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Show 4 -imniur Signpost -Thursday, August 2, 1984 EdhoRiAl Good, funny, new ideas Sharp Cartoonists Enliven Our Days WSFIJVIW,, MONPALE PR0M1SEP ME THE AMBASSAPORSHP TO THE COURT OF 51 dAME$,T00,. Politics Disappear As National Pride Rises by Colleen Mewing Editor-in-Chief Ferraro is consistently becoming a household name. You open up a newspaper and you see her name scattered across its pages, not only in the headlines and the body copy, but in the many political cartoons that don the editorial page. Political cartoonists have a hey-day when it comes to election years and they can start to poke fun at the political candidates. Each political candidate is faced with opening up the morning paper only to find out that a political cartoonist has made a total fool out of him. Now that there is a woman as our first vice presidential running mate, cartoonists have been picking up their pencils and racking their brains to come up with new ideas -and their ideas are good and funny and new for everyone to see. Cartoonists are sharp. They have to be sharp. Their job requires that they stay in tune with what is happening politically on an international level. They have to come up with the funniest idea before another cartoonist beats them to it. Not only do cartoonists have to be funny, they have to be good artists as well. Being able to draw a political candidate realistically is an art that cartoonists thrive on. Cartoonists dream up their ideas as fast as people in the political spotlight can change faces. And sometimes when you look at some of those political cartoons you wonder who you are looking at because those political leader's faces do take on some interesting shapes by those cartoonists. (Walter Mondale's nose gets bigger every time that I see it). How do people in the political spotlight react to these cartoons? Well, I think that most of them have to have a good sense of humor. They aren't in the spotlight for nothing, and they know that since they do hold such a position, they are bound to be made fun of in the public's eye. But what about those who support people in the political spotlight? How do these people feel about their candidates being made fun of? The Signpost once published a cartoon in which a nation's political leader was depicted in a way that was funny to some and offensive to others. A WSC student was upset about the cartoon and expressed himself by coming to see me. I told him that cartoonists make fun of all political leaders and that this one particular cartoon had happened to make a reference to someone that he looked up to. I told him to express his feelings by writing a letter to the editor, but he never did. So sometimes it's not the political leaders themselves that feel as though they are being blasted, it's their supporters who take the cartoons personally and want to do something about it. Right now as the election draws nearer, fans of Reagan and fans of Mondale are going to have to keep a stiff upper lip as the cartoonists begin to go to work -the cartoonists are only doing their job. We will be subject to cartoon after cartoon of biased political action. And we will laugh and so will many others. Reagan, Mondale and Ferraro will probably get a few good chuckles from what the cartoonists have to present us. Until the election comes and goes, we will have to take heed of the editorial page and keep a close watch on what the cartoonists are trying to tell us. Who knows, the cartoonists might even persuade us to vote for a particular candidate. by David C. Wright News Editor The opening ceremonies of the Games of the twenty-third Olympiad -what a marvelous spectacle. Let the envious Soviets scoff; they are bitter over their absence, and embarrassed that they cannot match the enthusiasm for the games that the American spectators have. I suppose it is hard to be patriotic when your feet hurt from standing in bread lines. The dirty hands of international politics could not maintain their ominous hold as the opening ceremonies commenced. More nations than ever before are competing in Los Angeles and this adds to the greatness of the event. I used to feel that the absence of the Soviets and their puppets would make many of the victories hollow for the athletes. Not now, not after seeing the home team and all the visiting teams give everything they have to win. Soviets or no Soviets, any medals won by an athlete are earned! They are earned through the struggle and determination that began in the athlete's youth. The victories are not hollow, because whether or not a communist-bloc athlete is competing, the winner has still given his all to beat the other fine athletes. That is the spirit of the Olympics: giving every ounce of strength and concentration to the triumph for self and country. The nationalistic lump in my throat swelled as the. athletes entered the L.A. coliseum. Countries like Ireland, Italy, Britain and the Netherlands received warm welcomes; obviously because of the part those "mother countries" played in settling America. The not-so-obvious countries like Mexico and Japan were also received warmly by the American crowd. I saw an athlete, an archer, enter the stadium in a wheel chair. Yugoslavia, for her part in hosting the winter games was given a standing ovation. The respect and admiration of the crowd really showed when they stood and cheered for the Romanian team. This independent little country had told the Soviets what to do with their boycott and came to compete. It was at this point that I aksed, "Where are the politics now? I see only national pride and taste the flavor of international unity." Then the awaited moment arrived. The American team of six-hundred plus competitors entered and the stadium rocked! I allowed Vietnam, Watergate, assasination attempts and budget deficits to fade for a time, and I was so proud to be an American. As if that emotional high wasn't enough, then somebody released those pigeons. The crowning moment arrived and I was euphoric as that runner lit the torch. I didn't mind being a "flag waver," and that sense of pride seems to have affected the whole country. It may never happen again that the U.S. plays host to the games in my lifetime, but I will always remember the '84 Games, and the pride in my country they imbued upon me. Letters to the Editor Policy The Signpost welcomes Letters to the Editor. Letters should be typed, double spaced and not exceed 250 words. The Signpost reserves the right to edit for reasons of space and libel, and the right to refuse to print any letter deemed inappropriate. Each letter must include the name, address and signature of the writer. Anonymous letters will not be printed. Letters may be submitted at the Signpost office, UB 267 or mailed to the Signpost, mail code 2110. |