While the calendar does say March, we realize it's technically too early to truly be talking about Spring, without potentially bringing on one last freak blast of Winter.
We're so sick of Winter this year, however, that we're willing to take the risk.
With the above freezing temps in both of our main locations, and and little bit of springtime weather in the air, we've decided to do some cleanup today, answer a couple e-mail questions from our readers, and pass along something we think you should see, before we all officially head slowly and steadily into the season of spring.
First, the questions.
We've been asked recently, more than once, where you, our readers, can see the previously released Daily Felltoon cartoons, after they slide off the Daily Felltoon page - or away from the pages of media sources like NPR - and the main page of PaulFellCartoons.com.
Once a Daily Felltoon cartoon slides off the main page of PaulFellCartoons.com, it goes into the monthly archive, in the "Editorial Cartoons" section, under "Artizans Toons." Each cartoon there is grouped by month, and has its own URL. You can find your favorite cartoon, copy and paste the link, and send it to anyone.
Along that same line of thinking, we've also been asked recently if we're still looking at adding a tool to each cartoon, which would allow you to click on it, and post your favorite cartoon in Facebook or Twitter or other social networking programs.
The short answer to that second question is, yes - we're still planning on that. Our web guru has been getting settled into his new job recently - and now his job is moving locations. Thus he hasn't exactly had a lot of extra time to add more functions to the website. Still, the groundwork has already been laid for adding a sharing tool to each cartoon, and we'll be seeing if Shawn has time to add that function before summer arrives.
Finally, something we think that more people should see.
An animation from a company known as Cognitive Media was passed around by a few people we know a few weeks ago. It features the voiceover work of acclaimed journalist, author and political activist, Barbara Ehrenreich. It's an animated piece, based on a presentation given by Ehrenreich for The RSA, in January 2010, about optimism and unemployment - and the limits of optimism on the economy and unemployment. Frankly, we think you should just watch the animation yourself, whether you have gainful employment right now or not, and see what you can learn from the video.
We're aware that things appear to be getting better for a growing number of Americans - the economy, the jobless rate, the weather, and more.
We just hope you don't mistake a false day of improvement - in the weather or otherwise - for a wholesale instant change. Things are getting better for most people, slowly and patiently, just like the changing of the seasons.
The best way to enjoy the new improvements in the world is to clean up your own life now, so when things really do blossom, you'll be able to have the time to enjoy them.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Thursday, March 3, 2011
'No Other Way': Crocodile Tears And Other Lies Kids Won't Believe
It's amazing how stupid some adults think kids are.
No, we're not talking about Charlie Sheen. For all the "news" he's made lately, he seems to be a surprisingly good father in some ways. At least when he put his kids in their car seats he didn't lie to them, and tell them he'd see them tomorrow.
Political hacks attacking workers and unions, however, don't seem to be as bright, or have as high an ethical standard as Charlie Sheen.
While continuing to lie to Wisconsinites and other Americans about what his real goal is in Wisconsin, Gov. Walker this week released his state budget for 2012 which contained $834 million worth of cuts to his state's public schools. Walker continues to claim that he's doing what both Wisconsinites and Americans want. However, the overwhelming facts - including the latest poll from the Wall Street Journal - say Americans strongly oppose attacks on unionized workers, meaning Walker's words are just more lies.
His state's GOP-led Senate also quite obviously doesn't seem to care about the desire of the people to find an effective compromise. A GOP-ONLY group of Senate Republicans passed a resolution in the Wisconsin state senate Wednesday that will now fine the senate Democratic lawmakers $100 for every day they miss in the legislature after the first two absences.
Ohio's GOP-led state Senate didn't do much better, passing a bill Wednesday that would gut the collective bargaining rights of public workers, and attempts to strip away their right to strike - a right we've already noted in previous commentaries that has been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in other states.
It isn't that we lack concern for the budget problems of the states or that we have no empathy for states, legislators, and governors who face massive budget deficits created during the last decade. We simply have no patience for those arrogant imbeciles who seem to think that if they wield a bigger ideological hammer, they can still force a square peg into a round hole of a smaller size.
