about Clay Bennett...
The son of a career army officer, Bennett led a nomadic life, attending ten different schools before graduating in 1980 from the University of North Alabama with degrees in Art and History. After brief stints as a staff artist at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and the Fayetteville (NC) Times, he went on to serve as the editorial cartoonist for the St. Petersburg Times (1981-1994) and The Christian Science Monitor (1997-2007), before joining the staff of the ...
I'd say that would most assuredly be torture. Throw in some Olbermann and couple of those eye jacks from "A Clockwork Orange" and in a few hours, the guy will tell us he sank the USS Scorpion with mind rays.
Another great Clay Bennett toon.
This cartoon is so out there man. Cutting edge. Trail blazing.
Torture, like beauty, I am sure, is in the eye of the beholder. So how about some reruns of "Gilligan's Island" or worse (better) yet "N.Y.P.D. Blue?"
I mean, what could be more frustrating than watching the on and on and on-going ineptitude of a skinny white boy; or as sickening as showing, and showing and reshowing the bare backside of an overweight, middle-aged New York cop?
Or we could just possibly play a 'loop' of the "Geneva Convention" Rules(?) for Conventional Warfare, which, by the way, do not apply to them because of their unconventional way of waging war.
Not wishing to lose the light-hearted nature brought about by today's cartoon, I will stop there.
Thank you for your time and attention, Woody
I've never been a Glenn Beck fan. I didn't dislike the man at all until he pulled his Fox News on-the-air stunt to attempt to discourage viewers from going to the Cars.gov website.
Beck accessed the section of the site that only pre-registered dealers were allowed to enter, where there was a poorly worded disclaimer posted, that included the phrase that a users "computer and it's files were considered property of the United States."
The purpose and intent of that specific disclaimer was simple. Dealers input data into the V.I.N. database and as such, are declaring with every submission that the vehicles are disposed of as was required by the program. Invasive tactics are used to track dealers use of the sites, and justifiably so. Dealers were being put on notice that their computer was being tracked and that their submission would be used to prosecute any acts of fraud,
But Glenn Beck attempted to instill fear into the minds of consumers, who would not be using that section of the site at all. It's just one of a dozen acts of abject dishonesty that the man has displayed in his quest to boost ratings and infect minds.
His racially charged statement a few weeks back, that our President had a "deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture" caused an outrage that is still ongoing at the moment. Beck's Fox News program has lost 37 advertisers since he made the declaration, with United Parcel Service being the latest to pull it's ads from Beck's time slot.
There's a fine line between that which can be called entertainment and what can only be defined as hate speech. I've always found Beck to be less than entertaining and more hateful in his rhetoric, even when I was on board with the ideologies.
These days, watching or listening to him is very much like listening to someone rake their fingernails on a chalkboard.
With the disclosure this past week that the CIA under the past right-wing regime used Nazi like torture on prisoners, this toon is very relevant for the times. In my sixty years of being a proud American, never have I felt so ashamed of how low in the mud we have allowed our govt to root.
If that's how Mr Bennett feels about Mr Beck, maybe he can imagine how some of his critics feel about him. "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you:" do you like to be despised? Does despising people you disagree with unite the country? Worst actions of the US government? Legalizing the murder of little babies, a million a year? Ignoring much of the Constitution, which is supposed to limit government? Ignoring such plain facts as that the stimulus, which was supposed to keep unemployment below 8%, didn't work? (It cannot work because stimulus at one point depresses another point, but that's another story.) Practicing accounting techniques that would put a businessman in jail? These are actions to repent of and change; I don't deny the (misdirected) brains and good intentions of many who do them.
So if it was Olbermann, would it not be torture?
I think if the cartoon had an array of all the opinionated talk show hosts, from Beck to Olbermann and everyone in between, it would have been torture. Almost anything on tv today with politics, from Fox News to MSNBC, has spin on it (whether they admit it or not). It's tough to get a real story anymore without someone shaping it the way they would like. Between Beck's comments about racism to Olbermann calling Bush a fascist and NBC selling Obama shirts, I honestly believe most of these guys care more about ratings than honest, objective observance of events in politics.
