Didn’t You Get That Memo?

I can’t comment on Pat Robertson’s disgusting comments regarding the great tragedy and loss of life in Haiti. Nor can I conjure words to describe my feelings about Rush Limbaugh urging people NOT to donate to the Haiti relief efforts via WhiteHouse.gov (which just has a link to the Red Cross) as to not “play into Obama’s humanitarian agenda/strengthen his acceptance by minorities, etc., etc.” I can only reiterate my initial gut reaction [previously posted on Twitter]:

“I want to see Pat Robertson and Rush Limbaugh get face-fucked to death by a semi truck.”

I am not a violent person. Rarely do I wish actual physical harm on other human beings, regardless of how ignorant or hate mongering they be, but these two fuckwastes make it hard to keep my cool.

In MUCH MORE UPLIFTING news, Olmos Productions Inc. has donated their share of the profits from the “Team Edward [James Olmos] Shirts” to Doctors Without Borders. The first donation was $1153 and their will be more donations to charity as long as we continue to sell the shirts. I am so happy that creating that silly T-Shirt resulted people in desperate need receiving life saving help, even if it was just a small amount.

COMMENTERS: I know some of you disagree with my comic’s assessment of the situation and my personal politics, but please remember that the purpose of this comic is to express my opinions in a way that will be humorous to some (not all). Feel free to post opposing view points in the comments but please be respectful.

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118 Comments

      • One remark of frustration directed at two rich, absurdly comfortable douchebags, compared to persistent remarks directed against a whole country of people who just experienced a massive natural disaster.

        False equivalencies are SO 2009, Chase.

    • Because Rush and Roberson are opportunists using a tragedy to peddle whatever it is that they sell and Joel is exercising his rights as an American citizen to parody and criticize public and powerful figures.

    • Because his sentiment is based on the fact that they're flaming pieces of shit with influence over far too many people who blatantly lie and make shit up while their views are based on lies, lies, bullshit, hate and crazy.

  1. When are Limbaugh and Robertson and their hateful ilk going to get feckin' called home already? I can't wait to see the looks on their faces when they realize they're on the Down Escalator instead of the up one…

    You can tell Rush is evil from his name. Limbaugh=Limbo. It's almost as deviously hiding-in-plain-site as Louis Cypher…

  2. I didn't listen to the Rush thing, being in the UK and all, but from what I've read the quote is out of context. He was saying not to donate to the cause through the government website, to donate directly through sites like the Red Cross as he doesn't trust the US Government site to give all the money to Haiti.

    So although he seems like a paranoid fellow and his follow up comment about the tax thing wasn't exactly great, he didn't seem to be telling people not to donate to the relief, rather that people should donate directly to the charities.

    Anyway, again just something I read so can't say 100% it's true, but it would certainly not be the first time rage fuels an internet story over finding out the full context.

    • Even if that's the case, that is just a deplorable thing to to. To tell people that they shouldn't help people in need after a horrible disaster for any reason or context is monstrous, Rush isn't a dumb man, he knows what comes out of his mouth and is paid very well for it.

    • Not to mention there is simply a link to the Red Cross on the Whitehouse website so somehow implying that the money won't get to where it belongs is beyond ridiculous….something he would never have said during a republican administration by the way.

    • James, being in the UK and all I think perhaps you don't get to see the worst these people do, how they incessantly make us ashamed to be a member of their species let alone their country. Limbaugh isn't just some harmless conservative crank; he's a hateful and severely deranged demagogue who a large number of Americans choose to let speak for them. I don't think the world understands how dangerous and hateful these people are, or how badly their rhetoric has infected the people in the US. There are people here whose only view of the world is filtered through Limbaugh and Fox News and if you enjoy joking with your friends about how crazy Americans are, you're in luck because the new generations of people who have been raised in this environment are going to make our previous antics seem downright sane.

  3. James is quite correct, regarding Rush Limbaugh. Where Limbaugh is concerned, you have to remember most any quote of him you see anywhere else is going to be out of context, and go and find the transcript in context so you can see whether what he said was actually what you think he said.

    Regarding Pat Robertson, that quote is getting a lot of popular play, and is his religious perspective on WHY this happened. However, what is not getting equal play is that his humanitarian organization, Operation Blessing, is already IN Haiti helping the people there. This is being played as if Robertson were saying that the people should not be helped because they brought it on themselves, but the fact that his organization rushed to help the victims doesn't bear that out. It was a religious leader making a religious comment regarding the spiritual state of a country, not a call to abandon the victims.

