augustjpollak's Friends
[Most Recent Entries]
[Calendar View]
[Friends View]
Below are the most recent 25 friends' journal entries.
[ << Previous 25 ]
| Tuesday, November 18th, 2008 | |
ctoonsattitude
|
5:02a |
new cartoon http://tmcm.livejournal.com/299331.html another little part of fhe 'cutie island' saga....  Wordstock went well. Though two conventions in as many weeks left me sick as water drinking gringo tourist. Nothing to make one appreciate one's health like the stomach flu.  This is a bit of an obscure joke - I wish I could have figured out a way to make it tighter. I like the basic Platonic Relationship pun though. One of the great things about having a steady gig is that I can go for the long-shot jokes (jokes that only some people get) more often. |
|
ctoonsattitude
|
2:26a |
Fighting Words: 11/17/08 Cartoon… http://fightingwordscomics.blogspot.com/2008/11/fighting-words-111708-cartoon.html  " Chez Newspaper"... Three more editorial cartoonists lost their staff jobs at daily papers last week. Among the many reactions to the layoffs, Jimmy Margulies did a pretty ingenious mock news article which reported that Harper's Weekly had eliminated the position of Thomas Nast. I did a bit of analysis on the challenges facing the newspaper industry (and by extension my chosen profession) in this post last year. However, I think this article by Philip Meyer is a must-read. Here's a few highlights: The endgame for newspapers is in sight. How their owners and managers choose to apply their dwindling resources will make all the difference in the nature of the ultimate product, its service to democracy and, of course, its survival.
...
It is now clear that [the internet] is as disruptive to today's newspapers as Gutenberg's invention of movable type was to the town criers, the journalists of the 15th century.
...
Robert Picard, a media economist who looks at newspapers from an international perspective, believes that [newspapers] try to do too much. He expressed this view in June at the Carnegie-Knight Task Force conference on the Future of Journalism at Harvard University. Newspapers "keep offering an all-you-can-eat buffet of content, and keep diminishing the quality of that content because their budgets are continually thinner," he said. "This is an absurd choice because the audience least interested in news has already abandoned the newspaper."
If they should peel back to some core function, newspapers would still have to worry about the Internet and its unbeatable capacity for narrowcasting. The newspapers that survive will probably do so with some kind of hybrid content: analysis, interpretation and investigative reporting in a print product that appears less than daily, combined with constant updating and reader interaction on the Web.
...
[I]t is possible to envision a scenario in which newspapers trim down to a specialized product and survive by serving a narrow market well. They are already trimming down. But what are they trimming down to? Have they thought about what's left after all the shrinkage?
One of the rules of thumb for coping with substitute technology is to narrow your focus to the area that is the least vulnerable to substitution
...
I still believe that a newspaper's most important product, the product least vulnerable to substitution, is community influence. It gains this influence by being the trusted source for locally produced news, analysis and investigative reporting about public affairs. This influence makes it more attractive to advertisers. It's pretty clear to me what major industry in this country is most in need of a "bailout"... the question is: would they know how to use it right?
