When you need to rant...

[Drtooth]

I found this news story that made me smile.

An offensive political cartoon has been pulled from an Indianapolis newspaper. And frankly, I disagree with their decision. That cartoon is the funniest non-Monty related newspaper comic that I've read in some time. And, quite obviously, NOT for the intended reason. Now, I do not want to talk the political angle on this. It's a serious issue that lacks nuance and strong thoughts on, and discussing it is NO fun at all.

But here's all the things wrong with the comic.

1. It's nice the guy picked a holiday with roots in immigrants coming to take land from indigenous people to whine about immigrants coming to our land.
2. It perfectly encapsulates the far Right Wing's misguided scare tactics, or as I like to call it the "They're coming to get you Barbara" technique. Because if there's one thing illegal aliens love to do is break through your windows and eat brains.
3. It perfectly encapsulates first world problems. I can picture the father saying "those dirty, mooching, awful people are coming to take our gluttonous feast that I earned by not having to pick fruit for pennies a day! By the way, anyone outraged that the corn cost 5 cents more per pound?"
4. Change the Mexicans to any other race, you got Stormfront's Thanksgiving greeting right there. it almost looks like it comes back to self parody
5. Change the Mexicans to Robot and Monster and the family to Gart, and you got some nice Robot and Monster fan art right there (might actually do that).
6. This is further proof that political cartooning has gone from being something respectable to the lowest form of cartooning there is. It's the quality of an angry doodle passed around a classroom of the teacher who gave extra homework that night. Actually, it's below that.
7. I bet the guy's gonna cry like a baby and claim to be a victim and play the "I'm not racist" card. Way to go, Uncle Ruckus.
8. I'm gonna say it... this guy has about as much talent as a frozen brick of Broccoli. I take it back. Broccoli doesn't deserve to be lumped with this thing.

I'd love to add that as a struggling, frustrated cartoonist stuck doing fan art on DA, I'd love to be offended by this thing on that level, but that cartoonist made such a butt of himself that it's too freaking funny not to love it. I wish I had a tumblr. This cartoon needs to be a meme... with the dialogue changed to worse things of course.

 

[mr3urious]

Oh sure, give the Mexican dad a shave, because that totally makes it less racist.

This is further proof that political cartooning has gone from being something respectable to the lowest form of cartooning there is. It's the quality of an angry doodle passed around a classroom of the teacher who gave extra homework that night. Actually, it's below that.

Family Guy nailed it down perfectly in the Multiverse episode.

 

[Drtooth]

There used to be some great ones, but frankly, politics has become an angry, bitter thing since 2001 and these either come off as passive aggressive or nasty.

Face it, it was a LOT funnier when we were making fun of Bill Clinton for liking sex so much.

I could have gone onto the whole bit about how blaming a race for economic troubles is a bit...errrhmmm hmmmm hmmmrrrmm... cough cough pamplets being handed out ... cough cough... There's a logical, thought provoking argument on all sides about this issue, this isn't one of them. This reeks of "DEY TOOK ARR JERBS!" "DEY DOOK URR JURRHHHSSS!" "RRR RRRRR JRRR JRRR ERRR!"

 

[D'Snowth]

So, Reese Witherspoon is coming out with a movie where she has a lot of sex all the time.

*Sarcasm* Oh, how about that? A movie with sex in it... that's certainly uncommon in entertainment today!

But, the upshot is that she actually wants her kids to watch it, saying, "Kids are smart, they should be able to see this stuff." Okay, see, that's the cause of half the problems we have in the world today: you keep exposing kids to stuff like this at an early age, that's part of the problem of why we have so many "accidental" teen pregnancies and such, but really, why would you want your kids to watch you engaging in sexual activities, and what kids want to see their mom doing stuff like that? That's just disturbing on ten different levels. Ick.

 

[Harleena]

Okay, see, that's the cause of half the problems we have in the world today: you keep exposing kids to stuff like this at an early age, that's part of the problem of why we have so many "accidental" teen pregnancies and such.

That's not the only reason for girls getting pregnant at age 15, you know. These people can't always control these things. Maybe they were raped. You don't know. Yet the victim gets blamed? That's dumb! It's not like they had a choice in the matter!

 

[scooterfan360]

i hate those movies with a mostley african american cast, that have the white characters pertrade as ether coning, or really nerdy.

 

[Harleena]

Also, another thing about rape: when people use it as plot devices for their fanfiction. It's not funny, you know! I know you're trying to give your horrible OC an oh-so-tragic past, so when she joins the Muppets, it's all super-happy-fun-times, but there's other ways to do that. It doesn't add any drama to your stupid fanfiction, and it can offend people. Luckily, I've never had it happen to me, but I was close to having it happen before I finally decided to smarten up and not trust just anyone I happen to meet. Please, at least use a trigger warning, because some people can get super sensitive about that.

 

[Harleena]

On another, less dark note, WHY ISN'T MILKY WAY AND THE GALAXY GIRLS A TV SHOW?!

 

[D'Snowth]

That's not the only reason for girls getting pregnant at age 15, you know.

I do know, that's why I said it's part of the problem, I didn't say it's the sole reason.

Also, another thing about rape: when people use it as plot devices for their fanfiction.

The main problem I find with a lot of fanfic writers is that many of them simply go for shock factor; they don't care about the story they're trying to tell, or the integrity of the characters, they want to shock readers - believe you me, there's been a few fanfics in the past that were so bad, I felt I needed therapy after reading them.

 

[Harleena]

The main problem I find with a lot of fanfic writers is that many of them simply go for shock factor; they don't care about the story they're trying to tell, or the integrity of the characters, they want to shock readers - believe you me, there's been a few fanfics in the past that were so bad, I felt I needed therapy after reading them.

That's true. I once actually used it in a horror story, but then decided that it was already a horrible enough story, and I didn't need to add that and make it worse.