CSotD: The Public Eye scowls
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I've been back and forth on Bill and Monica and #MeToo, but I can certainly endorse Mike Thompson's take.
There are a million layers to this whole thing and ain't none of them clean and clear, but the one that rises to the surface is that Bubba wasn't dragged kicking and screaming back into the limelight.
As noted in Gary Varvel's cartoon, he co-authored a book with James Patterson, which is bizarre enough because Patterson doesn't write books, he extrudes them, and has become more of a marketing partner than an "author."
Only, this time, the other side of the partnership isn't a young writer doing the hard lifting, and so it's difficult to know how this thing gained words at all. Maybe Patterson went back to actually writing or maybe a third party came in on the project.
But the more important issue is that it's not a former president explaining foreign policy or the inside story on diplomacy or his views of democracy.
It's a freaking thriller.
It's a book that didn't have to happen by an author who isn't an author and who didn't need to poke his head up except that Patterson is a money-mill and some people just can't stay out of the limelight.
So he poked his head up and is getting hit in the face by pies and it's hard to feel sorry for him.
Here's an idea for a story, Bill: The devil appears to this semi-obscure governor and says, "I'll make you the most powerful man in the world, but, for eight years, you can only have sex with your wife."
I know, I know: The plot just isn't believable.
I defended him at the time, not against the charge of being a horndog sleazebag, but against its relevance. She wasn't Christine Keeler or Judith Exner, with potential links to foreign agents or the mafia. Nor was she a whole lot younger than Sally Quinn had been when she took up with her 20-years-older, married boss, Ben Bradlee.
It seemed like another DC dalliance, and not one which would end up in the Tidal Basin.
Nor did it seem likely to end up in an impeachment case, but it did, and now the damn fool is back for more and I agree with Thompson that this act was old a whole long time ago.
Though I continue to thank Clinton for keeping his ungovernable id separate from his official duties, which sure seems nice by comparison to the current pussy-grabber, who, as shown here by Kevin Siers, has been busily alienating our trading partners and humiliating at least part of our country.
Kevin Kallaugher illustrates the folly of rushing into a game the rules of which you don't understand.
It's a game, yes, where everyone loses, but it seems, judging from what we're hearing from Quebec, that being nimble enough to avoid the rumbling linebacker has its advantages and that there may still be plenty of "futbol" going on long after the "football" player has exhausted himself and come nowhere near the ball in what has become a global game of keep-away.
Juxtaposition of the Day
(Bliss)
(Harry Bliss has apparently kept up with Samantha Bee, but I'm not sure he's sufficiently ahead of the endless attempts to revamp Archie and make it hip and relevant, because this scene may actually be in someone's upcoming plan.
There's been a TV series and some updated comic books and so forth, but what puzzles me is why you would bother tying yourself into such blandly generic characters, given that they were already squaresville for the grandparents of your target audience.
Archie was for little guys more than half a century ago. We even abandoned Clark Kent in favor of Peter Parker, and, I promise you, nobody over 10 years old gave a damn about Archie Andrews.
But if you want to have a real laff about vain attempts to keep Grandpa's favorite heroes alive and relevant, click here, because Stephen Collins absolutely nails it.
And, yes, the original Star Wars fans are becoming grandparents. Deal with it.
The biggest laff being that, while these old farts are trying to sell ancient retreads to a new generation, Raina Telgemeier and Jeff Kinney are handing out the new stuff that kids actually want about as fast as they can produce it.
Skipping Patreon
After some puzzling over Patreon and GoFundMe and so forth, I've decided to cut out all the middlemen and bureaucracy and the requirement to make a video.
One problem with these fundraisers is that I can't really offer much of anything in the way of goodies: You're already getting the blog as soon as I can put it together each morning, and printing up any sort of "Best of" would be a serious violation of the fair use that makes it possible.
And the misgivings I expressed about Kickstarter five years ago have only become a bit stronger since.
That link is worth a click — the moment of zen alone is worth a click — but here's the part that matters most:
I like Kickstarter, and I've supported several projects on it, some of which I've plugged here and some of which I have not, but, for the most part, they've all had this in common: Supporting the project was more or less like buying something I'd have bought anyway.
Which, in my case, has generally meant a comic collection, and generally one signed by the artist. And it's been an artist whose work I already knew and liked.
A lot. Enough to pay $25 or $40 for a book that, once it's published, will likely sell for ten or twelve bucks.
Well, and also this part:
Kickstarter is simply a chance to ask your friends and fans to put up money to support your project without having to actually stand in front of them with your hand out and look into their faces while they make up their minds.
I'm combining them: Standing here with my hand out, asking for support and offering you something you'll like having.
In this case, a coffee mug hefty enough (19 oz) to keep your coffee hot and to survive a few minor mishaps. It's four inches tall, holds about 10 ounces of beverage and is yours for $30, or send me $50 and get a pair.
Think of it as a Patreon that you pay all at once.
Paypal will work — teachup@gmail.com — or mail it to PO Box 445, Lebanon, NH, 03766. Be sure to give me your mailing address.
And I thank you in advance and promise that I won't piss it all away on polo ponies.
Mike Peterson has posted his "Comic Strip of the Day" column every day since 2010. His opinions are his own, but we welcome comments either agreeing or in opposition.
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