Q Toon: Beanball

Milwaukee Brewers relief pitcher Josh Hader has been very impressive this year: so much so that he made it onto the National League All-Star team in July. Uncharacteristically, in his eighth inning appearance in the All-Star game, he gave up four hits, including a three-run home run.

And that was the good news.

During the game, someone was publicizing disgusting homophobic and racist tweets Hader had tweeted in 2011 when he was 17 years old.

Many of the tweets are from late 2011 and early 2012, shortly before the Baltimore Orioles selected Hader in the amateur draft. The then-17-year-old – who currently tweets under the moniker “Josh Haderade” – used the n-word repeatedly in reference to himself and others. “I don’t give a damn, i’m a triply n—er, f⸺ my lungs, f⸺ my liver!” Hader tweeted on October 25, 2011. That same month, Hader wrote, “hahahahahah to [sic] bad i’m grounded n—er can’t do shit.” But the racism didn’t stop with the n-word; over the course of five months, Hader tweeted a reference to the “KKK,” a white fist emoji alongside “white power lol” and, in response to someone who tweeted “i hate all the black people,” Hader wrote, “lmao i tried to tell her about em she just laugh at me.”
Hader also tweeted an assortment of homophobic and sexist comments, from “I hate gay people” and “gay people freak me out,” to “Need a bitch who can f⸺, cook, and clean right.” 

As the resurrected tweets spread through the stands, Hader fans were seen turning their jerseys inside out, and even his family switched to attire without his name on it. A chastened Hader told reporters after the game that he regretted and disavowed his youthful indiscretion, and would accept whatever sanction Major League Baseball, the Brewers, and the fans would impose on him.

That turned out to be some required sensitivity training, and, from the fans, a standing ovation at his next home mound appearance.

That ovation shocked many around the sports world, and not just a few at home. Milwaukee Seventh District Alderman Khalif Rainey issued a strongly worded condemnation:

"What occurred during Josh Hader’s first appearance since those tweets surfaced is most troubling. Thousands of fans gave the pitcher a standing ovation. This frankly is an embarrassment to the world. The boisterous manner of standing to show support for Hader is nothing less than a dismissive stance against problems of race affecting an entire community: a community dealing with the effects of hypersegregation, economic disparity and police harassment.
The act of crowd members rising to their feet to cheer Hader ignores these very issues that NFL players seek to highlight while kneeling in silent protest during the national anthem. I am deeply concerned that President Trump continues to castigate those football players, recently recommending suspension for those who do not stand “at attention, hand on heart.” Although it seems cynical, I cannot help but think it comes down to skin color."

Retired football player Shannon Sharpe was more succinct:

"Kneel against injustice, get booed. Tweet racial, homophobic slurs, get standing O. Huh"

Hader was roundly booed the first time he took the pitcher's mound at an away game, July 26 in San Francisco. By chance, that is where Colin Kaepernick had been playing when he began his protest against questionable police killings of Black citizens. The quarterback, however, received as much pushback from hometown fans as he did at away games. I have seen no reports of Brewers fans burning their Hader jerseys.

He may be safe at home, but Mr. Hader should probably expect his teenage hubris to be called out at every away game for the rest of the season.

This Week's Sneak Peek

Because of last week's syndicated cartoon, I was obliged to draw about something other than Trumpelstiltskin this week. Welcome to the sports page.

Ach! Was Für ein Schöner Krieg

Sturmback Saturday returns yet again to the final summer of World War I. Looking back on history from today's point of view, reinforced by the sort of gung-ho American and allied cartoons which have tended to show up in these posts, it's easy to think that allied victory was in sight in the summer of 1918.

German editorial cartoonists, however, were presenting a completely different picture to their readers.

"Der Trum auf der Flucht" by Richter in Ulk, Berlin, July 12, 1918

Two things I need to state right off the bat: first, some of these cartoons include racist content. It's not at all uncommon in cartoons anywhere in the last century (e.g., Dr. Seuss's wartime cartoons about the Japanese), and I have avoided using several cartoons that might otherwise have illustrated a point I was making. But they are integral to how people saw foreigners of any sort in those days, and I've let a few slip through today.

Second, my conversational German is limited to "gesundheit," "nach zweimal, bitte," and "langsam mit empfindung," so there are some puns and idioms here that I needed help to figure out. So, with that out of the way: the first cartoon above turns on a play on the words "Eiffel" and "zweifelhaft" (meaning "doubtful").

