I struggled with how exactly to draw a gerrymander statue. My initial instinct was to draw it as an abstract monster because that’s where the term came from. In 1812 a Governor Gerry in Massachusetts signed a bill to redistrict his state to benefit his political party. One of the oddly shaped districts resembled a salamander. A famous editorial cartoon exaggerated the district shape as a monster, and thus Gerry plus salamander bec
But then I figured most readers would be more visually familiar with a civil war statue than an editorial cartoon from 1812 (however famous), so I settled on General Gerrymander. (Of course it would have been much better to have the General on horseback, but I’m terrible at drawing horses.)
This also allowed me to more directly address the ongoing issue of venerating those who fought on the wrong side of the American Civil War. My thoughts: Cemeteries are good places to memorialize the dead. Museums are great places to remember leaders of the past. And books are fantastic places to document and add context to both.
But let’s reserve public places of honor (town squares, monument rows, etc.) for the honorable. Tradition and heritage are good — until they start to choke us. We live in a dynamic country, and we are blessed to have a system designed to accommodate change. Let’s take advantage of that.
As for gerrymandering, I know it’s against our human nature, but we would be better off not thinking in terms of sides and avoid attempts to unfairly leverage advantages. The goal should be to create the most equitable districts possible and let the best ideas win. (Then again, I would ideally take the time to learn how to draw horses, but I doubt that’s ever going to happen.)
John Auchter draws cartoons. Lots and lots of them. You can find them at his incredibly popular website auchtoon.com. You can also find his stuff on Michigan Public Radio’s website under Opinion.
Well said, John!
And by the way, your comment about not being able to draw horses (hence the horseless general) made me laugh out loud. These days I’ll take every laugh I can get.
Always enjoy your cartoons and commentary.
Gerrymandering is a huge topic. It is a complicated, detailed issue. Right now, in Michigan, we have a petition drive to counter gerrymandering. Please, everybody, sign the petition!
Here is that original Gerrymander cartoon from 1812:
https://www.google.com/search?q=gerrymander+cartoon+1812&rlz=1C1AVSX_enUS399US399&tbm=isch&imgil=uPpZZJ_v4pOd4M%253A%253BCAYx8YdfnQ0ipM%253Bhttps%25253A%25252F%25252Fen.wikipedia.org%25252Fwiki%25252FGerrymandering&source=iu&pf=m&fir=uPpZZJ_v4pOd4M%253A%252CCAYx8YdfnQ0ipM%252C_&usg=__La5p1acbwCv6hSsbVRlYdexh1qg%3D&biw=1366&bih=662&ved=0ahUKEwiqosPmr_jVAhVH9IMKHR_UA7gQyjcIVA&ei=pDujWarAFsfojwSfqI_ACw#imgrc=uPpZZJ_v4pOd4M:
Lucky for the readers and my fellow commenters, my piece started out to be a lot longer. I just want to say that I agree with the the person on the right in the Auchtoon. The Civil War was savage indeed, but like it or not, it is an important part of our history and heritage no matter which side won. So who decides what we need to take down and put away because of someone’s dishonorable words and actions?
Today, you can burn the flag, refuse to stand for the National Anthem, say and write any dishonorable thing you want because you are protected by the freedom of speech amendment. You can return to normal life and continue to rake in gazillions of dollars because of who you are, such as an athlete. I love this country, but we are still mixed up over many things.
Well it looks like this movement to remove/disfigure statues of past historical events has arrived in Flint. Someone vandalized the UAW Statue on Atherton Road. Spray painted the statues with white paint, broke the lights that shined on the statues and broke some of the windows that came from Fisher 1 plant.
Al Capp the artist and political commentator that drew Lil’ Abner created/ drew some cartoon strips about college attending and persons of that age in which he created a phrase that he felt best defined those rioters. He called them Swine (Students Wildly Indignant about Nearly Everything). I think that that covers all those who are starting to go whole hog on the statues that they want removed from public viewing. They will not stop at just those statues. They will go after any historical figure that does not meet their standards of approval. They have vandalized Abe Lincoln’s shrine in D.C. anlong with other historical figures.
It may very well end very badly. Whether you are a cartoonist like John Auchton or a commentator like Andrew Heller, if you create/publish anything that they feel does not fit their agenda, you will end up being a target.
Simmer down and take your medication. You are completely unhinged in your comparison of some youthful vandalism in Flint’s Atherton area to the removal of statues honoring the Confederate traitors who assassinated your party’s founder who you pretend to be so fond of. Until you take your medication and start thinking rationally again, do not go out without adult supervision, you may be a danger to yourself and others.
Fred says, I am not any medication like you need to be on. The only way that you have the bare intelligence to answer my posts is to cast nasty comments on what I print. You have no other basis to comment on. If and when the vandals are caught, I am willing to say that it is not random youthful violence. The confederate traitors that you refer to were supporters of the democratic party.