    You don't have to like either guy, I'm just saying get the facts regarding their comments rather than relying on a news soundbite from entities that oppose them to make your opinion on the situation.

    • That's very nice. However, both Robertson and Limbaugh have to understand that the words that come out of their mouth have power, taken out of context or not, and they must be responsible for them. Robertson's organization might be doing good, but his statements may convince many many people not to help. The same with Limbaugh.

      • That's retarded. A person shouldn't be allowed to speak bc some idiot might take him out of context? So basically we should all keep our mouths shut regarding everything bc its incredible easy to misquote someone or just outright lie?

        Even the staunchest anti-Rush zealot would be lying to himself to suggest that Rush isn't CONSTANTLY lied about by the media. It's like a part-time job for MSNBC. The Lib Media actually PAYS people to listen to people like him and Glenn Beck specifically so they can talk trash about them.

        Words have power. Okay, so maybe we should condemn Joel for further pushing the lie of what was said on the show. That's a fact. And he's a pretty popular webcomic artist. Some people are going to get THEIR knowledge of the situation from him and then run off and tell someone else, further spreading misinformation.

        argue with that, I dare you.

        • I think the readers here are smart enough to actually try to look into what was said by whom/when, and not just lazily click some links to things that someone offers up.
          I know I've spent more time on this topic is AM than I'd care to, but then I don't care for either of the "commentators" here, and as far as I'm concerned, it's just the same 'ol, same 'ol from them.
          Go back to New Orleans, or 9/11, or any other major disaster, and see how Rush & Pat Roberson, and talking heads of their nature have opined.

          Argue with that, I dare you.

        • also, I believe he is trying to say that public figures need to deliver consistent messages (whatever those messages are). You cant be a humanitarian on one hand and a hate-mongerer on the other saying "well, they deserved it because they made a pact with the devil." The two ideals don't mesh and would make a thinking person doubt the sincerity of both.

        • >Even the staunchest anti-Rush zealot would be lying to himself to suggest that Rush isn't CONSTANTLY lied about by the media.

          Yeah, I'm gonna need to see some examples to back up that statement. Even if you can find one, let's compare that to the number of lies he's told and been called on.

          >The Lib Media actually PAYS people to listen to people like him and Glenn Beck specifically so they can talk trash about them.

          A: The term "lib media" is just one those buzzwords Limbaugh's followers use to try to discredit anyone who questions their beloved idol.
          B: You're trying to make fact-checking sound so sinister. If by "talking trash," you mean "correcting his factual errors" and "calling out his lies and slander", then sure. But again, I'd like to see anything anyone says about Limbaugh that's nearly as egregious as his bullshit.

    • @Jonathan: Thank you, thank you, thank you for being the only person I've seen so far who has pointed this out. I'd also like to add that if you've seen a clip of Robertson making these comments, THE AID DONATION NUMBER IS ACROSS THE BOTTOM OF THE SCREEN.

      Robertson has been collecting aid money for decades. I'd guess that he's sent hundreds of millions or billions of dollars toward aid all over the world, including Haiti. To complaint about the fact that he also goes on his own show and tells his very very specific audience what he thinks about the theological side of the situation is nitpicking.

      @Geist0 and @thunderingblurb, please reconsider using the word 'retarded' as an insult. It's hurtful to those of us with challenged relatives and who prefer to preserve the English language.

      Finally, @comic: Despite the fact that it puts forward a one-sided and slightly offensive view (that Pat Robertson is in league with the devil . . . wait, I just got the irony!), this was a really funny comic – the best in a while, even.

      • I can appreciate that Robertson has donated relief money to the third world for decades, though I don't like that the "relief" involves spreading his religious agenda as much as providing clothes and food. Thats besides the point. My problem is his two-faced nature. In one breath he is simultaneously called for donations for relief (or at least the bottom of his screen is) and saying Haiti "deserved what it got" for MAKING A PACT WITH A DEMON?!?!?! That's crazy talk. Considering his previous comments about New Orleans, homosexuals and… basically everyone else he deems undesirable, he has made it very clear that he is a hateful, out of touch bigot who shouldnt be taken seriously. If his money werent so badly needed I would suggest relief organization not take it.

      • I will definitely keep that in mind – and apologize if the use of that word rubbed you the wrong way. I have a wealth of vocab at my fingertips – I can probably stop using that word.