"Die Kunst im Keller" by M. Richter in Ulk, Berlin, July 26, 1918

In July, the German army was still lobbing shells toward Paris from their huge "Paris-Geschütz" in the hills some 75 miles to the northeast, the longest-range weapon to date. German cartoonists fancied every Parisian having to scuttle from cellar to cellar all day, every day. Yet while the missiles certainly did cause considerable damage, the destructive power of the shells was limited by the relatively small amount of explosive material that could be packed into the thick, heavy shells; and by the fact that they couldn't be targeted to specific locations. 

Come August, the German army would be in retreat, hauling their Paris-Geschütz with them and destroying it and the plans of its construction.

"In der New-Yorker City" by Erich Schilling in Simplicissimus, Munich, August 4, 1918

German shells couldn't reach New York, and U.S. law enforcement was effectively cracking down on German-American saboteurs. Accordingly, the two-pronged propaganda line from German media against America was that American troops were suffering heavy casualties, and that they weren't a significant addition to the war anyway.

"Französische Abwehr-Reklame" by T.M. Leonhardt in Ulk, Berlin, July 5, 1918

The signs posted between the trenches in Leonhardt's cartoon promise that 500,000 Americans are on their way to the front, that Sioux Indians are coming, and more. I am told that Gustav's trenchmate is speaking with a Berlin accent, and that "Die mir!" translates to "They! Me!" in the sense of a dismissive "So they think they can impress me?!" A reputation Berliners have for being rather snooty is also at play here.

"Tin Soldiers" by Johannes Bahr in Kladderadatsch, Berlin, July 14, 1918

Johannes Bahr depicts Italian King Victor Emmanuel III (always shown as a tiny man in German cartoons), British Prime Minister David Lloyd George, and French Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau rejoicing at the impending arrival of the Americans, only to be disappointed by Woodrow Wilson's "tin soldiers."

An explanatory note atop Bahr's cartoon alleges that "American troops are called tin soldiers by their allies." From the fact that the cartoon title is in English, I would assume the epithet to have origins somewhere in the British Empire, but I haven't found any confirmation to support the claim. The common nicknames for American soldiers were Yanks, Sammies, and doughboys. It is nevertheless true that the first American soldiers and airmen to arrive in Europe lacked adequate training and supplies, insofar as the U.S. did not have a standing army at the time.

"Die 'Enten'ritter" by Arthur Johnson in Kladderadatsch, Berlin, July 7, 1918

Arthur Johnson's cartoon above plays with the German word "enten" (ducks) as a pun on "Entente" by depicting Woodrow Wilson as a ludicrous Lohengrin — the legendary hero who arrives on a boat pulled by swans to protect a fair young duchess whom he forbids to ask him his name. (Marianne, of course, is the traditional personification of France.)

"Zur 'Einschränkung des Fremdenverkerhs'" by Arthur Johnson in Kladderadatsch, Berlin, July 14, 1918

Perhaps seeking to drive a wedge between the French and their allies, Johnson depicts the Americans and British as the guests who have overstayed their welcome, rather than the Germans whom the "tourists" were seeking to drive out of Marianne's parloir. Native Americans had been commonly used in European cartoons since colonial days to represent the U.S. (especially to imply it were a nation of savages). Taking this cartoon along with T.M. Leonhardt's above, I have to marvel that our Navajo "code talkers" ploy still baffled German intelligence a quarter century later.

As for any new restrictions on tourism which Johnson appears to be referencing, I suppose that must have been a German thing. Paris wouldn't seem to be an attractive tourist destination with German shells falling haphazardly from the sky. German cities were not being shelled, but were suffering food, fuel, and material shortages thanks to the Entente blockade

The Sammies were not the only troops whose participation in the war was belittled by German cartoonists.

"Wieter Können Wir Nicht, Kinder..." by Gustav Brandt in Kladderadatsch, Berlin, August 4, 1918

The note of explanation with this Gustav Brandt cartoon of hapless Canadian, Australian and South African unicorn riders says, "According to Swiss reports, British dominions no longer have confidence in a final victory." Certainly there was opposition, most notably in Quebec, to Canada's involvement in hostilities, and among Afrikaners to South Africa's. The cost of the war in Australian lives surely dampened the Diggers' initial gung-ho enthusiasm, too.

But the failure of the Central Powers' Spring Offensive to end the war sapped German popular support as well. And as Kladderadatsch's August 4 edition hit the streets, Entente forces were poised to counter with their 100 Days Offensive. All of the above allied countries and territories were deeply committed, and the offensive ultimately turned the tide of the war in favor of the Entente.

"Auch Haiti!" by Johannes Bahr in Kladderadatsch, Berlin, July 28, 1918

Still, if German media were dismissive of U.S., Canadian, Australian and South African participation in the war, they found Haiti's July 12 declaration of war utterly laughable. Occupied by the U.S. since 1915, Haiti had protested German U-boat activity in the Atlantic and Caribbean, particularly after the 1917 sinking of a French steamer with Haitian passengers and crew.

