Recent Comments

1. about 17 hours ago on Calvin and Hobbes

   Are you “OK”?

   You’re lying awake, at first fearful, the worried, and now trying to console yourself that it doesn’t matter. If “things” didn’t matter why did you lock your doors when you left?

   None of your family were physically harmed, that’s good. What about your emotional health? Your sense of security?

2. about 17 hours ago on The Born Loser

   Being fired by Veeblefester wouldn’t that be a look of relief?

3. about 17 hours ago on Luann

   Typical news personality, don’t confuse OUR “facts” with real facts.

4. 1 day ago on Arlo and Janis

   That animals have an intelligence and a personality, I can’t disagree with. I’d dispute that a dog or cat has an intelligence level comparable to most 4 or 5 year old human. Though many dogs and cats do seem far more intelligent than the people who think they own said dog or cat.

   Pigs can be quite charming.

   In some ways, you’re not wrong, a pig (or other animal) is similar to humans in some ways. Both are walking food, humans are just higher up on the food chain. Is an eagle who strikes from the sky, snaring a fish or mouse denying that that mouse or fish is similar to the eagle? A cat toying with then eventually killing and eating a mouse? Or the wolf that kills a deer, or attacks, kills and eats a child? Leave a human body out and crows, or buzzards, or dogs or wolves, along with flies and other creatures will find it and eat it. Just as we do (without the whole lying dead for days thing) to pigs, chickens and cows.

   That farmer is part of the circle of life, without him, that pig may not have even existed or known the life it lived for as long as it lived it.

   If we take your thought process to its next logical level, then every bite of food a person eats is denying another animal their right to that food. Every bowl of oatmeal a human consumes is one less serving of oats for a horse or a cow. Every kernal of corn, every bushel of wheat turned into flour, is less food for other, equally deserving, creatures.

   If we argue that, then could it not also be argued that while you’re eating dinner and another animal (say a dog or some such) is looking at you hungrily, licking its mouth, that it could be construed as emotional abuse? If a person was eating in front of a hungry, even starving, 4 or 5 year old human (which you argue is comparable to a dog or cat), that would be considered cruel, maybe even emotional abuse, if not torture, why would it be different from eating in front of a dog or cat?

5. 1 day ago on Arlo and Janis

   Many, but not all, people who run to grocery stores to purchase their food (all nicely cleaned, processed and packaged), who demand “free range” eggs and meat or “organic” foods look down on those who make that all possible. People who grow some or most of their food.

   Look at some of the comments, people anthropomorphize their food. A cow, pig or chicken on whom they’ve bestowed a name is no longer food, it’s a “pet”. In reality it’s no different from that chicken or steak all prettified in an environmentally unfriendly styrofoam tray and plastic wrap brought home from a store at an inflated price.

6. 3 days ago on Peanuts

   Check back in on a weekly basis, or look at the comic daily and if nothings changed, scroll on by. It really isn’t that hard.

7. 3 days ago on Arlo and Janis

   It’s great to eat named or unnamed “pets”. The original “organic” or “free range” if you prefer before either was cool. An added bonus is home grown is quite often more cost effective. A win all around.

   I know the freshness of the food, how it was raised, what it ate, who handled it and how (both before and after the killing) etc.

   It’s only different from someone going to a grocery store or meat market and buying an already killed and packaged cut of meat by the person eating it actually recognizes the process of feeding, caring for, killing and processing their food. Those closer to the source tend to be less sanctimonious about it

8. 3 days ago on Peanuts

   Yes, any time you want you can get away from her. You CHOOSE to read, you can CHOOSE to NOT read.

9. 3 days ago on Calvin and Hobbes

   Actually I was thinking more Frosty the Snowman coming to life. The snowgoons I never took to be alive. I thought that Calvin made them as part of his narrative, bringing his imagination into the real world when and where he could.

   Though he made both sides (the fort and the snow goons) to keep the game, the narrative, going he acts surprised at the size of the opposing force. Similar to what some people do when they read a book to a child, or playing Dungeons and Dragons and they swing an imaginary (or even a real) weapon (jumping up and swinging their arms, etc) to battle their foes. At least that’s my take on it.

   That’s kind of the beauty of communication, especially the written word and stories. Two people can read (or see) the exact same thing, the same pictures, the same words, yet have somewhat different interpretations. Neither is necessarily wrong, just a different view.

10. 4 days ago on Calvin and Hobbes

    To children, especially younger children things in their imagination ARE “real” (or alive), including monsters under the bed, or their imaginary friends, or a stuffed tiger (or maybe a snowman) coming to “life” (though apparently stuffed tigers don’t need a magic hat for that).

    As adults we know some things aren’t possible, like stuffed tigers (or snowmen) coming to life. Some things may be “real” if only allegory to help explain or cope with real or imagined fears (like the monsters under the bed to explain unknown noises in the night, or actual events the child can’t cope with).

    “Imaginary” friends could very well be that children are more open to the possibilities of this world and other worlds and see beyond the veil that separates our world from an unseen world. At least until that ability, that sense of wonder and acceptance is indoctrinated out of them.

    Sometimes imagination DOES come to reality. Da Vincis helicopter, Vernes’ submarine for instances.

    Not that I gave it much thought, but to me, Hobbs comes to “life” whenever Calvin is thinking about him, or needs him. A constant friend to a single child who helps Calvin make sense out of life and a counter point to Calvins internal conflicts. I do “just” enjoy the comic, the (sometimes twisted) imagination of Calvin. His snowmen (or goons) are some of my favorite strips.