        That said – as Joel is saying as well in his response – but it's all well and good to send billions of ducats to help people. I';m glad he is – but his really very disturbed view that Haiti had a deal with the devil, that Nawlins got what they got because a lot of sinful people live there and IIRC, he was out in front of the 9/11 disaster with a 'this is what we get for being a Godless nation'….

        I'll just say he can spend every nickel to help those self same people and to me it will always seem terribly terribly hollow to me.

  4. I just noticed Satan twirling the phone cord in his fingers while talking to Limbaugh and laughed. I love the photo of the FOX dude on the desk as well. Is this *legasp* continuity?

  5. How about Rush's comment that Obama would seek to use the Haiti tragedy to get in better with the 'light and dark skinned' blacks? I've seen/heard the clip of that and NOT out of context- can you spin that for me?

    @johnathan – Nobody – including the comic – is claiming Robertson said to avoid helping the people of Haiti. What we are deploring is his retarded view that THEY DESERVED WHAT THEY GOT and have A PACT WITH THE DEVIL.

    /applause he's sending them money, food or dirigibles or whatever his company does. Great. Glad that despite the fact they are in league with Satan or didn't listen to Christ's message he can be bothered.

    Meanwhile he's saying – like he did when 9/11 happened – that the people involved DESERVED WHAT THEY GOT.

    No amount of wonderful kind acts of airdropping puppies on people will ever erase that fact. He's a fucking asshole.

    Sure he's not saying 'don't help them'. He IS saying 'they got what they deserved'. And that's what has people angry.

    It also tends to make any charitble acts looks a little less charitible.

    • I agree with all of this 100%. Thank you for being a little more tactful than I was. My "face-fucked by a semi truck" comment was trying to convey this message. Not sure why it wasnt clear to everyone the first time.

      • Goooood gooood Joel….channel your rage into comedy…it makes your comedy stronger! *cackles* Give in to the dark side of comedy!
        *mumble mumble* Face fucked by a semi truck….hehehe…
        Perhaps it would have been more clear if you had said "Tire humped by an 18 wheeler" 😉

  6. Joel, your "classy" response notwithstanding, I know you mean well.

    But you're wrong. Rush didn't tell anyone not to donate to Haiti. The so-called news media misquoted him. I listen to the show. I don't agree with a lot of Rush's finer points, but his over-arching statements are mostly accurate.

    Lashing out half-cocked bc you dislike the guy only served to make today's comic a low point for you.

    • I've looked at several sections of transcripts of what Rush said…being someone who talks for a living, could he have said "Check twice before you donate on some random website…" or something to that effect, rather than using the word he did?
      As people have pointed out…Rush isn't a moron, and he's paid very well for what he does, and he does have some skill at what he does…and what he did this time was stir up more than was necesary.
      Once in a while, it might be nice to give it a rest.

    • It might be your least favorite comic but it wasnt a low point for me. I drew what I wanted to draw, and I said what I wanted to say without anyone telling me that I couldnt. That for me is always a high point.

      • You're the creator and writer of your own comic. Who exactly is there to tell you that you couldn't. And I say it's a low point bc it's topical without being particularly funny, not to mention based on inaccuracies.

        You deplore Pat Robertson and Rush. Fine. You're welcome to your opinion. I didn't follow what Robertson said bc I don't watch the 700 club, and frankly I could care less what the man's opinion is on any subject. But i have to ask, where is your moral outrage at Danny Glover blaming Haiti on Global Warming and suggesting it's nature's payback for a failure at Copenhagen?

        In fact- forget that. What makes you any better than Pat Robertson or Rush by suggesting they be murdered by a mack-truck? Didn't you say "I'm not a monster."? Suggesting that someone die because you disagree with them sounds pretty monstrous to me.

        And considering you're a minor public figure, shouldn't you be held accountable for your words as much as they or anyone else? How do your words help the situation in Haiti? How do they do anything other than add venom to the already toxic internet?

        You don't like Robertson? Don't watch his show. You don't like Rush? Don't listen. for my part, I like your comic. That's why I read it, in spite of days like today.

        • Obviously semi trucks can't actually have sex with your face so that must have been some sort of joke not to be taken seriously.

