CSotD: Pandemic-omonium

When I got to Bado’s blog today, I thought, “Man, that was fast!”

Turns out this wasn’t a quick response to Trump’s self-aggrandizing Fox interview at the Lincoln Memorial but an older cartoon which was part of the portfolio that won Serge Chapleau top honors among Canadian cartoonists.

 

And then I saw that Morten Morland had reprinted a “Trump in front of Lincoln” panel in response to Trump’s ridiculous claim that he is treated worse than Lincoln, but the cartoon is actually from February, drawn in response to our No-Evidence/No-Witnesses impeachment show trial.

You don’t even need to draw fresh cartoons. He does the same dumb stuff repeatedly.

For my part, I don’t know whether Trump’s statement tells us more about his lack of historical perspective or his colossal narcissism, but we can start with the fact that my own historical knowledge doesn’t turn up another case of a president setting up an interview at a national memorial.

The “colossal narcissism” argument, however, is well represented by his whining over questions about his policies, which he apparently thinks should not be asked.

He not only has no idea how badly Lincoln was treated but has apparently never watched any presidential press conferences.

Now he’s planning a trip to Mount Rushmore  for a Fourth of July appearance in front of the only heads in America that are bigger than his own.

 

And, for the record, he’s not just an embarrassment in Canada and Britain but also in New Zealand, as this Rod Emmerson cartoon indicates.

Someone objected a few weeks ago to my referring to our President as “Dear Leader.”

For the record, of course, that name belongs to one of the harshest, most murderous tyrants on the planet.

This guy:

When Trump says he, for one, is glad Kim is alive and well, he’s probably got the math right.

But reporters don’t ask that Dear Leader any horrible, nasty questions. They treat him even better than Lincoln!

 

Juxtaposition of the burly lesbians

(Michael Ramirez)

(Rick McKee)

Two cartoonists demand that we respect women and look into Tara Reade’s story, since in-depth, exhaustive reporting by the NY Times, Washington Post, Salon, Nation and other publications has left the matter entirely unexamined.

And they emphasize their demand that all women’s claims be respected by noting that the #MeToo movement is made up of fat, unattractive women of uncertain sexuality.

Granted, this is “spin” and thus fair play.

It just seems an odd approach to winning the women’s vote.

Progressive cartoonists who had also been attacking Biden for being accused seem to be easing up as he responds and as Reade’s credibility crumbles, but, whatever their motivations at the time, at least they didn’t go out of their way to intentionally insult women in the process.

 

Juxtaposition of the Day

(Peter Schrank)

(Martyn Turner)

These appear very similar, but look closer: Schrank portrays the locked-down house as a prison, with bars on the windows.

Turner has the inhabitants complaining about their confinement, but delivers an unexpected, humorous punchline in that pink bubble, which I would add is an interesting way to indicate a change in speakers.

 

Also on the topic of lockdown, Moderately Confused offers a joke that, alas, I’ve seen play out in reality.

It’s probably a good thing that many people are overcautious, though unless the person stocking the shelves (or bringing groceries to your house) sneezes on the packaging and you pick it up still wet and then scratch your face, there’s not a lot of danger in your groceries.

Better safe than sorry, I suppose, though, if you’re living in an urban area, you’re exposed to a lot more risks than lurk on the outside of a can of beans.

I’ve been getting flashbacks to an educational piece I wrote on risk assessment back in the 90s, inspired by my assistant who served beef stew to her boyfriend’s daughters.

The little girls burst into hysterical tears because, if they ate it, they’d get mad cow disease and die.

Now we learn that, because a pug in North Carolina tested positive for the coronavirus, you must not let your dog play with other dogs.

There are approximately 61,080,000 dogs in the United States, one of whom has picked up the virus.

Your dog is far, far more at risk of catching distemper, rabies and/or worms from other dogs than of catching the coronavirus.

And I probably shouldn’t have pointed that out.

Anyway, if you’re in North Carolina and you see a pug, it’s probably safe to pet it, as long as you wash your hands when you get home, but don’t lick its muzzle.

I have no idea how many pugs there are in North Carolina, but I’m sticking by that advice.

 

While way down yonder in the Antipodes, First Dog on the Moon is listing all the things people have accomplished during the lockdown. You should go read the rest.

It is indeed an ill wind that blows no good, though Francesco Marciuliano noted on Twitter the other day that one of his neighbors has decided to take singing lessons and it’s apparently not going so well.

Which reminded me of the fellow next door in my dorm freshman year who had mastered the first half dozen chords of “Sitting on the Dock of the Day” on his electric guitar, but was flummoxed over where it went next. Repeatedly. Often.

However, he was on the hockey team, so we didn’t object.

 

Dave Grunland posted this yesterday, and I don’t know if he was mixed up on the date or wanted to give us a heads up in time, but Mother’s Day is this coming Sunday, so you’ve still got time to come up with a cunning plan.

Preferably one that doesn’t include infecting that silver haired mother o’ mine. Or yours. Or anybody’s.

 

Back to Ben

King Features still hasn’t gotten Vintage Big Ben Bolt back on track yet, so here are the next five episodes:

 

This is not the plumber he’s looking for: