SlowpokeBlog

Whew, it's been a busy couple weeks here at Slowpoke HQ, what with the WAM! conference and a big freelance assignment -- a full-page color comic for the C-VILLE, which I shall link to when the issue comes out.

I've had the basic argument of this strip -- the tendency for news media to obsess over Iraq to the exclusion of other important issues -- kicking around in my head for some time. I made some statement to this effect during my presentation in Cambridge, which garnered at least one audible murmer of agreement from the audience. As I mention in the strip, I'm not saying Iraq isn't important. It's pretty damn egregious if I say so myself. Moreover, the news media also obsess over plenty of stupid stuff like celebrity bimbos in rehab, to the exclusion of stories with substance. I don't think the plight of the poor in America would necessarily garner any more coverage were we not at war. But wouldn't it be interesting if it did get the same kind of intensely dramatic treatment? Workingforchange.com summed up the cartoon nicely on their blog, where they invoked the John Edwards line, "It's time for us to be patriotic about something besides war." I'm liking Edwards quite a bit these days.

Creating the night-vision camera effect in the second panel was kinda fun. Note the subtle application of the Photoshop noise filter to simulate graininess. Aw yeah.