Fyi - no animation quite yet on this 'toon again, but if you missed it, I did do a little something for last week's. I'm kinda liking this schedule of getting the static 'toon done and posted on Mondays, and then coming back to the animation later in the week (when I can take my time and put some thought into it). |
|
ctoonsattitude
|
3:09a |
Comics 11/10 - 11/14 http://mcmillan.livejournal.com/322320.html In the Minimum Security comic from 11/10, Bunnista needs healing in the cozy zone of maternal love. Click on the fragment below for the full cartoon at comics.com:  In the comic from 11/11, Fluffy reveals her true values:  On 11/12, the potato chips are the fancy kind:  On 11/13, Bunnista contends with a bigoted frog:  On 11/14, everyone knows rabbits are dangerous:  * * * You can see a new Minimum Security comic strip every weekday at comics.com, and also daily but one day later at minimumsecurity.net. |
|
ctoonsattitude
|
2:43a |
|
|
ctoonsattitude
|
2:23a |
The Miami Book Fair was fun! http://mcmillan.livejournal.com/322112.html I liked the work of the other cartoonists in the panel. The audience was great, and I was happy to hear some loud laughter at my jokes. Plus I sold a good number of books. There was a lounge for presenters where they fed us and we could wait to be escorted to our venues. I saw Salman Rushdie in there! He was trailed by a cloud of people wanting to talk to him or have their picture taken with him. The Miami Herald had additional coverage of the graphic novel section of the book fair, and included some quotes by artists (including me) here. Mine says, "To me, at the time we're living in, when the world is being destroyed and the fate of the future of life on Earth is in question, anything that doesn't have an agenda to save that is of no interest to me. It's almost unforgivable to do work that's not in some way trying to make the world better." Thanks to reporter Connie Ogle! |
| Monday, November 17th, 2008 |
mcmillan
|
10:00p |
Comics 11/10 - 11/14 In the Minimum Security comic from 11/10, Bunnista needs healing in the cozy zone of maternal love. Click on the fragment below for the full cartoon at comics.com: In the comic from 11/11, Fluffy reveals her true values: On 11/12, the potato chips are the fancy kind: On 11/13, Bunnista contends with a bigoted frog: On 11/14, everyone knows rabbits are dangerous: * * * You can see a new Minimum Security comic strip every weekday at comics.com, and also daily but one day later at minimumsecurity.net. |
mcmillan
|
9:16p |
The Miami Book Fair was fun! I liked the work of the other cartoonists in the panel. The audience was great, and I was happy to hear some loud laughter at my jokes. Plus I sold a good number of books. There was a lounge for presenters where they fed us and we could wait to be escorted to our venues. I saw Salman Rushdie in there! He was trailed by a cloud of people wanting to talk to him or have their picture taken with him. The Miami Herald had additional coverage of the graphic novel section of the book fair, and included some quotes by artists (including me) here. Mine says, "To me, at the time we're living in, when the world is being destroyed and the fate of the future of life on Earth is in question, anything that doesn't have an agenda to save that is of no interest to me. It's almost unforgivable to do work that's not in some way trying to make the world better." Thanks to reporter Connie Ogle! |
|
ctoonsattitude
|
6:54p |
Long Blog Post Probably Not Worth Reading http://www.mattbors.com/2008/11/long-blog-post-probably-not-worth.html Looks like conservative writer David Frum will be exiting the National Review. An article in the Times today discusses the split in the context of the current debate within the conservative movement about their future. In the Times article, Frum is quoted saying, “I am really and truly frightened by the collapse of support for the Republican Party by the young and the educated.” Frum seems to be in the camp of George Will, David Brooks, and Peggie Noonan--people who want to move conservatism into the 20th Century[sic] as opposed to putting forth candidates who think the earth is 5,000 years old, bash people who live in cities, and think Global Warming is a farce created by the Sierra Club to raise a few bucks. But these are controversial progressive ideas to many in the conservative movement who seem intent on having Sarah Palin as their Bright New Star. Back at the newly Frum-less National Review, Palin continues to enthrall. Kathryn Jean Lopez, the magazine's Online Editor, argues today that Palin should be Time magazine's Person of the Year. She predicts Obama will win the award--no surprise there--but goes on to claim that Time's silly choice of "You" a few years ago may have been a stealthy way to set the stage for Obama: And, come to think about it, the ink-stained pundits at Time have already vaulted the former senator from Illinois to top-dog status. When, last December, they declared the 2007 champion “You,” they hit on one of the key ingredients to Obama’s successful strategy: he was so disciplined, so likable, so broad in his way of speaking that Americans were able to project their hopes and dreams for their country onto him, regardless of what he actually had to offer.
