More Cartoons From My Father

A few days ago, I posted a cartoon from my father. He has been doing this for a very long time. Many decades, actually. 

And he asked me to post them, and somehow, he figured out how to send them to me via email, after some early struggles with that. 

Now, I have got them, and it is a pleasure for me to publish these. He has an artistic streak, like much of my family does. So by all means, if this helps him out, and it helps me out with a more diverse kind of blog, then let's go for it.

So without further ado, here are the most recent cartoons that my father sent me.

Finally, let me also include the original cartoon that he sent to me, and which I already had published a few days ago, on the 28th.

Turns Out Oil Companies Are Funding Trump’s Secret Police

So, there was shock of seeing secret police without any kind of identifying markers other than the generic word “POLICE” on their uniforms. That much seems good, at least.              

However, the Guardian just discovered that this new and menacing police force is actually funded in part by the big oil corporations.              

What a shock, eh?              

In a recent article just published by Guardian, Nina Lakhani Wrote:     

"Big corporations accused of driving environmental and health inequalities in black and brown communities through toxic and climate-changing pollution are also funding powerful police groups in major US cities, according to a new investigation."       

Some of the major oil companies that fund Trump’s secret police force include Chevron, Shell, and Marathon Petroleum, which is actually the largest oil refining corporation in the entire country.              

Since one of the areas that Black Lives Matter (BLM) tries to address, among other things, is environmental justice and trying to make more Americans aware of the loophole legal culture that often makes negligent behavior on the part of corporations.              

Again, here is a snippet from Lakhani’s article:
       

“Black Lives Matter is about environmental justice, economic justice, racial justice, and about stamping out racism in the criminal justice system,” said Robert Bullard, co-chair of the National Black Environmental Justice Network. 

BLM has brought the issue of possibly defunding police forces across the country into the political discussions in recent weeks, following a wave of protests and riots in the aftermath of the George Floyd killing. That, and their largely newfound emphasis on greater environmental equality, has not surprisingly garnered some considerable attention from both police forces across the country, as well as those who profit from manipulating the precious and limited national resources.





Below is the link to the article used in writing this blog entry, and from which I took the quotes used above:

Revealed: oil giants help fund powerful police groups in top US cities by Nina Lakhani in New York, 27 Jul 2020:
Investigation portrays fossil fuel industry as common enemy in struggle for racial and environmental justice in America


https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jul/27/fossil-fuels-oil-gas-industry-police-foundations?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other&fbclid=IwAR3I6A_I1A8W5p7caf_ChqcJcVtaiiZ_aMnXtiW16fEouIAgTkcUy4ZpoAs

Coronavirus Update for July 29, 2020

Okay, so it has been a relatively long time since the last time that I did one of these things, and I was a bit surprised by the jump in some of these numbers. To begin with, there have been over 16.9 million confirmed cases of coronavirus around the globe to date. Over 663,000 people have died, and nearly 10.5 million people have recovered.              

The United States still has far and away the most confirmed cases of coronavirus, with nearly four and a half million confirmed cases. Over 152,000 Americans have died from it, while over 2,180,000 people have recovered. For now, the United States still has over one quarter of the world’s confirmed cases of Covid-19, and has approximately a fifth of all the confirmed deaths from the coronavirus.              

However, there are two countries that have drawn much closer to having problems with the coronavirus on the scale that the United States has seen. The first is Brazil, which now has seen over 2,480,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, which included President Jair Bolsonaro, a skeptic of the coronavirus. Brazil has seen over 88,000 deaths from it, while over 1,721,000 people have recovered. In both confirmed cases and deaths, Brazil ranks second behind only the United States.              

The other country that has seen a dramatic rise in confirmed cases, as well as deaths, is India, the country with the second largest population in the world. Like in Brazil, many people there live in overcrowded slums, where maintaining social distancing practices is virtually impossible. To date, India has had over one and a half million confirmed cases of the coronavirus, with over 34,000 deaths, while just under one million people have recovered there.              

After that, Mexico has some real problems with the coronavirus. They have seen over 400,000 confirmed cases, the sixth most confirmed cases of any country in the world, with over 44,000 deaths to date, which is the fourth most deaths of any nation. Over 261,000 people have recovered from it there.              

Sticking with the Americas, where several countries have seen major problems with the Covid-19 crisis, both Peru and Chile have huge problems. Peru has over 395,000 confirmed cases, with over 18,000 deaths, and 276,00 recoveries. Chile has had just shy of 350,000 confirmed cases, with over 9,000 deaths, and 322,000 recoveries.              

