Meanwhile In Mississauga...

"Our Lady of Perpetual Lockdowns", Mayor Crombie has decided that we cannot have any joy this year.

U.S. Health Care Reform

I watched President Obama's address to Congress this evening regarding proposed health care reform. For the record, I greatly admire Obama and believe that he's a man with great vision and a courageous drive to improve the lives of all Americans. I understand that not everybody may agree with all of his proposals for the Health Care Reform bill, but surely there was much in his speech tonight that made so much sense that I don't get why a certain segment of the American people are so determined to trip him up and see him fail. As President Obama maintains, to do nothing will only result in health care costs continuing to spiral out of control, demanding an ever expanding slice of the national budget, mostly due to wastage within the system and turning a blind eye to the greed of the insurance companies. (America currently spends about 13% of the budget on health care, compared to about 9% which is average for other developed countries, Canada included). Yet there are those on the far right who would rather live in denial than to confront the problem and work in a bipartisan manner to bring about new policy that will help to bring down wastage in the system and instead put that money directly towards universal health coverage.

I've written of my admiration for activist and filmmaker, Michael Moore in the past as well. In fact, years before he brought us the documentary, Sicko, which focused on the problems within the American health system, he had done this powerful segment condemning the health insurer, Humana, for ignoring the pleas of a man in desperate need of a kidney and pancreas transplant. Regardless of how you personally feel about Michael Moore, I would ask that you watch this entire clip I've linked to on Youtube. If this proof of bureaucracy and greed at one of America's big corporate private insurers doesn't make you angry enough to join in the fight for health care reform, I don't know what will:

Remembering Ted Kennedy

I was very sorry to hear today that Ted Kennedy passed away. Although we all knew it was just a matter of time since he'd been diagnosed with the brain tumor, it's still tragic to see such a legendary political figure and statesman leave us. I was watching the coverage on CBC Newsworld earlier today and it was good to see that so many here in Canada admired him as much as his fellow Americans did. Former NDP Party leader, Ed Broadbent shared his tales of consulting with Ted years ago on possible ways that the U.S health care could be reformed, borrowing some aspects (not all) from our Canadian system. It's really too bad that President Obama will not be able to benefit from having such a champion of universal medical care as was Ted Kennedy. And of course, with his passing, so ends the era of those three legendary brothers from Massachusetts, and the closest thing to American royalty with that period we romantically dubbed "Camelot".



I'll add this caricature sketch I did recently of another prominent American figure, former President Lyndon B. Johnson, as tomorrow, Aug. 27th will mark his 101st birthday.

Happy Birthdays, Ted and Joe!

I don't normally do many caricatures of political figures, as my preference is for showbiz entertainers. However, over on the National Caricaturists Network (NCN), our esteemed senior member, Jan Op De Beeck, has come up with a daily challenge for us to draw a celebrity he has chosen who is celebrating his or her birthday that day. That's what led to my recent caricatures of Lee Marvin and Ellen Page, by the way. This past Sunday was Senator Ted Kennedy's birthday and, since he's a politician I quite admire and respect, I thought I should do a caricature tribute to him. (Don't forget - we have him to thank for being one of the major players to endorse Barack Obama in the presidential race!)

Admittedly, I have somewhat mixed feelings about Senator Joe Lieberman, who celebrates his birthday on Tuesday. Though a Democrat, Joe also seems to have one foot firmly planted in the Republican camp, being somewhat hawkish in matters of defense and foreign policy. Still, I do respect him for speaking his mind and voting accordingly, as I don't believe anybody should slavishly adhere to the party line on every issue.

Incidentally, I have to share this funny YouTube clip I came across, as it turns out that somebody else agrees with me in noticing the similarities between Joe and the "son" of Stimpy in an episode of John Kricfalusi's "Ren and Stimpy":

President Barack Obama

...And the dawn of a brand new day in America.

I know that all of my fellow Canadians who have supported Obama (and we are legion!) will now join me in wishing the American people well and expressing our immense gratitude to all of you who have shown the courage and good judgment in electing this man as the next President of the United States of America. Bravo!

Well, We Lost!

Yeah, tonight was federal election night here in Canada, and my guy lost! Though it looked pretty likely that Stéphane Dion and the Liberal Party were not going to reign victorious, there was still some slight hope over the last couple weeks that they might pull ahead just enough to squeeze by Stephen Harper and the Conservatives. Alas, it was not to be, but I'm not particularly perturbed about the outcome. You see, I am that rarity of voters: the guy that refuses to see any of the Canadian party leaders as villains. Though they may have different ideas on what's best for Canada, I'm convinced that they all come to the job of public service with good intentions. Though I'm not keen on some of Harper's policies (especially his seemingly low regard for the arts), I can't say I'm displeased with how he's handled himself in office the last two years. In fact, I think he's a very bright, articulate man who makes Canada look pretty good on the world stage. And with a second minority government, he will not be able to do anything too radical now that he's been re-elected.

