggestions:
- stop opening your mail, right now.
- offer to testify against a mafioso; better,
offer to testify about an al Qaeda sleeper cell in the vice-president's
office. The paranoids in D.C. will believe anything about sleeper
cells -- if they were obvious, they couldn't be sleepers. This
will get you into the witness protection program and give you
the opportunity to keep you and your family safe.
- post your cartoons to the syndicate using
a gmail account. or a hotmail account. or a yahoo account. Open
a new account every couple of weeks.
- you don't really want a phone, do you?
Seriously, thanks for the newsletter. As
an ex-pat in New Zealand, it's great to get your postings, cartoon
collections, etc. I weep for your profession and it's prospects.
(And the political cartoonists for the
Dominion Post here in Wellington are singularly unimpressive;
perhaps you should emigrate. Do protected witnesses get to leave
the country?)
Kind regards,
Edward C. Horvath, Ph.D.
Mr. Cagle,
Why do you think that your profession is 'fading away'? Surely
there is as much (or more) room for editorial cartoons on the
web as threre ever was in print...
Good luck,
Dave
Mr. Cagle:
Your commentary on unsolicited submissions from aspiring, if
untalented cartoonists, was remarkably arrogant, and lacking
in compassion.
I'm sure that it must be boring, frustrating, and generally unrewarding
to be deluged with offerings that have no place in your mailbox,
but your elitist, condescending tone is downright annoying. Perhaps
you've lost sight of the fact that your success rate as a "professional"
isn't always 100% either. How much would you enjoy it if nothing
but withering disdain were heaped on you, every time one of your
cartoons fell short of the mark?
The sort of remarks you have made, may well have their place
at the family dinner table at the end of a long and frustrating
day, or when engaging in "shop talk" with your fellow
cartoonists, but your tirade against those who are not fortunate
enough to have professional, or even high amateur levels of talent,
really diminishes my opinion of your professionalism. It was
at best, unnecessary, at worst offensive.
Capping off your tirade against the artistically challenged,
with a polemic about the state of political cartooning, and the
decline of it's habitat in the print media has me wondering,
have you ever sought help for depression?
I hope you feel better tomorrow.
Sincerely,
Greg Wood
You are hilarious!
And you make think in pictures, but you do pretty good with words,
too!
Thank you for working hard on a pittance of a salary to help
amuse us. It's sort of like my job, exec. director of a non-profit
theatre company. Except I don't draw.
Don't stop--ever--we need you.
Alice B.
Excellent article. too bad the same can
not be said for the so called "real journalists" that
somehow seem to get their articles publish regardless if anything
they write is true.
You could have at least given the "wannabes" some kind
reasoning as to how to go about getting published. Surely, they
can't ALL be bad.. maybe they are...
I sure like yours though and thank you for your honesty.
I am not a wannabe cartoonist, nor do I wanna be one... i am
glad you are though.
Sincerely,
Ben Fuller
Daryl,
I am saddened when you comment on the demise of your profession,
as it should have a place in every newspaper and many magazines
around the world. I am amazed that the readers don't respond
and encourage the papers to keep or increase the content that
you & your colleagues provide. It will be a sad day if &
when your demise becomes reality. I hope it never does!! I enjoy
reading your cartoons every time - whether I agree with the point
or not. And I have enjoyed the fact that you share your podium
with others, as it helps open my eyes to others in your profession
who might have a different take on an issue.
Hang in there, as I know you will!!
Maurice A. Miller
I truly love the cartoons, not
all of them. Some are EXCELLENT, most are very good. In time
i suppose the really good cartoonists, like the Middle class
will just fade away. Undoubtedly our government does NOT appreciate
cartoons. The politicians would love them if they the cartoons
would make them the politicians wealthier. If gives me a lot
of pleasure when you people depict the Politicians as they really
are, NOT what they think they are.. Keep on annoying the government
fools,,,,,they deserve it. Al Mellen
yo,daryl,
loved and hated your piece on the state of the political catooning
proffession.loved it cause it was well written...hated it because
it was true!
best wishes, john larter
Justin Bilicki sent me the comment below. See Justin's cartoons here. Justin is a winner
of the Locher Award as best collecg editorial cartoonist of the
year.
Hey Daryl,
Wow. Your rant (below) on the reality
of editorial cartooning was brutal. I agree with every point.
Even though I draw 5 cartoons per week, I also work 50+ hours
at my day job as an advertising art director. Could I survive
on the daily toons and still eat? No. Do my cartoons suffer because
I frequently draw them after a twelve hour workday? Yes. The
question I've yet to answer is why do I still do it if it pays
less than working at Wal-Mart. I guess that answer is editorial
cartooning is not a "job" but a passion. The luckiest
few find success if they can combine the two and live comfortably.
If those aspiring cartoonists knew what it really takes, they
may put their crayons down and continue doing something else
they think they're good at.
Take care,
Justin.
 FEBRUARY
24, 2007
Too Many Cartoonists, Too Little Time
By
Daryl Cagle
Whenever cartoonists get together we complain
about syndicates (the businesses that sell our cartoons to newspapers).
Cartoonists are no businessmen -- we want syndicates to be like
mothers to us, selflessly nurturing our careers so we don't have
to sully our minds with yucky business thoughts, when we'd rather
be thinking about cartoons. But syndicates don't act like mothers,
and cartoonists have some very colorful names for the syndicate
executives who sell their work - in fact, some of these colorful
names include the word "mother."
In addition to being a political cartoonist
myself, I run a small syndicate that specializes in editorial
cartoons; I see that there must be one thousand aspiring cartoonists
for every working professional, as I'm deluged with unsolicited
submissions that are truly awful. At times like this, when people
are passionate about politics, the inner political cartoonist
emerges from the psyche of the talentless "wannabe."
Many wannabe cartoonists recognize that
they have no drawing talent, but it seems that everyone thinks
they are a writer. I get many submissions from writers who are
looking to collaborate with editorial cartoonists. These writers
want to send me gags, or want to find cartoonists who will draw
their gags. Here is a typical gag submission:
"So, we have President Bush standing
there, and he says, 'Things are improving in Iraq' and behind
him you see two massive armies, the Shiites and the Sunnis, about
to fight each other, and the sky is filled with thousands of
U.S. helicopters, then, in the next panel ..."
These are people who think in words, not
pictures. For some reason, this group of wannabes includes lots
of lawyers who think they are funny. I think lawyers are funny,
but I laugh at-them, not with-them; and it is a dark humor that
makes me want to go take a shower afterwards. These guys just
don't get it. The cartoon writers often send obvious or trite
gags that they think are brilliant and original. Sometimes the
writers follow up with angry mail when they notice that another
cartoonist has "stolen" their gag.
The second group of wannabes do their own
drawings, but can't see how truly awful their drawings are. These
guys like to use computer fonts in their cartoons instead of
hand lettering. Often they will use clip art in their cartoons,
or lift photographs from the web, or they will use simple objects
like squares and circles, and then have these objects making
comments in speech balloons. These wannabes frequently don't
know how to work their scanner and will send murky gray images
that show crinkled paper backgrounds from the napkins they drew
their cartoons on.
One thing aspiring editorial cartoonists
have in common is paranoia. I get inquiries like this: "I'm
really funny and I have some great ideas, but I need to know
how to get them copyrighted first so you won't steal them."
I have a notice on our syndicate web site
that that says: "We do not accept and will not review unsolicited
submissions from cartoonists." Often the submissions come
in with a note saying, "I know you don't accept submissions,
but ... "
 Ambitious
aspiring cartoonists see syndicates as gatekeepers, guarding
a barrier to the success they deserve. Sometimes the passion
and perseverance of these wannabes can be frightening. They find
my home phone number and my home address. Drive and perseverance
in the face of adversity is a virtue, so their quest never ends.
Some horrid amateur cartoonists are convinced
that the world of professional cartooning is a closed shop, an
old-boy's network where success is a matter of who you know.
Wannabes try to be friendly with my employees or cartoonist colleagues,
hoping that the relationship will get them past the barrier.
Many terrible submissions are forwarded to me by friends.
When I was an aspiring cartoonist I thought
the syndicates were arrogant for sending form-letter responses,
or for ignoring submissions - but now I understand why. For many
wannabes, any response is an invitation to argue. The aspirants
are convinced that their work is great and anyone who doesn't
"get it" needs educating. Giving a polite brush-off
sometimes fuels their anger.
Ironically, editorial cartooning is a terrible
business. Newspapers pay only a few dollars a week for packaged
groups of talented cartoonists who are, in turn, poorly paid.
The professionals compete for fewer and fewer staff cartoonist
positions at papers that are cutting back, as the internet crushes
print. More and more professional cartoonists can't make ends
meet. The syndicates aren't really a barrier to success for the
aspiring cartoonists, just a hurdle on the road to more frustration
in a dying profession.
