Heckled by my mom

ME

...And Lizz is doing a weekend at Comix. She asked me to feature.

MOM

That's great! So, you're going to write some new material.

ME

...

"Do It For Peace"

I wish I had been alive in 1969 AND thought to do this...

...and then put this beautiful little film together. Amazing how simple and consistent Lennon's message was / is / continues to be.

Whatever you do, do it for peace.




About the film:

In 1969, a 14-year-old Beatle fanatic named Jerry Levitan, armed with a reel-to-reel tape deck, snuck into John Lennon's hotel room in Toronto and convinced John to do an interview about peace. 38 years later, Jerry has produced a film about it. Using the original interview recording as the soundtrack, director Josh Raskin has woven a visual narrative which tenderly romances Lennon's every word in a cascading flood of multipronged animation. Raskin marries the terrifyingly genius pen work of James Braithwaite with masterful digital illustration by Alex Kurina, resulting in a spell-binding vessel for Lennon's boundless wit, and timeless message.

One small note. That intrepid kid with the reel-to-reel didn't meet the Walrus.

We all know: "...the Walrus was Paul..."

The American Dream (in comic book form)

From Captain America #250 by Roger Stern, John Byrne, & Joe Rubinstein. Marvel, 1980.

The American Dream (in Barack Obama form)

"It is up to us, then, to teach them. It is up to us to teach them that even though we have faced great challenges and made our share of mistakes, we have always been able to come together and make this nation stronger, and more prosperous, and more united, and more just. It is up to us to teach them that America has been a force for good in the world, and that other nations and other people have looked to us as the last, best hope of Earth. It is up to us to teach them that it is good to give back to one's community; that it is honorable to serve in the military; that it is vital to participate in our democracy and make our voices heard.

And it is up to us to teach our children a lesson that those of us in politics too often forget: that patriotism involves not only defending this country against external threat, but also working constantly to make America a better place for future generations.

In the end, it may be this quality that best describes patriotism in my mind – not just a love of America in the abstract, but a very particular love for, and faith in, the American people.

That is why our heart swells with pride at the sight of our flag; why we shed a tear as the lonely notes of Taps sound. For we know that the greatness of this country – its victories in war, its enormous wealth, its scientific and cultural achievements – all result from the energy and imagination of the American people; their toil, drive, struggle, restlessness, humor and quiet heroism.

That is the liberty we defend – the liberty of each of us to pursue our own dreams. That is the equality we seek – not an equality of results, but the chance of every single one of us to make it if we try. That is the community we strive to build – one in which we trust in this sometimes messy democracy of ours, one in which we continue to insist that there is nothing we cannot do when we put our mind to it, one in which we see ourselves as part of a larger story, our own fates wrapped up in the fates of those who share allegiance to America's happy and singular creed.

Thank you, God Bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America."

-Barack Obama, Independence, MO, June 30th, 2008

Read the full speech here.

dumb people have the vote, too

Newsweek says that this election will be decided by this year's "IT" demographic: LOW INFO VOTERS.

Back in the day, we just called them STUPID PEOPLE.