Few people are excited by the prospect of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking from the same podium that President Obama used to deliver his State of the Union address, so I predict the event scheduled for March will be canceled. It may be kiboshed before this cartoon sees the Web. If so, the portrait painted here of the GOP’s fantasy world and its love for right wing Israeli violence is still valid.
There are, of course, plenty of Democrats in Congress who support Israel blindly, but who find Netanyahu personally distasteful. In the short term, they will rally around the President, but in the long run, they will reflexively support whatever policy the Israeli leadership chooses, no matter how many Palestinians die as a consequence. (See Shibley Telhani’s recent discussion of a poll reflecting partisan divide over Netanyahu, and how that could affect elected Democrats in sensitive areas.)
Speaking of painting, I am still experimenting with media. Last week saw the use of watercolor pencils, this week straight up watercolor. I think it looks good, despite mistakes I can see. I left some of them in, because I always feel mistakes add some visual interest beyond what an artist intends; others I Photoshopped away. I need to develop a more efficient system; this process takes a lot longer than my usual method of inking on paper and coloring in Photoshop. I like the results, and I find it more comfortable to use an actual brush than struggling with my (admittedly out-of-date) stylus (insert aging phallic jokes here); but it took three sessions over three days to complete this, not like my usual 4-6 hour production time. Next week may see a return to the old ways while I scare up some better supplies, set up my space for the medium, and learn some techniques.
Thank you for watching Cartoonist Tool Talk. Now back to your conscious lives.
