Me: 2012

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Talk Show 3

http://www.thedailyshow.com/full-episodes/mon-march-26-2012-shaquille-o-neal

This political comedy mainly focuses on the shooting of Trayvon Martin in Florida in February. The show makes fun of the justice system and its failure to really arrest George Zimmerman. He then goes on to mock and ridicule the large number of people who took part in the million hoodie day thing they had in honor of Trayvon Martin and to serve as a way of showing respect to his family. Jon Stewart then went on to address how the black panther has a bounty on Zimmerman's head for $10,000. He satirizes the thing whole deal by stating that anyone who fails to wear a hoodie is a racist. Lastly he addresses how the clothing is supposedly the blame and satirizes it even more by saying it was the hoodie, the candy, and the fact that he was black that got him killed. I think Jon is pretty neutral when it comes to the issue. Of course he blames Zimmerman, but i don't necessarily think he is a great advocate of the issue.

Talk Show 2

Talk Show 1

http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/412156/april-09-2012/searching-for-mr--right---mitt-romney---iowa-s-steve-king?xrs=share_copy

This Episode of the Colbert report was actually quite hilarious in the short clip he addresses a number of things. First and foremost he ridicules the Republican’s attempt at having an ongoing and unpredictable primary period. As we know the Republicans used to use a winner take all system for their primaries. But after seeing how intense the primaries for the Democratic were in 2008, they changed things up this year in hopes of getting a similar level of excitement and interest. Unfortunately for them they sort of failed because they from the very beginning Romney has been extremely effective at winning most of the primaries. Steve also ridicules how difficult it will be for Romney to pick a running mate that will need to appeal to women, Hispanics, blacks, and evangelical Christians. The Colbert Report is clearly a show that does not favor conservatives along with the Republican Party. As he criticizes Romney one would clearly see that. Colbert then goes on to make it even more satirical by saying that Steve King would be the best one for the Job. He then continues on to ridicule King by saying things such as he believes nondiscrimination laws are not needed along with health insurance for babies.

Political Cartoon 12

This political cartoon is one that carries a great deal of satire as well. In this cartoon we have Ambulance covered with eth words Obamacare that looks like it’s going at full speed. There’s a sign that says speed bump ahead. On the road, the speed bump is actually a rolled up constitution with the words we the people of the United States written on it. Then we have the supposedly patient who’s in the Ambulance basically falling out through the open backdoors. This individual is strapped down on the stretcher and also has the words Individual Mandates written on the blanket covering him.

This cartoon is interesting because it involves the current Supreme Court case dealing with what most Republicans call Obamacare. Obviously this cartoonist probably favors the Republicans in this cartoon, for it seems to be a criticism of Obamacare. The constitution obviously serves as the speed bump because many believed the possibility of such a system to be unconstitutional; hence why the case is before the court now. The patient strapped down probably implies that people are being forced to do something that they wouldn’t necessary want to do since it is an individual mandate. The Ambulance being loose and crazy probably represents how the cartoonist feels about the way this possible system of healthcare is heading.

Political Cartoon 11

In this cartoon political cartoon, we have matters on a more domestic and national agenda. This cartoon involves the death of Trayvon Martin and the fact that the suspect is has yet to be convicted due to “loopholes” in the justice system. In the cartoon, we have some cartoon character that resembles a piece of paper driving a pickup truck at a really late hour. This character has the words FLA STAND YOUR GROUND LAW. Out on the sidewalk we have a blindfolded elderly white women walking about. She is dressed in what seems to be ancient Roman attire that people used to wear during a certain time period. This blindfolded lady is obviously the Lady of Justice. Upon seeing Lady Justice, The cartoon character in the car states to himself that he does not recognize the suspicious character and that he feels a threat for his life.

This cartoon is interesting for a number of reasons. As I previously stated, Trayvon Martin was killed by a George Zimmerman a couple months ago. Zimmerman claimed to have killed Trayvon in self-defense. As we know Zimmerman wasn’t arrested on the grounds that he stood by the Florida Stand your Ground Law. This law basically states something along the lines that if one feels as if they are threaten and their life is in danger, they are allowed to use deadly force to defend themselves. Trayvon didn’t have any weapons on him when he was shot. This cartoonist is interesting because he didn’t necessarily attack Zimmerman but he attacked the law. Many argue that justice has yet to be attained and the fact that this law in Florida possibly overshadows the justice in our justice/legal system is something we need to take seriously.

