Archive for the ‘Cartoon of the Day’ Category
China’s ruling party has decided that it is not a “friend” to social media.
News reports are coming in that the notoriously strict censors in China are going to crank it up a notch.
Their targets: Micro-bloggers and social media devotees.
This will be a big job. The Guardian reports
The number of registered users on domestic services reached 195 million by the end of June, triple the figure of six months earlier, according to the China Internet Network Information Centre.
Will the great firewall of China succeed? The cartoon above has its own take. (cartoon by KAL)
If you haven’t had time to keep up with election politics this season, here’s a handy field guide to the current Republican flock that may be of help.
Let us know if you spot any other species flapping about. ( cartoon by KAL)
While demonstrations demanding democracy continue in Egypt… some are saying democracy is broken in the United States.
Current discussions about debt, taxes and the US economy have exposed a bitterly polarised Congress.
President Obama is doing his best to pull the two sides together but with little luck.
Is there hope for democracy here and abroad? (cartoon by KAL)
The promise of Arab Spring has turned into the heat of the Arab summer. World attention has now swivelled from the citizen revolts in Tunisia and Egypt to the bloodshed in Syria and Libya.
In Libya, Western nations have intervened on behalf of the citizens , supplying military assistance, possibly even targeting Col. Qaddafi himself.
In Syria, the world is watching as the Assad regime cracks down on rebellious parts of the country. The Assad family has a history of brutality. Hafez Assad quashed a similar rebellion in the Syrian city of Hamaa in 1982. He allegedly massacred between 10-30,000 of his own people in the onslaught.
Should Hafez’s sons Bashar and Maher embark on a similar campaign, should western nations intervene in Syria like they have in Libya? (cartoon by KAL)
President Obama gives lots of speeches.
But on Thursday, he gave a pretty big one… a long awaited speech addressing the historic changes in the Middle East.
While the main focus of his words was intended to be the “Arab Spring” citizen uprisings… somehow another subject got in the way.
The always-thorny-ever-lasting-mind-numbing conflict between Israel and its Palestinian neighbors raised its ugly head once again.
During his speech, in an effort to re-ignite faltering peace talks between the obstinate opponents, Obama proposed
“The borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognised borders are established for both states.”
This is a serious No-No for some Israelis who claim guarding the smaller 1967 borders would be a security nightmare for them.
The issue also has political implications for Obama in the US. Republicans are in full attack mode, accusing the President of betraying an old friend.
This is one of many Middle East problems dogging the region ( see cartoon above).
It seems these dogs just won’t go away.
Recently, headlines around the world have featured citizen uprisings against repressive regimes. After successful government overthrows in Tunisia and Egypt, efforts for change in Libya and Syria have met violent opposition.
Clampdowns in China, Saudi Arabia and Yemen have tempered democratic aspirations those countries. The cartoon above captures the current scene in a nutshell. Are there other countries that you would add to the cartoon? ( drawing by KAL)
Students at the University of New Mexico took particular offense at the above cartoon. The student newspaper The Daily Lobo reprinted the cartoon was originally published in The Netherlands by the dutch artist Hajo after the death of Osama Bin Laden last week.
Some students reacted strongly to the depiction of President Obama depicted as a monkey, regarding it as racially insensitive.
This follows another more outrageous parody controversy. A California Republican party official Marilyn Davenport sent out an email with a photoshopped picture of President Obama.
In it he is depicted as baby in a family of baboons with the caption “Now you know why no birth certificate.”
When the image in the email was discovered, a flood of outrage followed with both republicans and democrats demanding the resignation of Davenport.
Meanwhile at the Daily Lobo, the editor-in-chief eventually apologized for the publication of the offending cartoon.
Interestingly, last Saturday at the White House Correspondents Dinner, President Obama used the same imagery as the cartoon above to make fun of himself (see video). Both images are from the movie “The Lion King”.
True, both have different takes on the subject… what’s your take?
With Terror mastermind Osama Bin Laden vanquished, some are suggesting the US and NATO wind down their 10 year engagement in Afghanistan. The cartoon above sheds light on that question. (cartoon by KAL)
We at USDemocrazy are alarmed by the continued spread of Islam-o-phobia in many parts of the west today.
Recent stories concerning Islam-0-phobia include the burning of a Koran by the wacko-moustachioed “Preacher” in Florida Terry Jones and the banning of mosque minerets in Switzerland.
This week saw the ban of Muslim veil in France (see our coverage of the story) as viewed in the cartoon above featuring French Prime Minister Sarkozy.
We are on the look out for more examples of this alarming trend. Let us know of other stories you discover on the subject. (cartoon by KAL)
President Obama has big plans for the future of America. Recently he did two important things:
1. proposed a plan to help the country manage its energy future
2. announced his plan to run for President in 2012
The Republicans have very strong views about these two subjects as seen in the cartoon above. Are they right?( cartoon by Kal)
The world has been serving up a lot of big headlines of late… Earthquakes and uprisings have rocked the world.
Two other news story that might have ordinarily received more world attention slipped by many of us last week.
Both were sad reminders of the inflamed relations between Israel and its Palestinian neighbors.
The first is the gruesome story of a terrorist attack on a Jewish family who were knifed to death while their slept in their home. The dead included a four year old boy and his baby sister.
The second was a decision by the Israeli government to restart construction of Israeli settlements in disputed land. This action will most certainly lessen the chance of any peace talks between the two adversaries.
Are there any other stories out there you think the world is missing?
The international community is united in its condemnation the violence taking place in Libya today. What should the world do about the troubles? That is a subject of far less agreement.
Two countries are preaching restraint in this situation. The cartoon above gives an interpretation of why… (cartoon by KAL)
The changing events in Egypt will likely have historic implications both for the country itself and the Middle East in general.
For decades, this tense and very combustible region of the world has been grappling with a dangerous standoff between Israel and Arab states. Egypt has been central solving the problems between the two warring sides for 3 reasons:
- It is the most populous Arab state
- It borders on Israel
- Though it fought wars with Israel in the past, it has a peace treaty with the country today.
While uncertainty rocks the region, the hope of long term peace is on hold, as the cartoon above points out (cartoon by KAL).
Hopefully, the tense situation will resolve for the benefit of Egyptian citizens…and in time for all the citizens of the Middle East.
The evolving news out of Egypt has shocked and surprised many. But should people be so surprised? The cartoon above suggests otherwise. Have a look and see if you have any other ingredients to add to Mubarak’s explosive dish.
Maybe you have your own appropriate name to give this culinary concoction? (cartoon by KAL)
Last week a crop of feisty and determined new Republicans came to work in Washington DC. They have big dreams… but so did many before them. Check out the cartoon above. It gives a slightly different take on the confidence exuded by the newly elected. How do you think the new Congress will fare? (Cartoon by KAL)
