Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau for April 24, 2011
Transcript:
Aid: Bad news, sir. Cubs lost another. Obama: Dang! Still on the wrong side of history... All right, everyone, we've got a lot of balls up in the air, so let's be clear about where we ant them all to land... Tunisia and especially Egypt are done deals. Mubarak was obviously on the wrong side of history. The demonstrators caused peaceful change - a clean win... unlike in Libya, where protestors took up arms. But the United States - and history - do not look favorably on tyrants who murder their own people... unless they do it in Bahrain and Yemen and kill them in acceptably low numbers. History gives such regimes a pass. As it does in Iraq. Although not in Iran, whose protestors we support, unlike those in Pakistan, who obviously don't understand history. Aid: Excuse me, Mr. President - there's rioting in Paris. Obama: Which side of history are... Aid: Uh... sir? That might be a gimme for Sarkozy.
thirdguy over 13 years ago
Watching Democracy flourish, is not for the faint of heart!
Edcole1961 over 13 years ago
President Obama is actually a White Sox fan.
Coyoty Premium Member over 13 years ago
His Story? WWJD?
Doughfoot over 13 years ago
As long as we look at the world as simply a battle between the good guys and the bad guys or between ‘us’ and ‘them’, we’re in trouble. Reality isn’t like that.
lewisbower over 13 years ago
EDCOLE Is the President’s face goning to be red at the World’s Series when the Cubs play the Red Sox. Harvard math dept. 04+07=11 Go Sox!
florchi over 13 years ago
yuggib: My reply to your interesting comment (posted about 7 p.m. on 4/23) is at the bottom of yesterday’s commentary.
wcorvi over 13 years ago
I’ve always said that I’ll understand the world, when someone can tell me the difference between a terrorist and a freedom fighter without using the words ‘their side’ and ‘our side’.
ImaginaryFriend over 13 years ago
My definition:
Terrorist: Believes everyone in the world should follow their beliefs regardless of borders.
Freedom Fighter: Wants to change the government within a country in hopes to improve life within that country.
Rebel: Similar to freedom fighter except not quite sure what they want.
Sandfan over 13 years ago
The world would be a better place if we had leaders who worried more about the job at hand than they do about their “place in history”.
peter0423 over 13 years ago
Alexander the Great and the Roman Empire might beg to disagree, CK. Not to mention Lenin, or Stalin, or Mao. Or, on the other side of the coin, Gandhi.
IncognitoPenguin over 13 years ago
IMHO,,,,The world would be a better place if history were written, in fact, by Dr. Suess.
peter0423 over 13 years ago
If the world lived according to Dr. Seuss, we wouldn’t have to worry about who writes history.
PappyFiddle over 13 years ago
Everybody is the Good Guys. We are all brothers and sisters. But there are some good and right principles to live by. When we live by those, things work a lot better. People who violate the most crucial principles cross the line and become enemies to one and all. It you steal my money you can pay it back or we can forget it. If you murder, how can you restore a life? Therefore “thou shalt not murder” is a crucial principle. Violate it and you declare war on all the rest of us and we must defend ourselves and our families.
montessoriteacher over 13 years ago
Yeah, he is for the Sox, forget those stinkin’ Cubbies! Better yet, come down to Cardinal nation, you will always be on the right side of history! Pretty much anyway…
ChukLitl Premium Member over 13 years ago
Some “freedom fighters” use terror tactics, not all. They often get accused of it anyway, & can be framed by those they’re trying to oust. Others lie, they don’t want freedom, they want to be the oppressors. Nonviolent revolutionaries make it easier to tell the good guys from the bad, but that method requires patience, often in short supply when a jackboot is on your neck. Simple answers require extensive background knowledge.
Ermine Notyours over 13 years ago
“All right, everyone, we’ve got a lot of balls up in the air…”
[snicker]
Dtroutma over 13 years ago
“Humanity”= homicide + hypocrisy - logic. Oh, that’s also just “organized religion”, nothing creates more vicious zealots than having “gods” (capitalized or not) on “their side”.
AKHenderson Premium Member over 13 years ago
Riots in Paris? Why that’s a long-standing tradition. They’ll riot on any occasion - they even rioted at the premiere of Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring.”
roypendy over 13 years ago
Finally this writer is showing concern about this stupid Obama. How did this man ever get elected? His promises are have turned to lies. The most ignorant person in history.
Joseph Krois over 13 years ago
“Those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it”. Bulls@#t! One doesn’t need history to treat his fellow man as he would be treated. Common decency and empathy are always there, we just choose to ignore them, as is our way. Unfortunately the main traits of the human species are stupidity and want (to paraphrase Dickens) and written on their forehead is… DOOM! But no really we are totally f#@ked…
yuggib over 13 years ago
Florchi, Thanks for the information. I knew it was something like that, but it really doesn’t effect me. Although I know my IQ (by number or percentage) is very high, it doesn’t buy me a cup of coffee without a dollar in my pocket. I still would rather have a person running this country with slightly above average (in the 120 range) intelligence who has moral integrity, than a genius with no moral integrity.
jeanne1212 over 13 years ago
lol …. result of all history/war/religion/human endeavor… whatever ~~ has always been the A$$end.
Welcome to the real world.
pirate227 over 13 years ago
REALPOLITIK.