Good Fences and Good Neighbors by the Doze…n

If you live in the suburbs of Portland like I do, you know that Measure 37 is bad policy. Just this week, on my way to work, convoy of 8 dump trucks barreled by on the way to some field that’s being cleared for development. It’s crazy! And what’s bad - this was on a narrow, 2-lane road - testament to the fact that home development is far out pacing the development of new roads and infrastructure.

And so this Friday’s Drawing for a Reader comes at the request of Measure37watch.com. Check out who’s really behind Measure 37 claims (as if it’s any big surprise).

A Tribute to the Birds of Captivity - Alex (1976 - 2007)

This Friday’s Drawing for a Reader is a bit different. It’s for Alex, the notorious bird brain African Gray parrot. Alex never requested this drawing, and I’m sure if he did surf the web and find it, he’d probably disagree. I like to think he was a bit of a skeptic when it came to studies and research.

That said, when a normal African Gray Parrot can reach up to 70 years of age, with an average lifespan of 50 (almost the same as humans when unaided with medicine) then I’m led to think research and the stress of captivity might in some way contributed to his untimely death.

Yes, this is coming from a monkey who lives most of his life in an astronaut suit. Take it with whatever amount of bird seed you require.

American Politics At Home And Why Nothing Ever Gets Done

This drawing is a bit late for the Friday Drawing for a Reader (see the Blogger Bomb #2 for an explanation), but it’s here all the same.

I’ve overheard the above conversation many times, probably because we don’t typically get married based on political preferences, or one’s political disposition changes over time. Either way, reader Bill’s point about Oregon’s one Democrat and one Republican Senator canceling each other out is a direct reflection of this couch talk on the home front.

Perhaps we should get Gordon Smith and Ron Wyden together in a little counseling chat. Of course, my preference would be to change the color of Gordon to blue, but you can’t always get what you want.

Will Ex-Congressman Mark Foley Not Face Charges?

Perhaps this should be an episode of “To Release a Predator”.

In fact, in this Friday Drawing for a Reader, again requested by Smashedfrog (which it appears Florida is now in competition for political lewdness with Idaho this week) I had a million ideas and I wasn’t sure which direction to go. I eventually settled on a drawing inspired by John Mark Karr’s trip back to the states. This was the trip where John enjoyed champagne and first class treatment. However, unlike the John Mark Karr story, which was “I did it” and the media believed him, despite no evidence, Mark Foley’s story goes something like, “All evidence pointed to me being guilty of something, but a jury wouldn’t believe it.”

And just a reminder, if you think a Friday drawing should be featured about a local story in your part of the US America (yes, I watched the YouTube video), send me an email at drawmesomething@pixelmarx.com.

Free Market Emergency? Yes, I’d Like to Compare Prices…

In this Friday’s Drawing for a Reader, I was prompted to tackle the issue of health care. I’m surprised I’d not tried health care, considering it’s such a big issue. I guess that’s why I invite topic suggestions, so I don’t get into any set grove.

So here you have it.

Free market health care, as explained in an article by Jay Bookman (August 23, 2007), would encourage health care consumers (meaning you) to be more proactive in seeking the best possible price for your health care solutions. Some advocates of Free Market Theory have used laser eye surgery as an excellent example of how non-covered medical expenses within the free market economy, become cheaper over time.

Yes, this may sound rosy when you no longer need your tinted glasses. But come on. Do we really think our health care costs keep going up because of minor cosmetic surgeries? Let’s try, $2000 for a 10 minute emergency room visit for starters. And it only goes up from there.

Complex Legislation Mean Some in Congress Never Read

This week’s, Drawing for a Reader, is for Bill, from out West, who drew my attention to this recent story about Dianne Feinstein.

I wish I didn’t have to pick on Democrats so much, considering that this IS a slightly left-leaning political cartoon blog, but the current Democrats have been such easy targets recently with their authorization of warrant-less wiretapping, inability to make progress on the Iraq War, and their failure to pursue impeachment proceedings of Bush & Associates.

The Congress isn’t entirely at fault. Because nothing has been done to curb the influence of Corporations (who often write the bills), legislation that must be voted on are huge, complex works that would probably make Tolstoy’s “War and Peace” read like a cartoon…no offense to Tolstoy, cartoons are fun.

Foul Smell From Beijing More Than Olympic Pollution

This week’s Friday Drawing for a Reader, speaks directly to China’s human rights record on the eve of the 2008 Olympics, notably in reference to Darfur. Cooper’s blog, Darfur: An Unforgivable Hell on Earth, inspired the drawing.

While I understand China’s made progress on its Darfur stance, it continues its repression of human freedoms, notably political expression. This is a freedom you suddenly appreciate more fully when you realize you’re drawing something that in another country could get you imprisoned.

NOTE ABOUT THE DRAWING: The inspiration for this cartoon came from a Chinese propaganda poster.

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