My profession is fading away, I'm poorly
paid and there are thousands of rude, talentless wannabes who
want my job - but Britney Spears shaved her head - at least the
life of a professional editorial cartoonist has its little pleasures.
Cartoons by Daryl Cagle and Ares
 FEBRUARY
23, 2007
Don't miss our latest MSNBC.com
Week in Political Cartoons Slideshow!
FEBRUARY 22, 2007
Sandy Huffaker's drawing of Britney Spears made me laugh. See
our Britney Spears cartoons.
That Darn Time Magazine
Time Magazine
has stopped running editorial cartoons again. The last time they
dropped cartoons was after 9/11, when Time's narrow perception
of editorial cartoons as jokes seemed inappropriate in light
of the tragedy. Now the cartoons are gone because nobody cares;
Time tells us that they haven't gotten any reader complaints
about cartoons being dropped from the magazine..
 I have mixed feelings about Time running
political cartoons. It is a great venue for our art form, and
we want more readers to appreciate editorial cartoons, but Time
was as bad as Newsweek in their choices of cartoons, often
picking cartoons that were stale, Yahtzee gags. Their choices
of funny, inoffensive cartoons so closely matched the preferences
of Newsweek that Time and Newsweek would
often run the same cartoon in the same week, which must have
been an embarrassment to them.
Even so, it is sad to see another venue
for editorial cartoons fade away, without so much as a complaint.
Cartoonist
Paresh Nath from the National Herald in New Delhi, India had
a short hiatus from our site, now he's back. Click here to see more of Paresh's cartoons.
Welcome back, Paresh!
  Paresh
Nath, National Herald, New
Delhi, India
Want to run Paresh's cartoons in your publication? Just e-mail
cari@cagle.com. Visit an archive of the artist's most
recent cartoons in the drop menu at the right. Click on the cartoon
to e-mail it to a friend. |
|
 FEBRUARY 17, 2007
Our new MSNBC.com slideshow is up! Come take a look.
FEBRUARY 14, 2007
Happy Valentines Day! be sure to visit our Valentines Day cartoon section, click on
a cartoon to email an e-card to a friend!
I'd like to welcome a talented new cartoonist
to the site, Tim Campbell from Indianapolis, Indiana.
That's one of Tim's cartoons below right, you can see his archive
here, and e-mail your welcome greeting to
him at TCampbell5@indy.rr.com
FEBRUARY 9, 2007
AIN'T ENOUGH ROOM IN THIS TOWN FER THE
TWO OF US
Most cartoonists go on a modern pilgrimmage
each Summer to the San
Diego Comic Con, the largest comics convention, held the
last week of July this year. I enjoy it, even though I don't
have anything to do with comic books. The event has grown to
be so huge (well over 100,000 attending) that it encompasses
all areas of cartooning in one way or another. I see lots of
editorial cartoon fans there; I sign books and visit with my
colleagues. It is a fun and busy time for me, even though I don't
draw superheroes.
Why write about a July convention in February? Because it is
almost impossible to get a hotel room in San Diego - even now,
more than six months in advance. This is the week that Comic
Con hotel room blocks became available and sold out immediately,
causing a stir among frustrated cartoonists and fans. The system
works like a radio contest where everyone calls the same phone
number at the same time, the moment that calls are allowed, and
the 106th caller wins. Online reservations were no better. I
ended up finding a modest hotel room through Hotels.com for twice
their normal, retail rate (over $400 a night). Sorry folks, all
the hotel rooms in town are gone now.
San Diego just isn't a big enough town
for the cartoonists anymore.
Visit our new MSNBC.com cartoon week in review
slideshow. (Cartoon by Mike Lester)
We got some goofy entries to our contest,
asking readers to count the cartoons in our Best Political Cartoons of the Year, 2007 Edition
book (BEPY), and compare them to the cartoons in
the competing Best Editorial Cartoons of the Year, 2007 Edition
book (BECY). Hardly anyone took me seriously and
actually counted, but some of the entries were pretty funny.
One cartoonist sent me an accurate count of the number of cartoons
about the Danish Muhammad cartoon issue in the BECY book (12, scattered through the book),
and that was the only accurate count I received. I can see that
our readers are not cut out to be accountants - but they made
me laugh.
 FEBRUARY 4, 2007
Read My Column About Political Cartoons
Then Write About Something Else,
by Daryl Cagle
As a political cartoonist, I'd like to
think my cartoons influence public opinion, but that rarely happens.
People love a cartoon that they already agree with, and hate
cartoons that they already disagree with. Editors like to choose
editorial cartoons that they know their readers will like, so
cartoons end up being a reflection of public opinion. In fact,
political cartoons offer a great historical tool, giving a true
picture of the opinions and emotions of a society at any given
time.
Historians seem to have discovered political
cartoons only recently, and I've started seeing a steady stream
of scholarly papers about my profession as college professors
and students suddenly look to my work and the work of my colleagues
to support their political positions. One widely held canard
seems to be popular among the academics: that the world supported
the USA after 9/11 and this support was then squandered by the
Bush administration's adventures in the Middle East.
 Academics like to look at the cartoons drawn immediately
after the 9/11 attack where, around the world, almost every editorial
cartoonist drew the same image of a weeping Statue of Liberty.
I drew one too. In fact, most cartoonists are ashamed of their
weeping statues; we wish we could have a "do-over"
where we wouldn't draw the first image to come to mind. Newspaper
columnists all wrote much the same column right after 9/11, but
it is easier to notice matching cartoons than matching columns,
so cartoonists get the bad rap for "group-think." Even
so, our matching cartoons were what the public wanted to see
at that time and I probably received more mail from readers who
loved my weeping Liberty than any other cartoon I've drawn.
International political cartoonists revile
the USA in a uniform drumbeat of daily digs at America. The academics
don't notice that international political cartoons before 9/11
were almost as negative about America as the cartoons now. After
our matching, weeping statues, the American and international
cartoonists diverged. On 9/12, American cartoonists started drawing
patriotic cartoons portraying resolve, strength, and the virtues
of the New York Fire and Police Departments, standing tall as
twin towers. American cartoonists drew scores of images of a
strong Uncle Sam, threatening eagles and a newly militant Statue
of Liberty, demanding revenge.
 Just after 9/11 the international cartoonists depicted
the irony of mighty America put in its place. A favorite, foreign
symbol for America is Superman, and we saw scores of images showing
both Superman and Uncle Sam defeated, injured, bleeding and grieving.
The worldwide cartoonists treated 9/11 in the way that tabloids
treat fallen celebrities: with delight in the spectacle of a
beautiful actress who is overweight, or getting a messy divorce
-- or better yet, caught in a drunken scene, screaming racial
epithets so that we can see that the rich, powerful, famous,
conceited, fallen star was a hypocrite all along.
Some international cartoonists wrote to
me about the patriotic cartoons; they couldn't believe American
cartoonists would choose to draw such cartoons by their own free
will; we must have been directed to draw that nonsense by the
Bush Administration. Academics have picked up on the idea of
"self-censorship;" that cartoonists somehow didn't
draw what they wanted to draw because the country wasn't ready
for jokes, or editors didn't want to see criticism of the Bush
administration at a time when we all had to pull together.
 In fact, the system worked as it always had: some
cartoonists criticized the government right away, some cartoonists
were joking immediately, most cartoonists held the same opinions
as their readers, editors selected cartoons they agreed with
and thought their readers would agree with. Newspapers ended
up printing cartoons that accurately reflected public opinion,
both here and abroad.
I have a few words for the professors and
college students:
1.) Editorial cartoons show that the rest
of the world didn't like America before 9/11; they didn't like
us just after 9/11; and they still don't like us.
2.) The government doesn't control or intimidate
American cartoonists or editors, now or then. Yes, we really
believe what we say in our cartoons. No, cartoonists are not
hampered by self-censorship.
3.) Please don't ask me to comment on your
paper, thesis or dissertation about editorial cartoons. Just
read this column, then write about something else.
Cartoons above by Steve Breen,
Scott Stantis, Mike Ritter and Gary Markstein.
 FEBRUARY
2, 2007
CONRAD AND THE FISH
Read Dwayne
Booth's (Mr. Fish) article about Paul Conrad in the LA Weekly here.
RESPONSE ON GROUNDHOG DAY
You folks send lots of comments, even when we don't ask for comments.
Some of you understood that Tom Purcell's column (below) about
Groundhog Day was "tongue in cheek" and some took it
seriously. Here are examples of comments from thick headed readers
who didn't get it:
FIRST GOD-- THEN FREEDOM OF SPEECH--NO
PRAYERS IN SCHOOL--- NO OPEN SMOKEING-- NOW GROUNDHOG. LEAVE
IT ALONE ALL YOU TREEHUGGERS ARE THE SAME.
George Wright
Tom,
You're an idiot.
