Cartoon Saturday

And you thought July was crazy? ...

The Lebanese capital of Beirut was devastated, with hundreds killed and thousands injured, when a warehouse storing nearly 3,000 tons of highly-explosive ammonium nitrate exploded; talks on coronavirus economic relief for struggling Americans collapsed in partisan rancor and finger-pointing; A statement issued by the director of National Counterintelligence and Security Center said foreign states were using "covert and overt influence measures" to sway the vote, with China working to undermine Der Furor and Russia covertly supporting him; organizers of the annual motorcycle rally in Sturgis, SD, expect 250,000 people from all over the country to attend the event, many of them defiant over health concerns, with a popular T-shirt reading, 'Screw COVID, I went to Sturgis;” and as students and parents cope with adapting to virtual, rather than in-person classes, a handbook provided by the Springfield (Illinois) School District mandates that students studying at home via virtual learning must follow the same dress code that applies to students on school property.

The way 2020 is going, you have to laugh to keep from crying out in desperate anguish, so why not a few timely cartoons about life in the time of Corona? ...

Virtual meetings of all kinds require adequate preparation and coordination ...

What goes around, comes around ...

Who, indeed? ...

It's a dog's life, even for people ...

Reverse psychology works sometimes ...

Adapting for the times ...

Why not? ...

It's a natural mistake ...

I often feel the same way ...

It's a minor issue, but a real one ...

And that's it for this weekend's edition of Cartoon Saturday, looking at life in the time of Corona. I hope it helped you get past the dispiriting reality of 2020 America.

Have a good day and a great weekend. More thoughts tomorrow, when Musical Sunday returns.

Bilbo

Great Moments in Editing and Signage

First collection for August ...

I'll have the fried coffee with that ...

I wonder how fast he was running with ... well ... you know ...

Poor juxtaposition ...

I guess Blue lives matter, too, when they're Black, but it's not black and white ...

Also known as "Congress is in Session" ...

Because, why not? ...

They probably could have saved money on the sign ...

I'm glad they're letting the real fortunetellers go free!

I'll bet you can make one crowd-pleasing dessert with those ...

Wayne and Karen ...

That's it for now. Have a good day and come back tomorrow for Cartoon Saturday. More thoughts then.

Bilbo

Poetry Sunday

It's pretty disheartening nowadays to watch the way people behave toward each other. Much of our social interaction seems to be in the form of shouting, like Representative Jim Jones substituting volume for thought, or the screaming of fools insisting that their inalienable rights are being mercilessly trampled if they have to wear a mask for the protection of others.

And the law seems less focused nowadays on justice than on crushing dissent ... unless you're on the flag-waving, gun-toting political right, that is.

Today I find some comfort in this piece - not a poem, per se, but lines spoken by Portia in Act 4 of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice ...

The Quality of Mercy

by William Shakespeare

The quality of mercy is not strained;
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath: it is twice blest,—
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes:
‘Tis mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes
The thronèd monarch better than his crown:
His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute to awe and majesty,
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;
But mercy is above this sceptred sway,—
It is enthronèd in the hearts of kings,
It is an attribute to God himself;
And earthly power doth then show likest God’s,
When mercy seasons justice.

One hopes that mercy and justice will provide the seasoning for the remainder of this sad year.

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

Bilbo

Cartoon Saturday

Well, the last week of July was certainly one for the books, assuming your book is the Necronomicon ...

Trailing challenger Joe Biden by double digits in most reliable polls, Der Furor has publicly floated the idea of delaying the 2020 election; former Republican presidential candidate and Godfather's Pizza CEO Herman Cain died of coronavirus, possibly contracted when he attended Der Furor's infamous rally in Tulsa last June; Der Furor retweeted questionable health information from a doctor who believes some medical problems are a result of sex with demons; annoying gadfly GOP Texas representative Louis Gohmert, who consistently refuses to wear a mask or practice social distancing, has tested positive for Covid-19; and according to an article in the New Zealand Herald, more than 250,000 Americans have investigated whether they qualify to move to New Zealand since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

We may not have more cowbell, but we do have a collection of random cartoons to help you get over the morning-after regret over that sex you had with the demon ...

It doesn't have much of a place in government, either ...

I always find this annoying while I'm out working in the garden ...

You have to be into old Marx Brothers movies to get this one, but trust me - it's funny ...

Now, where did that Congressman get to ... ?

I think a lot of us feel this way after almost four years of Der Furor ...

Yes, it just doesn't work for some businesses ...

Oops ...

Uh, oh ...

The expression on the dog's face is the best part ...

It depends on what happens on November 3rd ...

Have a good day, a great weekend, and an August that's at least no worse than July was.

More thoughts coming tomorrow, when we get poetic once more on Poetry Sunday. See you then.