Let's be honest though, people are going to watch who they believe aligns with their opinions, even if they don't necessarily agree with everything the TV/radio personality says. The best way, in my opinion, to get more complete news is from Google News or something similar that pulls multiples of the same stories from different sources so all views can be seen.
Hey EaTn, when you say Nazi like torture I'm curious if know anything about the Nazi's. As far as I know no one was ever skinned alive, burned alive, buried alive with bull dozers, twins were never caused pain to see if the other felt it, there were no hyperbaric chamber tests, people weren't frozen to death, no one was whipped to death, there were no brothels where prisoners were raped to death and on and on and on...That is unless you know something more than the rest of us?
Woody wrote,
"N.Y.P.D. Blue?....reshowing the bare backside of an overweight, middle-aged New York cop?"
Oh man, and I had finally managed to repress those images. Torture for sure.
"Gilligan's Island"
Mary Ann...Oh yeah. Were there other people on that show? :)
So, AndrewLohr, ignoring much of the Constitution, which is supposed to limit government is a worse offense than torturing someone?
Wow, your perspective is strange, indeed.
As for your comparison of Clay Bennett and Glenn Beck as commentators, well, you're right, both have their detractors. But that's where the similarities end. Bennett expresses his liberal views with wit and creativity, while Beck spews pure paranoia, and does so with vilifying hatred.
You may not agree with Clay Bennett's views, but he's the picture of civil discourse compared to the despicable Glenn Beck.
Alprova, If you hate Glenn Beck so much, turn it off. You have a choice. No one is making you watch anything you don't like. Beck just says what he feels is right, just like the others, if you don't agree or don't like them, turn it off.
I wish Clay could reprint his cartoon of some years ago depicting a picture of an overflowing garbage can in both both ordinary TV, and HDTV.
It seems to have gotten worse in the 30+ years since I've had a television. I've seen it visiting and in restaurants and am not impressed.
JHenry,
But 6,000,000+ people were killed, and not only the jews because of some political expediency. And where did you get YOUR information that cruelty did not exist. Cripes!
You don't believe the unreality of movies and fiction, and neither do I, but how about reality.
My favorite piece of Glenn Beck lunacy came while he was still on CNN. During CNN's "Green Week", he had his set festooned with halogen work lights to protest his own network's concern with the environment. The effect was akin to airing the show at an outdoor Miami soundstage at noon in July.
The stunt didn't last long, as Beck soon learned a valuable and ironic science lesson: "When energy is wasted, the byproduct is heat." Lots of heat. Glenn Beck unwittingly turned his set into a microcosm of Saharan clime. Ice in drinks melted away, guests suffered noticably, and viewers began mass extinction.
After a couple days of airing his show from the planet Mercury, he went back to complaining about science in air conditioned Earthly comfort.
toonfan, I don't think that was AndrewLohr's intention at all with his comment. Past the emphasis on what he believes, I think his point was the Constitution was intended to limit the control of the government.
From your statement, the torture used by our government was typically performed on those involved with terrorism. I personally don't see a problem with that. Even the argument that the person being tortured may not have any involvement with terrorist activities is still in the position they are in because they has some connection with it. The lack of compliance will only condemn them further.
One of the main purposes of the Constitution is to protect good, law abiding people of their personal rights and privileges that not even the government should be able to take away. To ignore that is to render the document, our democratic foundation, almost meaningless.
Glen's a threat because he asks the right questions and says the right things. Anyone who had read Obama's memoirs cannot refute his dislike/distrust of the white race or that he is a racist. What kind of guy writes two memoirs before he has even done anything in life anyhow?