S/F,
Chuck Corpening
St. Louis
I just read your article on Puxatawny
Phil in my local newspaper.
I'm born and bred Pennsylvania Dutch. I'm one of the "small
minded people" who enjoys Phil and his prophesy on Groundhog
Day.
If the only thing you have to complain about is a groundhog,
then you have way too much time on your hands. To you and your
other liberal ACLU friends I say "*&%$ You".
Bill Fava
And here are some of the comments from
our readers who are not satirically challenged:
Dear Mr. Purcell, (& Cari)
I like the way you think and write!
The Cagle Newsletter always makes me laugh and think but your
soliloquies make it better!
As a single woman, living alone, unmarried at 40 (with NO CATS
thank you very much!), I will definitely take your request under
advisement about needing to take care of all y'all single guys
by getting married.
::grin:: In fact, find me a good guy and I'll go for it!
Have a lovely day,
Julie Bechtel
I laughed my ass off! (Looking back..)
Oh... no wait... there it is.
Wendy Skains
Truly enjoyed the article on why Groundhog
Day should be ended.
Very funny. Also liked the cartoon.
EKW
Way to go Tom.
Frank Norton
Beautiful. I'm just living to see rebuttals . ...
Field Ops CPE, Alan Schneider, Dallas TX
The
crazy thing is, in this day and age, I don't know if you are
serious or not.
BarryOptimistic
ROFLMAO
Yea and verily, Groundshrub Day it should be forthwith!
Cassandra Kyle
You're funnily twisted, Tom.
Madelyn Toh
Mr. Purcell, Your take on "Groundhog
Day" is brilliant.
Thank you, Lawrence (of Alaska) Noder
That's very
funny. Great image. Could be a Woody Allen short-story or a bad
country-western tune
Jim Lahner
Speaking as one of the few athiests
with a profound respect for the Christian traditions upon which
this country was founded, I can only say kudos.
Don Preston
On this day when I needed a laugh,
you provided one for me........THANK YOU!!!!
Dennis Moore
FEBRUARY 1, 2007
Remember Jose Varela - the nutty cartoonist
who took over the offices of the Miami Herald with a toy gun?
He got off with no jail time. Read all about it on E&P.
Here is a disturbing column about Groundhog
Day, from our Cagle
Cartoons columnist, Tom
Purcell.
Visit our Groundhog's Day cartoon collection!
The Cartoon below is by R.J. Matson.
Why Groundhog Day Should Be Outlawed
By Tom
Purcell
Punxsutawney Phil must be stopped. The
lovable little groundhog must be stopped.
You know Phil. Every Feb. 2, Groundhog
Day, he is yanked from a tree stump in Punxsutawney, Pa. If he
sees his shadow, his organizers allege, there will be six more
weeks of winter. If he doesn't, spring will be just around the
corner.
Millions have enjoyed this primitive ritual
for years, but now there's a problem.
Groundhog Day evolved from Candlemas Day,
a Christian tradition commemorating the purification of the Virgin
Mary. As this tradition evolved in Germany, it got ever more
colorful.
Germans soon believed that Candlemas Day
could also predict the weather. Somewhere along the line they
began yanking a hedgehog out of a tree stump, and the tradition
was born. When German immigrants settled in Punxsutawney in 1887,
they brought the tradition with them.
Now we have a problem.
How, in this day and age, can any government
body impose on our diverse society any celebration that has its
roots in a Christian faith? Aren't the people of Punxsutawney
providing their de facto support of one religion over the others?
Isn't their outmoded event offensive to those who practice no
religion?
Isn't this annual event, then, out of sync
with the American tradition of separating church and state? If
Santa Claus and Christmas trees are being banished in public
squares, how can Groundhog Day not follow suit?
Groundhog Day is guilty of numerous other
offenses. In Punxsutawney, the event is managed by a group of
men known as the "Inner Circle." These are the fellows
who wear top hats and tuxedos and yank Phil out of the tree stump.
As usual, it is the men who are exploiting
a helpless little creature for profit and greed, and men who
have kept women out of leadership positions within their Inner
Circle clique.
The hypocrisy of these allegedly Christian
fellows is staggering. They talk of how they pamper Phil. That
he lives in a heated home and is fed delicious treats. But then
they boast about one especially disgusting tidbit.
Phil has a harem.
The Inner Circle provides Phil with three
nubile female companions to take the edge off his lonely bachelor
existence. That's right, this band of middle-aged pimps is trafficking
in "woodchucks of the night."
For these reasons, I cannot understand
how, in these progressive times, such an offensive primitive
ritual continues to be celebrated every year.
Sure, I understand that small-minded people
believe such traditions enrich our lives and bring levity to
the hearts of millions.
I understand that American traditions evolved
from a hodgepodge of cultural influences, and that the best of
them celebrate our common humanity.
But still, Groundhog Day as we know it
must end -- or at least be drastically modified.
For starters, we must set Phil free. No
innocent animal should be kept in captivity so that he can be
exploited by greedy capitalists. We must release him back to
his natural habitat immediately.
We can replace him with a less offensive
living entity, such as a tree or shrub. Trees and shrubs cast
shadows, too, and holding them in captivity is much more humane,
since their roots keep them from roaming freely anyhow. (Perhaps
we can call the event "Groundshrub Day.")
Most important, this event should be entirely
secular. Any reference to the Christian past must be deleted
from the official Web site. I was shocked to find such references
on the existing Groundhog Day Web site.
I'm confident that if the men in the Inner
Circle make these needed changes and if they begin admitting
women to leadership positions immediately -- the Groundshrub
Day tradition will continue for many years to come.
If they don't the ACLU is likely to take
these suggestions seriously and file suit within the week.
Tom Purcell is a humor columnist
who is nationally syndicated exclusively by Cagle
Cartoons. For comments to Tom, please email him at Purcell@caglecartoons.com
|
JANUARY 30, 2007
ENTER OUR CARTOON COUNTING CONTEST!
Our readers surely know our Best Political Cartoons of the Year (BPCY) book which we plug incessantly on our
site - but did you know that there is another, competing book
called the Best Editorial Cartoons of the Year (BECY), that just hit bookstore shelves? I
thought this would be a nice opportunity for a comparison cartoon
counting contest.
Contest Part One!
Our BPCY book has more cartoons than the BECY book, 80 pages more, with more cartoons
packed into each page, on average. Here's the first part of the
contest - the first two readers to count all of the political
cartoons in both the BPCY and BECY books and give us the accurate counts
will win a copy of any of our books with an original drawing
by ME on the back page (see the books here). E-mail your accurate
cartoon counts to my loyal editor Cari, at cari@cagle.com,
if you win, Cari will e-mail you back and ask for your book preference
and mailing address.
Contest Part Two!
The competing BECY book has a reputation for not running
strong cartoons that might offend someone - an editorial policy
that is easy to see this year. We devote a large part of our
book to the potentially offensive, Danish Muhammad Cartoons issue,
including the original Danish cartoons along with lots of cartoons
that cartoonists drew about the Muhammad cartoons. I'm not sure
if there is a single cartoon about the Muhammad cartoons controversy
in the competing BECY book. The first two readers to give
me an accurate count of all of the Muhammad cartoons and cartoons
about the Muhammad cartoons in our BPCY book, and in the BECY book, will win a copy of any of our
books with an original drawing by ME on the back page (see the books here). E-mail your accurate
Muhammad cartoon counts to my loyal editor Cari, at cari@cagle.com,
if you win, Cari will e-mail you back and ask for your book preference
and mailing address.
Here are the rules: We won't look at any
of the e-mails until next Monday, so the date that you send your
e-mail to us doesn't matter, so long as it is before Monday;
we're just looking on Monday at all the e-mails we have received
and picking two winners in each category. Our selections are
final. Our choice of the cartoon count is final, and I understand
that there may be some question about whether a particular drawing
in the book constitutes a complete cartoon or not, and I don't
want to argue about the number, so our selection is final without
regard to whether or not you agree with the exact number. (Hey,
the prize is just a book, don't get upset.)
If you have comments about the books after
making your counts, please send them along and we'll post the
most interesting comments here. And, no, I have not counted the
cartoons in the books myself. I don't know how many there are.
And you don't have to buy the books to do this! You can stand
in the book store and count!
|
BECY book (bad)
BPCY book (good)
|
JANUARY 24, 2007
Here is an interesting column about women
and marriage, from our Cagle
Cartoons columnist, Tom Purcell. The Cartoon below is by
Cam Cardow.
Women Without Husbands
By Tom Purcell
All right, ladies, the gig is up. It's
time for all of us to get married, including you.
I refer to The New York Times' recent report.
After sorting through U.S. Census data, The Times determined
that for the first time in American history the majority of women,
51 percent, are living without a husband.
