Big Stick

Vice President Joe Biden drew laughter with his "big stick" comment during a speech on national defense.

Many readers interpreted this cartoon as a partisan dig on Romney's relatively "small stick".  This is not an unfair conclusion.  It is always safe to assume that your audience will interpret, and often misinterpret, your work.  Nonetheless, my aim in this cartoon was to exaggerate Biden's zeal and enthusiasm in making the statement.

Americans are Lazy

There are times when I become a little too enthused with a set of ideas and they begin to culminate in ways that excite me and confuse everyone else.  Sometimes I will catch myself and peel off a few layers to simplify things.  Other times I will publish something that causes everyone to scratch their heads.

On November 20, 2011, I attempted to do this in a smart way by combining complementary elements in a hierarchical structure of importance, from lowest to highest.

At the bottom, I sought to again illustrate November's freaky weather as I did in the October cartoon.  I had to concede that it’s not a particularly significant element and accept that it was very unlikely to connect with the average viewer.

Next, the news about the president set to pardon a turkey on Wednesday is clear.  The news itself is pretty unremarkable.

Finally, the primary theme is a parody of Rick Perry’s screamingly deceptive charge that the president called Americans “lazy” in his speech to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum as well as Perry's decision to double-down on the accusation.

Black Friday Mayhem

Although the quality is poor, this has, over time, become one of my more initimate and favorite cartoons.  I was experiencing yet another creative block.  Finally, I struck gold with a story about a woman who pepper-sprayed Black Friday shoppers over an Xbox.  It was an incident so outrageous, so ridiculous, I figured that some added exaggeration would make an effective parody.

Unfortunately, I had very little time left and no resources to scan the drawing.  Trying to take a photo of the drawing with my Macbook proved a little difficult.  The local CVS did not provide scanning.  Finally, I took a photo with my phone, applied a cheesy sepia tone and submitted it.

It's not the best, but the experience definitely elevates it in my view.

Trick or Treat

This is one of those cartoons that doesn't make much of a statement.  It was a quick job.  I was frankly uninspired by the current events and suffering from a creative block.  However, I have a fascination with capturing the zeitgeist.  This illustrates the freaky weather of late October 2011.  Not only was there a heavy snowstorm, but the trees notably failed to shed their leaves.  The added weight resulted in an unusual number of downed trees throughout the city.  Of course everyone forgot about it, but this cartoon, I hope, captured the essence of the time of publication.

Santorum Campaigns in Los Angeles

I held an indifferent view of the Santorum campaign throughout the Republican primary.  Even as he gained in the polls, I didn't take any interest.  It wasn't until he was hit by controversy over his stance on contraception and his supporter's bad joke that I decided this deserved some satirical treatment.  That prompted a "Santorum Campaigns in New York" cartoon.  Just when I thought it was over, he promised war on porn.

The Lost Generation

I started reading this Times piece in the office.  The topic was so intriguing, I printed out a few pages to read on the subway and I continued reading at the Whole Foods from my phone.  The author looked into the various socioeconomic reasons leading to Gen X's delayed financial independence as compared to the baby boomers.  I was struck by two: the state of the economy and "microparenting".

Note the rotunda. A~B

Occupy Wall Street Brooklyn Bridge Arrests

I was scouring the news and came across this story.  I drew inspiration from the incredible figure of "more than 700" arrests.