Even if you hate Beck, force yourself to watch Glen this week...he's going through the 30+ czars who report directly to the Community Organizer in Chief with virtually no Congressional oversight. Yesterday's was the avowed Communist, committed radical (yes in his own words, not Glen's) "Green" czar. Or, you can ignore it and then later whine, "Why didn't anyone point this out to us?"
I rue the time, years ago, when I could come home from work and watch 15 minutes of local news and 15 minutes of Douglas Edwards giving the national news. Now its all about entertainment and ratings competition, i.e., "The Exclusive Get". An hour and a half of local news? Yuk! Nationally on Fox, CNN, and MSNBC we have a bunch of millionaire "empty suit" entertainers living a catered limo life whose primary skill is to read a teleprompter and smile! The primary perpetrators being Glenn Bark! and Bill O'Really? on the FOXy chick network and Keith Obamamann on MSNBC.
una61 - The primary perpetrators being Glenn Bark! and Bill O'Really? on the FOXy chick network and Keith Obamamann on MSNBC.
The difference is that Glenn Beck and Bill O'Rielly have humongous audiences (i.e., ratings) and obviously appeal to the majority-conservative U. S. population, where Olbermann's audience can all fit in one room.
Enough Glenn Beck and Obermann. If you want to read the best analysis (yet) of the disaster that is the Obama presidency, click here:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203706604574370301468452872.html
Walden A most outstanding read. Very insightful and truthful
Funny thing about the those who criticize Beck. Who else on the cable or (god forbid) mainstream media asks those questions and actually provides the research to follow up? Obviously, the outrageous antics are to keep it intersting (and the huge ratings attest to that). If you think he's making stuff up then you're exactly who the Liberals need on their side. Don't ask questions, just go along because "Change is Good and we trust Obama!"
I guess "non-torture" for this guy would be some left-wing network news person spouting his philosophy, which would just happen to line up with with his own.
Okay, Beck is too far out. But Clay is equally unfairly biased in his viewpoints.
Here is something interesting. The article is written as an attack on Beck, but the real story is still there for all to see. The boycott against Beck's show is being spearheaded by a White House "adviser". NICE!!
Now what do we call it when a government attempts to silence those who are critical of it? What would the left call it if it were a repub administration attempting to shut down Olbermann?
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-beck25-2009aug25,0,5784512.story
I'm confused when I hear other "Christians" condoning torture (enhanced interrogation). There is not place in MY armed services for the "killing of children' and 'raping of women"(or the threat of such actions). "I also do not understand how O'Reilly, Beck and Olbermann can spew such hatred and offer NO SOLUTION! I know what's wrong with this country, we all do. But what I do not hear is how 'WE' can fix it. We voted out the last administration for 'chance' and now we are against this administration because we want things to stay the same. We are all too fat, too lazy and too scared to do anything but complain. If you are overweight, smoke, eat too much sugar or fried food, you are part of the problem. Yeah, I know it's your God given right to do what you want, but now we all have to pay for it. I also wish someone can tell me who the 'government' is?
Stop watching so much TV and go for a walk.
nativecitizen wrote: "If you hate Glenn Beck so much, turn it off. You have a choice. No one is making you watch anything you don't like. Beck just says what he feels is right, just like the others, if you don't agree or don't like them, turn it off."
I have never tuned in to watch his show or to listen to him on the radio. I catch his clips on YouTube and I'm an avid Redditer, so I stay up to date that way on all the hate speech being thrown around out there.
Besides, haven't you ever heard the phrase..."Keep your friends close and your enemies closer?"
Beck says what he feels is right? He's a well paid troll. Trolls use inflammatory speech to incite others to do their bidding. Given that people have been citing his name when they show up at town hall meetings to disrupt the proceedings, I'd say that he's got that down to an art form.
No, torture is reading the Pravda-Little Rock (aka Chatt. Times-Free Press) and the daily commie-lib claptrap from its writers and artists like Bennett.
Maybe they should make them view your lame cartoons. Now that's torture.
