Great Moments in Editing and Signage

Last collection for the month - get 'em while they're hot ...

Exhibit A ...

I'm not sure this headline writer still has a job ...

Wait, what? ...

Let your favorite cannibal know ...

Nowadays, this seems like a pretty good deal ...

I think a particular writer was not breast-fed ...

I sort of thought that was the whole point of brakes ...

Perhaps this wasn't the best choice of name for a salad restaurant ...

Thanks to Mike for this one ... I'll remember it if I'm ever lost in Michigan ...

I know most of you don't speak German, but I just had to include this one: a man mistook a singer practicing an operatic aria for a woman screaming in distress and called police  ...

And that's a wrap for Great Moments in Editing and Signage for March - I hope you've enjoyed today's collection. Remember that I'm always accepting your donations - email them to der_blogmeister@yahoo.com, and I'll see that you get a mention of thanks when I use them.

Have a good day and be sure to come back tomorrow for Cartoon Saturday, when we'll serve up a collection of random cartoons from my bottomless collection ... naturally, with my own commentary. See you then with more thoughts.

Bilbo 

NPCs

If you are into online role-playing games (full disclosure: I'm not), you are probably familiar with the concept of the non-player character, or NPC - a character controlled by the master of the game or by a referee, rather than by a live player. The purpose of an NPC is, essentially, to provide background noise or flesh out a scene, much like the extras in movies who fill out crowds. The NPC has no effect on the game itself.

We are NPCs in the game Der Furor and his cronies are playing with the nation.

We have no input into the game other than by casting our votes*, and the next opportunity to do that won't come until November ... by which time the game controller will have, with no input from us or from the other NPCs we seem to have elected to Congress:

Destroyed our economy, once the envy of the world;

Undermined trust in our elections ... and in each other; 

Stacked government agencies with unqualified ciphers whose only qualification for their positions is obsequious devotion to Der Furor;  

Brought about the return of diseases once eliminated or, at least, under control; 

Ruined our standing in the world and eliminated the support of one-time allies who now view American leadership - once the gold standard for reliability and competence - as a laughingstock; 

Wasted hundreds of billions of our tax dollars on a completely unnecessary war against Iran ... which, although a loathsome regime, posed no immediate threat to us; 

Subordinated our national interests in the Middle East to those of Israel; 

Demolished part of the White House to make room for a ballroom for which there was no need;

Turned the stately and dignified Oval Office into a cheap imitation of a gaudy whorehouse; 

All but ruined the Kennedy Center as a focus of culture in the nation's capitol; 

Put us under attack by a private army answerable to no one; 

Attacked our treasured freedoms of speech, assembly, the press, and religion; 

Turned the Department of Justice into a juggernaut focused on vengeance against Der Furor's enemies, real and imagined; 

Utterly ignored the Constitution's guarantee of religious freedom in an attempt to transform the United States into a theocracy**; and,

Hugely profited - openly, blatantly, and shamelessly - from the abuse of public offices for personal gain, ensuring that the rich get richer and the rest of us get ... what's left.

I could go on, but you get the idea.

Hope you enjoy being an NPC in a game run by Der Furor and a bunch of entitled billionaires.

Have a good day. Be sure you are registered to vote and that you actually do vote in every upcoming election. Turn out for a No Kings rally this weekend. Now - more than ever - the nation needs your voice. Make it loud.

More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

* We can also badger our elected officials to find their spines and stand up for country rather than party or self-interest, but the degree of susceptibility to badgering depends on the degree of fealty to Der Furor.

** Look how well it's worked out for Iran.

Musical Sunday

At the risk of being accused of making a racist comment, I'd like to note that Der Furor has well and truly punched the tar baby*. Aided and abetted by his incompetent Secretaries of Defense (NOT War) and State, he has dragged the United States into a useless and incredibly dangerous and destabilizing war against Iran. What comes after the bombs and rockets stop flying and the drones run out? What happens after this war? ...

Here are the lyrics, by Julie Wornan ...

After the war is over, after we reach the Peace

Oh, will we all relax then, will we find some release?

No, but we'll find new enemies, we'll hate them more and more.