A few problems here. First, the "You" represented user generated content on the Internet and had nothing to do with Obama. Second, the 2007 champion was Vladimir Putin. "You" was chosen in 2006--a simple fact check any teenage YouTube content provider could have looked up in four seconds. But Kathryn filed her report from the Virgin Islands, so I'll let that sloppiness slide. She is obviously busy on a NR cruise ship asking Joe the Margarita Mixer if he too is frightened of the coming Socialist State. So why Palin over the first African-American elected to the Presidency? Simple: Time shouldn’t diss the not insignificant portion of the country that voted for Republican John McCain. And, specifically, they shouldn’t ignore the people who were energized by the addition of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin to his ticket. Obama also "energized" a "not insignificant portion" of America, but never mind that. Awarding the Person of the Year to important people who make the world worse is not without precedent. Hitler and Stalin won back to back victories. But these people actually did things. Palin is the Governor of an incredibly small welfare state who was tapped to be Vice President for John McCain and is widely credited with dooming the ticket. She spent two months in the media spotlight during which time she made incredibly dumb and divisive comments while never holding a single press conference. The majority of the electorate, never ones for deep skepticism of folksy politicians, believed her to be unqualified to hold that office. If conservatives want to double down on the cultural issues, I'm all for it. It provides me with entertainment and cartoon material. They'll only ostracize the growing number of Americans who don't think gays are evil or want a President who talks to god. David Frum is right to be scared. Conservatives are going to have a hell of a time winning if they throw their lot in with the Sarah Palin crowd. But it's what they deserve. For decades the GOP has used resentment and fear to shore up a base of knee-jerk fanatics, using "welfare queens," gays, college professors, Muslims, and Mexicans to frighten white rural Christians into supporting them. No one should be surprised that an anti-rational mutant from their base has ascended ranks to party leader. Me, I'm going to sit back and enjoy the show. I'm even thinking of getting a subscription to the National Review. The next few years should be entertaining. |
rstevens
|
3:32p |
|
partiallyclips
|
2:47p |
|
|
ctoonsattitude
|
4:29p |
|
lj_spotlight
[ ljspotlight ]
|
9:55a |
Homepage Spotlight 11/17/08 ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) lion_lambCan a movie based on a novel ever be as good as the book? That's the big question for Twilight fans this week, and a sure topic of discussion on this community devoted to all things Bella and Edward. |
lj_spotlight
[ ljspotlight ]
|
9:54a |
Homepage Spotlight 11/17/08 geocachingHave a hankering for a high-tech treasure hunt? After you take your GPS for a walk in the woods in search of the latest geocache (i.e. hidden container), you can share your find, get tech tips, and discuss the sport at this geocaching community. |
lj_spotlight
[ ljspotlight ]
|
9:53a |
Homepage Spotlight 11/17/08 topmodelHave we really reached the end of another ANTM cycle? The finalist of Cycle 11 is announced on Wednesday, so expect some fierce discussion and model partisanship at this top Top Model community. |
|
ctoonsattitude
|
4:01p |
Within Glamorous Extremes http://mooreroom.wordpress.com/2008/11/17/within-glamorous-extremes/ Last Tuesday I posted “No Excuses“, a cartoon juxtaposing the post-election meme about African-American possibilities with the realities of systemic racism. Documentarian Byron Hurt recently released “Barack and Curtis: Manhood, Power and Respect”, a ten-minute film making a similar juxtaposition between the success of Barack Obama and the life of another popular black figure, 50 Cent, who has led a more difficult life plagued by crime, drugs and violence. As quoted by Reuters, Hurt recognizes both the difficulties confronting young black men and the hope that Obama’s example inspires among them:
“The only way that he (Obama) can make a substantial change is if he addresses things like poverty and joblessness and those deep pervasive factors that affect black boys and men,” said film maker Byron Hurt.
…
Even though Obama’s election was not a panacea for black men, the importance of the example he sets could not be underestimated, Hurt said in an interview.
“The boost that he has given black men is more symbolic than anything else,” said Hurt. “But I don’t want to undervalue symbolism and image. When I see images of Barack Obama in a baseball hat taking his daughters to school … that is a powerful image.”
In his film, Hurt shows a wide range of analytic voices commenting on the racist culture that has shaped black male identity, and how everyday black men, poor and middle class, straight and gay, educated and robbed of education, create their identities in response to it. There are more nuances presented here than at first suggested by the dramatic contrast between Obama and 50 Cent, and if you haven’t viewed the film, do so.