Good advice from one poster........just turn GLEN BECK OFF Just like the 46 sponsors who have had enough of his shameful lunacy. I don't see sponsors dropping Olberman however!!!!!!!!!
The three stooges together (Olberman, Matthews, and Madow) can only dream of having Beck's ratings. You really think the White House would go after them like they do Beck? He may be slightly nuts but he asks a lot of questions and seems to have research to back them up. I see a lot of attacks on him but no solid refutation of his claims. He's right about one thing for sure. We, the people, ought to be asking questions of those who supposedly represent us regardless of their party.
As for torture, I can only shake my head in bewilderment. What planet do some of you live on? So they threatened, maybe even scared, them - big deal. Like that idiot ACLU lawyer who said" I know torture when I see it and this is it". He's obviously never seen torture. Ask some of those who survived the KGB, Sadam Hussein,or the Hanoi Hilton. The whole fiasco reeks of the politics of distraction.
I dislike Olbermann. But I formed that opinion after watching his show. Also watched Rachel Maddow. Didn't like her either.
Alprova says he's never tuned into Beck's show, yet says watching or listening to him is very much like listening to fingernails on a blackboard and he knows Beck is a troll who "uses inflammatory speech to incite others to do their bidding." He knows this without ever seeing the show? So much for credibility.
Hey samplegirl - do you think all of these companies just suddenly decided at the same time that they should pull their advertising? These companies haven't had enough....they are being blackmailed by an activist group to pull their advertising...or else. Jesse Jackson/Rainbow Coalition tactics.
Apparently some think the advertisers simply decided one day they didn't like Beck. Why don't you who are so overjoyed by this look into this bunch. Just the kind of folks our lib friends seem to trust.
<p>"ColorOfChange.org launched a campaign last week when Fox News' Glenn Beck called President Obama a "racist" who has a "deep-seated hatred for white people," and collected 50,000 signatures on a petition to advertisers asking them to stop supporting Beck's show. ColorOfChange staff have been working the phones since then, making sure companies know the kind of hate their products are supporting, and that there is an organized force that doesn't like it."http://www.engagementlab.org/blog/2009/aug/6/beck-advertisers/
samplegirl wrote,
"I don't see sponsors dropping Olberman however!!!!!!!!!"
That's because the White House doesn't mind his idiotic rambling, as it advances their agenda of dividing the population, and inciting anger toward those who believe in the founding notions of this nation.
I do agree that if anyone doesn't like Beck, they are perfectly free to change the channel.
However, the attempt by the administration to shut down opposing voices is a bad tactic in today's world of massive informational dissemination. Opposing ideas are not going to be as easily swept under the rug as they were in the past, and the act of attempting to shut out those voices sheds light upon the true beliefs of those who would do so. The battle of ideas can not be won by silencing the opposition anymore.
The following bit of information from Drudge Report shows who is winning the battle of ideas, at least among those who are cable TV viewers.
CABLE NEWS RACE MONDAY, AUG. 24, 2009
FOXNEWS O'REILLY 3,440,000 FOXNEWS HANNITY 2,937,000 FOXNEWS BECK 2,810,000 FOXNEWS GRETA 2,450,000 FOXNEWS BAIER 2,066,000 FOXNEWS SHEP 1,860,000 MSNBC OLBERMANN 1,114,000 CNN KING 1,063,000 MSNBC MADDOW 885,000 CNN COOPER 827,000 MSNBC HARDBALL 640,000
Olbermann - B.S. Cornell (accepted at age 16) Maddow - B.A. Stanford, Rhodes Scholarship, Doctorate Political Science O'Reilly (Papa Bear) - B.A. Marist College, M.A. Boston College, M.P.A Harvard University Van Susteren - B.A. Wiconsin, Law Degree from Georgetown
Hannity - College drop-out Beck - College drop-out
Who is more foolish? The fool or the fool who follows the fool.