And even though Stéphane Dion was not elected, my vote was not wasted, as my local Liberal candidate, Bonnie Crombie won this riding. Life will go on just fine here in Canada. My congrats to Mr. Harper on his re-election.

PS: I'm still wondering if the main reason I voted for Stéphane is because he sort of looks like me. Maybe I've just taken so-called "Identity Politics" to the next level!

Maher-velous Bill!

Since I was recently ranting about the inanities of political correctness, I think my caricature of this guy would seem to fit in with my feelings on this topic:


I did this sketch last Sunday night while watching a repeat of "Larry King - Live" that had run earlier in the week. I personally find Larry a little tiresome most of the time, but I'll always tune in if the always interesting Bill Maher is the guest, as it also seems to bring out the best in Larry too. I just love Bill's candid, blunt responses on every issue. Besides that, I think it's great that he doesn't toe any party line and, while mostly liberal, he will also occasionally stand up for conservative types when he's impressed with their integrity. He's a big fan of Republican hopeful, Ron Paul, for example. I think Bill Maher is one of the most refreshingly honest guys I've ever heard, and it's because he really doesn't give a damn what people think of him or his opinions.

I used to watch Bill Maher's "Politically Incorrect" show pretty much every night back when it was on, and just loved the way he could gather such diverse guests from various fields and different points on the political spectrum. Sometimes you'd get surprising results from throwing all these seemingly unrelated personalities together. I particularly recall Florence Henderson bonding with Marilyn Manson, no less! Oftentimes a little known starlet might show that she was just as politically astute as the most seasoned veteran politician. And Bill Maher kept the whole thing lively with his provocative questions putting his guests on the spot. Unfortunately, we don't get HBO here in Canada unless one has a satellite dish, so I haven't seen his current show, "Real Time". But from watching clips on YouTube, it looks like it's as good as his former show used to be, though a little more formal in presentation. Here's a clip from this week's "Larry King - Live", the same show that I drew this caricature from:

Solution: Elect a Bachelor Playboy!

This current controversy over New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer getting caught in a prostitution sting really makes me shake my head in wonder. To be honest, I'm not particularly troubled by Gov. Spitzer being caught in an extramarital tryst with a prostitute - that's a matter that should be solely between he and his wife, and I don't think it's fair for we the public to pass judgment. The only relevant aspect to this situation, as far as I'm concerned, is that Gov. Spitzer had set himself up as a crusader against corruption, which included trying to wipe out prostitution from the state of New York. But in a way, who can blame the guy for hypocritically creating this image of himself as a staunch defender of "Family Values" by fighting that which is perceived to threaten those values? I believe that the root of this problem really is the overriding conservative and puritanical mindset that still has a stronghold on the majority of Americans, and that they must shoulder some of the blame for this whole sad downfall of Eliot Spitzer.

You see, it occurs to me that Americans have always insisted that their elected officials at both the state and federal level must meet such silly conditions of electability as being both married and having children. This is especially true of the office of President of the United States. Perhaps there have been one or more single Presidents throughout history, but in my lifetime this pre-set condition of married men with families has been a rule without exception. It seems to me that you Americans would never allow a single man (or woman) to attain that office, though perhaps you should. Because, by insisting that Presidents and Governors always be good, loyal family men, you hold them to such high moral standards that you are often blind to the legitimate work they do in running their governments.

Which brings me to our much different situation here in Canada. Back in 1968 we elected Liberal leader, Pierre Trudeau as our Prime Minister. I think most Canadians, whether they loved him or hated him, would agree that he was our most famous and perhaps most notable Prime Minister. I can say from having lived through those years of "Trudeaumania", that it was indeed an exciting time to be a Canadian, as Trudeau, more than any other PM before or since, really put us on the world map. Pierre Trudeau was a unique man: He was a single and swinging bachelor when first elected, who would date the likes of Barbra Streisand in his first several years as PM. With his fashion sense, wearing mod ascots and with an often present rose in his suit lapel, he was a stylish and dashing fellow who also was very much his own man politically, never kowtowing to other political leaders. Nixon hated him apparently, and when Trudeau was informed that Nixon had referred to him as "That asshole", Trudeau merely shrugged and replied, "I've been called worse things by better people".