One of the panels in Bahr's cartoon comes close to being subversive, however, in that he notes how inflation was a serious problem in Germany, exacerbated by even the most insignificant bit of bad news.

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Many thanks to my guter Freund Winfried Schmidtpott for help unpacking such words as "Miessmacherstammtisch," which is the table at a neighborhood bar around which a bunch of populist, Gloomy Gus regulars traditionally gather to discuss weighty issues of politics and society.

But you already knew that.

Q Toon: Drawing the Line

Trigger warning: there's some mature subject matter in today's post.

After Donald Joffrey Trump's disgraceful press conference alongside his Russian handler a couple weeks ago, there was a flurry of editorial cartoons, Twitter memes, late-night comedian gags, and picket signs depicting or at least implying homosexual relations between the two. Kissing. Spooning in bed. Trump, er, servicing Putin one way or the other.

Complaints quickly followed that the metaphor is homophobic.

These signs and these “jokes” don’t hurt Trump and Putin. They do hurt people, especially young people, who are actually gay or queer. Because you cannot deride homosexuality without deriding gay people, even if the jokes are meant to be at the expense of someone’s ego. They still reinforce the idea that there is something funny about same-sex attraction.

Despite my reflex tendency to err on the side of free speech, I have to agree.

I had initially disagreed with the charge of homophobia against somebody's tweet to the effect of "The same people who impeached Bill Clinton for a blow job in private are defending Trump for giving a blow job in public." The same sexual relation (sorry, Bill, it is) whether straight or gay, right? But after some consideration, I had to ask whether a cartoonist, comedian, memer, or picketer who bought into Trump's criticism at the G-7 summit of Germany's oil pipeline out of Russia could then make the same sort of fellatio remark about Angela Merkel and Putin. Would that be sexist?

Yes, it definitely would. 

On the other hand, the cliché that shows up in cartoons a lot, "Politics makes strange bedfellows," did not originally imply copulative behavior. (If you doubt that, try calling your romantic partner a "bedfellow" to his/her face sometime.) Once upon a time, there might be any number of reasons why two people might be obliged to spend the night in the same bed; it did require mutual trust, and it did keep both people warm. Sometimes, a bed is just for sleep.

For example, I was not implying an orgy in this 1986 cartoon.

As a faithful follower of this blog, you are aware that I have already drawn my cartoon on the topic of the Putin-Trump meeting in Helsinki, and there was no homophobic, bdsmphobic, or furryphobic subtext implied in it.

That particular idea came to me without the sort of anguished brainstorming depicted in today's cartoon. Also, my drawing board has never been that uncluttered since the day I took it out of the box. (But as anyone who knows me can tell you, talking to myself is an indispensable part of my creative process. And just about every other cogitative process.)

I guess I've obliged myself to "draw about something else" next week, which will please at least one of my Facebook friends. If only Mr. Trump could refrain from outrageous behavior that long.

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P.S.: In a similar vein, Jerusalem Report has severed its ties with Avi Katz, an Israeli cartoonist who drew a cartoon depicting Likud politicians as pigs with a quotation from Orwell's Animal Farm. The cartoon, posted on Facebook, was in response to the religious nation-state law passed this month. Report publishers decided that the swine imagery was anti-Semitic.

This Week's Sneak Peek

Who is this handsome devil and what is he doing at my drawing board?

Hmm...

From Baltics to Balkans

In honor of Donald Joffrey Trump's gobsmackable performance in Helsinki this week, I kick off Suomiback Saturday with an update on Finnish history one century ago this summer.

"Anticipation and Realization" by Ted Brown in Chicago Daily News, ca. July, 1918

Prior to Russia's February Revolution, Finland had been an autonomous Grand Duchy under the Romanov emperors, but technically not part of Russia. The overthrow of Nicholas II put Finland's status relative to St. Petersburg in dispute. The Finnish parliament voted to make itself the nation's chief governing body, and after the October Revolution, declared independence on December 6, 1917.

"Orders from the Boss" by Gibbs in Baltimore Sun, ca. July, 1918

Conflict between the government's majority conservatives (Whites) and minority social democrats (Reds) flared into civil war. With military support from Germany, the Whites prevailed, booted the Reds from parliament, and in October of 1918 elected Kaiser Wilhelm's brother-in-law Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse as king. But by then, World War I was finally drawing to a close, and Frederick never actually assumed the Finnish throne.