Bilbo

The On-Crack Ass Clown for July, 2020

July, 2020, is one of those months in which the calendar and my blog schedule align to offer three Ass Clown Award opportunities - Right-Cheek, Left-Cheek, and On-Crack. We have come down to the very last day of this sorry month with one last opportunity to focus dishonor on a deserving individual, and so I announce that the award for

The On-Crack Ass Clown for July, 2020

is presented to

Representative Louie Gohmert (R, TX-1)

Louie Gohmert has long been one of the most bizarre gadflies in Congress, a reliable source of conspiracy theories, disruption, and useless noise. Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, he has seldom worn a mask (and has reportedly forbidden his staff members from wearing them) and refused to practice social distancing, insisting that the pandemic is a distraction concocted by Democrats to make Der Furor look bad.

In a striking bit of timely karma, on the very day that the Covid-19 death toll in the United States passed 150,000, Mr Gohmert was informed that he has tested positive for the disease.

Of course, Mr Gohmert had a ready explanation for his infection: "I can't help but wonder if by keeping a mask on and keeping it in place, that if I might have put some germs or some of the virus onto the mask and breathed it in."

And to demonstrate that he's all about the medical science around the disease, in a Wednesday night interview, Mr Gohmert told Fox News gadfly Sean Hannity that he would start taking the drug hydroxychloroquine in the coming days.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Readers, the On-Crack Ass Clown for July, 2020, is Texas Representative Louie Gohmert. One hopes that someday, like Covid-19 in Der Furor's dreams, he'll just disappear.

Have a good day. More thoughts tomorrow, when we try to take our minds off current events with another visit to Cartoon Saturday. See you then.

Bilbo

Musical Sunday

Watching the amazing display of ass clownery and buffoonery that passes for leadership in Washington these days, I think this classic tune from Grace Jones is appropriate ... if NSFW.

If you need help in managing the volume of incoming BS, here's your app:

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

Bilbo

Cartoon Saturday

It just keeps getting better and better. Not ...

In response to the US closure of the Chinese consulate in Houston, China has ordered the US consulate in Chengdu to close; bowing to reality, Der Furor announced the cancellation of GOP convention activities scheduled for Jacksonville, Florida; famed infectious disease scientist Dr Anthony Fauci threw out the first ball at the Washington Nationals opening game against the New York Yankees ... appropriately enough throwing it so wide of the plate that no one could catch it, ha, ha; Florida GOP representative John Yoho used foul language to address New York Democratic representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, then refused to apologize for his "passion;" and the death total from Covid-19 in the United States soared past 145,000, with no significant planning or leadership visible from Der Furor's administration.

This week, cartoons featuring the famous Trojan Horse ... because why not, in an election year?

Gift-giving should be coordinated when possible ...

How the GOP would approach the concept ...

You have to consider the potential downside ...

It also puts them off their guard while they wait for the end of the service arrival window ...

Sounds like a bunch of bull to me ...

Well, there's that ...

It might have needed a bit more thought and planning ...

You don't want to be the guy in the back ...

When the gift is appropriate ...

Face it, the lawyers could do far more damage than the soldiers ...

And there you have it ... a collection of cartoons proving that a myth is as good as a mile. Sort of.

Have a good day and a great weekend. Write to your elected reprehensives and let them know your opinion of Der Furor's deployment of heavily-armed, camouflaged, unidentified "law enforcement" personnel to your streets.

See you tomorrow for Musical Sunday ... more thoughts then.

Bilbo

Great Moments in Editing and Signage

Hurry up and get your laughs before the heavily-armed, camouflaged DHS courtesy patrols proactively arrest you ...

I can't believe he's letting it go at this price ...

It's an understandable mistake ...

I was wondering where I could get my Peking Duck repaired ...

You have to keep the important things in life in mind ...

At my age, and for this price, I'm buying a case ...

The perfect ad for 2020 ...

But that takes the adventure out of it ...

I found that No-Pest Strips didn't work, either ...

I need to be more careful when I'm working in the garden, in case there are any DHS proactive-arrest teams in the area ...

I wonder how long they'll remain green ...

I hope you enjoyed this little collection of gems, designed to help take your mind off Der Furor's dumpster fire of an administration for a little while.

Have a good day, and watch out for unidentified goons making proactive arrests. They ain't wearing those masks for your safety.

More thoughts coming tomorrow, when Cartoon Saturday returns.

Bilbo

Poetry Sunday

It has been so beastly hot and humid here in NoVa for the last few weeks that I thought a poem about snow might be nice. Of course, come winter we may be looking for poems about warm summer days, but what the heck. Here's a classic poem for this baking hot Sunday ...

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

by Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Crank up the AC and you'll sleep better on those terribly hot summer nights.

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

Bilbo