The story tore through the media like a
lightning bolt. A slew of "I am woman, hear me roar"
stories hit the airwaves. The storyline was clear: Women are
finally free and independent now, and the last thing they need
is some sloppy spouse who leaves his socks lying all over the
house.
Well, nuts to that. Look, ladies, deciding
not to marry for your own well-being is one thing, but it is
we you're not marrying in the process. Your decision is killing
single men -- literally.
Single men partake in more risky behavior
than married men. We eat badly, smoke more, and avoid doctors'
offices. We die younger. And we're far more likely to wake up
in a pile of crumpled newspapers still clutching the tequila
bottle we began sipping from two days before.
The reason why is not complicated. We are
social animals. Men and women are very different creatures, but
we were made for each other. The Catholics call it complementarity
-- a man and woman, in union and harmony, round each other out.
Men need to be rounded out, too. Take dust.
Because our brains take in less sensory detail than a woman's,
we don't notice dust the way women do. Thus, married men tend
to live in orderly, dust-free homes, whereas single men, says
P.J. O'Rourke, clean up their place about once every girlfriend.
Though it's not like single women are faring
much better.
The Times article quoted independent women
raving about their freedom and flexibility. A 32-year-old woman
had already lived with two boyfriends and said that if she ever
did marry, she might opt to keep her own place. Another said
she likes being able to sleep on either side of the bed.
Oh, just admit it, ladies. You need us,
too. Sleeping next to a burping, snoring lug of a husband may
not be the stuff dreams are made of, but it sure beats sleeping
alone. And when you hear a prowler rattling the door knob in
the middle of the night, whom do you send to investigate? Your
cat?
I know The Times is eager for a more progressive
society to take hold -- one in which the stodgy traditional marriage
is kicked to the wayside -- but the fact is marriage, imperfect
though it is, is good for us.
Married people are happier, says the Pew
Research Center. They enjoy life more -- they enjoy sex more,
too. Children raised by married couples fare better. Society
fares better. Successful civilizations are built on the stability
that traditional marriage brings.
But despite these simple and obvious truths,
we keep trying to reinvent our nature. We keep trying to prove
there are better ways to fulfill our simple needs -- keep trying
to leave every option open, so that we can be "free"
and "independent" forever.
And we end up alone.
I can't imagine what old folks homes will
be like 40 years from now. There will be an unprecedented number
of elderly single people living alone. No children or grandchildren
will visit them -- no spouse will care for them. I wonder if
The Times will do a front-page piece on that trend, too.
All I know is that my life would certainly
be better if I woke every morning in a full home in which my
children are laughing and my wife is smiling, rather than the
way I often wake now -- with a throbbing noggin' because my single
friends and I over-enjoyed our freedom and independence at the
pub the night before.
Like I said, it's time for all of us to
get married.
Tom Purcell is a humor columnist
nationally syndicated exclusively by Cagle Cartoons. For comments
to Tom, please email him at Purcell@caglecartoons.com
Here are a few comments from our
readers:
I loved your column "women without
husbands". Yep, marriage is great. I find that I no longer
have to think for myself my wife does that for me. I eat healthier
too (when she's not around) and after she goes to sleep I can
watch whatever I want on the TV as long as I have the earphones
in, even the scary shows that I'm not allowed to watch when she's
watching with me.
My dog likes it that I got married too, well it used to be my
dog now it likes my wife best but I still have to take the ungrateful
mutt out to the bathroom.
Don't get me wrong I really do love my dog and I love being married
,most of the time.
I'm just kidding, my dogs not an ungrateful mutt, and I don't
really mind taking it out to the bathroom.
Stan
It sounds nice...that getting married idea.
I go through stretches where I think I might try to find someone
again. But then I remember the first husband, the subsequent
"room mate," and the "I can't make up my mind
what I want" after that. It comes down to how much effort
one wants to put forth, and frankly, most of you aren't worth
the effort. I took care of myself plus them so I might as well
be alone and take care of myself. Besides, most men after age
45 don't want women their own age--they want someone who looks
like their daughter. If you all would grow up and act like mature
adults, maybe more of us would be married. Until then, I'll eat
whenever I'm hungry, move the furniture myself, sleep on whichever
side of the bed I choose, and send one of my cats to check out
the strange noises.
But, hey, thanks for the chuckles!
Kathy
Harrisburg, PA
Thanks for the article; I hadn't
realized I was in the majority. Now I can heckle my married friends
about not being single, right?
My deepest fear is being without family
at the end of my life. It's almost making me want to reproduce.
Nice to know that if my nightmare becomes reality I won't be
the only one. Let's all hope there are bars in retirement homes
by then. I think consumer demand will require it.
Cheers
Jessica Glebke
Missoula, MT
Dear Mr. Purcell,
I enjoyed your comments to Mr Cardow's cartoon (no-sex marriage).
Ever since the young women have become emancipated, jobs for
men have diminished. Many professions which were formerly reserved
for men have been taken over by women.
The birth-rate has diminished in Germany and other industrial
countries because women prefer to seek a profession and there
is no time to raise a family. Maybe someday there will no longer
be any men and women will have to live by themselves.
Best wishes from a cartoon admirer.
Roland St.Pierre
Germany
Men need to stop expecting women, wives
to take care of them like a mother. It is a share and share alike
world not a chauvinist's dream.
Have A Very Blessed Day --- Cecilia Kuklies, Texas
Hi,
Tom,
Let's see.....married 30 years.....divorced 8. Definitely prefer
the last 8 years, I think. Would I even consider getting married
again. Not a chance. If I find someone special enough to share
my time and life with....I think I'd still insist on keeping
our separate homes. I never want to feel trapped. I need my own
space. That sounds selfish, but some of us spent our whole lives
taking care of others, sharing everything, doing all we could
to be all we were "supposed to be." Tired now. Relaxed
now. Alone is good. "To everything there is a season..."
I really like the season I'm living in now.
JB (Judy) in Colorado
I could not agree with you more!!! That
said...Will you marry me?!! :-) April
Hey Tom,
How old are you? I'm a young 65 and single, and cute. Are you?.
So I propose that we discuss marriage. I will not complain about
snoring if you don't hog the covers. I have to draw the line
at belching or passing gas, but I will compensate by being a
really good cook. If I point out the dust on the furniture, would
you dust it? I'd be running the vacuum at that time. What do
you think?
Donna
Columbus Ohio
JANUARY 23, 2007
THE STATE OF THE UNION DRINKING GAME
Here are the rules for the State of the
Union Address Drinking Game, from our Cagle Cartoons columnist, Will Durst.
George W. Bush 2007 State of the Union
Drinking Game
Raging Moderate, by Will Durst
What you need to play:
·Four taxpayers: One rich white
guy wearing a suit. Cufflinks are nice. Two people wearing jeans,
one in a blue work shirt, the other in a white shirt and one
person wearing clothes rejected by the Salvation Army. Belt and
shoelaces removed.
 ·One
shot glass per person. Everybody brings their own from home and
places it on table. Suit gets first pick for use during game.
White shirt picks next, then Blue shirt. Suit takes last shot
glass as well, and Rags has to beg a glass from other players
when necessary or drink out of own cupped hands.
·20-buck ante for everybody except
Suit who throws in a quarter.
·1 pot of Texas chili and 1 bowl
of guacamole in middle of coffee table with tortilla chips nearby.
Rags has to prepare and serve the chili and guacamole.
·A large stash of beer. Rags gets
the cheapest stuff available. Suit gets whatever import he likes.
Jeans gets any domestic brand as long as it's no more expensive
than Bud, but must pay for all the beer, the bourbon, the chips
and the ingredients for the chili and guacamole.
Rules of the Game:
1. Whenever George W uses the phrases,
"defending liberty," "enormous progress"
or "challenges ahead," last person to knock wood has
to drink 2 shots of beer. If he actually says, "There are
those who envy our freedoms and seek to destroy us," everybody
drinks a whole beer.
2. The first time George W mentions the
tragic events of 9/11, the last person to eat one dollop of chili
off a tortilla chip must drink three shots of beer. The second
time George W mentions the tragic events of 9/11, the last person
to eat one dollop of guacamole off a tortilla chip must drink
three shots of beer. Continue to alternate. If you mis-chip,
drink two extra shots of beer.
3. If George W mispronounces Iraqi President
Al-Maliki's name, drink two shots of beer. If he even attempts
to pronounce the name of Iranian President Mahmoud Amadinejad,
first person to stop laughing is exempt from drinking three shots
of beer.
 4.
If George W makes up a word like "9/11ers or "deterrencism,"
last person to yell out "Strategerie!" drinks two shots
of beer.
5. Every time Senators Hillary Clinton
or Barack Obama are shown in the audience, Suit drinks one shot
of beer.
6. The first time George W talks about
immigration, last person to finish three chips of guacamole has
to drink three shots of beer.