          Danny Glover isn't relevant enough to influence the opinions of millions so let him say whatever he wants to. The earthquakes would have happened whether humans had ever evolved or not. They will continue to happen over the next billion years because thats how this particular planet works. Its science so opinion doesnt factor into it. Guys like Rush don't deal in science. They deal in opinions and swaying the opinions of the undecided or easily influenced masses. he in particular uses that power to make people fearful and intolerant.

          I am accountable for the comics I make. The silly jokey comics intended to make some people laugh and most people say "i dont get it". Im really not pushing the same product and Rush. My words don't help Haiti. They express my sadness at those who posses the influence and power to actually do good with their position but choose not to.

          Its ok if you think the comic isnt funny. Others have professed their enjoyment and I laughed out loud when I was done making it so Im still proud of it. Tune in next week and Ill be making fun of movies and TV again.

        • Dude, he didn't say "murdered". He said "face-fucked". I'd like to think that when my wife is giving me a blowjob, I'm not actually trying to kill her…

          And as for the quote from Limbaugh, in context he was claiming that clicking on a link on a website somehow enables the site you're clicking from to gather personal information from you, and/or divert any funds you contribute to the second site. Remember, after all, that what he was telling his worshipers to do was to *not click* on a link to the Red Cross donation site, because the link appeared on whitehouse.gov.

          It's the 21st century – I thought anyone under the age of 85 had at least enough computer savvy to figure out that this was a load, and anyone claiming this was either stupid or actively trying to mislead you. Perhaps I was too generous as to the average person's intellect.

    • Are you suggesting the news media aren't actually the news media? What are they then? And you agree with rush that Obama is only pushing for aid to Haiti to further the black agenda, and that hes skimming money off the top? What a load of CRAP. Where is the evidence for any of that?

      • "You agree with Rush that Obama is only pushing for aid to Haiti to further the black agenda" —you sir are a moron. What the hell is the "black agenda"? And when has Rush or any other conservative figure used any term remotely similar?

        Any what I am saying is that the News media doesn't report the actual news, and often bends it to report what they want it to say.

        • I was paraphrasing. But seriously, how can you support this racist troll? I'm the moron? And what about the accusations that the president is using the Haiti situation to skim money from charity?

        • Umm… the part of a quote where Limbaugh said Obama was going to use the Haiti tragedy to get a little more in with the light and dark skinned blacks was pretty self-evident I thought.

          It's actually the thing I originally thought was Joel's beef – I hadn't even heard about the website thing until later.

  7. Personally, I really can't believe those two are even allowed to talk into microphones any more. You'd think that people who still felt shame more than a party allegiance would gag them for the good of their side. The above comments also apply to Jesse Jackson and anybody else who views a tragedy as a way to seize a little more power.
    On an unrelated note, last time I dropped in on Satan he had the cutest assistant. Totally made the trip down totally worth it.

    • Indeed. Its not that they shouldnt be legally allowed to be hateful and ignorant on the radio or TV. This is America after all. Its that I find it hard to believe their party/religious brethren stand idley by and let these two continue to be "representative voices of the people."

      • This is America, where even amoral bastards have a right to free speech. There's an old quote "I may disagree with what you say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it" or something along those lines. Sure they're speech is damaging, but that's only because they both have so many sheeple following them, hanging onto their every word.

        It doesn't take a genius to realize that this is hate speech though, I can only sit and watch as some of their viewers finally get the point that these guys are out and out idiots.

      • Oh and sorry for disagreeing with you o'god of hijinks, your site is awesome, and for the most part I agree with you totally on this.

  8. Limbaugh and Robertson are extremists. They have the same news value as a new bin Laden tape. Let's call a spade a spade.

    • I agree. Its not like I take them seriously but I know millions of Americans do. Its foolish to wish they would go away because I know they would be replaced in an instant by the next opportunist that preys on peoples fears and intolerance to forward a religious or political agenda.

    • You do know that most of Rush Limbaugh's comments are satirical. He is an entertainer who happens to combine his political principles (which have stayed VERY consistent for 20 years) with a mocking sense of humor.

      The problem is, he speaks for 15 hours a week. There is no way to NOT have some comments come out wrong in that time. I don't get why people seize onto the occasional stumbles (that quote was only a few seconds) and ignore the vast majority of what he says. Even that quote requires some stretching–he never says not to donate. In fact, in the same show he said to donate.

      I think Limbaugh's statements deserve to be taken as a hole. You don't say Cindy Crawford is an ugly dog, just because she has a mole that may or may not sprout hairs some day.

