Ted Rall and Steve Brodner
Only Losers Run for President
By Ted Rall
Posted Tuesday, Oct. 12, 1999, at 11:32 AM ETDear Steve:
Of course you're right about the cult-of-celebrity politics; it's just that I still don't understand how the two current benefactors of the American obsession with that celebrity got where they are. On the one hand, you have George Quincy Bush--and any romantic view of his dad as a guy unjustly toppled by a womanizing schemer is historical revisionism, pure and simple (remember the last recession? went on for perhaps 6 or 7 years? Bush Sr. acted like Hoover? didn't give a press conference for months? couldn't put both nouns and verbs in the same sentence?). On the other is Al Gore, notable for (as you put it about JFK Jr.) not living up to his Fair Deal hero father's high standards of integrity and cojones. How can these two turkeys be our leading candidates for the highest office in the land?
The answer, methinks, is that the presidency attracts losers because it's not even in the top 500 highest offices of the land. The top slots belong to CEOs, the guys (and gals who act like guys) who really run America, whose lobbyists write the bills, whose contributions fuel the campaigns of lackeys like Bill and Hill. What did America ever do to deserve this, anyway?
By the way, there was a cool NPR spot on conspicuous consumption this morning. (I was too sleepy to note the reporter's name.) As she went on and on about $12,000 bottles of 1870 wine (actually, I'd kind of like to try one) and a Park Avenue apartment building where the grungy units start at $4 million (why anyone would want to live on a street where your furniture shifts whenever the commuter trains rumble beneath is beyond me), she cleverly pointed out the analogies with the '80s economic bubble and the dot-com one ... the big difference now is that only seven people ever benefited from the '80s boom. When this one heads south, it'll affect a lot more people who think of themselves as middle-class.
Today's New York Times lead may be the stupidest ever: "A PLAN IS IN WORKS TO PUT OFF A VOTE ON TEST BAN PACT: Clinton Satisfies a Demand by Lott in Effort to Avert Showdown." Gotta get the crank out of the water supply down on West 43rd Street; what the hell is wrong with the headline writers? First of all, no one cares about the test ban. Maybe they should, but they don't, and I don't blame them. We did the Cold War, and it was fine then, but now is now and even though the Russians still have zillions of nukes pointing at us and nothing has really changed, it's sooooo over. More important, how about something sexier? Try: "NUKE VOTE NUKED: Clinton Sucks Up to a Lott".
And they wonder why the average age of a newspaper reader is deceased.
Best Regards,
Ted
Only Losers Run for President
By Ted Rall
Posted Tuesday, Oct. 12, 1999, at 11:32 AM ETTed Rall is a New York-based political and social-commentary cartoonist and opinion columnist for Universal Press Syndicate and the author of Revenge of the Latchkey Kids (click hereto buy it). Steve Brodner has been a satiric illustrator for 27 years and has contributed caricatures of political and pop figures to a wide variety of publications. The Fraymaster adds:
Some reactions from readers:
Steve asks if the whole hoo-ha over at the Brooklyn museum is about captions... And the answer is, of course it is.
I have yet to see anyone substantially refute Tom Wolfe's theory, back in The Painted Word, that today's art has devolved into being illustrations for the catalog. Take away the catalog, and there's no there there. One or the other of the fellows cited Serrano's Piss Christ--it's the perfect example. I doubt many people have seen it in person--it's a huge 6-foot-by-4-foot (or so) chibachrome--and more than anything else comes across as a modern chiaroscuro photo-mural. It's reverent. Right up until you read the title, and figure out just how Serrano got those gorgeous tawny reds and burnt umbers. But it's only the title--or the catalog--that fills you in.
The whole Virgin Mary thing is much the same--I doubt there's any way to tell just how the image was made, elephant dung or not, except through the catalog. To be sure, I haven't actually seen it (this summer I've been seeing the Van Gogh, Sargent, Ingres, and Diego Rivera exhibitions as I travel), but that's my bet... Though I'll cheerfully defer to a real live witness.
(To reply, click here.)
Dear Ted,
I agree wholeheartedly with you in regards to the death of the comic strip, and glad to see someone else who views the Peanuts as melancholy. As a former illustrator (I know--do not call me bitter just yet) I think that the entire world of illustration is a rotting cadaver. Working now as a web designer I can't help but feel sympathy for my friends who valiantly try to establish careers in this former occupation. Many believe photography has killed the illustrator, and to some extent I agree, but I think the true blame falls upon the state of art education within our country.
Art schools have become a haven for the untalented and unimaginative, upper-middle-class would-be rebels more concerned with looking the part than being. Instructors, often failed artists themselves, so afraid of offending these cash cows offer no realistic criticism or advice. Since "all art is good art," students who would have been laughed out of my 2nd grade arts and crafts class are encouraged to pursue their "style." After graduating art school, it took me 2 years to enjoy drawing again....and I am not alone. Keep up the good work my brother!
(To reply, click here.)
People always feel that to say things like, "theater is dead," or, now, "the comic strip is dead" raises them to the level of philosopher. So, when someone has some silly stuff to say to seemingly back up such an impossible phrase, they get excited and say it all over the place and as loud as they can.
The comic strip isn't dead. New and great cartoonist will come in great forms no one can predict and, therefore, it's amazingly arrogant to predict the death of an art form. The Internet provides all sorts of new room for artists (this includes cartoonists) to work and spread around their wares.
(To reply, click here.)