Tags: barackobama, 50 cent, Byron Hurt, racism, black image
Posted in racism       |
| Sunday, November 16th, 2008 |
news
[ theljstaff ]
|
11:35p |
LJ News Special Edition: Server Move, Permanent Account Sale Update, A La Carte Userpics Welcome to a Very Special Edition of LJ News. Moving Day and What It Means for YouMoving What Where? The long-awaited server move takes place this Tuesday, November 18, at 8:00 a.m. PST. We're moving the site from servers based in San Francisco to the servers in our new data center in Montana. A massive data move like this takes a lot of heavy lifting, and to haul all that data from San Francisco to Montana, we have to take the site down, starting at 8:00 a.m. PST on Tuesday morning. We don't think the move will take more than four hours, but there's always the possibility that it could take longer (the best laid plans and all). What Does This Mean for You? During the downtime, nothing on LJ will be available—no posting, no Friends page, no LJ mail, nada. When we bring the site back up, we're going to ease into it rather than open up a floodgate of traffic. Posting might not be immediately available or the site could be slow to load for a while. New servers mean new IP addresses, so it's possible that LJ mail might not reach your email inbox because your email provider or client doesn't recognize the new IP addresses. We're working with email providers to whitelist the new IPs. There are a few things you can do on your end: - Add these two IP addresses to your "allowed senders" list (or whitelist) and address book in your email client: 208.93.0.18 and 208.93.0.50. These are the new IPs for sending comments notifications and LJ mail to your email inbox.
- Add lj_notify@livejournal.com and webmaster@livejournal.com to your email address book.
If you can't edit the spam or junk filters in your email client, you may need to disable them entirely. Make these changes just before 8:00 a.m. PST on Tuesday morning or shortly after the site comes back up to ensure that your LJ mail makes it to your inbox. Those of you who use domain aliasing to forward your domain to your LiveJournal will need to create a CNAME record that maps to livejournal.com. Please note that we're no longer supporting the A record. For more information, check the domain forwarding FAQ. Before the move, you can check lj_maintenance for complete details about the planned downtime. During the move, you can check status.livejournal.org for updates about the site's status. Permanent Account Sale DelayedWe regret to inform you that due to the server move, the Permanent Account sale has been pushed back to December 4, rather than November 20 as announced in the last news post. After the virtual dust has settled from the move, we'll be able to turn our attention to the Permanent Account sale. Except for the start date, the details remain the same: You have a limited opportunity to purchase LJ for life for only $175. It's a bummer to delay the sale, but on the bright side, you have more time to save up. But What About A La Carte Userpics?We know we promised more information about a la carte userpics, and we're sorry that details have not been forthcoming (blame it on the move). We're still planning on having a la carte userpics, but we don’t have any details yet. When the move is over, we'll have more information. We're sorry for the delay. |
| Monday, November 17th, 2008 | |
ctoonsattitude
|
6:18a |
Rahm Roast http://www.mattbors.com/2008/11/rahm-roast.html I've seen a few blogs post this video of Obama's speech at a 2005 Roast for Rahm Emanuel and it reminded me that I actually did some design work for that event--mainly the backdrop. (I can't take credit for the type design, which was already developed by someone at CURE.) You see, to subsidize my cartooning habit a few years ago, I became embroiled in the seedy underworld of developing backdrops for political events around the country through a contact I had in Washington DC. Most of it was boring and involved laying out text such as "Jobs for Americans" on huge backdrops. The Rahm job was fun:   |
|
ctoonsattitude
|
5:07a |
“Peeing in your cornflakes!” http://www.someguywithawebsite.com/blogarchive/week_2008_11_16.html#002685 
Latest comic - click here!
Well, at first I would say the honeymoon's over. But honestly, this isn't even the honeymoon being over. This is catching your spouse joining the Mile High Club with a flight attendant in the coach section bathroom during the flight to Aruba. The honeymoon hasn't even started yet, folks, and.... for godssakes, Lieberman? What the hell, man?
