DC Comics – We Can Be Heroes

DC Entertainment (aka DC Comics) has decided to step up for aid to Africa with their We Can Be Heroes Campaign.  Essentially they are putting the Justice League Superheroes (Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, etc.) up front to drive awareness and raise money for famine relief in the Horn of Africa.

Better still they are matching funding dollar for dollar for the first $1 million.

And while this isn’t time for my typical charity drive, I am doing a special one off this week on Google Plus.  For those on Google Plus who want to help, click here to see my post there, and then share it.  For every share of that post I get this week, I’ll donate $1 up to $500 total.

Editorial Cartoon: Caricature Fail

 

This cartoon was inspired by my attempts over the last 4 months to do more caricature work.  If you get a caricature done by me or someone else there are several reactions you may have.

1. Wow that picture is great and it looks like me.
2. Wow that picture is great but I am not sure it looks like me.
3. That picture isn’t good/flattering but it does look like me
4. That picture sucks and it doesn’t look anything like me.

I have run the gamut of reactions to my own work, though I have only had one person actually tell me number four (yet more probably felt that way).  I had my wife, and biggest critic, look over the work and she said “Yeah it looks like her, she just isn’t that attractive.”  I find that women are way more sensitive to you pointing out prominent characteristics in caricature.  I tend to go more realistic versus cartoony as I do with men.

A piece of advice I got from Jerry Dowling, former Cincinnati Enquirer editorial cartoonist and caricature artist, is that you should over emphasize the size of women’s eyes…they seem to like that.  He may or may not have said something about boob size too, I can’t remember.

He related a story of live drawing a caricature of a woman as her husband was looking over his shoulder.  Suddenly, her husband, who obviously thought the drawing wasn’t pretty enough, said “Don’t you know she is a former Beauty Queen.”  To which Jerry handed him his pen and said “Great, so you finish up the drawing”

Bob Ross & Daryll Collins Mash Up

My friend and former Cincinnati illustrator Daryll Collins has finally decided to start a blog at CartoonSuccotash.com.  And he has started off strong by mixing the iconic landscapes of Bob Ross with his own cartoons.  For those not familiar with Bob, he had a show on public television for years where he taught people how to oil paint landscapes in about 10 minutes.  In fact I have one of his follower’s works hanging in my house (thanks mother in law).

If you get a chance go give Daryll some love and encouragement.  We want more.

Editorial Cartoon: The Generosity of Warren Buffet

Today’s editorial cartoon was inspired by a blog post from Jeff Jena that blasted Billionaire Warren Buffet for his pittance of a challenge to Republicans in Congress.   Now on one hand, I agree with Buffet that certain tax shelters need to be right sized.  CEOs who take little salary yet rake in stock options because Capital Gains are charged at a lower rate than income.    In the late 80′s and 90′s that rate was closer to 30% and now it is somewhere around 15% so there is precedent for a higher rate.  And we are familiar with the notion that Buffet paid less as a percent of income in taxes than his secretary.  Maybe Warren should start paying her in stock instead.

A Republican pushed through the Buffet Rule Act that gives individuals an option on the tax form allowing them to give more to the IRS to lower the national debt.   Buffet responded saying he would match any Congressional Republican’s donations to the debt dollar for dollar.  While it can be looked at as a “put your money where your mouth is” bet, it is CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP on his part.

Based on recent data, Buffet’s net worth is somewhere around $50 billion and the entirety of Congress is around $2 Billions (well overpaid but still 25x less than Buffet).  Let’s put that in perspective you and I could understand.  It would be the same as someone earning $100,000 a year (Person A) saying he would match dollar for dollar in donations that someone earning just $4,000 (Person B) did.  Let’s say they each donate $1000.   That is only 1% of Person A’s income while it is 25% of Person B’s.  $1000 to Person A is nothing so even if all the Republican’s in Congress donated 100% of their yearly income, it wouldn’t even put the slightest dent in Warren’s pocketbook.

 

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