7. If either the vice President, secretary
of state or first lady are caught napping, last person to make
snoring noises drinks two shots of beer. If Senator Robert Byrd
is shown awake, Blue and White drink two shots of beer.
8. Everybody drinks two shots of beer if
President Bush mentions Scooter Libby. Three shots of beer if
he mentions Jack Abramoff. Four shots of beer if he mentions
Osama bin Laden.
9. Whenever George W quotes the Bible,
last person to sing the first eight bars of "Amazing Grace"
has to drink two shots of beer.
10. If George W smirks during a standing
ovation, take turns throwing chips of chili and guacamole at
TV. First person to hit Bush's head exempt from drinking three
shots of beer.
11. If George W tells a folksy Texas tale
with a deeper meaning about not leaving before the job is done,
Suit has to drink out of beer-filled hands of Rags, who gets
to dry his hands on Suit's jacket.
12. Predict the number of applause breaks.
After the speech, drink number of shots of beer equal to the
difference between your estimate and the real number.
EXTRAS:
·Anybody who can identify person
giving the Democratic response doesn't have to watch it.
·If George W uses a heartfelt story
of one of our brave troops, white guy gets to kick everybody
once. Twice if the brave troop is a woman. Rags gets to kick
the suit if Bush reveals the subject of the anecdote is in the
audience. Twice if the brave troop is sitting next to an astronaut.
·Suit takes home the $60.25.
·Leftover beer, chili and guacamole
go home with Rags after he/ she is finished washing the dishes.
Political Comic Will Durst is going to
try and sneak into the event disguised as an astronaut.
Copyright ©2007 Will Durst,
distributed by the Cagle Cartoons Inc. syndicate. Will Durst
is a political comedian who has performed around the world. He
is a familiar pundit on television and radio. See www.willdurst.com for additional information
on Will's performance schedule and listen to his twice-weekly
commentaries @audible.com/willdurst. E-mail Will at durst@caglecartoons.com.
Cartoons above by Mike Lester of the Rome News Tribune and
Mike
Lane, both of Politicalcartoons.com
SEE DARYL TALK!
Here's
a Quicktime movie clip from a recent talk I gave at Wabash College
in Indiana. I'm talking about cartoons I drew that caused trouble.
It is your chance to actually see your frumpled, MSNBC.com cartoonist
in action.
I laughed out loud when I read this article on a college newspaper site
that referred to me as "New York Times cartoonist, Daryl
Cagle." You can read about
my experience with the New York Times below.
JANUARY 22, 2007
LOTS OF RESPONSE TO MY "FIELD GUIDE
TO IRAQ" CARTOON!
The mail started flooding in from my latest
cartoon, so I put the cartoon in the newsletter and invited a
huge torrent of response. The cartoon is below, and some responses
are below that. I'll post more as they come in. The first comment,
by a Mike Gannon, was sent out with the newsletter so many readers
responded to his comments. I also find it interesting that many
readers complain that they don't know how to turn the cartoon
over to read the answer - just lift up your monitor and turn
it over. It's not rocket science.
From: mike gannon
Subject: racist cartoon?
your latest cartoon titled feild guide to iraq is basically racist.
your
saying all these differing groups/religious factions all look
the same to
you. mabey if we get to know these differing people of the mid
east instead
of ignoring them youll be able to tell the difference.
Actually,
the cartoon is all too accurate.
Sgt R.T. Smith
USMC
Q: Who shoots cartoonists?
A: A, B, & H, if he's American, and everybody if he draws
Mohammed. (The Turk will also shoot him if he mentions Armenia.)
Paul Baker
I totally agree w/cha and I think your
toon just shows the battle in Iraq as it really is. For those
who say that you are racist just don't see it and never will.
But saying that it is art and art will always be interpreted
in different ways by different people.
Your newsletter is one the greatest e-mail subscriptions that
I have ever Signed up for.
Have a great day,
Shawn
Your "Field Guide" is a perfect
illustration of why we don't belong there. Our soldiers and Marines
aren't sure who the enemy is and when they do, God forbid, kill
someone, their own country puts them on trial. Great editorial
work.
Ricky Miller
My five cents worth on the Field Guide
to Iraq cartoon is this: I feel that this cartoon says that the
2003 ongoing Iraq pre-emptive strike war is like the 1970's Vietnam
undeclared war, where the distinguishing between friend and foe
is basically impossible. Too many factions, civilians and soldiers
all involved as fighters, casualties, victims in one way or another.
And that the various racists who do exist in the US government
and the US voting population won't care who's really killed and
wounded as long as they get their agenda. I only know your cartoons,
so I don't know whether I like you as a person or not -- yet
I certainly love the majority of your cartoons and many of your
contributors' cartoons as well. Thanks for putting out the cartoon
newsletter -- it keeps me laughing at the insanity in the world,
and I need the perspective!
Lory in New Mexico :)
Why don't we just do what
the Israeli's did to the Palestinians, tell them if they don't
knock it off we are going to bomb them back into the stone age.
Only do a compete job of it and don't stop until all resistance
has ceased. Give them a week to comply and then start carpet
bombing cities (starting with Baghdad) until they remember what
life was like in the open dessert. Then go in and plunder all
their natural resources, seize all their swiss bank accounts,
and leave them without any modern tools. Once the rest of the
region sees the results of this action they will stop all their
senseless bickering.
John Parker
Well well well. I have never been good
at recognizing hate. I still can't recognize it!
Katherine Downing
Racist cartoon. Nope, You're
right. You're exactly right! And you should have been part of
the study group! Keep up the good work!
Dennis Rodgers
I say get our troops the hell out
of there and let A through J all shoot each other! They're going
to do it anyhow, whether we're there or not. Why waste American
lives over there? It's not so much that American lives are worth
more than theirs. We just have the good common sense not to kill
each other simply because we worship the same god differently.
We don't need to get in the middle of crazy people who don't
have that common sense.
Frederick Marvin
Why include the Kurds in this
congregation of creeps? Unless I am missing something, they are
the straight guys. Are they killing Americans? No, even though
we betrayed them. One of their spokesmen was quoted: "We
kill only our enemies". They, unlike the others, have a
legitimate, definable gripe. Their natural homeland is occupied
by Turkey, Iran and Iraq. They have enough problems, without
your tossing them in that bag of bastards.
Chris Malone
Thank you so much for putting into
words and pictures the situation into which we are sending our
troops!!!!! This administration is self-serving and the whole
country is being held hostage by the President and his messianic
agenda.
I have put your ed. cartoon on the bulletin
board in my classroom. Please continue to hold our policies up
to a mirror. Your work makes it harder to miss the truths that
many don't want to see!
Sincerely,
Patricia Lubitz
You nailed it as usual...Its not
racist, its realistic and true
That is why we can't make any headway over there...keep up the
good work
Michael Atlas
You mean to say we jumped head first
into a bear trap in a briar patch?
Aw shucks.....
Lee Greenberg
You had to know you were going to
get the "racist" blowback on this one in this day and
age where truth takes a back seat to the PC culture club every
time. You hit the nail on the head America and the rest
of the west need to realize the nature of the people in that
region of the world; the individuals that have a moderate viewpoint
in that region of the world have two choices: migrate to the
West or suffer persecution/death. People do not throw off centuries
of indoctrination for something as radical as self-determination
just because we give them the opportunity.
Tony Butler
Excellent cartoon.
Sums up well the problems.You may be wrong on a few of these-
I am pretty certain that "D" and "H" also
hate Americans. I also suspect that many, if not most, members
of "F" and "G" hate Americans as well.
One might say to "W", "it's a fine mess you've
gotten us into now."
Keep up the good work.
Michael Fain
I thought this may let you know that
Daryl seems to have it much more together than the cranially
challenged individual who called him a racist.
The situation at hand in Iraq is not now or ever will be, one
with either an easy out or answer. Should we presently decide
to withdraw we will be sanctioning the creation of a new state
in that region of the world, one that includes Iran and Iraq
as a single nation with the ability to control not only Syria
but all of Arabia.
Stay the course? Add twenty thousand troops? Not unless one is
purely political with ulterior motives for personal advancement
within our own government and does not care if we loose that
area to the Iranians. Otherwise put some meat behind our potato
retoric and throw in 100,000 troops and control the area until
they can sort it out for themselves. No war can be won without
control and domination.
Enough...
Greg Cronin
Excellent cartoon! This is how many
of us see the war in Iraq. It is confusing as heck! We don't
see how the Americans can "win" or how "winning"
would be defined. As for reader accusing you of racism, obviously
he is not fighting the war. Even our soldiers say they can't
tell the good guys from the bad guys. Thanks for your tongue
in cheek cartoon!
Cheers,
Jan Hudson
Definitely puts the political turmoil
of the region in perspective. Great job!
Steve Tabb, Westmoreland, KS
Fabulous, fabulous.