      • Because most of the people who listen to him take him seriously no matter whether he calls what he does satire Rush is the default leader of the republican party and that means he has great power to sway the opinions of millions of people and does great harm by misinforming them.

      • When one promotes one's self as having "Talent On Loan From God", I'm going to be less forgiving than someone who presents themselves as you try to present him. He's a verified hypocrite, hoisted by his own petard.

        For instance, in the topic of drug use:

        "Too many whites are getting away with drug use…Too many whites are getting away with drug sales…The answer is to go out and find the ones who are getting away with it, convict them and send them up the river, too. " (Stated on The Rush Limbaugh Show -October 5, 1995- thank you wikiquote)

        Yet he was caught with and turned himself in on drug use / prescription shopping charges. He didn't go up the river. I didn't recall him saying that he should be sent up the river for some hard federal time- quite the opposite. This, in my book, makes him the one of the most deplorable kinds of humans. He's an egomaniac. He's a hypocrite. He's a blowhard. He's also charming and panders to the fear and hatred that he so cunningly nurtures in his audience.

        He's a dick. He's not nice people. I wouldn't stop to help him change a tire.

      • "I think Limbaugh's statements deserve to be taken as a hole."

        I couldn't agree more. All his comments should be taken as a-hole and never on a whole.

  9. @Geist0

    Will do! Rush’ audience size has been estimated by a number of sources to be AT LEAST 14 million (Washington Post) and on some days as high as 30 to 40 million (MSNBC, FOX News). The 700 Club’s and CBN’s ratings vary, but it’s pretty safe to peg them at somewhere in the tens of millions. We can pretty safely assume that Joel’s traffic on the site is probably somewhere in the thousands; not insubstantial, but the man certainly doesn’t have a cult dedicated to him by any means. Your level of popularity and your number of followers is directly proportional to the level of responsibility you have. People read, and probably listen to, Joel’s comic. But it’d be unlikely he’d be able to implement serious social change solely through it, at least not at this point. The same can not be said of these maniacs.

    And Joel hasn’t used any outright untrue information. Out of context? Well, that’s greatly up to debate. (Here at the bottom, I’ll post a link directly the the full transcript of Rush’s program in question). Cuba has offered nothing? Clearly the moron knows nothing (Cuba has sent relief workers, and opened up its ports and airspace to allow American Aid to bypass otherwise embargoed areas more quickly to get to Haiti). About two paragraphs in his “show” simply degenerates into deranged rambling about how Obama and the liberals are evil.

    And don’t even get me started on the lack of education that the deal with the devil quote conveys. I mean, unless you want to hear a VERY drawn out talk about Caribbean religious historiography…

    Link to Rush’s Show’s Transcript: (http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_011310/content/01125106.guest.html)

    The out of context argument disintigrates here. Obama never says “you can only donate through whitehouse.gov” or anything of that sort. Both Rush and this caller explicitly imply that donating through the US government will only somehow enrich the Obama administration.

    • Wait, HijinkEnsue isn't a cult!?!? You guys lied to me! I was looking forward to the human sacrifice of Josh!! ( 😀 )

    • I have somewhere between 15 and 20,000 readers so, yeah, I can pretty much say or do whatever I want with this comic and stay mostly under the radar. Millions of Americans hang on Robertson and Limbaughs every hateful, fear-inducing word. They actually ARE shaping the hearts and minds of the country and they are using that opportunity to create fearful, ignorant and intolerant people. That, to me, is unforgivable.

      • So, if you got more popular, perhaps even mainstream, would you then "clean up" your act? Hopefully not. That would be a shame. That said, Rush is the same arrogant loudmouth (love him or hate him) that he was on a single station in Sacramento.

        I feel like I should preface every comment with "I listen to Rush, but I still found this comic hilarious." Why is everyone so thin skinned about it?

        • Perhaps the fact that he hasn't cleaned up his act may be partially to blame for his mountain-stream-rather-than-mainstream readership, but we wouldn't have it any other way. I myself did not think that americans understood irony until I found These Here Hijinks.

  10. … It ceases to be about Haiti and people desperately in need and is turned into one group's personal political agenda.

