Tag: political cartoon

  • Obama is Moving “FORWARD”

    Bearman Cartoon Obama Forward Slogan

    The Cartoonist Studio Editorial Cartoon Contest has begun.  Click the link or here to go to the voting.  They are in alphabetical order and my entry should be the third one. So if you can, please vote. It looks like I have some great competition.  As long as I stay in the contest, there will be two editorial cartoons a week to vote on – Mondays and Thursdays.

    Regarding today’s editorial cartoon, it seems President Barack Obama has decided to change (haha) his campaign slogan from “CHANGE” to “FORWARD”.  Like many Americans some of his policies I agree with and some I don’t.  So the question is which way are we going forward and even if it is the right direction are we still constrained by our present issues that haven’t been dealt with?  Sometimes we look too far ahead without realizing what is holding us back.

  • The Cartoonist Studio

    No I am not taking a day off today.  I decided to try my hand at an actual cartooning contest.  The Cartoonist Studio is having a political cartoon contest with cartoonists submitting their work and weekly someone is kicked off the island.  While they will have their own judges, you can still vote and influence the results.

    I’ll be posting there 2x a week on Mondays and Thursdays so as long as I remain in the running my posting schedule will be Mondays and Thursday instead of Sunday/Wednesday.  I bet you didn’t even know I had a regular posting schedule did you?

  • Conservatives and Romney

    Editorial Cartoons: Conservatives and Romney

    With today’s editorial cartoon, I have no doubts that a conservative would never vote for Obama to spite Romney.  However it is true that many conservative groups are calling on him to move to the right or lose their support.  So isn’t that really the same thing?  Tony Perkins (no not the actor), of the conservative group Family Research Council said this:  “And so if the party is moving in a different direction, we are not going there.  The only reason there was an alignment with Rick Santorum from our constituency is because Rick embraced the ideas, the policies and the principles that our organization and our constituency believes in…If they don’t, they’re not going to get the unbridled enthusiastic support that Rick Santorum enjoys.”

    So maybe they don’t vote for Obama but more likely just don’t vote.  If you have choice between supporting a guy who agrees with 50% of your beliefs versus one that supports 0% (obvious exaggeration), wouldn’t the logical thing to do is try to get something out of it?  Or do you enjoy bitching about the country for another 4 years?  I guess I will never understand the mindset of the far left/right.

     

    On a different but not necessarily lighter note, I did a caricature tribute to Dick Clark this week.  New Years Eve won’t be the same without you (and please no Mayan jokes…I have heard them in every form the last week. haha)

    Dick Clark in Memoriam Caricature by Bearman Cartoons

  • Editorial Cartoon: Obama and Reagan

    Editorial Cartoon: Obama and Reagan on Taxing the Rich

    So my last politically inspired cartoon poked fun at the Republicans so now it is the Democrats turn.  Time and time again I see Democrats invoking the spirit of Ronald Reagan to shame Republicans into agreeing with their policies.  Somehow Reagan has turned from representing all things evil with Conservatives to the voice of an elder (albeit deceased) elder statesman.

    Recently President Barack Obama invoked a quote from Reagan to defend the Buffet Rule (a plan to up the tax on the rich) calling Reagan (gasp) “a socialist” compared to the ‘Republicans of today.  At the same time he said “Trickle Down Economics” didn’t work…a phrase that was the basis of the Reagan plan.

    The difference is how they are looking to go about it.  Obama wants to raise tax on the über rich…something the majority of Americans will get behind simply because it doesn’t affect them.  However, what Reagan wanted to do was similar to all Republican platforms generally and fight to reduce taxes.  I am not one of those people that clamors for tax deductions.  I think they are a necessary part of living in an advanced society.  However, I hate it when my tax money is wasted because of politics that both sides tend to partake in.

    AND, I agree with Reagan that the key isn’t to just raise taxes on the rich.  It is to remove all the tax loopholes that seem to be available to the rich such that people like Warren Buffet pays less as a percent of income than his secretary.  Hilarious that Buffet will make that point but still take advantage of those loopholes himself.  Simplify the tax code, get rid of the loopholes that seem to pop up and we won’t need to worry so much about whose taxes should be raised or not.

  • Editorial Cartoon: Mitt Romney turns 65

    Editorial Cartoon: Mitt Romney Turns 65

    Former Governor and current GOP Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney turned 65 this week proclaiming that he would not enroll for Social Security payments or Medicare.