Another country that has seen a dramatic spike in cases is South Africa. Presently, it has now had over 459,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, which is fifth most in the world. But they have only suffered over 7,000 deaths to this point. Over 287,000 people have successfully recovered. Still, South Africa has become the epicenter of the coronavirus crisis on the African continent.              

Europe was the epicenter of the coronavirus crisis for a long time. It still has a bad case of it, with numerous countries still suffering severely from it. Russia has had over 828,000 confirmed cases, with over 13,000 deaths. They have seen over 620,000 people recover. Spain has the next most confirmed cases in Europe, with over 327,000 confirmed cases, and over 28,000 deaths. The United Kingdom has had it quite bad as well, with over 300,000 confirmed cases, and over 45,000 deaths, the third most number of deaths from Covid-19 of any country. Italy, the country that used to be the epicenter of the global pandemic, has had over 246,000 confirmed cases, with over 35,000 deaths (the fifth most of any nation in the world), and nearly 200,000 recoveries. Germany has had over 207,000 confirmed cases, with over 9,000 deaths, and over 192,000 recoveries. And France has had over 183,000 confirmed cases, with over 30,000 deaths, which places them as the seventh highest number of deaths of any nation in the world from coronavirus. Over 80,000 people have recovered from it there.              

Some other countries that have seen bad cases of the Covid-19 crisis include Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Columbia, Bangladesh, and Turkey. Iran has had over 296,000 confirmed cases, and over 16,000 deaths. Pakistan has had over 276,000 confirmed cases, and over 5,800 deaths. Saudi Arabia has over 270,000 confirmed cases, with over 2,700 deaths. Columbia has had over 267,000 cases, with over 9,000 deaths. Bangladesh has had over 229,000 confirmed cases, with 3,000 deaths reported exactly at the time of this blog entry, according to Worldometers. Finally, Turkey has seen over 227,000 cases, with over 5,800 deaths.              

Debates rage in several countries about the possibility of reopening, or in some cases shutting down again after a new wave of outbreaks. In the United States, there is a huge debate about the safety of opening schools again starting next month, when many schools are set to reopen in just a matter of weeks.

Source Used: Worldometers:

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

Water Access is Not an Automatic For Millions of American Homes

This was a story that aired on CBS program Sunday Morning this past weekend, which was quite shocking.              

In the report, it was shown how many Americans are forced to go without something that most of us likely have long taken for granted: simply having running water inside the comfort of your own home. As it turns out, approximately two million Americans are forced to go without reasonably clean water  - and sometimes any water more generally, clean or not – within their own homes. They do not have access to clean water for drinking, nor for bathing or cleaning dishes. Or simply filling up the kettle for a cup of coffee.              

Unbelievable as it may be, those two million people are scattered throughout the contiguous states. Perhaps the least surprising would be in western states that tend to be dry, with little rain on average. But there are also homes much further east, such as in West Virginia. The country has it’s problems and limitations, but it still feels quite shocking to think that this kind of water shortage is going on, while most of us hardly even pay attention to such issues. Most probably take it for granted, assuming that this was a problem of the past, and not as common as it actually is.              

Here is the video of the story, which originally aired this past week on CBS Sunday Morning. Please take a look at it, because this feels like yet one more incident that betrays some real injustice and shocking levels of poverty in what is still supposed to be the wealthiest, most advanced nation in the world.

A Cartoon By My Father

My father has long done cartoons, for as long as I can remember. He would pick it up again at times, and the field always fascinated him. He knew more cartoonists, and more about their work, than anyone else I knew.

Now retired, he has more time to pursue doing what he loves, and so he has resumed his passion for cartoons. I was able to find some of his collection and bring it over to him last year, and he has managed to do some new ones, as well. 

Recently he asked me to help him a bit by publishing his cartoons here on this website. No problem, just sent them over, and I can do that.

And so here is the first one that he sent, which I have now published here.

Enjoy!

Reagan Foundation Does Not Want Trump Campaign Using Former President’s Name & Image Anymore

The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute has requested that the Trump reelection campaign and the Republican National Committee stop using former President Reagan’s name and image for fundraising.              

Trump has been selling gold-colored coins with the image of Ronald Reagan and Donald Trump shaking hands at the White House back in 1987. In advertising to sell these coins, which were alleged to be “limited edition” and were set to be given to anyone for a donation of $45, there was the following message:

“I just saw our new Trump-Reagan Commemorative Coin Sets and WOW, these coins are beautiful — I took one look and immediately knew that I wanted YOU to have a set. These aren’t any ordinary coins. They symbolize an important time in our Nation. This year, in addition to being re-elected as YOUR President, it also marks the 40th anniversary of our Nation’s 40th President, Ronald Reagan.”            