"The Master's Voice in Finland" by David Wilson in The Passing Show, London, ca. June, 1918

Also officially breaking away from Russia were the Baltic states, occupied by Germany since 1915. Under the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Russia renounced its claims on the Baltic nations and agreed that they would be in Germany's sphere of influence. Latvia and Estonia declared themselves The United Baltic Duchy under a German duke; and in July of 1918, the State Council of Lithuania elected another German duke, Duke Wilhelm of Urach, as their King Mindaugas II. 

"Little Lithuania Will Now Be Led to Slaughter" by Blackman in Birmingham (Alabama) Age-Herald, ca. June, 1918

Germany, however, preferred other candidates with closer ties to the Kaiser. German occupiers censored the Lithuanian press from publishing anything about the new king, and actually shut down the Council's official newspaper for refusing to print an article denouncing King Mindaugas.

"The Liberator" by Eddie Eksergian in St. Louis Globe-Democrat, ca. June, 1918.

Despite taking a crash course in Lithuanian language and history, Duke Wilhelm ended up never setting foot in Lithuania, either.

"Family Troubles" by C.A. Bronstrup in San Francisco Chronicle, ca. June, 1918

Meanwhile, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which had begun World War I in the first place, was beginning to unravel. With its military suffering reverses on the Italian front, the empire was confronted by declarations of independence by its southern Slav and Czech subjects, compounded by labor and pacifist strikes at home.

"Czech the Giant Killer" by W.A. Rogers in New York Herald, ca. July, 1918

Before the Russian revolutions, Czech and Slovak deserters from the Austrian army had fled to Russia rather than fight against their slavic kin. Their numbers boosted by Czech prisoners of war captured by the Russians, the Kerensky government gave them permission to fight against Austria. The Bolsheviks initially promised them passage through Siberia to Vladivostok and thence to France — only to insist that they surrender their weapons, since facilitating the Czechs' fight against the Central Powers would be a clear violation of Brest-Litovsk.

"Das Banner der Tschecho-slowakischen Legion" by M. Richter in Ulk, Berlin, July 19, 1918

But a Cossack government in Siberia headed by M. Horvath was friendly to the Czech-Slovaks. Joining together to fight the Bolsheviks, they secured much of the Trans-Siberian Railway by mid-July, and declared the city of Vladivostok to be an Allied protectorate. They conquered Yekaterinburg as well, but too late to save deposed Tsar Nicholas II and his household.

"The Salvation Army" by John F. Knott in Dallas News, ca. July, 1918

The above cartoonist, John F. Knott, was born in Plzeň, Austria-Hungary (now Czech Republic), emigrating to Iowa with his widowed mother in 1883 when he was 5 years old. His sympathy for his fellow Czechs is therefore quite understandable, and probably shared by many Bohemian-Americans.

"When Thieves Fall Out" by A.G. Racey in Montreal Star, July, 1918

And we conclude our tour in the Balkans. Greek forces with the support of France captured Skra from the Bulgarian army in May of 1918, prompting the resignation of Bulgaria's prime minister. A new government began secret negotiations for a separate peace,. Great Britain rejected any continued control by Bulgaria over Macedonia, promising the territory to Greece and Serbia. Turkey had fought for possession of the same territory in the Balkan Wars of the early half of the decade, but no longer had any serious prospect of extending its European territory past Eastern Thrace.

Q Toon: If Chuck Could Chuck Brett

Meanwhile, back on the home front:

As you may recall, last week I didn't draw a cartoon about Trump's appointment of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court because I had to send it off to my syndicate editors before the announcement was made.

So it kind of bugs me that I could easily have drawn this cartoon a week ago, but for the fact that the dialogue in panel two is a direct quotation of Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY). I could easily have predicted that he would say something very much like it, and sent my editors five versions of this cartoon with only the name in that panel changed.

(That would have actually meant sending them fifteen versions of the cartoon, because I always send a grayscale version and a CMYK version for print and an RGB version for the web. But that's technical stuff and beside the point.)

Democrats have a minority in the Senate and no tie-breaker in the Vice President's chair. Furthermore, they have Senators Heidi Heitkamp, Joe Manchin, and Doug Jones who are perfectly comfortable crossing party lines to vote with Republicans. "I am not a member of any organized political party," as Will Rogers famously said; "I am a Democrat."

Some pundits have floated the idea that Democrats might be able to peel Senators Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins away from the Republican monolith on the basis of Kavanaugh's hostility to Roe v. Wade, or Sen. Rand Paul on the basis of the nominee's deference to an imperial presidency. To which I say, "Dream on." The occasional Republican may express reservations about Trumpism from time to time, but none ever do so with their votes. Just their retirements.

But soldier on, Senator Schumer. Rage, rage against the dying of the light.