The Week in Editorial Cartoons – The Hunt for Osama Bin Laden and the Bush Administration

(10 am. – promoted by ek hornbeck)

Crossposted at Daily Kos and Docudharma

PLEASE READ THIS

Since Sunday, May 1st night when President Barack Obama made that rather unexpected and dramatic address to announce the death of Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad, Pakistan, there have been close to 400 editorial cartoons published to date.

(Bruce Plante, Tulsa World, Buy this cartoon)

Given the Republican tendency not to give any credit for anything to this Democratic Administration, I wanted to largely focus in this diary on what the Bush Administration’s record was in pursuing bin Laden for over almost 7 1/2 years from 2001-2008.  There are over 40 editorial cartoons from September 2001 to late April 2011 by both American and foreign cartoonists detailing this abysmal historical effort.  I have also included a number of editorial cartoons gauging reaction by cartoonists from eight countries in the Muslim world since the events of last weekend.

In Part II of this diary, which I hope to post my mid-week, I will address a number of other issues pertaining to bin Laden’s death: the duplicitous role of the Government of Pakistan, what lies ahead for Al Qaeda, the future of American forces in Afghanistan, and new conspiracy theories arising out of this event.

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THE WEEK IN EDITORIAL CARTOONS

This weekly diary takes a look at the past week’s important news stories from the perspective of our leading editorial cartoonists (including a few foreign ones) with analysis and commentary added in by me.

When evaluating a cartoon, ask yourself these questions:

1. Does a cartoon add to my existing knowledge base and help crystallize my thinking about the issue depicted?

2. Does the cartoonist have any obvious biases that distort reality?

3. Is the cartoonist reflecting prevailing public opinion or trying to shape it?

The answers will help determine the effectiveness of the cartoonist’s message.

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INTRODUCTION

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For many editorial cartoonists, the death of Osama Bin Laden, in itself, was not a cause for celebration.  But almost all of them would not shed tears for the man responsible for brutally killing thousands of people, many Muslims included among his victims.  Simply stated, bin Laden was a mass murderer whose passing was not going to elicit any sympathy from anyone.  

Stein forcefully states his case and hopes that the end result is a diminution in world-wide terror and that Middle Eastern countries, in particular, continue to experience the kinds of political reform started over three months ago in Tunisia

After almost ten years, the United States has tracked down and killed Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of the infamous 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.  I don’t enjoy celebrating the death of anyone, but I’ll make an exception in this case.  Bin Laden, as President Obama reminded us late last night, was not a Muslim leader.  He was a mass murderer of innocents in the name of an insane ideology, one that celebrates bloodshed on a grand scale as the means to the restoration of an imagined, idealized world that never existed and never will.

I wish that his death marked the end of the global terror network he helped found, but it doesn’t.  Others, inflamed by the same murderous hatred, will try to avenge him, and some likely will succeed in killing more innocent people.  Their day, despite whatever mayhem they might still create, is already over.  History has passed them by.  The Arab Spring we are witnessing in the Muslim world puts the lie to their claim that violent revolution in the name of rigid fundamental Islamism is the only alternative to the dictatorships so prevalent in the Arab world, and to the perceived decadence of the West.  Still, his death brings a sense of closure to the survivors of bin Laden’s evil, and there is more than a little solace in knowing that our country never gave up in its pursuit of the face of terror for so many Americans and others around the world.

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One of the very best editorial cartoonists who used to draw for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Stuart Carlson, echoes Stein but takes no particular delight in bin Laden’s death.  

A case of, if you will, “If you live by the sword…”

Not Gleeful, But Gratified

I’m an opponent of the death penalty and would have been satisfied if Bin Laden had been captured, tried and imprisoned for life.  

Despite that, I don’t have a strong sense of remorse over his death.  

It does seem to bring a rough kind of justice to someone who committed such a monstrous act.

(Stuart Carlson, carlsontoons.com/Universal Press Syndicate, click link to enlarge cartoon)

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A Pew Research Survey conducted recently showed that Al Qaeda’s appeal had diminished considerably in many Islamic countries.  Even in a country like Pakistan, where he had apparently been hiding for several years, bin Laden’s approval rating was a dismal 18%

Osama bin Laden Largely Discredited Among Muslim Publics in Recent Years

In the months leading up to Osama bin Laden’s death, a survey of Muslim publics around the world found little support for the al Qaeda leader.

