Cartoon capers

I have a theory about political cartoons on editorial pages. You may not read anything on the page, not even a headline … but you will look at that cartoon.

They’re irresistible. They stand out. It takes only a few seconds to scan them and chuckle … or groan.

I received two complaints on cartoons recently. One was on the Dec. 18 cartoon that showed President Bush on a TV screen saying, “Lady Di must reveal her weapons of mass destruction.” A man in the cartoon watching Bush said in response, “I guess the CIA really was monitoring her.”

A reader e-mailed that the cartoon “showed to what depth this Bush-hating idiot has gone.”

I was surprised that this ’toon ticked off the reader. I didn’t think it was particularly rough.

The other complaint was on the Dec. 21 cartoon that showed a Fox newscaster talking about South Dakota Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson, who underwent emergency brain surgery after a blood vessel malfunctioned. The faux Fox newscaster said, “With 10 percent of his arteries counted, we project Republicans will retake the Senate.”

I’m not surprised that one ruffled a few feathers.

It prompted one reader to e-mail that it “crossed the line of good taste. It showed an extreme lack of respect for the family of Sen. Johnson and the anxiety they must be going through while he is so gravely ill. ... ”

Valid points, but … good editorial cartoons are often as edgy as a new razor. They aren’t subtle or low-key. They hit hard. Sometimes, it seems that the blow lands below the belt — especially if your politics are being pummeled.

Three points to help readers:

1) Both of these cartoons were from artists who work for other newspapers. We subscribe to four syndicated cartoonists — two who are basically liberal and two who are basically conservative. Cartoons from local artist Andy Coughlan appear on Sundays.

2) We don’t run every syndicated cartoon we get. We have space for only about half of them, and we reject some for bad taste. It happens only a few times a year, though. These cartoons come from artists who work in the business every day. They generally know how far they can go — no nudity, no profanity, etc.

3) Since we have cartoons that reflect liberal and conservative points of view, both parties get skewered. Sen. Hillary Clinton has been in the cross-hairs more than once.

When it comes to our syndicated cartoons and columns, please don’t judge us on one day’s product. We run a broad spectrum of viewpoints, from liberals like Ellen Goodman to conservatives like Michelle Malkin. Right now, President Bush is getting hammered by almost everyone. After U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi takes over as House Speaker in January, look for her to get zapped too.

Over time, the barbs tend to even out.