I started my own boycott against GE, parent company of BSNBC. GE is in the process of a imMelt Down and I don't buy anything made they make.
banned torture? I thought Obama banned Gitmo?! What's that guy still doing there....?
samplegirl: I figured you'd say how Bush was someone how to blame for torturing this guy! you proved me wrong -
SeaSmokie - what's your point? Bill Gates was a college dropout too. College degrees don't eliminate the "fool" issue. I'm impressed that you actually included O'Reilly in your list though.
Dangggg..... SeaSmokie you've got some built up angst...I agree with some of your points, but I think you may need to take some of your own medicine. A nice peaceful walk may be in order!
Sailorman - Bill Gates has a genius IQ. And you are correct "[c]ollege degrees don't eliminate the "fool" issue," but it does assist in giving weight and credibility to your arguements (either right or wrong).
Why would you be impressed that someone would listen to ALL points of view before they made any kind of decision? I would think that's what we all are doing, right?
"I would think that's what we all are doing, right?" I would hope so.
Olbermann - B.S. Cornell(School of Agriculture) (accepted at age 16)
Fixed for you. :)
wareagleash wrote,
"banned torture? I thought Obama banned Gitmo?! What's that guy still doing there....?"
Heh Heh, awaiting rendition so he can find out what real torture is.
Lots of new names here today.
They must be Beckians.
Sigh.....
Even Clorox, a company that has established a clear, concise, and cultural tie to all things white, wants nothing more to do with Glenn Beck.
SampleGirl say @ 8:32: "I don't see sponsors dropping Olberman however." (exclamations delete)
I know some view the exodus of Glenn Beck advertisers as merely knuckling under to pressure from a left wing fringe group, but if the sponsors looked into the claims and found no merit, they'd treat this the same as they would a complaint from Simpson neighbor Ned Flanders carping about excessive use of the word "duty" on TV.
I'm sure that "Countdown" sponsors receive their share of indignation from those who think Olbermann is a communist who's trying to turn "their country" into Russia. Advertisers just don't see the evidence, or they'd avoid him like a Chernoble X-Ray clinic.
Either that, or major corporations are run by political ideologues who eschew profit in of favor socialist programming.
Hey Lefties, it's a tough, tough world when you have "Beckies" and other independent thinkers in this space challenging your guff, isn't it? Some of us have four year university degrees and know what? The HS, college and university Faculties that taught and encouraged a well-rounded education, critical thinking and debate are long, long gone. For the last 20 yrs or so, a PHD in PC agenda is what students have been receiving. A very narrow, biased education. That's why the health care debate and other issues on this site and sites across America are monopolized by 'experts' who wouldn't know the words critical and objective research if it hit them upside their clavens.
Elitists (see Washington poohbahs) throughout history have disdained and used the working classes/middle classes (who actually work their way up to owning businesses and companies-you know, making money). In my books,the wisest and best people on this continent and globally, have been ordinary folks who don't wield a political agenda and just want to live free and allow others their freedom. The only robotic mobs and suppression of free thought I see in the US is coming from the Left DNC, ACORN, and the WH Administration/Congress/Senate/ & supporters.
By the way, go read the true definition of Socialism: where government, in it's quest for power and money, works 'in tandem' with private and nationalized companies (does Fannie Mae/FMAC, GE, B of A, CitiBank, GM, etc. ring a bell?). Read icreasing control and suppression of free speech/enterprise, hyper-regulation and hands-in-the-pockets-of-the-taxpayers syndrome. (See Canada, Britain and most of Europe with middle classes becomingly increasingly poorer-how do I know-because I lived it, know-it-all!)
Fascism: Big Gov't takes over and runs all business and enterprise, suppresses free speech and the people live in poverty (no middle-class) while their leaders live in luxury. See (Ottawa & Washington not far behind) Russia, today and past, Venezuela, Central America/Mexico, Cuba, North Korea, etc. etc. Talk to real, live human beings who have heard all the smooth rhetoric and fell for it and then suffered for years because they went like sheep into the night. Good reading, sleep tight!
