Caricaturing is
what cartoonists do
Cartoon caricatures of humans which exaggerate race and facial features, body types, clothing? The latest retroactively guilty, shamed and canceled practitioner is Theodor Seuss Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss, R.I.P.
By golly, there’s nobody left for a cartoonist to make fun of anymore — except perhaps those white male Christian conservative red-state residents and politicians that Fitz unashamedly portrays as fat, knuckle-dragging, toothless, gun-toting ignorant buffoons.
So beware, sooner or later, the “cancel culture” will go after anyone and everyone who makes fun of others’ stereotypical characteristics — real or imagined. So, I have to ask, will Fitz be next?
I hope not. His cartoons usually offend me personally. But I wouldn’t “cancel” him (or anyone else). His drawings say more about himself than they do about whomever he’s trying to portray. Probably as he intends. And so, as he judges me, I may judge him. Let’s keep it that way.
People are also reading…
Bud Snyder
SaddleBrooke
Democratic hypocrisy on the filibuster
Democrats in the Senate want to end the 60 vote filibuster “cloture” rule, in place since 1917. They want a mere 51 votes, which they could do with Vice President Kamala Harris, to pass their extreme leftist agenda.
This would include trillions in spending and new taxes, gun control, immigration, etc. The filibuster was implemented to give the minority party some influence.
When Republican Mitch McConnell was the Senate majority leader, he refused to change the filibuster. Current Democratic leader Chuck Schumer supported it.
During Joe Biden’s 30 years in the Senate, he was a proponent of the current filibuster rules to block Republican appointments and legislation. In 2005 he proclaimed, “at its core, the filibuster is not about stopping a nominee or bill; its about compromise and moderation.”
Now Biden, Schumer, Harris, etc. want to change the filibuster rules wherein a senator would need to stand and orally oppose any legislation, then afterwards just a simple majority vote to pass it, to get the all of the Democrats’ leftist, extremist agenda done.
Stella Murphy
Midtown
‘Earmarks’ are just pork by another name
In a recent letter to her constituents, Arizona Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick announced her support for Community Project Funding, which she says was formerly known as earmarking.
Earmarks do not receive an up-or-down vote in their own right. They are inserted into larger measures that are sure to pass, or they are used to entice a reluctant lawmaker to vote for a measure.
A decade ago, our lawmakers banned earmarks, which had become vehicles for wasteful spending and corruption. The resurrection of earmarks threatens the same.
The health of a democracy depends on an informed, involved citizenry. We bear a responsibility to educate ourselves and to convey our wishes to our representatives with our votes and our correspondence to them.
In these times of record federal spending, it seems that the fiscal health of the nation should take precedence over legislators’ abilities to draw federal dollars home.
Joann Wilson
Green Valley
Biden is already dividing us
Wow! A news headline read “Biden, Harris to meet with Asian Americans.”
How much more can the Hiden Biden and Kamala Harris team separate our country? They started with our borders and now will begin separating us from within by meeting separately with different ethnicities.
Come on, man, where’s the unity that Biden strongly politically pushed? On top of that division he is promoting, are you ready for your personal taxes and the tax on your automobile gas to be increased?
How are you liking the beginning of socialism? Thanks for listening.
Walt Johnson
Foothills
Sociopaths span
the political spectrum
Clearly, Steve Rasmussen is cherry-picking historical facts regarding various leaders. Pinochet squelched the communist overtake of Chile and created an economy, which was and still is the success model for South America (we lived there).
He did not ruin Chile as Mussolini did in Italy. Perhaps Mr. Rasmussen could add such sociopaths as Joseph Stalin, Pol Pot, Mao Zedong to his list of demented people who killed millions of their citizens.
Should we add Xi Jinping who is killing the Uyghurs? Mr. Rasmussen is so blinded by his hate of Trump that he cannot accept historical truths.
Ihor Kunasz
Oro Valley
Concerned about guns on school grounds
Re: the March 19. article “Two bills to loosen gun regulations advance in the Arizona Legislature”
As a retired educator from New Jersey, whose gun laws are very restrictive, I initially took a Women on Target class that was offered at my husband’s gun club where he was a range safety officer.
I grew up around guns as a kid in Philadelphia as my uncle used to hunt. I decided I needed to be able to protect myself, and having no fear of guns, took that class.
On moving to Tucson three years ago, I took classes with a female NRA instructor and got my CCW, which I don’t take lightly. My husband and I practice at a local club nearby because anyone who owns guns needs to know what they are doing at all times.