It was clearly meant to convey a sense of continuity, that Trump naturally followed Reagan, who was a remarkably popular president, and is still held in high esteem by many Americans, particularly those who identify as conservative.              

However, not all fans of Reagan are apparently fans of Donald Trump.              

Reagan Foundation Chief Marketing Officer Melissa Giller had confirmed that she sent a message for the Trump campaign to stop using Reagan’s likeness for fundraising efforts. Here is what she said:

"We own the likeness of President Reagan and they used his image for the coin without our consent. We called the RNC and asked them to cease and desist the use of Pres Reagan on the coin and they agreed," Giller said.  

Apparently, the Republican National Committee agreed “within seconds” to cease selling the coins with Reagan’s likeness on it.

  

Reagan Foundation asks Trump campaign, RNC to stop using former president's name to raise money by Marina Pitofsky,  07/25/20: 

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/509049-ronald-reagan-foundation-asks-trump-campaign-rnc-to-stop-using-former

Oh, Yeah! Sullivan’s Got It All! Sullivan's Commercial From the 1980's

When my family moved here from France, we initially spent a year living in Liberty, New York, where my grandparents lived. Even after we moved out, and to Lodi, New Jersey, and eventually to West Milford, we still visited Liberty fairly regularly.  

And when you grow up in a town like that, you will usually have some fond memories of something or other. So it was with Liberty and the surrounding area, which has an interesting mixture of pleasant, even beautiful things, mixed with depressing things. It is stunning countryside and natural beauty, but the region is upstate New York, which is infamous for having very depressing towns.  

Be that as it may, most of my memories from childhood of Liberty were pleasant. It sometimes felt a little bit like it was stuck in the past, as there were everywhere reminders of bygone days and ages. The whole town kind of felt like that, truth be told. If Liberty and the surrounding region in Sullivan County had something that could pass as glory days, than it has been in the decades before my childhood, when there had been the so-called “Borscht Belt” and when there were famous entertainers who regularly performed at these hotels. Some famous boxers also trained in the region, including Muhammad Ali (and later Mike Tyson). And, of course, the most legendary three-day concert event in rock history, Woodstock, happened in Sullivan County, maybe twenty minutes of so drive from Liberty.  

However, by the time I was growing up in the eighties, and growing familiar, all of that was well behind the region. It was all in the past, and there were already clear indications that the region was beginning to fall on hard times. It would be a long and painful fall from grace, with one formerly prestigious “Borscht Belt” hotels after another closing it’s doors, and with more and more boarded up shops lining the downtown areas of towns in the region like weeds impossible to root out.  

Yet, I was largely blissfully aware of all of this. Liberty seemed to be a pleasant town, with an abundance of greenery and lakes and such, as it was blessed with an obvious natural beauty. Even when we moved out, I always enjoyed return trips to Liberty for weekends or sometimes for a week or two during summer vacation. My brother and I had our own rooms, and my grandparents also had cable (mostly due to the lack of good reception locally). All of that made trips there often quite the treat, on top of visiting the family, and a place where we had some mostly pleasant memories from earlier in childhood.  

One of the things that reminds me of those early days and pleasant memories was a store that long ago also closed it’s doors. It was called Sullivan’s, after the county name, even though there was a second one in Middletown, which is in Orange County. In retrospect, it may not have been a great store, as I recall it tended to be a bit pricey. Yet, it was one of the few big stores in Liberty (Middletown had numerous malls, and thus plenty of big stores), so it was hardly a place with stiff competition to keep prices low. 

I liked Sullivan’s. I liked the fact that it was a store that people near me, in New Jersey, had never even heard of, but which I knew and shopped at occasionally. I remember my brother and I getting cassette tapes there (Journey albums always seemed to be on the discount racks). Later, I associated Sullivan’s with toys, particularly Transformers and Gobots, specifically. Near the end of the days when Sullivan’s was closing, they still had some leftover Gobots, by this time with clearance prices, as they were years outdated. I also got a book by Terry Bradshaw, the quarterback of the Pittsburgh Steelers, which I had hung onto, and which still actually has the Sullivan’s price tag on it.  

At the time, I did not know that Sullivan’s was soon to close it’s doors. Had I known, I think I might have tried to do some things a little bit differently. Maybe I would have bought some small things, mostly as memories (although I am glad to have that Bradshaw book, which reminds me more of Sullivan’s than of Bradshaw himself, admittedly). What I wished for a long time, though, is that I had taken pictures of the actual store in Liberty itself, and gotten a recording of the commercial that I used to hear on the radio, for whatever station my grandparents were listening to when it came on. There are some pictures online of the Middletown store, and I was pleased to see them, and took pictures of the pictures. But I never did get pictures of the Liberty store, and wish that I had.  