  11. Given this is the U.S. of A., we ALL (no matter how despicable) have the right to utter whatever opinion we have… So, for those two soulless shitwads (Limbaugh, Robertson) to say what they did is, fortunately and unfortunately, within their American right… I don't care what they say, as individuals, so fuck'em… They'll rot for their ways… What kills me is that there are millions of sheeple out there that hang on every word spoken by those two "leaders" – So yeah, what they both said, (this time, and many many times before, about other topics) was terrible and wrong (they're never say anything I'll agree with), so maybe it's not them so much, as it is their followers… Weak-minded, ignorant, frightful citizens who know nothing outside their narrow comfort zone, who can't think beyond what they "believe" and will listen blindly to the loudest shouter of things that appeal to their fear instead of using their brain and read a book that doesn't have one of their leaders' faces on it (or savior in it…).

    • Oh, I see what you did there. "Sheeple." It's like sheep and people combined. Very original.

      I'm wagering that since Rush Limbaugh is "out of your comfort zone," that you probably haven't listened to much of his show. Except maybe intentionally out of context excerpts on MSNBC or Media Matters.

      But that's cool, man. I mean if you want to "listen blindly" (is that humanly possibly?) "to the loudest shouter," that's cool. It is the U.S. of A. after all.

            • I wouldn't be so sure. I know there are people who do believe that stuff (like say, most of their audience); who's to say Rush and Pat themselves are necessarily not among them?

              I know we like to talk, in response to statements like this, about how they only do it for the controversy, but maybe we're just telling ourselves that because we know the alternative is even worse, and we don't want to even consider it.

              • this is a tough call. People like my wife's grandparents would believe anything either of these guys said just because they said it. No "absurdity" or "irony" at all. If they say it, it must be true. Thats whats frightening. Rush might "get it" and his younger audience might as well. But many people will take whatever he says at face value and thats dangerous.

  12. Oh noes, political/social/religious discussion of pandora box proportions!

    In the midst of all this, a ray of real hope: that people have been contributing overwhelmingly to this cause to help people through an unthinkable tragedy. Let's spread the love and hope for a change once in a while, yeah? The political/intellectual debate about what these people said is interesting and all, but there are hundreds of thousands of people still in need too. That's the real story, in the end. This is all petty when you think about the desperation of all those people frightened, desperate and dying. I've been through some pretty major disasters myself and I can tell you as a certainty that these people do not care about poll numbers or ratings. They want to find their loved ones and make sure their children survive through this.

    Thank you if you have donated. If you cannot afford to, spread the word. Pray for these people, think good thoughts. Hating/controversy/arguing is easy. Compassion is what takes work.

  13. @James: "I didn't listen to the Rush thing, being in the UK and all, but from what I've read the quote is out of context. He was saying not to donate to the cause through the government website, to donate directly through sites like the Red Cross as he doesn't trust the US Government site to give all the money to Haiti."

    If you go to the White House site and click on a "donate" link, it takes you AWAY from that page and directly to the Red Cross's site. There have been problems in the past with fake sites set up to look like legitimate Red Cross sites; this way, that won't happen. The White House's site is just a gateway.

    I'm on Team Joel with this one. I've read the transcript and also Rush's "clarification," in which he says he meant exactly what he originally said: Obama is using this tragedy to "burnish his credentials with minorities in this country and around the world, and to accuse Republicans of having no compassion." (http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/20100115/pl_poli

    My opinion: Limbaugh is a soulless turd.

  14. Joel –

    I love your attention to little details in your comics. The photo of the EFE on the desk was a perfect touch. I've even created my own sidestory to go with it. Since the Haiti telethon is preempting the Dollhouse finale (well, pushing it back a week), I've made the connection that the EFE called in a favor to the man downstairs to fuck with people who are just waiting for the bitter end. I wouldn't put it past him, he IS Satan's favorite after all.

  15. I try to give people a fair chance but here is my take.

    As far as Pat Robertson is concerned there is no defense for his ignorance. For Limbaugh well… even you expand a bit further is both directions on that, his ignorance that big brother is going to either track you or harass you is crazy.

  16. I think that if Hijinks Ensue was a radio show )instead of a comic) and was written from a conservative political junkie perspective (instead of a geek perspective), it would be very much like the Rush Limbaugh show. Because you’re both the best at what you do.

    For instance, as a commenter above mentioned, Rush did make comments about the “light skinned and dark skinned negros” in Haiti being helped. The commenter said that there was no context–but there was. Harry Reid had said that Obama was a good candidate because he was “light skinned with no negro dialect.” You could infer from that comment that Reid thought “dark skinned with negro dialect is bad.” That deserves to be mocked.