As a professional musician, practice makes perfect. My concern is primarily near schools. I think it should be very clear as to how having a gun on campus is handled.
Teachers have to do shooter drills all the time with their kids, and I wouldn’t want to see anything happen between parents getting into an argument on school grounds ... which happens a lot. Just my 2 cents.
Most of us are intelligent law-abiding citizens with these permits. But some are not. I hope this is handled with children in mind.
Andrea Ansell
South Tucson
Mayor, council owe Tucson an explanation
Re: March 19 letter “Reappointment of Hale a travesty.”
Did Judge Geraldine Hale know someone, or was it just a matter of the inadequate promoting the unqualified?
Mayor Regina Romero, whom I used to respect, said she wanted to look into the review process. The reason for having a Merit Review Commission is to eliminate bias, favoritism or an upset bowel.
The mayor and Tucson City Council owe the citizens of Tucson an explanation of exactly why they overrode the Merit Commission’s recommendation.
Carol Kerchenfaut
East side
Zoos a bulwark
against extinction
A writer submitted a letter stating that zoos are unethical and incarceration of animals is cruel and causes undue suffering. In an idealistic sense, this may be correct.
The writer ignores the rapidly disappearing number of animals in the wild, which he believes to be the only place they belong. The last black rhino is gone, tigers have lost four of their nine subspecies, the giraffe population has dropped almost one-third in five years, great apes are rapidly disappearing and sharks are threatened.
This is just a partial list of animals disappearing in the wild. Animals are being killed for traditional medicines, for bush meat and for encroaching on farmland.
Accredited zoos educate about these problems and the importance of conservation of wildlife and deal with preservation of species through breeding management, helping to maintain a healthy genetic pool of threatened animals.
National Geographic stated, “Zoos are the last refuge against a rising tide of extinction.”
Larry Newhouse
Midtown
Showing the gore
might have an effect
As I said in my letter over a year ago concerning the Parkland school shooting, the papers and other social media need to publish pictures of the victims in their slaughtered state.
Although very harsh, this will help bring home the issue of how horrible gun violence can be. At the Newtown school shooting, some of the child victims could be identified only by the clothes their mothers’ dressed them in that morning.
Michael Blaney
Midtown
Sinema needs to work for the American people
Our government is not working for the American people. Nearly 76% of Americans supported the COVID relief bill, yet not a single Republican voted for it.
They have used the filibuster to block almost all legislation. It is said that the Senate is where all good legislation goes to die.
Despite the divisions in this country, a majority of Americans, regardless of party, would like to see legislation passed on critical issues like affordable health care, drug prices, and college tuition.
They want commonsense reform on immigration, criminal justice and gun laws. They want infrastructure improvements, jobs that pay a living wage, adequately funded public schools and their voting rights protected.
To stop the gridlock the filibuster has to go. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema stands in the way of achieving these reforms that Americans want.
Contact her and tell her to support eliminating the filibuster so that our government can work for the people again.
Glenda Wood
Northwest side
Effort required to stop voter suppression tactics
Voter suppression in Arizona is historical, racially motivated and discriminatory. So said the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals after recently hearing a voter suppression case (Brnovich vs. Democratic National Committee).
The 9th Circuit stated that Arizona has a “long history of race-based voting discrimination,” that Arizona voter suppression law is based on “false, race-based claims of ballot collection fraud” and “the degree of racially polarized voting in Arizona” is a factor in voter suppression.
In 2013, parts of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were rescinded. This ended a requirement that all states with a history of race discrimination (including Arizona) had to get clearance from the federal government before changing voting laws.
That reversal has encouraged a plethora of voter suppression laws introduced or passed in our state Legislature.
Contact your state representatives to voice your concerns about voter suppression and your representatives in Congress to support the For the People Act to protect and expand voting rights.
Linda Dugan
Midtown
Assault rifles
are made to assault
Having served in the Marine Corps infantry in Vietnam during the 1960s, I have an idea of the intended purpose of an assault rifle. It is beyond me why these military weapons are generally available.
Why would a private citizen have need of such a thing; for protection, for hunting? There are far more reasonable alternatives.
I have no problem with gun ownership, but I would hope that our representatives, at all levels, would consider banning these destructive instruments.
How many fewer people would have died during the recent Colorado supermarket killing if that deranged individual were otherwise armed?
David Byrne
Northwest side