However, there is one thing that I recently ran into, which kind of helps with other memories of the store. I ran into the commercial, and the song that Sullivan’s used to play in their advertisements. It had likely been over three decades since I had actually last heard that tune, and it brought back memories. Surely, it will bring back some memories to family members who will read this, and presumably watch the video, with that little jingle.  

So it felt appropriate to share some pictures, many of which I had shared before, as well as the video of the Sullivan’s commercial. I was very glad to have run into this, and am also happy to be able to share it here. The video is nothing special, just the Sullivan's store logo. But it is the song, the entire song, which I am not entirely sure that I had heard before. And the last verse, I believe, was the one that the commercials kept repeating. The video is available down below.

I happened to run into that video clip maybe a couple of weekends ago, or so. It had literally been probably at least three decades since the last time that I had heard it. Instantly, I felt transported back to a different time and place. Perhaps Liberty, but the tune in those commercials was something I must have heard repeatedly on the local radio stations that my grandparents, particularly my grandmother, used to listen to, also over and over. And Sullivan's itself was kind of a local institution.

There is a link to an article that I found also, which argues that Sullivan's was more than just a store. Maybe it was. To be sure, it was a store, of course. But it seemed that in the places where I ran into memories of it, such as the original video of the Sullivan's commercial, and on the Orange Plaza appreciation page on Facebook (the other Sullivan's store that existed, the one that was not in Liberty, was in Middletown's Orange Plaza Mall, until that closed it's doors in 1992), it did indeed seem to spark some strong memories for many people.

So it seems that maybe Sullivan's was indeed more than a store. It seems to have been memories, as well. For me and many others. For me, perhaps the strongest memory was not even being in the store, but just outside of it. No idea any longer how old I was at the time, but we had just driven there, and my grandfather got out of the car, and then pulled the seat so that I could get out. Pretty sure it was summertime, but it might not have been. There are other memories, as well. Looking at cassette tapes, particularly for the Beatles and/or the Stones. And toys, which I continued to collect as a teenager. As mentioned earlier, in the early nineties, it seemed that Sullivan's may have been the last store to still have Gobots, on the clearance racks, and so I obtained some back then.

Many other people seem to have memories of the place, as well. On the Orange Plaza page mentioned earlier, I read quite a few comments from people who used to work there, and many others who frequented the place. They talked about the restaurant inside, which I barely remember. Apparently, it was good. On the other hand, it seemed that working at Sullivan's was not such a pleasant experience, at least for some. Not sure why, because most of the people who said that just left it at that. I myself used to work at a department store that is now defunct - Steinbach. It was for minimum wage, and most of it consisted of trying to look busy, folding clothes and sorting through the display tables. Perhaps picking up garments that people had thrown carelessly aside. Putting up signs for an upcoming sale. Often standing around at the cash register when the place was empty. So, I can kind of imagine what working at Sullivan's might have been like, and why some were less than thrilled by the experience of it.

Still, given the significance of the memories that this store conjures up for people to this day, it seemed appropriate to me to dedicate a blog page to those memories. So, I am including numerous pictures, including the logo, some bags, and the Terry Bradshaw book that I obtained, and which still had the price sticker on it with the Sullivan's logo. Also, some pictures that can be found on the web of the store in Middletown. If you have memories of the place that you remember fondly, then maybe this triggers some of those pleasant memories. Enjoy!

Sullivan's Was More Than a Store by Barry Lewis for The Times Herald-Record, January 25, 2001 (updated December 15, 2010):

http://www.recordonline.com/article/20010125/news/301259980

The Sullivan's store at Orange Plaza Mall in Middletown,  New York

Sullivan's even sold their own brand name shirts. 

Original newspaper add showing the Grand Opening of the then new Sullivan's Department Store in Liberty, New York. Image taken from  Catskill Mountain news., November 21, 1958, Page 9, Image 9:

https://nyshistoricnewspapers.org/lccn/sn83031247/1958-11-21/ed-1/seq-9/

From that same page was the closest thing that I could find to an actual picture of the Sullivan's Department Store in Liberty, New York. This is an artist's rendering of it, and it kind of looked like the building as I remember it, with some relatively minor differences. I remember it being a bit taller than this in the back, where the people couple with the child are walking away from, and towards the main entrance. There was the name of the store, simply "SULLIVAN'S" in big, red letters on the top of it, as well. And at least by the time that I got familiar with the store, I think that they had changed the name of "Sullivan's Surplus Sales" to "Sullivan's Department Store," or "Sullivan's" for short. It seemed worth including the image, so here it is:

Sullivan's store name is, of course, a reference to the fact that the store (in Liberty, the original of the two stores) was located in Sullivan County, New York:

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