A simple cartoon highlighting the extremely complicated and discombobulated
(in the American way of thinking) driving forces in the mid east.
Love the newsletter! Keep up the good work cartoonists everywhere.
Who else dares to articulate the truth than those who draw funny
pictures.
Mary Kenny
I can't read the upside down message.
What does it say?
Bill McGraw, Somewhere South of Chicago
Love it!
Those crazy *&%$s in the middle east would like to think
that they're all distinct, but they're really all the same two-faced
hot heads. They'll be fighting over that worthless pile of sand
long after the oil is gone.
Mike Powers
I loved your 'parsing out' of all
the main groups (let's not forget the Turkomen, Chaldeans, Arab
and Kurd Christians, and the odd non-combatant foreigner). What
is a soldier to do? Even (or maybe especially) our policymakers
in Washington and Baghdad can't keep the groups sorted out.
To mitigate the accusation of 'racism' it might be best to hide
them all behind a wall, since many are invisible to the naked
eye and only become identifiable after making claims for IED's,
sniping, or shooting down helicopters.
Keep up the good work.
Eugene Owen, Annapolis, MD
To Mike Gannon,
Jeez, Mike, get a grip. It's a cartoon. Part of the so-called
"humor" (which, if I am not misinformed, is
an integral part of a "cartoon") is the cartoon's
concept that our government doesn't seem to know who is who over
there. That doesn't mean Daryl Cagle thinks all Iraqis, Kurds,
Turkomen, etc. are alike!
Daryl, you have my deepest sympathy, Keep
it up, buddy!
Best,
Susan Rogers
And this is the Shiite who hated the
Sunni who hated the Shiite who hated the Sunni who hated the
Kurd who hated the Sunni who hated the Chaldean Christian who
hated the Shiite who hated the Sunni who hated the Americans
who hated the ... and all in the house that Bush built.
I'm hoping against hope for the day we all recognize that hate
is humanity's common enemy, that we all realize we're all together
on this spaceship called "Earth", and, as the poet
W.H. Auden said, "We must love one another or die".
Enough of dying.
Lloyd Wallisch
"Field guide to Iraq is one of those painful
cartoons that pushes your face in something you dont want to
see, or admit to - in this case that we are literally murdering
other human beings who we dont know and cant tell apart, and
can even joke about it. I shudder to think that there are people
who might find this funny.
curt clay
Daryl you hit the nail on the head almost
every time you're great
Earl Rhodes
All,
Okay, now I finally understand how to exit a quagmire. First,
up the commitment a bit to 200,000 not 20,000 new troops to send
to Iraq. Second, but most important, re-employ Madeline Albright
to provide a few days indoctrination training so every soldier
may learn to befriend each of the characters on the Iraq stage
set as shown below. Ah, yes, then we may soon declare: Mission
Accomplished yet once again. Yep, you gotta have a plan to stay
the course!
Les
I don't feel for a moment that you're racist!
That's what I see also. Except the Iranians (Persians) aren't
Arabs. However, their religious leanings are the same.
I'm sure we look the same to them....Baptists vs Church of Christ
vs Catholics.
Linda Anderson, Conroe, TX
Some of the people who
have reacted to your cartoon have used the word 'racist'to depict
what you have published.I do not think your pen,or any other,can
show how the men depicted look any different from what I or most
other Americans(or most of the World)have seen on in our Media
for the past 30 plus years,(Iran Embassy Hostages,Palestinian
Terrorist takeover of planes,Jihad here,Jihad there...)One of
my thoughts on 9/11,as I watched the Towers Fall,and Americans
died, for some type of Islamic/Arab hatred of Our Country, that
this was as much a 'racist'attack on America as any religious
or political attack.
Please keep the PEN mighty,it helps keepus ALL Thinking,and ALL
Free.
Thanks, Al Kempf, N.Y.
You done good!! Your cartoon
showed, in a few well-chosen strokes, the many factions involved,
the complex relationships between us, them, each other, their
government and neighboring countries... and the difficulty knowing
friend from foe...
Thanks, Athena Mizelle
Finally, someone with a
clear view of the war...but it still begs the
question: how do we get out without getting shot?
Michael Moore
Thank God someone has finally figured
it out! Please tell George.
Mom in the Desert
Just because you used the same
image does not make this racist. We cannot tell the people apart
perhaps, but not because they look alike..............it is because
they do not want us to know...............
This field guide is a very good illustration of why we (or the
"they" in gov) don't or can't really understand what
is going on and why.
Kristina A.
Sir,
As a Vietnam Vet I can honestly tell you that the cartoon "Field
Guide to Iraq" brought back memories of the problems faced
with telling the "good guys" from the "bad guys"
there. Some may call this a racist cartoon but I would ask, can
anyone really tell the "good guys" from the "bad
guys" walking down any street in any country? Even in cities
of our own?
--Dcrusoe gardener of litlone
PLEASE PRINT ANSWER
RIGHT SIDE UP for those of us who are a tad handicapped
But then I am one of the few who believes it should read WHOM
do you shoot!
Thanks for this cartoon. It does seem to say what is happening.
Cheers,
Patricia
Daryl,
It's tough to be right.
In my opinion, your cartoon captures the hate-filled Mideast
accurately. Religion breeds intolerance.ALL religions but
some have more extremists than others.
Mike Collins
Whether I love or hate you depends
on who's ox you happen to be goring that day. Can't resist taking
a look not matter what.
Fran Whitaker
"A picture is worth a thousand
words."
To quote the late, beloved, 'Lord' Buckley, in God's Own Drunk,
"'cause it was just like a jitterbug dance,
it was so simple it evaded me."
Thomas Glenn, in La Union, Philippines
OUTSTANDING!
It captures all the conflicting alliances, allegiances, purposes,
etc & they all look the same! Great editorial cartooning.
Ginny Wright
Lincoln, NE
I believe that should be whom
do you shoot?
My answer is: Do what we've always done before - let them
shoot each other until only one is left. Then send foreign aid
to the last one standing..... unless he's Al Qaeda
Dick Cheney's answer: Shoot anybody or anything
that moves.
Natalie's (of the Dixie Chicks) answer would be to shoot.....oh,
hell. We know who she would shoot.
Dubya would shoot himself...in the foot.
Great cartoon(s). Keep 'em coming.
Lonnie Wilson
While the P.C. issues are easily
seen here, this IS a political cartoon, so nobody should take
it as any direct reference to the various groups represented.
What this cartoon DOES do very well is explain the unfathomable
quagmire the U.S. has been inserted into by the decision to topple
Saddam. Many thought it a big mistake at the time, and hindsight
is clearly supporting that argument more every day. I think this
is one of the very best and most astute political cartoons in
quite some time.
David E. Wilhite
I think that referring to the
cartoon as racism is missing the point.
Of course you made everyone look alike, because that is just
the issue.
The differences in these points of view and loyalties are impossible
to keep straight unless you live there, know the players intimately
and stay alert. US soldiers don't have a clue who they are to
shoot. They were just dropped in as exterminators. I think it
makes the point that we should not be there at all and definitely
should not be shooting anyone. The cartoon points out our cultural
stupidity and indifference.
Glenna,
I really enjoy your cartoon news service.
Answer:
Don't shoot any of them; just get the hell out of there....NOW!!!!
Nathan Booker, Belgrade, Maine
Daryl,
I found your chart to be very accurate. I don't know if the person
that referred to it as a " Racist Cartoon " has ever
been in a war where your fighting a country's whose people look
more alike than not. As in Vietnam you couldn't tell one from
the other when you were in a close fire fight. You just prayed
you shot a bad guy.
Splinter6
Daryl,
Your cartoon is right on. Your readers who think you are being
racist might do well to remember that in the good ole days of
traditional warfare, armys wore uniforms in order to distinguish
friend from foe.
Given the fact of a civil war is in progress between various
religious and political factions of tribal arabian groups in
Iraq, to suggest that without identifying uniforms they all look
alike is simply good sense.
In point of fact, given the reality that an Iraqi government
soldier (and therefore our friend) may switch hit for a religious
melitia on the weekends (our foe), it can be quite impossible
to tell the players without a scorecard. Maybe that is why it
was said three years that the worst case scenario would be if
the mess devolved into a civil war.
Randy Horton, Yonkers, New York
The correct answer
is they are all Muslims except for the Kurds. All muslims are
our enemies, shoot them all.
Jerry
Too many people have very thin skin. How
have they lived as long as they have? Let's put it this way -
I have no intention of stopping enjoying your cartoons!!
Dolly in Syracuse
______________________________________________________________
I love your cartoons, everyone is entitled
to an occasional screw up.
Wilma Lamb
Hi,
I think your cartoon shows just what the main problems are over
there for our troops...
You can't tell who your enemies are from your friends...
It is not a racial thing, but a common sense thing...
Keep up the good work...
Sandey C.
