The Supreme Court’s decision in the Hobby Lobby case is another step in the wrong direction for the U.S. The old white guys who are making these terrible decisions for the rest of us are taking American downhill, one decision at a time. It’s not funny at all, but satire feels better than the tears I really feel like shedding. Thank goodness for political cartoonists, who find irony in everything. Here are a few examples of the political cartoon aftermath of the Hobby Lobby ruling:

The post Supreme Court on Hobby Lobby: Not funny, but cartoon-worthy 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.

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.

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

What’s the difference between Congress being in session and on vacation? Beats me. If voting for the 40th time to “repeal” Obamacare counts as an accomplishment, then I suppose you could say that the House of Representatives has been very busy. Nevertheless, having accomplished very little of consequence, and having spent most of their time on the job pursuing a nihilist agenda of obstructing anything that resembles governance, Congress has declared itself on summer vacation. Hmmm, come to think of it, maybe that’s a good idea…

Here’s how political cartoonists view the 2013 Congressional summer break.

[cincopa AgBApMrV_epJ]

The post Congress leaves town for summer break: Political cartoonists rush in appeared first on Occasional Planet.

More than 40 years after Roe v. Wade, the war on reproductive rights continues–in fact, it has escalated. State legislators, as well as Congressional representatives–continue to fight the law of the land [while calling themselves devotees of the “rule of law”], public opinion, and the right of women to determine their own futures. Recently, in states such as Texas and Virginia, the war has morphed into a campaign of dirty legislative tricks: changing the date-stamp on an anti-reproductive rights law that a courageous Texas state rep filibustered past the deadline; sneaking provisions–in the middle of the night– into an unrelated motorcycle law that would essentially put Virginia’s reproductive clinics out of business. It’s nastier, sneakier and meaner than ever out there.

Here’s how some political cartoonists see it:

The post The war on reproductive rights: A roundup of political cartoons appeared first on Occasional Planet.

When a Florida jury acquitted George Zimmerman in the death of Trayvon Martin, sending justice back to the drawing board, that’s exactly where political cartoonists went. Here are visual commentaries that reflect my reactions exactly.

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The post Zimmerman not-guilty verdict: Commentary by political cartoonists appeared first on Occasional Planet.