Among the six predominantly Muslim nations recently surveyed by the Pew Research Center’s Global Attitudes Project, bin Laden received his highest level of support among Muslims in the Palestinian territories — although even there only 34% said they had confidence in the terrorist leader to do the right thing in world affairs.  Minorities of Muslims in Indonesia (26%), Egypt (22%) and Jordan (13%) expressed confidence in bin Laden, while he has almost no support among Turkish (3%) or Lebanese Muslims (1%).

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The Republican Party has been expert at conjuring up external demons for decades to instill fear among the populace.  During the four-plus decades of the Cold War from the late 1940’s to the early 1990’s, it was anti-Communism that served as the glue that politically bound them together.  In the years following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack, it was “Islamofascism” that was the new battle cry.

Just yesterday, I received an email from one of the staff members of Cagle Cartoons (through whose generosity and permission I am able to write these diaries) indicating that the GOP was up to its old tricks

Wow, that didn’t take long.  Conservative cartoonist Brian Fairrington has already decided to politicize the death of Osama Bin Laden with his political cartoon giving the majority of credit to George W. Bush.

Thankfully, there are only a handful of conservative editorial cartoonists around and I, rarely if ever, post any of their cartoons or commentary.

Finally, another Pew Research Survey showed that the public was not buying Republican lies and the assertions made by the likes of Brian Farrington  

Public “Relieved” By bin Laden’s Death, Obama’s Job Approval Rises

The public is reacting to the killing of Osama bin Laden with relief, happiness and pride. And Americans overwhelmingly credit the U.S. military and the CIA for the success of the operation.

An overnight survey of 654 adults, conducted by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and The Washington Post finds that 72% say they feel “relieved” by Osama bin Laden’s death, while 60% feel “proud” and 58% say they are “happy.”  Far fewer, just 16%, say the news of bin Laden’s death makes them feel “afraid.”

Barack Obama’s job approval rating has jumped in the wake of bin Laden’s killing.  In the one-day survey, 56% say they approve of the way Obama is handling his job as president while 38% disapprove.  Last month, Obama’s job rating was about evenly divided — 47% approved, 45% disapproved…

Obama gets far more credit from the public than does George W. Bush for bin Laden’s killing.

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I hope you enjoy reading this week’s edition and, in particular, the editorial cartoons I’ve dug up from 2001-2008.  Thanks.

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1. Osama bin Laden, Al-Qaeda, Iraq, and the Bush Administration in Editorial Cartoons: September 12, 2001 – April 28, 2011

Cagle Cartoons decided to highlight several editorial cartoons from the Bush Years and Daryle Cagle noted that editorial cartoonists have been in the forefront to document the hunt for bin Laden

By now, everyone knows that Osama bin Laden, mastermind of the 9/11 tragedy, has been killed in Pakistan in an operation conducted by American military forces and the CIA.  Cartoonists have been gunning for the reclusive terrorist for years, and have drawn many, many cartoons about him.

Check out some of the best cartoons drawn about bin Laden over the years with our Best of Osama Bin Laden cartoon collection.

Arcadio Esquivel, La Nacion (Costa Rica), Buy this cartoon

Man of the Year by Daryl Cagle, MSNBC.com, Buy this cartoon

New Axis of Evil by Tab, Calgary Sun, Buy this cartoon

Osama Truce by Cam Cardow, Ottawa Citizen, Buy this cartoon

Have No Clue by Olle Johansson (Sweden), Buy this cartoon

Daryl Cagle, MSNBC.com, Buy this cartoon

They Must Fit by Olle Johansson (Sweden), Buy this cartoon

Fox News by Daryl Cagle, MSNBC.com, Buy this cartoon

9/11 by David Fitzsimmons, Arizona Star, Buy this cartoon

Al Qaida On The Run by John Darkow, Columbia Daily Tribune, Buy this cartoon

Bush Buys War on Credit by Monte Wolverton, Cagle Cartoons

Bush Torture by Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune, Buy this cartoon  