The field guide cartoon brings to mind
the old saying about not being able to tell the players without
a score card. I think even with one in this conflict, it is hard.
And you left out the local thugs who are just out for financial
gain or are engaged in the never ending cycle of revenge that
plays so prominently in Middle Eastern politics. Remember that
the concept of an eye for an eye (a kinder, gentler response
to insult or injury than was previously practiced) originated
in Babylon, which is, by the way, a tourist site in Iraq. The
cartoon also reinforces that old question, "Is the enemy
of my enemy my friend or my enemy?"
Charlotte Peterson
With Super Bowl just around
corner you'd think folks wouldn't get upset about balls.
Your toon showed balls. Go Chicago!!!!!!
Douglas Reed
Why didn't they use you for the Iraq
Study Group? This says it all.
Great work!
James W. Brown, Jr.
Today's cartoon speaks volumes. Indeed, who do
I shoot.
L. Noder, USMC
How does one "turn over"
the answer to your cartoon?
Isabel Davis
Very, very fine piece! I'd
like Mike Gannon to elaborate on why he thinks ideology is
racist and why this doesn't address one of the central
problems we face in this region.
Keep on drawing!
Eric Vincent
Dear Daryl:
What purpose does a political cartoon serve unless it stimulates
conversation and thoughtful discourse? I loved the cartoon in
question and have already shared it with some "fellow travelers".
You were spot on with that cartoon and don't let the nay-sayers
get you down!
There have been many days during the last four years that your
cartoons have shown us that proverbial light at the end of this
bleak, dark
tunnel. Please keep up the good work...you brighten my day!
Susan Rae
Daryl: remember when, in Vietnam, a big
complaint was that we couldn't tell enemy from friend because
they all wore black pajamas?
Well, the more things change the more the stay the same. Your
cartoon hits the mark right on!
Perhaps in twenty years or so, when our mighty politicians get
tired of sending men to f ight hopeless wars in hopeless places,
we will discover some kind of magic bullet that will, discriminate.
But until then, "semper fi" men and God be with you.
Thanks for the cartoons and your sense of humor . We need them
these days.
Chrysis75
Political cartoons like these are just
as distasteful as the ones published during the Nazi regime.
As a jewish person never again means never again for anyone anywhere.
You crossed the line this time.
Susan Horowitz
Hi Daryl,
I am a regular reader and a first time responder. This cartoon
is very poignant and brilliantly illustrates the mess this leadership
has gotten the U.S. into; bomb first and develop a plan later.
The only problem is that a viable plan was never developed so
young Americans and Iraqi Nationals are needlessly dying at an
alarming rate. There is nothing racial about this cartoon. You
hit the nail square on the head!
Joan M. Silverthorne, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Hey
Daryl -
Couldn't have said it better myself. Now you should do one on
Jimmy Carter's book....
Thanks for the email --
Steve Singer
I think this cartoon does a superb
job of defining exactly what we are up against. Same cartoon,
next question: Which one of these folks do you trust to control
the world oil supply.
Frank G.-Texas
TO MIKE GANNON
Sweetheart, by the time you turn three, you will be able to tie
your own shoes and go potty like a big boy. Then you can go out
in the yard to play for a little while without Mommy. Grow up,
Mike-ey. No damned body is that freakin' naive.
LMcDaniel
It is a provocative cartoon. It provokes
the thinking process, and it's on target. Some people want everything
to be simple. Nothing is. Please keep provoking our thought processes
Eden Eskin
Which one greeted us with flowers?
AB Campbell
Bison, KS
Even though they all look alike in your
cartoon, the one common denominator among all of the groups is
that they declare Islam as their guiding force.
Right on the money, Islam is the problem. And until our government
understands this, there is no hope of success in Iraq.
WALT CAMPBELL
Gillette, Wy
Your answer is wrong. Correct answer
: Kill them all, let God sort 'em out.
Pete Adams
I think you have been inside the mind
of our dearly beloved George W. Does the CIA know of your powers?
Thanks for clearing things up for me.
Eldertwin
We've been following you for several
years and you always come in on the right side!
But this latest effort is the best ever; you covered the situation
with great clarity.
We read this again and again and the only conclusion we can come
up with is, "What the hell are the 32% that buy into this
war and wanting it to continue are thinking?"
Please! Please! Please! Keep up the good work and prayerfully
there will be an awakening!
Thank You So Much.. Ray and Helen Sabbatis
Mike
Gannon misses the point: they look the same to our soldiers over
there in the middle of Bush's civil war. Steve Alcott
I
loved it! That's exactly what makes this so difficult. You cannot
tell who the enemy is. If they tried to tell the difference between
a Baptist or a Presbyterian or a Catholic or any of the other
"christian" groups over here, it would not be any easier
and it's the same thing. Even American's can't tell the difference
by looking. It's not racist!
Hadenough
Daryl,
I have never been to Iraq but I lived and worked in Saudi Arabia
for 5 years.
I am very liberal in my political views and truly believe I basically
unbiased. My Dad taught me to dislike individuals by their actions
and not by their religion, skin color, etc.
Having said all this, I have to honestly say that in my 5 years
in Saudi, I could not find one Saudi I would trust to watch my
back.
First off, their religion - Islam - teaches intolerance. They
have the golden rule --- except when it comes to non-Muslims.
If you are not Muslim, then you are an infidel and infidels are
by religion AND LAW lesser people. A Saudi could run into your
car but it would be your fault because as a non-Muslim, you didn't
belong there.
Secondly, their social structure prohibits questioning the authorities
- religious or civil. In Saudi Arabia, books, magazines and newspapers
are censored. Television is censored though I imagine satellite
TV is making some inroads with uncensored news. There are no
movie theaters.
Thirdly, they don't trust each other. In the Saudi Eastern province
(where the oil is), Shiites make up over 85% of the population
but Sunnis rule. In Aramco, the oil company, only Sunnis were
in managerial positions.
I could go on but I think your cartoon points out the sheer lunacy
of most Arab societies.
Wayne Gossett
You hit the nail on the head. Sometimes
the truth seems to be racist.
Ralph Reichman
Shakespeare said it best "A plague on all your houses".
Albert Whiting
I thought it was great!
Lawana Fleagle
Thanks, Daryl!
Now it all makes perfect sense! I'm not at all confused anymore!
Love your work and your bitingly sarcastic humor. Keep on biting,
and keep them worried and thinking (well, thinking may
be a bit optimistic...)
Bonnie Bouldon
Love it. If it is considered by
some as racist, so be it. Truth has no race.
Chuck Marsh
Love your cartoons.
Bob Faria
This is a great cartoon and says
it all about the Washington morons that are trying to prosecute
a war without knowing who the friends and enemies are. Mike Gannon's
response..that "maybe if we get to know these differing
people" and "Saying...they all look the same"
is all very sweet and nice and if they weren't all shooting
at us, it might be nice to get together over a tall cool one
and sort out our differences. But the fact of the matter is that
they ALL DO LOOK ALIKE and that's not recist, it's just reality
Regards, Don Stone
Daryl,
I spent a lot of time in the middle east
including Iraq and Iran and United Arab Emerites and Israel
About the only think I learned is that they have been fighting
each other for a little over 5000 years If they don't have a
reason to fight and kill each other they invent one
Only 2 things wrong with your cartoon
One I cant read the answers on the upside down part
And two
They are all our enemies if not now then when it suits them to
be and if it is to their benefit they will claim to be our friends.
The president seems to think he can keep throwing troops out
there and solve the problem. The fallacy is They don't want the
problem solved. It is their way of life It has been since the
beginning and will be when our great grandchildren are dead
Should by some miracle They actually come to some accord and
we leave In a year or less They will be right back where they
were before we butted in With a New "Saddam"
They raise their children to believe that it is required of them
to spill their blood for Islam. They have no regard for life
either their own or others. Personally I think we should get
out by next Friday and let them kill each other. The only way
to peace there is carpet bomb them all. Take the sand and oil
Mix it up into asphalt and turn it into a parking lot. They come
to our country and expect everyone here to fall over them and
their beliefs
This is America And as such they can believe
as they wish If they don't like what their neighbors do Go Home
Keep up the good work I love your cartoons
Pony Rein
Getting to know the various Iraqi differing
groups/ religious factions available sounds like an EXCELLENT
idea for Mike Gannon. May he wake up there tomorrow and thus
begin to live his dream! John Hemmis Sr.
How
can we win a war against terrorism? It is not the enemy which
no one in the media wants to identify. Terrorism is a tactic.
We did not fight WW2 against sneak attacks. Why will the media
not identify the enemy? The enemy is Islamofascists. They are
Muslims. What is so difficult about the media identifying them?
Richard Friess
KA8KCR
Dear Cagle,
This one says it all. It is just Great.
