The Sorensen Monologues

This Week’s Cartoon: “Fat Cat”

As if we needed any further proof that trickle-down economics is a joke, along comes massively-profitable Caterpillar’s decision to freeze the wages of its Joliet, IL factory workers from now until the cows come home, and then some. Meanwhile, the compensation for Cat CEO Douglas Oberhelman shot up 60% in 2011, to $16.9 million. It’s not like the workers were being lavishly paid, either; the top tier had average salaries of $55,000 before overtime.

Unfortunately, I can’t boycott Cat, as I won’t exactly be in the market for a knuckleboom loader anytime soon.

Editor: Comics help keep print readers loyal

In response to the recent Austin Chronicle story in which I was interviewed about the future of alt-weekly comics, an editor who publishes my work wrote me this noteworthy email:

Jen,

I read the article about the decline in political cartoons in the alternative press, and as usual, there’s a tragic flaw in the reasoning for getting rid of comics to cut costs.

By dumbing down the print side of their publications, publishers everywhere are destroying their own industry.  If anything, the logical response to online competition would be to add *more* comics, columns and thought-provoking material to keep readers loyal.

We’ve taken that approach at Northern Express and the print side of our business is thriving.  For what it’s worth, we sometimes run more pages now than i’ve seen in the Village Voice, and our geographical area encompasses a population of under 300,000.

Meanwhile, the daily in our town has gone all-in with the online delusion and has gone from a staff of 12 reporters to 3.  What publishers don’t realize is that their online presence should be the gravy on the potato — not the other way around.

Thanks for indulging my favorite pet peeve.

Bob Downes,
Northern Express Weekly
Traverse City, MI

Well-put, methinks. To be fair, I understand that not every market is the same, and I know some editors have cut comics due to space issues when they truly didn’t want to. But considering that we live in an increasingly visual age, and political satire is popular, I suspect comics cultivate regular readers better than… well, a lot of other things.

This Week’s Cartoon: “Off-Target”

As soon as I found out about the Aurora, CO shootings, I began dreading the celebrity-level scrutiny of the gunman’s life. I mean, I have as much curiosity as anyone about what possesses a person to do such a thing, but is it really necessary to turn the news coverage of the incident into an episode of “This is your life, Mr. Shooter!” Personally, I don’t think photos of the suspect should be published at all. (See related cartoon from the Virginia Tech massacre, “The School Shooter PR Agency“; Holmes clearly falls under the “snapped nerd” category.) The right very badly wants to turn this into a matter of individual personality, but that misses the, uh, assault elephant in the room.

This week’s cartoon: “As the Mitt Spins”

Interesting questions have been raised about whether Mitt “retrocatively retired” from Bain so he could keep his wife’s health insurance coverage while she underwent treatment for MS. The Romney campaign won’t respond, which gives us a license to speculate. Of course, Romney is one of the few people who could actually afford to pay for MS treatment out-of-pocket. But given his aggressive efforts at tax avoidance, one suspects that he doesn’t like to part with money if he can help it. Unless he’s buying a car elevator for a ridiculous beach house.

Austin Chronicle article on altie cartoons

The Austin Chronicle recently spoke with Tom Tomorrow and me about the future of alternative political cartooning. Also includes my thoughts on Austin and a photo of me in front of some Futurama graffiti (Captain Zapp Brannigan’s crotch, to be specific.)

This Week’s Cartoon: “App-sessive Compulsive”

This cartoon probably comes off as more curmudgeonly than I am in real life, since I’ve been a little app-sessive myself lately. I’m a fan of Evernote, which I use to jot down cartoon ideas or information while I’m on the go. Recently, Evernote released specialized apps for remembering meals and people you meet, both of which I would probably find cool and useful. But then I got to thinking: how much time do I really want to spend interrupting life in order to peck away at my phone? Can one no longer enjoy an immersive experience with a plate of Drunken Noodles without getting all meta-noodly?

Okay, maybe I’ll make a note if they’re really good. But down that path obsessive content creation lies.

This Week’s Cartoon: “Wealthcare”

Last week’s Affordable Care Act ruling overshadowed the Supreme Court’s other recent doings, such as its reaffirmation of Citizens United as it smacked down Montana’s campaign finance law. If only the Court’s radical bloc cared about protecting ordinary humans as much as corporate campaign contributions. But here’s a thought: If corporate cash is the same as speech, then my health is also speech because being healthy allows me to speak. So anything that interferes with my health, such as insurance companies denying me coverage, is an affront to the First Amendment. Put that in your pipe of illogic and smoke it, Scalia!

Thoughts on today’s Affordable Care Act ruling

I was going to be interviewed by the AP today about my response to the Supreme Court ruling, thanks to the health insurance comic I drew for Kaiser Health News. After preparing some remarks, I was told that the article was running long and they didn’t need further commentary. So, in an effort to make ye olde proverbial lemonade, I’ll share my thoughts here.

Like most people, I was stunned by the ruling.  I never thought I’d say this, but it’s possible that John Roberts just saved me a shit-ton of money. Believe me, I have no love for private insurance companies, but the mandate is a positive step forward as we work toward single-payer.

At the same time, I don’t particularly feel a sense of relief. I’m dreading the ongoing political battles that lie ahead, and wish this could just be over. The mandate will be framed as a burdensome tax, and ACA supporters need to make very clear that it’s a cost-control measure that ultimately benefits us all. It’s a way of improving a grossly inefficient system. (Also, people: please stop using the stupid term “Obamacare.” Have we not learned anything about framing in all these years?)

Another reason I feel uneasy is that the SCOTUS decision was a frighteningly close shave — the other four justices would have struck down the act in its entirely! That’s radicalism in your face, and it’s something we’ll have to contend with for a generation or more. But for today, I’ll let myself celebrate.

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

I 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.