Cartoon Saturday

Here we are at the end of the first week of July ... 2012 is more than half over! Given how the first half has gone, we're going to need a lot of cartoons to get through the second, so let's get moving ...

Four people have been shot dead in the small Ohio town of Newton Falls; a jockey in California was killed during a race when his horse stumbled and threw him to the ground, where another horse stepped on his head; international donors will meet in Tokyo on Sunday and be asked to donate funds to the economic development of Afghanistan in exchange for that government's promise to clean up corruption, respect the rule of law, and ensure the rights of women and minorities (cue the laugh track); a mysterious disease which causes severe neurological and respiratory complications has killed 61 children in Cambodia; and temperatures in the nation's capital could reach 106 degrees today, tying an all-time record set in 1918.

Time to cool off with a few cartoons, eh?

We lead off with the semi-traditional awful pun cartoon ...

This cartoon appeared earlier this week on the Fourth of July, and I thought it was a marvelous combination of humorous elements to mark a historical date ...

With the cost of health care being what it is, and Congress racing ahead with brilliant statesmanship, principled compromise, and glacial speed to address the problem, people are looking for alternative treatment options ... like acupuncture. Here are three cartoons that take a look at this somewhat unusual procedure ...

and ...

and ...

Another sore topic of late is the proliferation of fees businesses charge for services that were once free. The airlines are the acknowledged masters of coming up with creative nuisance fees, but banks are right up there with them, as these two cartoons point out ...

and ...

"You Are Here" notations on maps are a staple of helpful directions in strange places. They are also useful as a takeoff point for cartoons ...

and ...

and, of course, there are the twists on the theme as well ...

And here YOU are, at the end of another edition of Cartoon Saturday. It's going to be a brutal scorcher of a weekend around much of the country, so try to stay indoors where it's cool and be sure to drink plenty of fluids. This afternoon, Agnes and I are going to go to the Arena Stage to see the latest production of The Music Man - not only is it one of my favorite shows, but the theater is air conditioned.

Have a good day and a great weekend. More thoughts coming.

Bilbo