Hey Ted Rall,
Yeah, your comic strips are great, but you made a big mistake in your blanket dismissal of all the comics in the comics page (save Peanuts). Your glaring omission: Mutts by Patrick McDonnell. This guy can DRAW! His comics are funny, sweet, and compassionate without being treacly--no mean feat. What's more, he takes a strong and unapologetic stand on animal rights, which takes guts in a nation of necrophages.
McDonnell's a genius. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go pray with Johnny Hart.
(To reply, click here.)
What do you guys think of Tom Toles? His cartoons single-handedly got me through the Reagan/Bush years.
(To reply, click here.)
I think it's a bit too early to say the comic strip is dead. I think Robotman, Non Sequetor, and Mutts are some of the great comics in the papers, but for the rest I don't bother. It seems true that, in newspapers at least, comics are resorting to simple puns.
However, on the Internet the art of the comic strip is still alive. Some of the best, in my opinion anyway, are Ozy and Millie and Freefall, which are genuinely funny and entertaining. While the newspaper comics may be reverting to single unfunny puns, the Internet may be a place where the art of the comic strip is still living.
(To reply, click here.)
--Michael Brus (10/14)
What did you think of this article?
Join The Fray: Our Reader Discussion Forum
PRINT
DISCUSS
E-MAIL
RSS
RECOMMEND...
Facebook
MySpace
Mixx
Digg
Reddit
del.icio.us
Furl
Ma.gnolia
Sphere
StumbleUpon
Happy Birthday, Smokey Bear
Are Gas Grills More Eco-Friendly Than Charcoal Ones?
He-Man: Briefs of Rage and Other Toy-Inspired Movies We're Dying To See
Kaus: Seven Possible Theories Explaining Palin's Resignation
The U.S. Embassy in Djibouti Cordially Invites You to a Fourth of July Cookout
The Week's Best Editorial Cartoons
The Fraymaster adds:
Some reactions from readers:
Steve asks if the whole hoo-ha over at the Brooklyn museum is about captions... And the answer is, of course it is.
I have yet to see anyone substantially refute Tom Wolfe's theory, back in The Painted Word, that today's art has devolved into being illustrations for the catalog. Take away the catalog, and there's no there there. One or the other of the fellows cited Serrano's Piss Christ--it's the perfect example. I doubt many people have seen it in person--it's a huge 6-foot-by-4-foot (or so) chibachrome--and more than anything else comes across as a modern chiaroscuro photo-mural. It's reverent. Right up until you read the title, and figure out just how Serrano got those gorgeous tawny reds and burnt umbers. But it's only the title--or the catalog--that fills you in.
The whole Virgin Mary thing is much the same--I doubt there's any way to tell just how the image was made, elephant dung or not, except through the catalog. To be sure, I haven't actually seen it (this summer I've been seeing the Van Gogh, Sargent, Ingres, and Diego Rivera exhibitions as I travel), but that's my bet... Though I'll cheerfully defer to a real live witness.
(To reply, click here.)
Dear Ted,
I agree wholeheartedly with you in regards to the death of the comic strip, and glad to see someone else who views the Peanuts as melancholy. As a former illustrator (I know--do not call me bitter just yet) I think that the entire world of illustration is a rotting cadaver. Working now as a web designer I can't help but feel sympathy for my friends who valiantly try to establish careers in this former occupation. Many believe photography has killed the illustrator, and to some extent I agree, but I think the true blame falls upon the state of art education within our country.
Art schools have become a haven for the untalented and unimaginative, upper-middle-class would-be rebels more concerned with looking the part than being. Instructors, often failed artists themselves, so afraid of offending these cash cows offer no realistic criticism or advice. Since "all art is good art," students who would have been laughed out of my 2nd grade arts and crafts class are encouraged to pursue their "style." After graduating art school, it took me 2 years to enjoy drawing again....and I am not alone. Keep up the good work my brother!
(To reply, click here.)
People always feel that to say things like, "theater is dead," or, now, "the comic strip is dead" raises them to the level of philosopher. So, when someone has some silly stuff to say to seemingly back up such an impossible phrase, they get excited and say it all over the place and as loud as they can.
The comic strip isn't dead. New and great cartoonist will come in great forms no one can predict and, therefore, it's amazingly arrogant to predict the death of an art form. The Internet provides all sorts of new room for artists (this includes cartoonists) to work and spread around their wares.
(To reply, click here.)
Hey Ted Rall,
Yeah, your comic strips are great, but you made a big mistake in your blanket dismissal of all the comics in the comics page (save Peanuts). Your glaring omission: Mutts by Patrick McDonnell. This guy can DRAW! His comics are funny, sweet, and compassionate without being treacly--no mean feat. What's more, he takes a strong and unapologetic stand on animal rights, which takes guts in a nation of necrophages.
McDonnell's a genius. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go pray with Johnny Hart.
(To reply, click here.)
What do you guys think of Tom Toles? His cartoons single-handedly got me through the Reagan/Bush years.
(To reply, click here.)
I think it's a bit too early to say the comic strip is dead. I think Robotman, Non Sequetor, and Mutts are some of the great comics in the papers, but for the rest I don't bother. It seems true that, in newspapers at least, comics are resorting to simple puns.
However, on the Internet the art of the comic strip is still alive. Some of the best, in my opinion anyway, are Ozy and Millie and Freefall, which are genuinely funny and entertaining. While the newspaper comics may be reverting to single unfunny puns, the Internet may be a place where the art of the comic strip is still living.
(To reply, click here.)
--Michael Brus (10/14)