Buy some crap. Join the mailing list. Actually, while you're considering buying crap, please also consider that we should just go ahead and consider (yes, consider once more) ourselves in the "Holiday Shopping Season." I'll get some official deadline dates soon, but if you're (yes) considering ordering a copy of the new book or a signed print or forty as a holiday gift, there is really no reason to wait until the last minute here.
|
neilswaab
|
1:28a |
Rehabilitating Mr. Wiggles #485
Rehabilitating Mr. Wiggles
by Neil Swaab
This comic is copyright © Neil Swaab 2008. All rights reserved. Rehabilitating Mr. Wiggles is supported through book purchases. If you like it, please buy a book and help me to keep making these. You can contact me at neil@mrwiggleslovesyou.com. If you want to see more comics, please visit my website at mrwiggleslovesyou.com.
|
 |
REHABILITATING MR. WIGGLES: VOL. 1
Collecting the first 140 comic strips of the loveable, yet deviant teddy bear! This 80 page collection is a must have for any fan of dark, subversive humor.
$12.95 |
 |
 |
ATTITUDE FEATURING: NEIL SWAAB,
REHABILITATING MR. WIGGLES
The second volume of Mr. Wiggles comic strips! This 96 page book collects over 140 comics and features extras including comic insights, unpublished work, and an introduction by Ted Rall.
$10.95
|
|
|
|
ctoonsattitude
|
4:41a |
|
|
pollakblog
|
12:07a |
"Peeing in your cornflakes!" http://www.someguywithawebsite.com/blogarchive/week_2008_11_16.html#002685
Latest comic - click here!
Well, at first I would say the honeymoon's over. But honestly, this isn't even the honeymoon being over. This is catching your spouse joining the Mile High Club with a flight attendant in the coach section bathroom during the flight to Aruba. The honeymoon hasn't even started yet, folks, and.... for godssakes, Lieberman? What the hell, man?
Buy some crap. Join the mailing list. Actually, while you're considering buying crap, please also consider that we should just go ahead and consider (yes, consider once more) ourselves in the "Holiday Shopping Season." I'll get some official deadline dates soon, but if you're (yes) considering ordering a copy of the new book or a signed print or forty as a holiday gift, there is really no reason to wait until the last minute here.
|
| Sunday, November 16th, 2008 | |
ctoonsattitude
|
5:42a |
Wanna Be In PA http://blog.bigfatwhale.com/2008/11/16/wanna-be-in-pa/ http://blog.bigfatwhale.com/?p=1009 
Eagles of Death Metal - Wanna Be In LA
PA, LA, it’s all the same. Both are somewhere “out west” to me. I’m off to the land of Yuengling for a couple of weeks, with a brief stop in Baltimore to get my Natty Boh on.
Unless one of those famous bitter Pennsylvanians accidentally shoots me while clinging to a gun, you probably won’t even notice I’m away. Updates and stupid blog posts like this one will continue as usual. The only setback is that I won’t be able to mail out any orders until I get back. But everyone’s poor and not buying stuff anyway. |
|
ctoonsattitude
|
12:31a |
Marriage Equality Demonstration In Portland http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2008/11/15/marriage-equality-demonstration-in-portland/ http://www.amptoons.com/blog/?p=5493 I couldn’t make out a word the speakers said — heck, I couldn’t even see the speakers, I only know they were there because I could hear their amplified voices womp-womp-womping like a grownup in a Peanuts TV special, followed at intervals by the crowd cheering — but the energy was excited and enjoyable, and everyone I spoke to was nice.
There were two demonstrations in Portland today (and around 300 nationwide — Box Turtle Bulletin has lots of links!); the one I attended was on the Portland State University campus. I bused down, Sydney in tow, and we spent a while enjoying the demonstration. Then we went to a toy store, where Sydney fell in love with a truly disgusting chicken doll. (When you squeeze it, a gooey mess with a yolk inside bubbles out of it’s bottom).
Here’s some photos; click to see them bigger.