Don't think the world will change much, after this war.

There is a child who's screaming

Fearing the rocket's roar

And there's a homeless family

Well, that's just war.

We have some super war toys

Deadlier than before.

Don't think we will not use them

In the next war

After the war is over, after we reach the Peace

Oh, will we all relax then, will we find some release?

No but we'll find new enemies, we'll hate them more and more.

Don't think the world will change much, after this war.

No, I'm afraid the world won't change much ... at least until people like Der Furor, Netanyahu, Putin, Hegseth, and the like are gone.

Have a good day and enjoy the rest of your weekend. More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

* A reference to the story of Brer Rabbit and the Tar Baby, by Joel Chandler Harris.

Cartoon Saturday

There are 962 days until the presidential election. Give me strength.

Der Furor loyalist Joe Kent, head of the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center, became the first major administration official to resign, saying he “cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran;” Secretary of Defense (NOT War) Pete Hegseth will ask Congress for an additional $200 billion for the war in Iran, on top of the huge plus-up to the Defense budget in last year's "Big, Beautiful Bill;" famed union leader and champion of farmworker rights Cesar Chavez has been accused of sexually abusing Dolores Huerta, with whom he co-founded the United Farm Workers, as well as two young girls in the 1970s; Afghanistan’s Taliban-led government said more than 400 people were killed and hundreds were wounded after a Pakistani attack on a major drug rehabilitation facility in Kabul; and in Texas, a woman faces federal drug charge after troopers conducting a routine traffic stop found 480 pounds of meth and 40 pounds of heroin in her car.

This week, in honor of having a government that's for the birds, a collection of cartoons about birds.

I think this one's a classic ...

Yeah, I don't think they'll be eating tonight ...

Ouch!! ...

If Der Furor has a bird he relies on for advice, it's probably a dodo ...

I wouldn't, either ...

There are a lot of heads buried in a lot of sand, lately ...

Uh, oh ...

When the ducks get wise to the trick ...

VR for geese? ...

Nowadays, that's just about a certainty ...

A little birdie told me you'd like this week's collection ... I hope he wasn't robin me of a better idea.

Have a good day and a great weekend. More thoughts tomorrow, when Musical Sunday considers what will happen after the war.

Bilbo

The Left-Cheek Ass Clown for March, 2026

Well, Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Readers, it's finally happened - for the first time in a long time, I have had absolutely no trouble selecting this week's award winner. Without the least shadow of a doubt, and with the greatest of sorrow for what might have been in better times, I announce presentation of the tinfoil and toilet paper crown for 

The Left-Cheek Ass Clown for March, 2026

to

Secretary of Defense (NOT War)

Pete Hegseth*

Pete Hegseth, Fox and Friends weekend anchor turned Secretary of Defense (not War) is beyond any doubt the most utterly unqualified and dangerous person ever appointed to the position. In a cabinet filled with useless ciphers whose only qualification is slavish devotion to Der Furor, Mr Hegseth stands out by virtue of the vast level of damage his incompetence has enabled his boss to unleash.

Because he has only the crudest kill-people-and-break-things idea of his position, he lacks the maturity and intelligence to advise the president (who, of all people, needs mature and intelligent guidance on most things). He fails to realize that raw military power is only one aspect of national power, and that it must be judiciously employed. 

Mr Hegseth has complained bitterly about complained about CNN's reporting that Der Furor and his advisors had underestimated Iran’s ability to disrupt global oil traffic by closing the Strait of Hormuz, calling the report "patently ridiculous" ... even as Iran has, in fact, closed the strategic strait and sent oil prices skyrocketing. And indicating that his willingness to make war extends to those who dare to use their First Amendment rights, he grandly announced that “the sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better.”

Mr Hegseth utterly failed to ensure that the war his boss insisted on launching had a strategic goal that would allow him to determine when those goals had been achieved. "Just bomb them back to the Stone Age" is not an especially useful strategic aim.

Having already received a huge increase in the Defense budget in last year's "Big Beautiful Bill," Mr Hegseth has announced he will ask Congress for another $200 billion to fund Der Furor's war of choice in Iran.