The party of the kkk, Jim Crowe laws and laws meant to keep the slaves downtrodden. It was the democrats that passed laws that made it illegal to educate the slaves. It was democratic party supporters that have been murdering presidents since A. Lincoln. In the case of the person who tried to murder President Regan, it was not political ideology that drove Hinckley to do it. It was never brought up what political party that he supported. It would not surprise me that he voted democratic.
When you can come up with real meaningful rebuttals to what Working Dad and I have commented on without resorting to slander or libel to our posts, until then I will only think of you as a liberal troll.
While not of sound mind and barely coherent, you have become irrelevant. Please take your medication for the sake of everyone around you, if not for yourself.
Another ‘right on’, John !
Info for Jim Wilkes Booth III and other ignorant posters: You are correct when you write about Democrats supporting racism 100 years ago. But, you are totally off-base now, 2017. Things have changed; they changed a long time ago; life in the USA has changed since the Civil War, and since WW 1.
Please crawl back into your muddy holes, and read or google some real history. Are you too young or too stupid to remember anything?
Isn’t obvious that we need a wall on our southern border?! We need a wall to keep out these hurricanes from the Gulf of MEXICO!
Not only do these Mexicans try to sneak over our border, but they also sent hurricanes to clobber our patriotic American Texans, from their Mexican Gulf. We need a Weather Wall!
Please support our rational, wise, nice American President, in his move to wall us off! (It worked great in Berlin.) No more illegal hurricanes!
Also, we need a Climate Change Wall, to keep this Climate Change Hoax from creeping across our American borders. Walls, plus troop deployments will keep us safe.
Tom you are the most liberal liar that I have come across in a long time. Your implication that I support someone like John Wilkes Booth is reprehensible. I have have in my life ever made a threat against any president or would I condone the use of murder to remove a president from office.
I too an oath in 1971 to defend the Constitution of the United States of America. You probably never took an oath like that. Instead your oath would be to destroy the Constitution.
The thing that you are mentally up to is to destroy, ridicule, make fun of and other wise abuse those who’s opinion does not follow yours. The democrats have not changed they are still the biggest racists in this nation. The founder of planned parenthood was a first class racist who attended kkk rallies. Advocated abortion for the lesser races, in order to purify the planet. That means that Margaret Sanger wanted the abortion clinics in the black neighbor hoods in order to thin the black race, along with the other non-white races. She totally voted democratic. Margaret Sanger was a eugenist. For your information that means that there is such a thing a master race. I do not believe in a master race. Prior to Woodrow Wilson the armed forces of the United States were slowly intergrating. There were more and more black NCO’s and officers. When Wilson was elected in 1912. There were black officers and NCO’s commanding white men. By the time Wilson was out of office in January 1921, there were no more black officer’s and NCO’s. All blacks were regulated to cabin boy status.
There were a few senators that were well established in the kkk in the 1950’s and 1960’s. Robert Byrd of either N or S Carolina. Strom Thurmann(sp) of another state. There were quite a few other democrats from that time that were part of the kkk.
Once again you are talking about ancient history, and Tom acknowledged it, but I understand it is hard for someone like you to comprehend what you are reading. You are still not talking about today.
Ask whoever it is who holds your hand when you cross the street. I am sure that person will be happy to help you find your medication, then you can start thinking rationally and be relevant in this discussion.
A question about Confederate statues…. Why didn’t Democrats crap their pants, throw fits, riot, commit arson and assault people over these “offensive” statues during Obama’s administration?
It’s almost like they are nothing but a bunch of political whores.
How could that be?
The below comment proves what a self loathing little man you are, as you try to hide you insecurities under bravado. And just because your family puts on their happy faces in your presence, doesn’t mean they are happy, and likely aren’t due to the angry deranged racist troll in their midst.
Working Dad says
August 26, 2017 at 2:50 pm
I guess I have never worried about getting gray or getting older. I have been blessed with a long life of great health. My family is healthy and happy too. I didn’t worry about turning 30, 40 or 50. 60 is getting closer. Hopefully that marker won’t bother me either.
I am getting gray. I have made a good impact on the world in my years. I can’t really complain.
Working Dad, I agree that the issue of removing statues has definitely been amplified in the past month, and we likely have different views about why that is. But in an effort to find common ground (beyond our shared and totally justified disdain for that horrible, horrible song, “Total Eclipse of the Heart”), let me ask you about an ongoing statue removal right here in Michigan.
Orville Hubbard was the mayor of Dearborn from 1942 to 1978. He was a proud and open segregationist who went to great lengths to prevent non-whites (especially African-Americans) from gaining residency in Dearborn. A statue of Hubbard was installed in front of Dearborn City Hall. But in 2015 the statue was removed from this public place of honor and put in storage. It was then installed on the lawn of the Dearborn Historical Museum. Recently, it was moved to a less conspicuous location outside the building with the intention of eventually moving it within the museum after building renovations or (with the consent of Hubbard’s family) to his grave site in another town.
My question is: Has this been a reasonable way to handle the situation?