Political Cartoon 10

This political cartoons deal with what many believes to be America’s never ending involvements in other nation’s affairs. In the picture, we have Uncle Sam banging on a set of congas. To be exact there’s three congas in the picture. The first one has the words Afghanistan written on it. It seems like Uncle Sam already made music using the first conga to the point where it its completely burnt out. Right on top of that same conga we have a cloud of dark smoke with the word “war” on it. The second conga has the word Iraq written on it. This conga is just as the first one with the only exception that on the surface one must bang on the letter WMD are on it and that it is bit a larger than the first conga. The third and last is the largest out of the three. This conga has Iran written on it. On the op surface NUKES is written. This cong is also the one Uncle Sam appears to be getting ready to bang on. On the floor next to that conga, there’s Uncle Sam’s hat on the floor. He hat seems to be filled with money, and right next to it there’s a sign that reads “WAR BORROWING.” We also have two cymbals on the floor that Uncle Sam seems to have completely disregarded. One of the Cymbals has the word Libya on it and the other has Syria written on it. To finish it all the cartoonist has the following statement in quotations “Stop me if you’ve heard this one…”

This cartoonist took the time to really convey a message in this cartoon. It’s hard to say what political party he would most likely support. I think he/she criticizes both parties in this cartoon for this topic is one that they share similar views on for the most part. The first Conga representing Afghanistan is obviously representing the US war with Afghanistan. The second one represents the US war with Iraq in search of Weapons of Mass Destruction, hence the words WMD on the surface of it. The third conga is the most interesting one. This conga has yet to be beaten on, which clearly deals with the fact that US hasn’t declared war on Iran. Things are just a bit hostile between the US and Iran right now, especially with its involvements in the Israel Palestine issue. The fact that Iran has Nukes written on its surface is clearly making reference to all the talk that there has been about Iran and how a lot of nations are keeping an eye on them because of their development in nuclear equipment. Syria and Libya are on the floor because these two countries although in great distress failed to or barely receive any form of military intervention from the US. This cartoon is extremely ironic because as we know in Syria there is what we all can call genocide and the US refuses to step in. But in these three countries, I think the cartoonist is trying to imply that we go for all the wrong reasons.

Political Cartoon 9

This political cartoon, like numerous others, uses satire to by using the common message and image of Obama's 2008 campaign and adding a little extra to it to send a message. The poster on the left is a regular poster of Obama from his 2008 campaign with the words HOPE written underneath. . The one on the right is suppose to be for this upcoming election. The second poster, does not have the words HOPE on them, on the contrary they have the words PRAY. In that same picture, Obama is crossing his fingers and looking up at a sign that has gas as $4 a gallon. Right next to the sign we can see Obama thinking and hoping that the price goes down.

This cartoon uses satire at its best. It takes something that was extremely positive and successful in Obama's Campaign and ridicules it to the point it causes one to question Obama's current message. It also points out something his administration promised to address to benefit the people, and they've yet to be really successful at it. The cartoonist is obviously critical of Obama's performance over the past four years. As the general election approaches, we can anticipate attacks such as this one to be much more common. Although Obama's message for his second term focuses on the middle class, it is important for us to understand that as an incumbent he is prone to criticism on goals he didn't necessarily reach. This one about the gas price is amongst many others concerning the economy.

Political Cartoon 8

In this Political Cartoon satire and irony is the focal point of the cartoon. In the cartoon, Mitt Romney is given an oscar for best actor. He was the best actor because he was playing the role of being "severely conservative." The author of this cartoon is clearly critical of Romney.

Romney has been criticized by a great deal of Republicans for not being conservative enough. Although he often calls himself a conservative, Romney actions tend to be a lot more liberal than that of most conservatives. While being Governor of MA, he supported and urged for a health system that is extreme similar to what the republicans call Obamacare. The Cartoonist is using irony and satire to prove this point. I wouldn't necessarily call him an "actor" I just think that Romney is battling with his ideology and the political ideologies associated with the Republican Party.