We've quoted Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes on this issue previously: "Taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society." And so they are.
Nowhere, in any legally binding document in this country, does it say that businesses and the wealthy are exempted from paying taxes which would keep roving bands of homeless people from killing said business owners. On the contrary, taxes are levied, as Justice Holmes noted, to keep things running that maintain a civil society.
There are those that believe the wealthy should pay more in taxes - including us. We have also said, however, that before more taxes are imposed, states - like Wisconsin - should be FAR more responsible in collecting the taxes they say they already impose, but really don't.
We're not against the idea of budget cutting, and we've made that clear in the past. We've also made it crystal clear that we think ideas that unions and workers have continued to support - like being willing to contribute more to their pension funds - aren't necessarily bad.
The idea that is truly bad is the one that insane conservatives are continuing to chase - that the budget problems of America's states and cities can be solved exclusively by cutting spending far beyond the point of sensibility, while continuing to drive tax levels below what they were 20, 30, 40 or more years ago.
They are robbing from the futures of our children and lying about it the whole time. From our perspective, they are doing so unwisely. Some day those children will be adults and vote - and will be taking care of the parents and grandparents who robbed them blind, and then lied and cried about it.
No, we're not talking about Charlie Sheen. For all the "news" he's made lately, he seems to be a surprisingly good father in some ways. At least when he put his kids in their car seats he didn't lie to them, and tell them he'd see them tomorrow.
Political hacks attacking workers and unions, however, don't seem to be as bright, or have as high an ethical standard as Charlie Sheen.
While continuing to lie to Wisconsinites and other Americans about what his real goal is in Wisconsin, Gov. Walker this week released his state budget for 2012 which contained $834 million worth of cuts to his state's public schools. Walker continues to claim that he's doing what both Wisconsinites and Americans want. However, the overwhelming facts - including the latest poll from the Wall Street Journal - say Americans strongly oppose attacks on unionized workers, meaning Walker's words are just more lies.
His state's GOP-led Senate also quite obviously doesn't seem to care about the desire of the people to find an effective compromise. A GOP-ONLY group of Senate Republicans passed a resolution in the Wisconsin state senate Wednesday that will now fine the senate Democratic lawmakers $100 for every day they miss in the legislature after the first two absences.
Ohio's GOP-led state Senate didn't do much better, passing a bill Wednesday that would gut the collective bargaining rights of public workers, and attempts to strip away their right to strike - a right we've already noted in previous commentaries that has been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in other states.
It isn't that we lack concern for the budget problems of the states or that we have no empathy for states, legislators, and governors who face massive budget deficits created during the last decade. We simply have no patience for those arrogant imbeciles who seem to think that if they wield a bigger ideological hammer, they can still force a square peg into a round hole of a smaller size.
We've quoted Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes on this issue previously: "Taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society." And so they are.
Nowhere, in any legally binding document in this country, does it say that businesses and the wealthy are exempted from paying taxes which would keep roving bands of homeless people from killing said business owners. On the contrary, taxes are levied, as Justice Holmes noted, to keep things running that maintain a civil society.
There are those that believe the wealthy should pay more in taxes - including us. We have also said, however, that before more taxes are imposed, states - like Wisconsin - should be FAR more responsible in collecting the taxes they say they already impose, but really don't.
We're not against the idea of budget cutting, and we've made that clear in the past. We've also made it crystal clear that we think ideas that unions and workers have continued to support - like being willing to contribute more to their pension funds - aren't necessarily bad.
The idea that is truly bad is the one that insane conservatives are continuing to chase - that the budget problems of America's states and cities can be solved exclusively by cutting spending far beyond the point of sensibility, while continuing to drive tax levels below what they were 20, 30, 40 or more years ago.
They are robbing from the futures of our children and lying about it the whole time. From our perspective, they are doing so unwisely. Some day those children will be adults and vote - and will be taking care of the parents and grandparents who robbed them blind, and then lied and cried about it.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
It's Time For Muammar To Go Write His Book
Even as the attack on workers continues in the U.S., there are places in the world where the conflict has gone beyond words and now includes guns, bullets, and people dying in the streets.