William Rogers
I am surprised that people would
claim it was racist. Regardless of whether someone thinks all
Arabs or Iraqis look alike, the point is valid that most of these
people do not look different based on sect or even hometown (their
accents *may* give away some information on which part of Iraq
they are from; their names likely will tell you if they are Sunni
or Shiite; their look does not provide such clues). This very
situation is what makes it a problem for the Iraqis themselves.
They do not know quickly if the person on the bus is from the
other sect, so they are in danger from everyone. If people do
not understand that, they are at a strong risk of not understanding
why this situation is so dire.
regards, Paul
I'm afraid
that you missed one, just maybe we ought to nuke the whole region
and let it go at that. There is NO political or military settlement.
I would doubt that Soloman, in all his wisdom could solve the
mess that Dubbya has created
Jim Hoover.
I would add an option "Z"
to your list: Forget which flag anyone is flying,
Forget the groups each belongs to,
If they shoot first... shoot back!
America must find a better way!
Pat Cassin
a veteran that did pay attention to Viet Nam
Brilliant!
The one email you posted proves that some people don't get it
even if you draw them a picture. Beautiful satire. You are doing
what editorial cartoonists do best. Sometimes you just make my
day. --Daniel Williams
I hope you continue to provide
an "alternative" view point to us all. I left the USA
for Canada rather than face the Viet Nam war as a mother and
tax payer. Canada does generally go along with the US, but fortunately
not in Iraq. That country will likely fall apart after the US
leaves, but the consequence of that seems to me to be less than
the frustrating continued involvement.
Thank you for your cartoons which I enjoy on line in Edmonton,
Alberta.
Mattie Charlene Dyer
 JANUARY 21, 2007
Visit our latest MSNBC.com Cartoon Week in Review. That's Eric Allie's cartoon in the promo to the
right.
Today the New York Times printed a correction regarding the omission
of the attribution for my cartoon, mentioned and shown in my
column below. They write:
Correction: Cartoons
Published: January 21, 2007
A credit on Jan. 7 for a cartoon by Daryl Cagle, about the death
of newspapers, omitted the publication and syndicate for Mr.
Cagle's work. His cartoons appear on MSNBC.com and are distributed
by CagleCartoons.com.
I'm happy to welcome two new cartoonists
from "down under" to our site. The first is New Zealand's
Peter Bromhead, who re-joins us after taking
some time off from cartooning.
Our second addition is my good buddy, Australian
Peter Broelman, who won the most recent "Cartoonist
of the Year" Stanley Award from the ACA (Australian Cartoonists'
Association). Peter is also president of the ACA. That's
Broelman's cartoon below.
I'm delighted to have you on board, Peter, and Peter!
JANUARY 14, 2007
I"m back, sorry for the long vacation.
Be sure to see our latest MSNBC.com week in review.
THE NEW
YORK TIMES AND CARTOONS
Last week The New York Times ran one of
my cartoons. The cartoon showed three kids on a couch with their
laptops and iPods, one says, "Check out Saddam hanging.
Ouch. That's gotta hurt." The next one says, "He's
so dead." The third one says, "Let's look again at
Britney Spears with no underwear." The caption reads, "The
death of newspapers." It is a cartoon that plays well with
newspaper editors who are obsessed with the crass, unedited Internet
that is destroying their business.
 The
Times ran my cartoon in their weekly round-up of editorial cartoons
where they edit the cartoons to remove the artist's signature
and attribution. Typically, the Times will print the artist's
name and attribution alongside the cartoon, as with the two cartoons
above mine where the artist, his newspaper and syndicate are
credited. But in my case, only my name is given, no credit is
given to MSNBC.com, my publication of record, which was erased
from my cartoon and omitted from my attribution.
Although it is traditional for a cartoonist
to sign his work and include his publication name in his signature,
some newspapers object to any mention of a Web site in a cartoon,
or in a syndicated column; the concern is that mentioning a Web
site is like giving the cartoonist or writer a free advertisement.
The Times wouldn't be concerned about their readers picking up
a copy of The Columbus Dispatch, so an advertisement for another
newspaper doesn't carry much value, but a mention of MSNBC.com
might send readers to a serious competitor. This is ironic, given
the subject matter of my cartoon. By itself, the cartoon is funny,
but suggesting that the cartoon came from a Web site - particularly
MSNBC.com, whose audience dwarfs the New York Times - that might
just be too painful for the Times to acknowledge.
The Times calls their weekly cartoon round-up
"Laugh Lines," a title that doesn't sit well with editorial
cartoonists who consider themselves to be graphic columnists.
Like columnists, cartoonists are sometimes funny; sometimes we
want the reader to wince; sometimes we want to bring a tear to
the eye. Some of the most famous cartoons are serious cartoons.
We all drew the Statue of Liberty weeping after 9/11. Bill Mauldin
famously drew the statue of Lincoln weeping after the assassination
of President Kennedy. But don't expect to see a poignant cartoon
running in The New York Times under the title "Laugh Lines."
Many cartoonists decry the trivialization of our profession by
editors who choose to reprint cartoons that are soft little jokes.
Serious cartoons are not so popular with timid editors who want
to avoid offending anyone. We call this phenomenon "Newsweekification"
because of the funny, inoffensive, trivial cartoons that Newsweek
chooses to run each week - just like the Times. The secret to
becoming a popular editorial cartoonist is to be funny and not
express an opinion.
The New York Times reprints syndicated
cartoons on Sundays, but hasn't had its own editorial cartoonist
since the 1950s. More and more newspapers are doing without staff
cartoonists as our profession slowly dies. Top newspapers without
cartoonists include the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times,
USA Today and the Chicago Tribune. There are two famous quotes,
attributed to "the editor of The New York Times," (although
I'm not quite sure just who actually said these). The first is:
"We would never have an editorial cartoonist at the Times
because we would never give so much power to one man." The
second quote: "We would never have an editorial cartoonist
at the Times because you can't edit a cartoonist like you can
a columnist." (He must have forgotten about how the Times
edits the signatures and attributions of out the cartoons.)
A number of cartoonists e-mailed me this
week with the same question, "Hey, Daryl, I saw your cartoon
in the Times, how do I get my own cartoons in the Times?"
I regret that the reality behind the big-time political cartooning
business is a little disappointing. Here's how it works: dozens
of cartoonists around the world e-mail their cartoons to the
Times and other "pay-per-use" newspapers who accept
unsolicited submissions. It is the same thing with USA Today,
send it in and if they run it, they pay $50 - but the Times is
a little different. Instead of just paying $50, the Times doesn't
pay unless the cartoonist notices that they ran the cartoon and
sends them an invoice. The Times doesn't tell the cartoonist
that they ran the cartoon and if they don't receive an invoice,
the Times saves the $50.
Suppose The New York Times dealt with McDonalds
the same way they deal with cartoonists. The Times would say:
"Hey, McDonalds, I want you to deliver
a hamburger to me every day; I may choose to eat it, and I may
not. If I choose to eat the burger, I will pay you for it. If
I don't eat the burger, I won't pay you. I'm not going to tell
you if I eat a burger or not. If you want to get paid, you'll
have to see me eating the burger and then send me a bill, and
the bill must tell me when you saw me eating the burger. I understand
that you'll have to watch me all the time to see if I'm eating
one of your burgers, but that shouldn't be a problem, because
I'm very big and very interesting, and I expect you to be watching
me all the time anyway. If you're lucky, I might eat one or two
of your burgers every year."
There are about one thousand aspiring cartoonists
for every one who actually makes a living as a professional editorial
cartoonist. I'm sure that if the "wanna-be" cartoonists
would actually look inside the editorial-cartoon-burger, to see
how it is made, it would give them a belly ache - a $50, New
York Times-sized belly ache.
FROM THE CAGLE MAIL BAG
Hi
I'm a high school teacher at Black River Falls in Wisconsin -
I teach World History and Economics and had a link to your page
on my school web page - we got a new Sonicwall filter and your
site was blocked - when I asked them to unblock it I was told
that it was inappropriate for students - I checked with the principal
and he said it was not the liberal or conservative viewpoints,
but rather the ?sexual? content. Any ideas?
Kris Wrobel
High School Social Studies
Black River Falls, WI
Hi Kris,
We feature content that appears in general
circulation newspapers; schools often feel that newspapers contain
inappropriate content. If you wouldn't let your kids read a newspaper,
you should not let them visit our site. Our complaints vary depending
on what is in the news - we got lots of complaints back when
the news was about Bill Clinton's cigar and Monica's dress.
I should note that the government of Iran
also blocks our site, so your principal can feel reassured that
he came to the same conclusion as the mullahs.
All the best,
Daryl
Cartoonist for MSNBC.com
CLICK
HERE TO GO TO THE November/December 2006, CAGLE WEB LOG
Artwork © each artist. The Professional Cartoonists Index
is ©Daryl Cagle. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction
prohibited. |
|