    How often has a FOX executive or another random person made a comment that is then mocked on Hijinks Ensue? Of course they’re taken out of context to seem worse, but that’s FAIR GAME! Even more so, it’s hilarious.

    In fact, as a Rush Limbaugh fan, I APPLAUD JOEL FOR MAKING THIS COMIC. It is funny. Just as Rush was mocking Harry Reid for making a stupid comment, Joel has a right to mock Rush for his comments. And it WAS funny.

    *On a side note, I listened to the entire 3 hour podcast of Rush’s show on that “infamous” day. He never said not to contribute to Haiti. He said not to donate through WhiteHouse.gov, because it was likely that you’d end up on an Obama mailing list. He was mistaken, but after the whole “flag@whitehouse.gov” controversy, can you blame him for being cynical?

    • as bitter as it tastes in my mouth, I will agree that we are both extremists in our fields. I promote the geek agenda and skew some of the facts for comedic effect. I exaggerate what public figures say and do to provoke emotions from my audience, as well as exaggerating my own reactions to provoke FURTHER emotion from readers.

      The biggest difference for me is that I do what I do to make people laugh. That's all. In my opinion, Rush does what he does to sew discord, divisiveness, fear, hate and intolerance. I know you think he's just an entertainer but I can't agree.

      • Good point. You definitely serve different purposes.

        I think he is very funny. And I think he does what he does because he believes in a set of core principles. Some things, like politics, are divisive in nature. Religion is another. You cannot talk about politics without being divisive. If you take the middle of the road approach, you have to abandon all principles. Is there any one pundit who is consistent philosophically and is NOT divisive? And the more popular they are, the more people hear their views, and the more divisive they end up being.

        I think you are both great. But you deal with issues that are, let's be honest, trivialities compared to political philosophies. You deal with the human-Cylon conflict and the philosophies of Whedon, Asimov, and Roddenberry. Rush talks about the citizen-state relationship and the philosophies of Locke, Hobbes, Franklin, Jefferson, Hamilton and Madison.

      • "Rush does what he does to sew discord, divisiveness, fear, hate and intolerance."

        I'm mostly liberal, but I hope you realize you're basically describing him as a villain from "The Care Bears." I don't believe he says what he says for the sake of raw controversy or shock value (as others have suggested), but I doubt he's evil for the sake of evilness either.

    • So if the context is indeed the Reid quote, why not just mock Reid directly, rather than tie it into a tragedy, and thus make it sound like hate speech directed towards people of Haiti and people of African descent in general? At the very least you can admit that it was in humor in extremely poor taste.

      • Because Rush's audience isn't the people reading Media Matters and the Huffington Post. It is the people who listen directly to his show. And the people listening to the show "got" it.

        Rush uses the expression "illustrating absurdity by being absurd," daily. And this is a perfect example of it.

        • "illustrating absurdity by being absurd" You know that's a cop out right? So he can say whatever racist, bigoted, hateful thing he wants to rile up people who think that way but insulate himself from criticism.

          • Or he can use the exact words that Harry Reid, and show the phony double standard for what it is. If a conservative even mentions race, they are run out of town. Meanwhile, every Democrat rushes to Harry Reid's defesnse, while simultaneously attacking Rush for the same terminology.

            I don't think what Reid said was racist, just like I don't think what alot of Republicans have said is racist. The double standard though is a real problem, and I'm glad Rush shows what a joke it is.

  17. Joel, I had to fight hard to respond in your defense against all negative comments about this comic. I stopped just short of hitting the submit button before I realized that it would just be stirring the pot. I realized it's not our place to stand up and dismiss any disagreeing commentors from having the freedom to voice their opinions on the comic and the tragedy in Haiti in general. While I think that some of the comments are cheap and dismissive, they're doing no worse than being honest with what they feel.

    That said, this was yet another hilarious comic. I loved how Satan looks so much like his boyfriend (?), Mr. Fox Executive. And their comments taken out of context or nay, Limbaugh and Robertson are nothing but black-hearted, soulless jackanapes who deserve the American public's scorn after years of despicable comments.

  18. I love the background in this comic! I wish you had opportunity to use it more often. Hey, maybe if you do kill off Josh (Dethjosh Rumor 2010!), he can have a chat with Beelzebub.