The nation of Libya now definitely qualifies as one of those places.
Most Americans haven't given Libya a second thought over the last 15 years. If they did, it was likely a thought that invoked a comment like, "Isn't that the country run by that crazy dictator dude that was such a thorn in the side of the Reagan administration?"
While that thought may technically be considered correct, it's not exactly a winning Jeopardy answer. In fact, we're confident in saying that description of Mr. Gadhafi is significantly lacking in the specifics regarding the man who is currently losing control of the country of Libya.
There was a time not that long ago, where Muammar Gadhafi was considered by many in the Western World to have been mostly reformed, especially after his actions during most of the last decade.
The Libyan people, however, have been unhappy with him for quite a long time. An unusually long time, in fact.
Gadhafi is one of the longest serving dictators in history, and according to Renard Sexton of FiveThirtyEight.com, Gadhafi's overall despotic track record recently earned him the mocking title of "Best (or Worst) Dictator In History." To say he's been less than kind to his own people would be the understatement of the century.
Because of that track record, with the recent political upheavals throughout Northern Africa and the Middle East, those familiar with the region and the country aren't entirely surprised at Gadhafi's fall and likely ouster (which could happen at any time, now.)
With the suspension of Libya's membership in some UN committees, a public plea by the United Nations to evacuate Libya, and suspension of diplomatic ties with most other countries, we tend to agree - it's only a brief matter of time before Gadhafi will likely be relieved of the title "Brother Leader and Guide of the [Libyan] Revolution." Whether his people will stop at removing his title, or will continue on to removing his head is something only they know, for sure.
We just wonder why people like Muammar Gadhafi think abusing their own people to gain personal fortune for themselves and their buddies, while cramming their own ideological dogma down the throats of everyone else, at the same time they are violating their own laws to keep their people out of the halls of power, is considered acceptable behavior.
After all, it's not like Gadhafi's the governor of Wisconsin, or anything.
The nation of Libya now definitely qualifies as one of those places.
Most Americans haven't given Libya a second thought over the last 15 years. If they did, it was likely a thought that invoked a comment like, "Isn't that the country run by that crazy dictator dude that was such a thorn in the side of the Reagan administration?"
While that thought may technically be considered correct, it's not exactly a winning Jeopardy answer. In fact, we're confident in saying that description of Mr. Gadhafi is significantly lacking in the specifics regarding the man who is currently losing control of the country of Libya.
There was a time not that long ago, where Muammar Gadhafi was considered by many in the Western World to have been mostly reformed, especially after his actions during most of the last decade.
The Libyan people, however, have been unhappy with him for quite a long time. An unusually long time, in fact.
Gadhafi is one of the longest serving dictators in history, and according to Renard Sexton of FiveThirtyEight.com, Gadhafi's overall despotic track record recently earned him the mocking title of "Best (or Worst) Dictator In History." To say he's been less than kind to his own people would be the understatement of the century.
Because of that track record, with the recent political upheavals throughout Northern Africa and the Middle East, those familiar with the region and the country aren't entirely surprised at Gadhafi's fall and likely ouster (which could happen at any time, now.)
With the suspension of Libya's membership in some UN committees, a public plea by the United Nations to evacuate Libya, and suspension of diplomatic ties with most other countries, we tend to agree - it's only a brief matter of time before Gadhafi will likely be relieved of the title "Brother Leader and Guide of the [Libyan] Revolution." Whether his people will stop at removing his title, or will continue on to removing his head is something only they know, for sure.
We just wonder why people like Muammar Gadhafi think abusing their own people to gain personal fortune for themselves and their buddies, while cramming their own ideological dogma down the throats of everyone else, at the same time they are violating their own laws to keep their people out of the halls of power, is considered acceptable behavior.
After all, it's not like Gadhafi's the governor of Wisconsin, or anything.
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