Yearly Archives: 2022

Social Media Substitutes

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Elon’s only been in charge of Twitter for a week, and already speedrunning it into an unusable hate speech mess. I thought it be around long enough for a soft exit, but now I’ve got to cold turkey my way out of a bad habit I’ve had since my late twenties.

I got a lot of work over that decade and a half posting there and getting my stuff across editors’ eyeballs. But now that Elon is welcoming antisemites, bigots, and CHUDs in general, I doubt any editors worth accepting a gig from will be on there much longer.

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Swing Voters Explain Themselves

This entry was posted in comics and tagged 2022 elections coup Covid-19 pandemic Republicans voter suppression on by
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The midterms are rapidly approaching and the polls between “fascists” and “milquetoast not-fascists” are closer than they should be. The mainstream press loves a horserace, even when the consequences are life and death for millions of people. Gaffes are easier to report (and draw) than all the mechanisms Republicans are going to use to end what little democracy we have left if given control of Congress once more.

But get your “I Voted.” sticker anyway. These idiots will.

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Energy Crisis Tips

This entry was posted in comics and tagged climate change energy fossil fuel Green New Deal on by
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I know there’s wildfires, heat waves and brutal droughts out west, but up here it’s time to dig out the toques and winter coats. Energy costs are expected to surge (Thanks in part to OPEC, who REALLY want to influence the midterms) and everyone in colder climates who isn’t rich is going to suffer.

We’ve avoided the first frost by slim margins so far, but eventually it’s going to be the end of my pandemic jalapenos third growing season, and I’ll have to bring them inside for another New England winter. At least the frost will kill the mosquitos first.

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Mark Zuckerberg’s DIY Metaverse

This entry was posted in comics and tagged Facebook Mark Zuckerberg Metaverse virtual reality on by
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Every announcement from Zuckerberg about his pet Metaverse project has been met with much-deserved derision. It seems like he’s been forcing hype around something that looks like a Second Life knockoff for almost then 20 years since Second Life was relevant.

The idea of a virtual office at a time when employers are desperate to get everyone back in the real office only sounds good to manager-types. Those fortunate enough to work from home during the (still-ongoing) pandemic experienced what us freelance work-from-home slobs have already known: Sleeping in and no commute rules.

As part of his Metaverse pitch, it appears Zuckerberg changed his wardrobe to a long-sleeve shirt. I believe this was to ease the burden on his beleaguered programmers who’ve had to crunch to upgrade his avatar after each round of ridicule.

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The Monster Fash

This entry was posted in comics and tagged abortion Amy Coney Barrett Brett Kavanaugh Clarence Thomas disenfranchisement fascism Ginni Thomas John Roberts Mitch McConnell Neil Gorsuch Samuel Alito SCOTUS on by
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The Criterion Channel launched some great Halloween collections this week, the same week the Supreme Court began a new session. So I’ve been enjoying the escapism from real horrors with fictional ones.

Until the court’s expanded, or ignoring their unenforceable rulings becomes commonplace, these six freaks are going to do a lot of damage. (Unless two of them croak while a Democrat is President, before they say that’s unconstitutional.)

There are many, and far superior Halloween novelty songs than the Monster Mash, but it’s hard to top Werewolf Bar Mitzvah and Monster Fuck.

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The Fed Can Fix It!

This entry was posted in comics and tagged economics Federal Reserve inflation Jerome Powell recession unemployment on by
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Jerome Powell is the Federal Reserve Chair and was originally appointed by Trump. Biden reappointed him to make the same capital-driven decisions no elected politician could be caught making directly.

This one (Republican, by the way) unelected dude is basically the figurehead of the “free” market, but with immense power over the global economy. Unfortunately, all these people are freaking out that wages are going up for the first time in a generation, and have decided we all need to be taught a lesson while dividends and stock buybacks continue at unprecedented levels.

A functional economy would have windfall profits taxes and be clawing away at the immense gains of the 1% to cool the economy without causing millions to become unemployed. Instead we get massive recessions every 0-5 years.

I am compelled to draw obscure government functionaries no one knows, but this time I labelled him because even I couldn’t pick him out of a lineup.

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Bivalent Boosters

This entry was posted in comics and tagged bivalent boosters boosters Covid-19 Joe Biden pandemic vaccinations on by
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I had a bivalent booster shot scheduled this week, but it was canceled the night before due to shortages. Fingers crossed that my rescheduled appointment has the booster juice next week.

The rollout for this round of boosters is atrocious. It wasn’t great last fall, with only 30% of those eligible getting one; and that winter saw omicron and a peak of 4,000+ deaths a day in January. Maybe the plan to let everyone get it and let eugenics do the rest will mean less death this time around, but whistling past a million dead to get back to “normal” has let out the sociopath in all of us.

Get the booster, wear a mask in enclosed public spaces, and get the flu shot too. There are still people who can’t do any that who are relying on the rest of society to create an environment that’s safe enough for them to return to.

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Fall TV Premieres

This entry was posted in comics and tagged Amazon Covid-19 Federal Reserve housing Howard Schultz Jeff Bezos pandemic Starbucks television TV on by
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There’s a strike going on at a Boston Starbucks that’s the longest in that franchise’s recent wave of workers demanding to paid fairly for slinging glorified milkshakes.

Every other panel is about another news thing. I had to hedge a bit with the supply chain, since there’s a tentative agreement with railroad workers, but I’ve been experiencing random things being out of stock ever since we decided to let COVID rip through workplaces.

As for actual TV shows, summer seems to be when they put out a lot of the good ones, and FX/Hulu are putting out bangers. Reservation Dogs, This Fool, The Bear, What We Do in the Shadows, are all worth checking out if the fall garbage isn’t for you.

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