    It's interesting that people are paying more attention to your commentary than the comic itself. Nothing in the comic appears to be taken out of context; he did say that the Haitians were in league with the devil. Sure, you added a bit of creative license by showing their Satanic connections, but that's the point of comedic social commentary, isn't it? Considering that my philosophy professor is a devout Christian (as are most of his family, several of whom still live in Haiti and are now deceased or homeless after the quake), I really don't think they'd appreciate the idea that Haitians are all god-less heathens who consort with Satan.

    Also, I'd take it as a compliment that people are up in arms over your political/social reach. They must believe you have considerable clout!

  19. Ach, ridiculously out of my depth with American politics cartoon. You are a very brave man mister joel, to be posting this. As far as i can see there appears to be two crusty old conservatives making unsubstantiated claims about where money to the government is going to go and complaining that there is too much drive for them to empty their no-doubt o'erflowing pockets from humanitarians. Methinks the Americans doth protest too much, or else be so credulous as to take them seriously, especially a God-botherer, although i recognise my opinion may be worth less, as i may be badly familiarized with the situ, but in most developed places in the world, these kinds of folk are ignored.

          • Y'know, i'd like to figure out precisely how big their audience is, and how many hang on to their every word, because this smells like a serious case of Much Ado About Nothing (or indeed Noting, if your spelling runs that way). There will always be unpleasant men, We have one bloke over here, Nick Griffin, who behind his political facade, probably wants the holocaust carried out here again, in Britain. For the most part, they are ignored, unless they become a threat. So i think its first necessary to find out just how many of the voting population these men are believed by, and first determine whether they are a threat, cos 20% of "millions" is an awfully nebulous number, rather like Senator McCarthy's list of "A lot".

        • Really? Have you been to the states recently? The coasts are relatively safe, but there's that whole stretch in the middle that is a breeding ground of stupidity.

          Every time I think something on the ballot (for example) is a no-brainer issue, I'm shocked to find that even in a relatively open-minded town, the vote is incredibly close. We have way too many stupid people over here. The rest of the world should be a little nervous.

  20. OK, here comes another semi-conservative voice.
    In my opinion, the comic was amusing, and the commentary was not. It also seemed a little bit ‘headline-grabbing’ to put the “Rush doesn’t want you to donate” in bold and then add add the “…through the whitehouse website” at the end of it.
    It’s your space, so you have every right to use it to claim that some on the right ignore facts and believe whatever they are told. And by asking for feedback, I have the right to point at the commentary here and say the same thing about some on the left.

    But hey – Fox execs still suck. And isn’t that what’s really important?

  21. Without getting into the whole US political debate (which is even worse in it's resort to childish name-calling and fear-mongering than UK politics) I wanted to comment on all the comments about Joel using *his* freedom of speech to "attack" others' freedom of speech. The difference, as others have said is that both Limbaugh and Robertson are actively attempting to direct the thinking of a HUGE number of people and actually have a (unbelievably) large following, so they achieve their goals.Without getting into the whole US political debate (which is even worse in it's resort to childish name-calling and fear-mongering than UK politics) I wanted to comment on all the comments about Joel using *his* freedom of speech to "attack" others' freedom of speech. The difference, as others have said is that both Limbaugh and Robertson are actively attempting to direct the thinking of a HUGE number of people and actually have a (unbelievably) large following, so they achieve their goals.

    Joel is a comic artist. He comments on things that happen in order to make people laugh. He is not trying to *make* you think one thing or another, just to make you laugh and possibly think. It is clear that (this being his personal comic website) this is all his OPINION and in no way is attempting to influence how a person thinks about a situation.

    When people who are *actively trying to shape public opinion* spout hateful, stupid nonsense, their supporters often just follow their lead because they support the person, whether or not their view is harmful.

    When comedians (including comic artists) comment on these events, they are laughing at the ridiculousness of the opinions of these people, and are attempting to make people laugh. Anger is often a good catalyst for comedy and (I'm sure) like many others Joel was angered by the idiocy of both these commenters. Yes, their comments *may* have been taken out of context, but given their propensity to make outrageous and provocative comments in public, and the number of people who do follow and agree with their every word this comic is entirely justified.

    Also, it's funny as hell.

  22. No one else has said it so it falls to me: Pink would be a horrible color for the red man to wear, dress or not.

    There, I said it.
    Moving on…

  23. Just a heads up, I followed the link to the Pat Robertson comment and it directed me to a website that tried to install malware and advised me I didn't have adequate virus protection. I hope that wasn't your intention.

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