Al Qaeda Terror by Dave Granlund, Politicalcartoons.com, Buy this cartoon

In the Cave by Cam Cardow, Ottawa Citizen, Buy this cartoon

Osama’s Head by J.D. Crowe, Mobile Register, Buy this cartoon

Osama Bin Lonely by John Darkow, Columbia Daily Tribune, Buy this cartoon

War on Terror Update by Mike Keefe, Denver Post, Buy this cartoon

Bush’s Afghanistan Souvenir by Christo Komarnitski (Bulgaria), Buy this cartoon

Nick Anderson, Comics.com (Houston Chronicle)

Mission Accomplished IV by RJ Matson, St. Louis Post Dispatch, Buy this cartoon

Bush Action Figure by Tab, Calgary Sun, Buy this cartoon

Falluja: Mission Accomplished by Patrick Chappatte, NZZ am Sonntag, Buy this cartoon

Six Years After 9/11 by Patrick Chappatte, Le Temps (Switzerland), Buy this cartoon

Bin Laden Tape by Christo Komarnitski (Bulgaria), Buy this cartoon

Bush’s 9-11 Speech by Bob Englehart, Hartford Courant, mBuy this cartoon

Bush the Deciderarian by Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune, Buy this cartoon

Bruce Beattie, Daytona Beach News-Journal, Buy this cartoon

Matt Bors, Idiot Box, Buy this cartoon

Rove Out Of Jeopardy by RJ Matson, St. Louis Post Dispatch, Buy this cartoon

How the World Views America by Monte Wolverton, Cagle Cartoons, Buy this cartoon

Moving on After 9/11 by Nate Beeler, Washington Examiner, Buy this cartoon

Benazir Bhutto by Sandy Huffaker, Cagle Cartoons, Buy this cartoon

Bruce Plante, Chattanooga Times, Buy this cartoon

Al Qaeda Resurgence by Mike Keefe, Denver Post, Buy this cartoon

Jeff Parker, Florida Today, Buy this cartoon

Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Buy this cartoon

Bush Legacy by Dave Granlund, Politicalcartoons.com, Buy this cartoon

Bushit by Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune, Buy this cartoon

Bush Library by David Fitzsimmons, Arizona Star, Buy this cartoon

Bush Presidential Library by Jim Day, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Buy this cartoon

The Only Shovel-Ready Project In America by RJ Matson, St. Louis Post Dispatch, Buy this cartoon

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Note: The below editorial cartoons are from the post-Bush years.

Osama bin Laden’s Address by RJ Matson, St. Louis Post Dispatch, Buy this cartoon

Osama Bin Laden and Twitter by Bill Schorr, Cagle Cartoons, Buy this cartoon

Laughing Osama by Monte Wolverton, Cagle Cartoons, Buy this cartoon

Osama and 9-11 Plan by Dave Granlund, Politicalcartoons.com, Buy this cartoon

Osama Has the Egypt Blues by David Fitzsimmons, Arizona Star, Buy this cartoon

Bin Laden vs Peaceful Revolts by Dave Granlund, Politicalcartoons.com, Buy this cartoon

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2. Reaction to Osama bin Laden’s Death from Editorial Cartoonists in the Islamic World

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As I was studying these editorial cartoons from several cartoonists in the Muslim world, what struck me was that the killing of Osama bin Laden was depicted in more graphic detail than by most of their American or European counterparts.  You’ll get an even better idea of these contrasting styles of drawing when I post Part II of this diary in the next few days.

By and large, the cartoons reflect a certain wariness of Bin Ladenism in the Islamic world and a definite distaste for authoritarian regimes in many Middle Eastern countries.  In a few instances, the cartoons also portray an element of American triumphalism and a certain fear of the might and reach of American military power as well as a (vicious?) determination to eventually get its enemies.

Will this audacious operation to get bin Laden begin to win hearts and minds in the Islamic world?  That, of course, remains to be seen.

