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Archive for 2012

This Week’s Cartoon: Masters of the Universe-ity

As a University of Virginia alum, I’ve been following the recent drama surrounding the ouster of President Teresa Sullivan very closely. Yesterday, Sullivan was reinstated by the Board of Visitors, to the great relief of just about everyone in the university community. It’s been heartening to watch the rallies and see good old-fashioned activism (aided by new-fashioned social media) clearly rewarded.

While this particular battle may have been won, the corporatization of higher education remains a problem. More than anything, this situation has revealed the dangers of the awesome hubris that can develop among certain wealthy individuals in positions of power. The handful of people behind Sullivan’s ouster included a couple billionaire hedge fund managers and a condo developer from Virginia Beach with a soft spot for the musings of David Brooks. Such experience does not qualify one to make sweeping decisions in secrecy about a major public university. Here’s a suggestion for those who think their success in extracting wealth from the marketplace means they’re brilliant Renaissance People capable of running anything: take a few of those millions and buy some humility. Please.

For more on the subject, I recommend this Prospect article by another U.Va grad.


Open Letter to the Supreme Court

Health care comicI neglected to post this while I was traveling and having some FTP issues, so in case you haven’t seen this elsewhere (it is the most widely-shared thing I’ve ever drawn), please check out this 4-page “graphic op-ed” I created for Kaiser Health News. Click through for the rest of the comic.

It’s a personal piece about my history with health insurance on the individual market. During the Affordable Care Act debate, there was lots of discussion about “death panels” and other complete nonsense, but little about the difficulties faced by self-employed people. Being a freelancer is hard enough — when you throw in this disincentive, it becomes downright impossible for many people.

Suffice it to say, I’m not optimistic about the Supreme Court’s looming decision.


This Week’s Cartoon: “Camp Austerity”

I have my hands full with moving-related activities, so I’m afraid additional cartoon commentary will be austere today.


This Week’s Cartoon: The Circle of Stupidity, Scott Walker Edition

As the daughter of public schoolteachers, I can no longer stand to even look at Scott Walker’s guppy face. I’m sorry he’s still around.

You would think at some point, conservatives would wake up to the fact that workers can’t buy stuff without money. I mean, you can’t keep stomping the crap out of the middle class and expect awesome economic growth. That’s magical thinking — a phenomenon not uncommon among Republicans, granted.


Altweekly Awards

While I was wondering around the Rhode Island Convention Center in a daze this past weekend, the 2012 Altweekly Awards were announced… and apparently I won first place this year. Totes awse!


…And We’re Back

I think my website FTP problem has been resolved, knock on mousepad.

I just returned from Netroots Nation, where I was on a panel with Tom Tomorrow and Matt Bors. For a great photo of all three of us in the costume shop of Big Nazo, see the This Modern World blog.


This Week’s Cartoon: Warren vs. Brown Voting Guide

I have not had a chance to fix the stupid FTP problem with my site yet, so I’m going to link to this week’s cartoon over on Daily Kos.

I’m posting from Providence, RI, where I arrived last night for Netroots Nation. I’ll be on a panel Saturday morning with Tom Tomorrow and Matt Bors, sharing our cartoons and taking Q&A. More details here.


Website Weirdness

I know, I haven’t updated the site lately. My host did a massive upgrade recently, which always seems to happen while I’m traveling, and it seems my FTP login was reset. I’ll sort it out soon. In the meantime, I have to prepare to fly to Rhode Island tomorrow for Netroots Nation!


The Nine Zeros Club

I’m too busy to write bonus commentary this week, aside from saying that it’s pretty strange whom we decide to allot Godlike power to in this country.


Speaking of Gay Marriage

I have a cartoon in a cool book that just came out, Here Come the Brides!: Reflections on Lesbian Love and Marriage, edited by Audrey Bilger and Michele Kort (Seal Press). I collaborated with LA writer and performer Judy Scheer, who was fun to work with, and a natural at prepping a cartoon script (many people are really not).
Here Come the Brides book cover

The book is filled with moving essays from women with a variety of takes on relationships and the institution of marriage. Coincidentally, I turned in my final art just as crowds were pouring into the streets of New York City to celebrate the legalization of same-sex marriage in the state. More info at the editors’ blog here.


Oregonian interview

The Oregonian did a nice interview with me as part of a series on their local blog partners. What’s the most common misperception about me? Why am I leaving Portland? How do I summarize myself in a single word? Those exciting answers and more can be found with a click of the mouse!


This Week’s Cartoon: “The Bully Rights Movement”

I was going to make a “bully pulpit” joke in this strip, but then I did a search and realized everyone on the internet had already made it. A cartoonist’s life is fraught with peril.

Mitt has done some good in the past, such as the health care plan he now distances himself from. But more and more, it seems like he’s a human hurricane leaving a trail of unemployed people, bowel-voiding dogs and traumatized gay teens in his wake.


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Jen Sorensen is a cartoonist for Daily Kos, The Nation, In These Times, Politico and other publications throughout the US. She received the 2023 Berryman Award for Editorial Cartooning from the National Press Foundation, and is a recipient of the 2014 Herblock Prize and a 2013 Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award. She is also a Pulitzer Finalist.

 

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