Friday, November 8, 2024

No Words

 

I wish I had something useful to say or link to.

After G.W. Bush was re-elected, I published an essay about focusing on making a difference however we can for whoever we can. But this week, I can’t even endorse that. I know it is true - that many need our help - and I know it won’t always feel this way. 

But this week, I do feel this way. 

I wish I hadn’t been right.

Mourning is appropriate. 

Despair is justified.

Just know:

You are not alone. 

You are loved.

(I still have comics coming up that I scheduled last month. Hopefully some of those will bring you a smile.)

Tuesday, November 5, 2024

A personal comic, not poltical

Not money - points.

It isn't like we've left the hemisphere for any reason. No siree. BTW, we have three friends in Athens, Greece. One of whom we will shortly meet in person for the first time. 

Who knew?

Sunday, November 3, 2024

The hippies are fighting + 2

Note: the Hulu show "Only Murders in the Building" is cute and quite funny. I think Season 4 is the best.


Original

Original

Original. Author's commentary: "Oh, no. Now I've gone and killed the poor vegan. I must have a deep well of guilt and shame."

Wednesday, October 30, 2024

Freddy the Fruitarian and more

Original



Original; author's commentary: "Once I knew the world was filled with humorless vegans, I felt compelled to do more strips."
BTW, I knew vegans who were all in a tizzy about the airline Jet Blue having leather seats.

 


Tuesday, October 29, 2024

*Don't Read* Last Election Post: Can't Say We Weren't Warned

I am logging off the news and social media. I have posts of comic strips scheduled for the next 2+ weeks. 

They have gone out of their way to show exactly what they are. Vitriol and violence. Lying and loathsome. Racist and rancid. Hateful and hurtful


At the very location of 1939's American Nazi rally

This is what they want. Anyone who votes for them supports this. Even Dick Cheney can see this. They know he is a fascist.

There is nothing else to say.
(Need more? Colbert with jokes: "Orgy of fascism." Also: Seth Meyers)










 




Monday, October 28, 2024

What is the alternative? (Welcome! A non-comic but outsourced post.)

Kobe!

One of the top few lessons we taught EK* was to always ask, "What is the alternative?" Or, as Matt Yglesias writes: 

Tradeoffs are real (Sorry, but it's true)

From "Three tips for you but not my enemies (you know who you are)" in Losing My Religions:

2. Always ask, “What is the alternative?”

Something might seem good – e.g., Pad See Ew – but there might be something better – green curry. (Or vice versa!) Something might seem bad – e.g., voting for and working for Hillary. But the alternative – millions of women losing the right to basic bodily autonomy – is far, far worse. (Yes, I’m still bitter. And Hillary is great!)

Song from that chapter: "The Working Hour."

PS: A warm Tucson welcome to the many new subscribers. And thanks to everyone who shares these posts.

Sunday, October 27, 2024

Sunday "Funny"

I said I'd post comics, but some might be funny 'cuz they're not funny.... 

Saturday, October 26, 2024

Only if you know anyone who might change their mind: Quick Political Links

Reminder: most posts for the next few weeks will be comics.
Today's is not.


 
"Trump has perfected the "accuse your enemies of what you're doing ahead of time so that when you get accused you can just nyeah nyeah at them and nothing gets traction" strategy. Every accusation is a confession. It's been 8 years of gaslighting America and I am so sick of it." 
and
"But successful investors and entrepreneurs have no excuse for ignoring the extent to which integrity and the rule of law provide the necessary backstop for everything good that comes out of a capitalist economy."

Friday, October 25, 2024

Weekend Reading: A Staggering Amount of Wealth Creation

A reminder: For the next few weeks, most posts will be comics. You're welcome. 

Some context for the financial doom-and-gloomers (and more and more and more, the latter showing how the US is in the best place any country has ever been):

Excerpt

The collective net worth of American households reached roughly $66 trillion by the end of 2007. The 2008 crash wiped out $11 trillion in wealth, falling to $55 trillion by early-2009.

Today, Americans are worth more than $154 trillion (and yes this is netted out for debts). We’ve gained $100 trillion over the past 15 years. ...

While the stock market and overall net worth numbers bottomed in the first quarter of 2009, the net worth for the bottom 50% kept falling into 2011. From a high of $1.5 trillion before the crash, the net worth for the bottom 50% plunged all the way to $236 billion by Q1 of 2011.

From there, it climbed all the way back to $1.9 trillion by early 2020, then went up another level during the pandemic, hitting a record of more than $3.8 trillion in the latest reading.

Thursday, October 24, 2024

Victor the Vegan 2

For some odd reason, this blog has gotten a lot more subscribers in the past month (welcome!) and has been steadily getting more views since a low on June 5 (especially since September 6.

And now you're mostly getting comics. 

You're welcome.

(Seriously - isn't life stressful enough right now?)


Commentary on this strip:
"Another strip. Another complaint:
'Dear Mr. Pastis, Why are you so angry at vegans? I have at my fingertips hundreds of choices of food that do not harm animals. Why are we the target of your anger?'
Answer: Because I'm a cartoonist. And everyone is the target of my anger."

 

Wednesday, October 23, 2024

The Luckiest Person in the World (skip: self-indulgent)

October 1992

I found [Losing] to be a compelling read, and it struck me mainly as a love letter to Anne.”

 

Today, the luckiest person who has ever existed* begins year 33 with his soulmate. 



Made me laugh, wince, grind my teeth, ponder, disagree, expostulate, and laugh some more! I’m pretty sure if I ever sat down with Matt we wouldn’t agree on many things, but I am 100% positive it would be an exhilarating conversation. The free-flowing structure of the book will drive anyone OCD who needs linear progression nuts, but if you can relax and just go with it he’ll take you right along with him. Through ALL the different topics discussed, like a low background cello note, the love story between Matt and Anne flows through like crystal clear water. Worth the read!”

 

*Me.

Tuesday, October 22, 2024

Victor the Vegan

In the treasury that contains this strip, this is the author's commentary:
"If you were wondering if vegans have a sense of humor about strips like this, wonder no more:
'Dear Stephen, Your Victor the Vegan character ... must come from your deep well of guilt and shame that you feel due to your complicity in the destruction of the environment and innocent lives because of your food choices.'
The truth is that I feel neither guilt nor shame. But I do wish she'd spell my name correctly."



 

Monday, October 21, 2024

Five Minutes to Change Your Life. No Joke.


Put yourself in a position where you don't need to do anything and have no distractions.

Now, use your free will to choose to think no thoughts at all for just five minutes.

If you're like me or anyone I know (including heavy meditators), you won't be able to clear your mind. Thoughts will just ... occur. 

The implications of this are many and profound. But even before considering what this means, take a second to note how powerful it is to notice the lack of control. 

Most people assert they have free will because they can feel it. But experiencing thoughts thinking themselves despite our "conscious choice" is simple but indisputable proof of our lack of control over our thoughts. (More examples if needed.)

This is difficult to even consider, let alone accept and internalize. I've heard many smart people insist they have free will; on a podcast I heard recently, a brilliant person contended they "could not go on" if they didn't have free will. But of course they can. It is exactly like saying we know there is a god and we couldn't go on if there weren't. 

I've said a great deal about the implications of recognizing we have no free will; I think this is the single best post. Personally, I'll be trying to draw on those insights in the coming days and weeks.

More on this in the "Brains!" chapter of Losing My Religionswhich you can read for free.