Though Trudeau did marry eventually, it was to Margaret Sinclair, a 22 year old "Flower child" who was thirty years younger than him. The marriage produced three sons, two of whom were born on successive Christmas Days no less. The marriage didn't last, however, and the two separated and divorced after Margaret went off to famously party with The Rolling Stones in New York! So we once again had a single Prime Minister, but I guess we liked the job he was doing for Canada because we kept him in office from 1968 to 1984, with just a brief retirement in 1979, having been voted out then re-elected after a disappointing Conservative Government under Joe Clark that lasted only nine months. In the years following his divorce, our Trudeau was seen on the town with the likes of classical guitarist Liona Boyd, Margot Kidder, and even a then twentysomething Kim Cattrall. So you see, we Canadians rather liked the rakish, swinging playboy we'd elected, and were not going to hold him to some impossibly high moral standard. As Trudeau himself famously said as Justice Minister before being elected PM, in regard to Canada's wise decision to decriminalize homosexuality in the mid-60's, "We take the position that there is no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation."

And so it should be in America too. So long as you maintain that puritanical mindset and obsession with all your elected officials remaining icons of "Family Values", then you are going to continue to see these tragic downfalls of otherwise competent political leaders. As for Canadian politics, I'd gladly take another swinging single playboy Prime Minister like Trudeau anyday!

Spare Some Change?

I did this sketch a couple weeks ago from the last debate between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton on CNN. It seems everybody's running on a message of "Change", but with good reason: after eight long years of enduring George W. Bush, not just America, but the whole world could use some!

The majority of we Canadians have historically always favoured the American Democrats, so it should come as no surprise that I'm hoping to see either Barack or Hillary in the White House come next year. I personally prefer Barack Obama, as I remember seeing him interviewed a couple years ago on PBS' Charlie Rose show and he struck me as a guy with intelligence and integrity. Seeing him in the debates, he seems to be less biting in his attacks towards his opponent, as if that sort of mudslinging makes him uncomfortable. I like Hillary Clinton too, but I do have some reservations about her as she has been rather ruthless in her attacks on Obama. But that's just the nature of the game of politics and I'd be happy with either one of them as President. I figure no matter which one wins, that they'll surround themselves with wise counsel to keep them in check.

Actually, things are shaping up pretty good on the Republican side this time around too. It looks like the majority of Republicans have smartened up since eight years ago, and are now backing the more moderate and honourable John McCain. Fact is, I think they should have made him their man back in 2000, as many Democrats would have found him worthy of their vote too, being a straight up kind of guy who doesn't blindly toe the party line. Had McCain been president, I doubt that America would ever have ended up in the Iraq quagmire we have today.

In short, I think this is an exciting Presidential race with the top three contenders all being worthy candidates for the job. I hope Americans realize just how lucky they are in their choices leading up to the November election.

Hook, Lyin' and Stinker (or: By Hook and 'Bye Crook!)

I don't often do political caricatures, but today's good news seemed to warrant some sort of celebration in inkline. I make no secret of my abhorrence of the Bush administration. This unsavoury cast of characters has done an incredible amount of damage to America's world image and reputation during their, so far, nearly 7 year "Reign of Error". I was happy when Rummy got eased out and I'm overjoyed now that Karl Rove is stepping down from his role as puppetmaster. Hopefully, the whole corrupt Whitehouse of cards will soon come tumbling down ignominiously. In the meantime, so long "Bush's Brain"!

By the way, this pair of rascals was wonderfully parodied in thinly-veiled form in the John Sayles' 2004 film, "Silver City", starring Chris Cooper as the idiot politician and Richard Dreyfuss as his conniving campaign manager. Check it out here.

Moore Power To Ya'!

This weekend will see the release of the latest Michael Moore documentary, "Sicko". I've seen all of his films thus far, as well as several episodes of his "The Awful Truth" TV show, so I'll certainly be seeing this latest film too. To be honest, though I generally like Moore and his principled stands, I take some of what he says with a grain of salt. In order to make his arguments, he sometimes ignores facts that don't support his case, while also making points from things that seem tenuous at best.

For instance, in "Bowling For Columbine", Moore finagles his way into Charlton Heston's home and, after a bit of conversation to soften Heston up and get him with his guard down, proceeds to confront him on his NRA presidency and a rally that was held very insensitively immediately after the gun-related death of a little girl. While this may be a fair attack, given Heston's longstanding, gun-loving, Second Amendment stance, I felt it rather uncalled for when he similarly ambushes Dick Clark on a matter that seems like he's really grasping at straws. He accuses Clark of being partly responsible for the gun use of a little boy whose mother was a worker in a Dick Clark owned restaurant chain, and therefore not at home to look after her son when the incident took place. As far as I could surmise, Dick Clark was guilty of nothing more than being involved in a government program meant to wean people off of welfare by giving them work in participating places of employment. I'm sure that Dick Clark was participating in this program in all good faith, hoping it would give people a leg up to a better future. As such, I felt Moore had overplayed his hand and was looking for any scapegoat that made for good melodrama in his film.

However, as I said, I generally applaud Michael Moore for his efforts. There are a lot of contentious issues in America that should be addressed and I'm glad a guy like Moore is out there to shine a spotlight on them. Here then is my caricature of Michael Moore in tribute to his efforts.