 Proposition 8 protest at PSU, November 15 2008. Photo taken from the library steps.  Proposition 8 protest at PSU, November 15 2008. That woman's hair is so Portland.  Sydney poses in front of a rainbow flag. |
| Saturday, November 15th, 2008 | |
ctoonsattitude
|
10:47p |
Daddy Bears, Mommy Bears http://mooreroom.wordpress.com/2008/11/15/daddy-bears-mommy-bears/ http://mooreroom.wordpress.com/?p=315 In Tom Schaller’s talk with Republican pundit-strategist-talking heads, media consultant Alex Castellanos discusses how the election was good news and bad news for Republicans:
There was some good news this election and that is, it takes a lot to elect a Democratic president in this country. How much worse can it get? To elect a Democratic president, you have to have an unpopular Republican brand, you have to have an unpopular Republican administration, you have to have gas that’s hit five bucks a gallon, you have to have a housing bubble pop. And then that’s still not enough, then you have to have an economic meltdown. McCain was tied coming out of the convention until the economy melted down. And that’s still not enough. Then you have to have a Democratic candidate who moves toward the center and proposes tax cuts for 95 percent of Americans, who says oil drilling might be OK, who says that what the unpopular president is doing in foreign policy and defense is terrible but he’s going to keep the same people. The secretary of defense, General Petraeus. Even Bush’s policy of preemption in Iran. Barack Obama said he would do anything, anything, anything to keep Iran from getting nuclear weapons.
That’s the good news. [But I also said that] if we took refuge in [how hard it is to] elect a Democratic president, it would be false comfort. Because we still don’t know where the Republican Party is going. And I don’t think our problems are ideological. I think America is still a center-right country and that’s why Republicans frankly hung in there. Look, the president is a daddy-bear job. He’s the guy who’s supposed to lock the door at night, bring in the paycheck for the country; he’s the head of the American political household. That’s why Republicans have done well electing presidents and why Democrats have done well electing the mommy bear to Congress and to the redistributing job. Redistributing public money to help people. Our problem is generational. And by that I mean, and I think Reihan hit it on the head, it’s a very different country. What used to be this silent majority is now the silent minority and the old Republican appeals are not enough.
Wait, aren’t mommy bears supposed to be the more protective of their cubs? Either way, the archaic gender roles grafted here upon government responsibilities are profoundly paternalistic, very “nanny state.” Whether nanny is nursing the citizenry or is locking the door and guarding it with a shotgun, if this kind of framing of the role of government is at the base of Republican thinking, then the party has bigger problems than it acknowledges.
Castellanos’ description of the conditions and the pragmatic centrism that pushed Obama to victory is not innaccurate; it’s just not complete. He neglects the significant voter turnout, higher than in any previous election in the last 50 years, and the importance of citizen involvement in the process. Citizens were not looking to install a new set of parents. We were trying to make government more responsive to our basic needs, to use government as a means to an end, a collective tool for larger social benefit. I don’t know if that translates into a necessary “center-left” or “liberal” mandate. But voters want health care, jobs, economic stability, and a secure and mature-minded foreign policy. We can’t get it at Wal-Mart. The private sector in general — from the health insurance industry, through the finance and investing industries, to, say, Blackwater — is sorely lacking as a provider of our economic and national security; indeed, much of the private sector has been turning to government for help, too, sucking the public coffers dry and putting us further in debt.
We turn to government for help because it is the one institution which we have some control over; theoretically, it is answerable to us. Eight years of blustering, chest-thumping incompetence has finally convinced the “low-information” segment of the voting public (at least for now) that what we really need is a serious-minded competent leader who knows how to listen, to evaluate conflicting data, and to act strategically. I don’t rule out the future possibility of another cowboy-affectin’ politician riding in on a white horse of xenophobic paranoia; nor am I blind to the instances when Obama has done some chest-thumping himself during the campaign season. Indeed, presidential campaigns will continue to have some element of the penis-measuring contest, the gender politics of which candidates of either sex will feel compelled to negotiate. For now, however, this weird psychological aspect has succumbed to more pressing needs.
As the country becomes more ethnically and culturally diverse, as gays and lesbians assert more political power, as issues of gender become more recognizably fluid, as certain baby boomers with their 1950s hang-ups about the proper roles Mom and Dad fade away (i.e., die off), as more men become nurturing fathers and more mothers become principal “bread-winners” — maybe, just maybe, the United States of America will grow out of its current Daddy Complex. Are either Democrats or Republicans remotely prepared for that?
Posted in politics, sexism Tagged: democracy, Democrats, gender, gender roles, politics, Republicans       |
| Friday, November 14th, 2008 | |
_getyourwaron
|
9:50p |
|
[ << Previous 25 ]
|
|
|
![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
augustjpollak's Friends Page