Omar Abdallat, Addustour (Jordan), Buy this cartoon

Fares Garabet (Syria), Buy this cartoon

Oguz Gurel (Istanbul, Turkey), Buy this cartoon

Sherif Arafa, Alittihad (Egypt), Buy this cartoon

Osama Hajjaj (Jordan), Buy this cartoon

Stavro Jabra, Ad-Dabbour (Beirut, Lebanon), Buy this cartoon

Hassan Bleibel, Al-Mustakbal (Beirut, Lebanon), Buy this cartoon

Osama Hajjaj (Jordan), Buy this cartoon

Stavro Jabra, Ad-Dabbour (Beirut, Lebanon), Buy this cartoon

Omar Abdallat, Addustour (Jordan), Buy this cartoon

Sepideh Anjomrooz (Tehran, Iran), Buy this cartoon

Hadi Heidari (Iran), Buy this cartoon

Hassan Bleibel, Al-Mustakbal (Beirut, Lebanon), Buy this cartoon

Khalil Rahman, Daily Samakal (Bangladesh), Buy this cartoon

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3. Osama bin Laden’s Death – Domestic and Other International Reaction

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Rogers echoes what most Republicans have been trying to do since last weekend: take full credit for implementing policies that ultimately led to bin Laden’s demise.  A few days ago, Condoleezza Rice pathetically tried to peddle this revisionist nonsense to Lawrence O’Donnell (must-see video here) on MSNBC and failed miserably.

This decades-old charge of “Democrats are Weak on National Defense” is simply not going to play in the 2012 Elections.

The Republicans in Washington have always painted the democrats as weak on defense, terror and homeland security.  I think the killing of Osama bin Laden means the GOP just lost one of their reliable false mantras for the 2012 election.

Nick Anderson, Comics.com (Houston Chronicle), 2006 editorial cartoon

Steve Breen, San Diego Union-Tribune, Buy this cartoon

Victory Certificates by Shlomo Cohen (Israel), Buy this cartoon

Mike Peters, Dayton Daily News

(click link to enlarge cartoon of May 5, 2011

in Peters’ archives)

Bin Laden Dead by Patrick Chappatte, International Herald Tribune, Buy this cartoon

Osama Sizzle by Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune, Buy this cartoon

Robert Ariail, Comics.com (formerly of The State, SC)

The Bin Laden Photo by Peter Broelman (Australia), Buy this cartoon

Ken Catalino, Nationally Syndicated Cartoonist, Buy this cartoon

Obama – Osama by Rainer Hachfeld, Neues Deutschland (Germany), Buy this cartoon

Bin Laden Photo by John Cole, Scranton Times-Tribune, Buy this cartoon

Giving Credit by Nick Anderson, Comics.com, see reader comments in the Houston Chronicle

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4. Mother’s Day 2011

A very happy Mother’s Day to all of you who are mothers.

Bill Day, Comics.com (Memphis Commercial-Appeal)

David Fitzsimmons, Arizona Daily Star, Buy this cartoon

Dana Summers, Comics.com (Orlando Sentinel)

Cam Cardow, Ottawa Citizen, Buy this cartoon

Nate Beeler, Washington Examiner, Buy this cartoon

David Fitzsimmons, Arizona Daily Star, Buy this cartoon

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5. Final Thoughts

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Finally, this cartoon by Andy Singer — as only he can portray it in his zany way of thinking — points to a number of areas where we, as a country, can definitely make some improvements.

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A Note About the Diary Poll

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At the heart of the Bush Administration’s so-called “War on Terror” (terror, by the way, is a tactic and not a well-equipped army) was the indiscriminate use of illegal torture methods to extract information from “detainees.”  Contrary to the assertions made by many former Bush Administration officials over the past week, there is no tangible evidence that the use of torture directly led to bin Laden’s death.  

In coming days and months, what impact will this event have on relations between the United States and the Islamic world which, obviously, is not a monolith.  Each Muslim country has its own set of issues and circumstances differ greatly from such diverse countries like Jordan to Indonesia to Pakistan.  Will relations improve or deteriorate or will bin Laden’s death have no discernible effect?

Don’t forget to take the diary poll.  Comments are highly encouraged.

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If any complaints about the contents of this diary, please direct them to Que Guevara, Manager, JekyllnHyde Complaints Department, London, England.  He will patiently listen to your point of view even if it seems at times he pretends not to.  Que is multilingual and a world-renowned expert at conflict resolution.

A note of caution.  Que might seem like a meek and submissive fellow and may come across as somewhat clownish but, deep down, he is eager to help you.  Trust me.  Though originally “he’s from Barcelona” Que graduated with a degree in consumer relations from the University of Salamanca, Spain, which is one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in the world.

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