I can hardly wait for the reaction and commentary by Hannity and Beck to the passing of Senator Ted Kennedy.
My bet?
1.) Both will celebrate the fact that with his passing, the health care bill will is now in jeopardy. His passing leaves 59 Democratic Senators, unable to stop a filibuster attempt on the part of Republicans.
2.) Chappaquiddick will dominate any and all subjects raised while discussing the man, effectively stomping on him before he is in his grave.
Alprova, for someone who admits never having watched Beck, you sure take a lot of shots at him.
SeaSmoker59er wrote:
"Olbermann - B.S. Cornell (accepted at age 16) Maddow - B.A. Stanford, Rhodes Scholarship, Doctorate Political Science O'Reilly (Papa Bear) - B.A. Marist College, M.A. Boston College, M.P.A Harvard University Van Susteren - B.A. Wiconsin, Law Degree from Georgetown
Hannity - College drop-out Beck - College drop-out"
Spoken like a true Elitist.
Lightnup - name calling really!
At my high school we had cheer that we would use if we were loosing a game, it went "That's alright, that's OK, you'll all be working for us one day."
Education is the key to success.
SeaSmokie59er wrote: "Education is the key to success."
In the context of this discussion, if that were true, wouldn't Olbermann and Maddow be more successful at what they do than drop-outs Beck and Hannity and (you forgot to mention) Limbaugh? Nothing is absolute.
Being indoctrinated in a government run school system does not neccessarily make one less a fool nor automatically more successful.
SeaSmokie59er wrote: "At my high school we had cheer that we would use if we were loosing a game, it went "That's alright, that's OK, you'll all be working for us one day. Education is the key to success."
I'll bet it's also the key to knowing that "loosing" is actually spelled "losing."
alprova, does that mean that you will be watching Beck and Hannity to see if you're correct? We all know that Chappaquiddick cost Kennedy any shot at being President and I seriously doubt that a news pundit from either side would be that hateful. OK, maybe Olberman when he vilifies Bush and Cheney, but other than that...OK maybe Chris Matthews, but I doubt any others. Seriously, no one is going to take a cheap shot at the dead.
There is nothing wrong with taking sides and presenting facts. If you hear them and doubt their authenticity, research them and make the appropriate corrections.
Zing!!
Lightnup - name calling really!
At my high school we had cheer that we would use if we were losing a game, it went "That's alright, that's OK, you'll all be working for us one day."
Education is the key to success.
I made a mistake, I admitted and corrected it. Now am I incompetent, weak, un-American or just can't use auto-correct on an iPhone?
Alprova whined: "I can hardly wait for the reaction and commentary by Hannity and Beck to the passing of Senator Ted Kennedy. My bet? 1.) Both will celebrate the fact that with his passing, the health care bill will is now in jeopardy. His passing leaves 59 Democratic Senators, unable to stop a filibuster attempt on the part of Republicans. 2.) Chappaquiddick will dominate any and all subjects raised while discussing the man, effectively stomping on him before he is in his grave."
Don't know about Beck - couldn't watch today - but Hannity did nothing of the sort on his radio show and I doubt he will on his TV show either. Maybe you should stop basing your opinions on hearsay without actually watch the shows.
Hey alprova -
Beck was just on O'Reilly and was given the chance to say whatever he wanted about Kennedy. He said simply, "I didn't agree with him about a lot of things but I always admired the fact that he never flinched and always stood up for what he believed."
No cheap shots, no mention of Mary Jo Kopechne. The guy has more class than you give him credit for. But, if you've never watched his show, I guess your opinions could only be based on misinformation.
So I was wrong. It doesn't translate into the man suddenly becoming a Messiah. He's still a jerk.
The heat is a little too hot and the spotlights are a little too bright at the moment, and due to many sponsors bailing on the man, I'll bet my life that he has been told to temper his remarks more than a little bit.
Or login with:
New Account