There’s nothing funny about what has been happening in Ferguson, Missouri, in the aftermath of the shooting–by a police officer– of Michael Brown, an unarmed, African-American teenager. But there is plenty of anger and sadness–and a lot to think about. Sometimes, there are no words. And sometimes, some of the best commentaries are visual, as rendered by editorial cartoonists. Here’s a gallery of some of the ways that editorial cartoonists have expressed their views on the situation.

The post Ferguson, as seen by editorial cartoonists appeared first on Occasional Planet.

There’ s a politically relevant quote hiding behind this teaser. When you see the full quote, you may be surprised to learn who said it, but you’ll have to figure out the source out by choosing from a multiple-choice list. It’s a quiz!

You’ll find the full quote and the expanded illustration below.

It’s part of Occasional Planet’s long-running series of quotes–contemporary and historical–that are pertinent to the current political environment. Our illustrator is Christopher Burke, whose quirky cartoons add a touch of whimsy. Scroll down to see the complete quote and Christopher’s  full illustration. To see a gallery of previously published “click quotes,” click here.

The post Political quotes: Who said this? appeared first on Occasional Planet.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s highly publicized political woes are creating an economic and artistic surge for political cartoonists. Here’s a gallery of cartoons satirizing the latest headline- and eyebrow-raising [and public-opinion-poll-killing]  revelations in the continuing saga.

The post Chris Christie: A gift to political cartoonists appeared first on Occasional Planet.

I’m going to make a guilty confession here: During much of his  lifetime, Nelson Mandela mostly existed at the periphery of my political awareness. When he was in the headlines, I, read about him and admired his courage and power to inspire.  In high school, I wrote a term paper about apartheid–I still have it somewhere–and I remember that it was one of my best research papers, because it made me aware of what was going on in South Africa at the time [the mid-1960’s, when our own Civil Rights movement was something I actually was aware of.] But I’m not sure my high-school term paper even mentioned Mandela [what an oversight!], and Mandela’s struggle and journey was not at the center of my consciousness the way it was for many other people.

I’m not proud of that fact, but that’s the way it is. Later, when my awareness expanded to include issues farther afield from my own back yard, I learned a lot more about Mandela,  and the amazing transformation he helped bring about in South Africa, eventually shunning violence in favor of reconciliation. Unfortunately, the Reagan Administration  officially listed him as a terrorist–a status not rescinded until the administration of George W. Bush in 2008. (That’s one of the few things Bush got right.)

It could be a long time before another Nelson Mandela comes along. And I’m not sure–in our current situation,  where negativity and tear-down politics are the norm–if we’d even recognize, or give a Mandela the chance to emerge, if one showed up.

Here’s a gallery of editorial cartoon tributes to Nelson Mandela:

[cincopa AUBA0XL8H_ZD]

The post Political cartoonists pay tribute to Nelson Mandela appeared first on Occasional Planet.

To quote Rand Paul [see how easy it is to include attribution in your writings?], ” It’s a little hard to footnote things accurately.” Actually, it’s not, as I have just demonstrated. By the time the 2016 presidential election campaign rolls around, we’ll probably have forgotten all about Rand Paul’s proclivity for borrowing other peoples’ words and pretending they’re his own–unless, of course, he continues to forget that the plagiarism police inevitably get their man and that people really don’t like it when you steal stuff. It’s sort of a moral issue, y’know?

Here’s how Mad Magazine responded to Rand Paul’s response to accusations of plagiarism:

After  Paul’s plagiarism predicament presented itself last week, editorial cartoonists went to work. Here are some of the best examples [assuming, of course, that the images are original, not copied from other cartoonists, etc.] Please note that I’m not pretending that I drew these  myself, and that they include the artists’ signatures.

[cincopa AgNA7ULp70tH]

The post Rand Paul’s plagiarism predicament: Cartoonists and satirists add their own footnotes appeared first on Occasional Planet.

It’s been a no-win for President Obama since Day 1 of his presidency, when Republican Congressional leaders [and I use that term lightly] met on Inauguration Day 2009 to pledge fealty to their plan to stop anything the President wanted to do, and anyone he wanted to appoint. So far, their plan is working well, while our country is not. And please don’t call it “gridlock.” That term implies that both parties are blocking progress–and that’s just not an accurate description.

Here’s a look at how some political cartoonists have portrayed the Republicans’ just-say-no-to-everything strategy.

[cincopa AYCAJP7NMon-]

The post Blocking Obama: As seen by political cartoonists appeared first on Occasional Planet.

Benghazi isn’t a scandal. It’s what the character named Detective Bobby Simone, of TV’s Law & Order, would have called “a situation.” [Simone once said, ” Everything’s a situation.” What he meant, of course, was that you can’t apply one-size-fits-all rules to everything that happens. And shit does, indeed, happen.] Such is the case with the attack on the American consulate [not embassy–there’s a big difference, people] in Benghazi on Sept. 11, 2012. Although Congressional Republicans–and let’s not forget the unfortunate Mitt Romney, who stepped into a huge puddle of oops over Benghazi during the Presidential debates–continue to rail, rant, stomp their feet, hold interminable hearings, throw tantrums, raise money off it,  and try to turn it into either an impeachable scandal or a future campaign talking point against Hilary Clinton–there’s no there there–and they know it.

Editorial cartoonists know it, too. Here are a few of their visual commentaries on the Benghazi brouhaha:

The post Benghazi: Political cartoonists have their say appeared first on Occasional Planet.