Mr Hegseth also displays a shocking lack of understanding of the laws and responsibilities of war. In a recent press briefing, he said the U.S. military “will keep pressing, we will keep pushing, keep advancing, no quarter, no mercy for our enemies” in the operation against Iran. The phrase “no quarter” actually means killing enemy combatants instead of accepting their surrender ... which is a war crime. 

Pete Hegseth is a dangerously cartoonish figure who, when combined with the current president, represents a terrible danger to the United States military, the United States government, and our moral standing in a dangerous world. He deserves complete and total condemnation, and I regret that I can do no more than present him with this award.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Readers, your Left-Cheek Ass Clown for March, 2026, is Secretary of Defense (NOT War) Pete Hegseth - truly one of the most dangerous men in the world today.

Have a good day and remember this abominable creature when you vote in this year's midterm elections and the 2028 Presidential election. The nation and the world deserve better ... assuming we survive the next two and a half years of this administration.

Come back tomorrow for Cartoon Saturday - more thoughts then.

Bilbo 

* This is Mr. Hegseth's fourth award, entitling him to the third Poison Ivy Cluster on his original tinfoil and toilet paper crown. His previous awards were: the April, 2025 Right-Cheek; September, 2026 Special Award (shared with Der Furor); and March, 2026 Right-Cheek (shared with the other six members of the Seven Deadly Horse's Asses of the Political Apocalypse).

Poetry Sunday

I think we could all use this prayer every day, and twice on Fridays ...

Prayer for Uninteresting Times

by Brian Bilson

Send me a slow news day, 

a quiet, subdued day,

in which nothing much happens of note, 

save for the passing of time, 

the consumption of wine,

and a re-run of Murder, She Wrote.

Grant me a no news day, 

a spare-me-your-views day,

in which nothing much happens at all, 

except a few hours together 

some regional weather, 

a day we can barely recall.

I'm soooooo ready ... maybe we can have a Brownsville kind of day for once -

Have a good day and enjoy the rest of your weekend. More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Cartoon Saturday

So, who are we at war with this week? ...

The volume of state bar reviews of alleged ethics violations by Department of Justice attorneys has led the administration to propose a new rule limiting such state-level reviews; Secretary of Defense (not War) Pete Hegseth is pressuring DoD civilian employees to volunteer for temporary assignments to assist the Department of Homeland Security with immigration enforcement; Der Furor continued his tradition of appointing only the best people to his administration by appointing conservative activist Erika Kirk to the Air Force Academy Board of Visitors; officials at the Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement are trying to figure out what to do with $2.25 million worth of brand new pickup trucks and SUVs emblazoned with ICE markings ... which are unusable because ICE does not try to draw attention to itself and allows its agents to wear masks to avoid identification and public shame; six Air Force members were killed over Iraq when their KC-135 tanker aircraft crashed after apparently colliding with another tanker, which recovered safely; and FBI Director Kash Patel announced as a "historic opportunity" a two-day training program for FBI agents hosted by mixed martial arts fighters from the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), correcting deficiencies in FBI agents' ability to deliver eye gouges and body slams while arresting fugitives.

This week, a collection of cartoons on a musical theme ... 

Well, when you don't specify which country ...

I'm don't think she's impressed ...

The conversation on the mound ...

I'm not sure I remember it this way, but then, I don't remember a lot of stuff any more ...

Too bad ... it could be the key to affordable health care ...

Well, that's terrifying ...

I've always wondered what the conductor uses for sheet music ...

Speaking of sheet music, here's how it works for the accordion ...

I don't think he really needed the threat, do you? ...

Well, that one was obvious ...

And there you have it - a sort-of musical salute to the weekend ... I hope you enjoyed it.

Have a good day and as good a weekend as you can, given the news lately. More thoughts tomorrow, when Poetry Sunday returns with a plaintive wish.

Bilbo

Great Moments in Editing and Signage

Welcome to our first collection for the month of March! You know you need something to take your mind off everything else ...

If prices keep going up, this could look like a good deal ...

Didn't you wonder what happens to the losers? ...

I wonder if they charge extra for the different color ...

