CSotD: Critiques & Random Thoughts
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I’m not doing political cartoons today, but here’s one anyway. I like Patrick Chappatte’s effort at attempting to suggest a cabinet appointment more ridiculous and inappropriate than the ones that are really being proposed. But I think it’s because the art is particularly appealing.
A lot of cartoonists are trying, and failing, to come up with nominations more outrageous than the real ones. There are only two explanations for Trump’s choices, one of which is that he truly has slipped a cog, which I wouldn’t rule out.
The other is Ann Coulter’s theory — mentioned here yesterday — that he has a cunning plan and is offering absurd choices so the Senate can reject them and then accept his real proposals out of a sense of fairness.
On the one hand, that’s silly. On the other hand, as others have pointed out, George W. offered Harriet Miers as a Supreme Court nominee — as seen in this 2005 Henry Payne cartoon — and after that ridiculous concept was laughed away, he put up Samuel Alito, who was accepted.
Well, who knows? One of the things about dealing with a con man is that, when you’re standing on the sidewalk with an envelope full of newspaper clippings instead of money, you realize he wasn’t as dumb as you thought he was. Or, certainly, as dumb as you.
In any case, trying to out-stupid the actual nominations is pointless. Your allies already agree and you won’t convert anyone else.
Speaking of con men, there seems to be a flood of people leaving what Elon has left of Xitter and if you decide to be one of them, First Dog on the Moon offers some advice on how to fill the vacuum in your life.
I agree with his analysis of the three major alternatives, and I invite you to join me on Blue Sky, where I’m @csotd.bsky.social and there seem to be a lot of cartoonists gathering.
Here’s a list of the cartoonists I’ve found so far, but we’re at the jump-in-and-hang-on stage, so don’t take it as definitive. But it should help you get started.
Also and on a related topic, if you are a cartoonist who would prefer I link to your Substack or other site when I feature your work, let me know. My only rule is that it should be someplace without a paywall so that people can enjoy your work and then maybe decide that they want to help you keep going.
Speaking of which, here’s a link to our page where fans can chip in to support their favorite cartoonists. Given the state of the industry, it’s important that readers step up because the corporations sure aren’t pulling their own weight these days.
And, of course, don’t forget Comics Kingdom and GoComics. If you can afford a cup of coffee once a week, you can afford to subscribe to them.
Juxtaposition of the Day
I understand that we all need security and stuff, because the last thing I want is for someone to break into my Facebook page and see what I had for lunch. But when I got a new computer, Facebook locked me out of my personal page, which is the third page they’ve trashed on me.
My favorite was the first time, when they demanded I prove I was old enough to be on Facebook. Three copies of my drivers’ license were insufficient to prove that I was over 12 and should have access to a page I had set up 17 years earlier.
However, while they never agreed to let me back in, they did allow someone else to clone it and start inviting my old friends to friend him. Security for hackers, but not for thee.
As for Pig, one of my other sites demanded my name, address, DOB and SS# and then told me I needed to log in to finish logging in, which was problematic since they still wouldn’t let me reset my password and they sure weren’t gonna tell me the old one.
Most of my experiences, however, have been more like the fellow in the Stephen Collins piece, including the factor that all I wanted was a blooody tarnip.
And even though I said I wasn’t doing politics today, Jeff Stahler (AMS)‘s piece is too relevant and on target for me not to share.
Today’s B.C. (Creators) isn’t about on-line security but it did ping me on the topic of Threads, which is an okay site except that they have “topics,” which are like hashtags. You can click on one and then you’ll be connected to everyone who likes that topic.
Forever. There’s no way to click back off.
I learned this the hard way by clicking on a Writers topic, whereupon my feed filled with people who probably have very clean desks because now they’re spending all their time on Threads, marveling over the Oxford comma and the fact that, y’know, English is kind of a mongrel language with a lot of oddities.
I’m semi-sympathetic, because back when I was trying to be JD Salinger, I joined a writers’ group or two where we’d sit around and talk about writing.
But I finally realized that there are people who talk about writing and there are people who write, and you have to decide which you are.
Anyway, if you join Threads, watch out for those “topics.” You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.
On a lighter note, today’s Mr Boffo reminded me of what a great mother I grew up with.
I was a card-carrying member of the Mickey Mouse Club, watched the show every day, got the magazine and was disappointed to learn that the Triple-R wasn’t a real camp and you couldn’t spend your summers there.
And I liked Annette, of course, but my pre-pubescent crush was on Doreen, whose obit in 2018 justifies my affection, since she later became a publicist for Frank Zappa and outraged Walt by posing wearing mouse ears and naught else.
My mother, bless her heart, waited until she was in her 80s and I was in my 50s to tell me how much she had hated those pathetic, over-programmed, grinning little plastic robots.
(I think Mr. Boffo got it right.)
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