Month: <span>September 2009</span>

Ted Rall is a liberal who hates most things President Obama has done this year. I am (mostly) conservative, who thinks Obama is doing a decent job, although I can’t point out anything in particular that is great. So we’re kind of going in opposite directions, but I enjoyed pointing out to him recently on Facebook that it’s fun watching him hotfoot over to the other side!

capital punishment cartoon

I know Ted only slightly, from a gallery in Santa Monica  that we were both in, Impolitic, that had rather fantastic parties. (Hi, Josh!) We also share the same publishers (NBM and Andrews McMeel), although my books there are about chocolate, and true love cartoons, and  unfortunately he dropped the ball on those topics. (America Gone Wild: Cartoons by Ted Rall and The Year of Loving Dangerously). We’re also both in Slate and Gocomics.

But we had similar cartoons this weekend, both about murder by the state (capital punishment), although we were attracted to different stories. I am disgusted and appalled by states that still believe that they get to play God and decide when someone dies. On PURPOSE. This includes California, my current state. In the incident last week, Ohio did its damndest to kill Mr. Romell Broom for allegedly killing and raping a 14 year old girl. They couldn’t find a vein to torture him with their lethal drugs, which suffocate you and stop your heart. (Why didn’t they try waterboarding?) CNN points out that Ohio has had a few problems in this area before.

The  LA Times had a good article about the attempted execution, saying the Ohio asshat officials wouldn’t allow him to talk to his attorney as it stretched out to 2 hours and 20 minutes, and that he started to cry, covering his face, after an hour. They also said he flinched when they inserted a shunt in his leg. Can you imagine that?!

Weisberg said California is a prime example of a state that retains a death penalty in theory yet rarely conducts executions despite having the nation’s biggest death row, with 685 condemned prisoners.

In California, executions have been on hold since early 2006: Lethal injections have failed to fully anesthetize inmates in six of the 13 executions conducted in the state since capital punishment resumed in 1976.

I think at this point, everyone would agree that it is cruel and unusual punishment in his case. Well, maybe not Ohio. I always liked them before. Not so much now.

Ted’s cartoon after the jump. 

Sad Cartoons See ya later

Fanfiction cartoon about Obama's health care plan

Geez, this health plan has even me upset and feeling bi-partisan – and I live alone! I mean, I HATE my HMO (Kaiser) who screws everyone, lies, is incompetent, greedy, and unethical. Okay, it’s Kaiser. But how is the White House plan any better? First of all, it’s written for people who work in factories, or in unions, or something. Nothing for the self-employed.  

Barack Obama Body Issues

If you tell me, I’ll share the $150,000 reward with you, 50- 50.

It’s unbelievable, this wretched fire is still burning in places, several weeks later. KHTS:

The Station Fire is 94 percent contained, with full containment now expected September 22. So far, the incident has consumed 160,557 acres of the Angeles National Forest which has not seen major fire activity in more than 40 years. It is the largest fire in the recorded history of Los Angeles County and the 10th largest in California history.

As it turns out, my cartoon is right; there was an arsonist, although I have much stronger words for him than crazy. They’ve established that it’s arson – caused by “some substance” – and it’s homicide, since 2 firefighters died. (also, at least thousands of animals, birds, reptiles and trees – DB)

I was really happy that Daily News ran this cartoon the week of the fire. Not much to contribute, but at least I was doing something to bring awareness to the tragedy. I also took photos and posted them on my park blog; I wanted to get the word out that once again, the whole Los Angeles area is vulnerable to wildfires, because OUR TRUCKS AREN’T STRONG ENOUGH.

smokey bear cartoon

But FINALLY -okay, I won’t ask why it took them so long – good old neighbor to the North Canada sent us 2 Super Scoopers! . :( Best part? We get to keep the SuperScoopers til December!

California, here I am Sad Cartoons

I love to talk trash about TV! In my other blog, thecartoons.net.

veatrice, Kimmel's security guard. RIP

I complain about Jimmy Kimmel a bit (especially about how he barely mentioned it when Veatrice passed away), and his lame bits,  over there, but I still do watch him at times. He’s a good interviewer.

I got all excited when you announced one night last week that Governor Rod Blagojevich was going to be on. I did a Blagojevich cartoon a few months ago, and was fascinated by him last winter as he got knocked down and just kept on coming. Plus, I tend to like Mafia types. Your first interview that night was a man who is married to Mariah Carey. Don’t know his name, but that’s all you talked about with him. You were all awkward, kiss-ass, and uncomfortable.

Then Ex-Governor Blagojevich came on (I think he’s ex-gov) to pitch his new book, called The Governor– so maybe he’s not an ex-governor?? I found him very interesting. He said there were a lot of secret tapes that he is NOT allowed to talk about, that would clear his name, and that the whole scandal is upside down. Hmm. I hope those tapes are in the book. So, Jimbo, you let him talk about that – and he is an interesting speaker – and then you made him talk about his hair, and how he conditions it. Funny as hell. The 2 of you hit it off, didn’t you? Youtube.

Entertainment Scandalous cartoons!

UPDATED*

Did Assemblyman Mike Duvall have sex? Maybe!
Mike Duvall had sex cartoon

We know he liked to talk about it, anyway, but…where’s the beef?

The LA Times reports the scandal:

An Orange County lawmaker who inadvertently broadcast explicit remarks about his sexual conquests over an open microphone abruptly resigned from office Wednesday after legislative leaders stripped him of his committee posts and launched an ethics probe of his actions.

The paper doesn’t mention that some of Duvall’s conversation was about him spanking the woman, which seemed to ignite a lot of interest anger.An ethics “probe” was started because one of the women was a lobbyist for a utility company. Okay, sexual favors aren’t okay in the State Senate. But who can prove such a thing? No, it was actually just the fact that he talked about it, and the legislature blushed, as it’s now 2011, and not another thing was heard about this man or his actions!

This writer at the San Francisco Chronicle is very disrespectful of politicians:

Orange County Republicans are like weeds. Cut off one and another will grow in its place.

She continues:

At least Duvall spared his wife, two children, himself, the Assembly and his party by resigning immediately. By not prolonging the embarrassment, he already has begun his rehabilitation.

Yes, Californians will remember Duvall for his caught-on-tape remarks, but they’ll also remember that he chose to exit gracefully.

I read that he resigned within 15 hours. I haven’t found one source, however,  that says he actually DID have sex with these women! 

California, here I am Scandalous cartoons!

Scandalous cartoons!