Thanks to Mike for this one ... I think ...

Why didn't I think of that? ...

Half price? ...

Part of me wants to know the rest of the story, and part of me just wants to walk slowly away ...

Somebody needs to have a talk with this headline writer ...

Such a deal! ...

It gives new meaning to the term "busted" ...

Your lesson for today: if you're going to shoplift a frozen chicken, be careful where you hide it.

Have a good day and come back tomorrow for a music-themed Cartoon Saturday - more thoughts then.

Bilbo

Musical Sunday

One of my favorite musical artists, going back many years, is English singer/songwriter Charlie Dore, perhaps best remembered for her 1979 hit "Pilot of the Airwaves," which I used as my theme song back when I was doing my radio show shortly after Marconi invented the medium. 

I've always loved her lyrics, and her voice has mellowed beautifully over the years. Today, I offer one of her newer tracks from her wonderful CD "Like Animals." It's appropriate for this moment in our history, when we all feel ... damaged.

And here are the lyrics, by Charlie Dore and Julian Littman - 

There was a man who didn’t care, he didn’t care

as long as there were rules to defy

And so, unfettered by self doubt

with confidence with confidence he rose high

And he could sense the deference in leaden-footed duffers

when they realised

he feared no-one

And he remembered drinking games

in college days, in college days

they wish he’d forgotten

But when a man can hold his drink

while others duck

he doesn’t blink

at men gone rotten

And when the climate is of fear

it’s fun to be the puppeteer

behind the curtain

just pulling the strings

No matter how strong

They always fall

He flicks off the dust

They’re just collateral

He loved to make the dials spin

Adrenaline, adrenaline

from the beginning

He had a wife, he had a child

but nothing made his pulse go wild

like winning

And when the herd is slow and thick

It’s fun to be the maverick

and watch them turning

Just cracking the whip

No matter how strong

They always fall

He flicks off the dust

They’re just collateral

Oh my children, wait for me

I’m only breaking the glass

so you can see

He wrote his book on strategy

Now just a curiosity

A mark of his time

His words, once so inspiring

now have a kind of hollow ring

But one thing still chimes

As sure as bankers hide their wealth

A younger version of yourself

Will soon be waiting

‘Cause you’re collateral

Just collateral.

Have a good day and enjoy the rest of your weekend. Try not to become anyone's collateral damage.

More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Cartoon Saturday

January sucked. February sucked. March is trying very hard to suck more.

Der Furor's war of choice and distraction with Iran was off to a flying start as three United States fighter aircraft were shot down ... by Kuwaiti air defenses; the Justice Department wants to intervene in state bar associations’ disciplinary proceedings against its lawyers, afraid that attorneys who follow questionable orders of  administration officials could be punished by legal ethics organizations and lose their ability to practice law; Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem was fired by Der Furor and eased into a previously nonexistent job as "Special Envoy to the Shield of the Americas," whatever that is; the House Oversight Committee voted to subpoena Attorney General Pam Bondi over her role in releasing files related to the disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his associates; and in a meeting at what's left of the White House on Wednesday, Google, Microsoft, Meta, Amazon and several artificial intelligence companies signed a pledge to bear the cost of new electricity generation to power their data centers ... in a related development, pigs flew.

Because it would take a magician to sort out the wreckage Der Furor and his cronies have made of the government and the nation (not to mention the world), I thought a collection of cartoons about magicians would be in order. And better yet, a collection of cartoons about magicians who specialize in sawing people in half, without necessarily planning for how to put them back together ...

At least it's a job unlikely to be replaced by AI any time soon ...

Stat!! ...

&%#$! paywalls ...

Solomon would approve ...

What gave it away? ...

I can relate ...

Uh, oh ...

This is going to complicate the therapy ...

Abracadabra, YAAAAHHHH! ...

Perhaps she should have suggested it sooner ...

Wouldn't it be nice if there were some magical incantation that would restore competence to our government ... or, at least, if there were magicians who fix failed tricks?

Have a good day and a great weekend. More thoughts tomorrow, when one of my favorite singers offers a timely tune about collateral damage. See you then.

Bilbo