    For those unfamiliar, AARP is an organization in the States that has huge interest group focusing on those above 50 on age related issues.  It was formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons.  Historically in the U.S. the retirement age has been 65 though you can get your AARP card which offers discounts on travel, restaurants etc long before that age.  In fact I knew a 30 year old once who had her card.  I guess all you need to do is send in your money and boom, there it is.

    Oh and Denny’s is a national chain of restaurants that specializes in breakfast food.

  • Editorial Cartoon: The Generosity of Warren Buffet

    Editorial Cartoon: Warren Buffet National Debt Challenge

    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.

     

  • Editorial Cartoon: California Winds and Herman Cain

    Editorial-Cartoon Herman Cain California Wind

    So the winner’s of the Editorial Cartoon Caption Contest are Bo Lumpkin and Scott (Jynksie) Jenkins. Pairing up the devastating wind storms in California with the demise of Herman Cain’s campaign was both funny and timely.

    Gentlemen, your prize is a tshirt of the design of your choice from WackSack.com.  So go pick your design and email me your shirt size and address.

    For the losers, you can still get to visit WackSack and drool over the prize you didn’t win.

  • Editorial Cartoon: United Nations Declares Broadband Basic Human Right

    Editorial Cartoon: United Nations Broadband Basic Human Right

    Today’s editorial cartoon was inspired by our friends at the United Nations who last week declared that Broadband internet access is now included in the list of Basic Human Rights. Yes right up there with food, shelter, clean water and healthcare is the right to spank your monkey watching full speed downloads of porn videos. OK maybe you have more lofty goals like coordinating protests ala the Arab Spring over the web.

    But seriously, Broadband?? My in-laws still use dial up and are just fine.  Agree or disagree?  Any other “basic” rights you would add to the U.N. list?

    Nominate Me (or our friends) for Best Webcomic

    The Washington Post is having a contest for the Best Webcomics for 2011.  Feel free to nominate me over and over (or just once) by commenting at the link or even easier, sending an email to comicriffs@washpost.com

  • Editorial Cartoon: Why Occupy Wall Street People are Rightfully Pissed

    Editorial Cartoon - Why Occupy Wall Street People are Pissed

    This editorial cartoon is for my Occupy Wall Street friends.  I am sure I will piss you off with a future cartoon but for now, I wanted to show my solidarity for one reason people should be rightfully pissed.  Companies talk about teamwork and performance, etc etc etc.  But damned if the executives can’t find a way (read excuse) to make sure their bonuses are intact while the rest of us have to do more with less.

    Of course this isn’t a blanket statement for all executives or companies.  So, any examples in your own companies where executives seem to get perks that are continually denied to the rest?

    Oh yeah, 3 panels and 9 people in this one.  You are welcome all you people who think I should spend 3 hours doing one cartoon.

  • Editorial Cartoon: Palestine and the United Nations

    Editorial Cartoon China Palestine and the United Nations

    Today’s editorial cartoon stems from last week when Palestine went to the United Nations to seek full membership to the United Nations in a bid to seek recognition of the Palestinian state as defined prior to the 1967 borders (which includes East Jerusalem and a security zone Israel has not relinquished to the Palestinian Government in the past).  The surprise isn’t that Israel and the United States opposed the plan, the surprise is who publicly did.

    The Chinese Foreign minister is in full support of it.  Oh and so is Saudi Arabia.  Both are known as repressive governments and major human rights violators (see here and here) and yet they continue to join the voice of the United Nations in condemning Israel above all other countries.

    With their actual human-rights credentials off the table, Council members adopted a fixed agenda of only a few items to govern their proceedings. One item is devoted to Israel alone and one to all other 191 UN member states. The Human Rights Commission spent 40 years adopting country-specific criticisms, a third of which condemned Israel. Fifty percent of the “reformed” Council’s country-specific resolutions and decisions are devoted to Israel-bashing. There have been 12 special sessions in the last five years, and half of them have been on Israel alone. There has been only one “urgent debate” on a country — Israel. There have been more human rights reports commissioned on Israel than on any other state. And only one country is not allowed even to attend the lobbying and information-sharing regional meetings associated with the Council sessions — Israel — while “Palestine” is invited to all of them. (source)

     

    Interesting that Israel doesn’t make either of the lists.  Please don’t interpret that I don’t feel Israel holds some fault in their current situation but let’s also be clear.  There is no situation, resolution or otherwise where I see Israel ever giving up East Jerusalem strictly from a security standpoint.  So no matter what other concessions are given, there will likely never be full peace in that region but hopefully a situation where neighbors can leave each other alone.