May 28, 2010
daily bizcard 028– megan mcardle
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Today’s “Daily Bizcard” design, “Socialism Is Evil”, goes to the utterly brilliant political journalist, Megan McArdle.
Legend has it that somebody was once so impressed with her old amateur blog, Asymmetrical Information, they offered her a job at The Economist, one of the most respected news organs on the planet. She now works at The Atlantic, where she has a massive fan base of super-smart people.
I met her in London in 2005 at a geek dinner I had organized, back when she was doing The Economist gig. She was a most fun and welcome addition. I remember introducing her that evening to Gia Milinovich, another very bright American expat in town. I thought they might get along.…
Growing up in Edinburgh in the 1970s and 80s, I eventually left for University in Austin, Texas with a very grim view of Socialism. Though I hadn’t seen it at its worst (we’re talking Scotland here, not East Germany) I’d seen enough of it not to like or trust it. To me it seemed not so much a political system, more like a sad, bitter, venal cultural suicide note.
Even nowadays, if I tried hanging a poster of this cartoon around Edinburgh or Glasgow, I’d still probably get lynched. Which is EXACTLY why I like this cartoon.
Besides that, there’s something rather amusing to me about a beautiful, cultured, sophisticated Washington journalist handing out “Socialism Is Evil” cards at swank, East Coast soirees. Exactly.
[The Daily Bizcard archive is here etc.]
[Megan, please send me an e-mail at gapingvoid@gmail.com with your shipping address and the details you want on the back of the bizcard, and I’ll send a free box of 100 to you. Thanks!]
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Tags: Asymmetrical Information, Cartoon Business Cards, Daily Bizcard, Gian Milinovich, Megan McArdle, Socialism
Careful, you may get lynched here in America as well. Sad isn’t it?
I often ponder…
“How many times does socialism have to fail before humanity stops believing it will work?”
Then I see friends get back together with mean or abusive ex boy or girlfriends, and realize that I have my answer.
Hugh, you’re a sly one. While I wasn’t alienated by this cartoon – and I still have the widget on my site – which is making me feel a little red at the moment (no pun intended) – I was a little surprised. It’s cute to be incendiary these days, I suppose. When it comes to questions of freedom – and freedom in terms of creativity – how do you define yourself? I think it would be more interesting and more productive and more honest if people on both sides of the equation would sit down and talk about how we all feel about our personal freedoms, and which ones we are comfortable with losing, and which ones we aren’t. If only things were as simple as this particular cartoon, we’d have all the problems of the world worked out, eh? Maybe you’ll do one about personal freedoms. Enjoy the weekend.
“I think it would be more interesting and more productive and more honest if people on both sides of the equation would sit down and talk about how we all feel about our personal freedoms, and which ones we are comfortable with losing, and which ones we aren’t.”
What are you saying? That Socialism is about reasonable people getting together and working things out in a post-ideological, “freedom-from vs freedom-to” manner? Good luck with that angle
Though yeah, your idea probably would be more interesting and productive…
…Reasonable people getting together and working things out in a post-ideologic, “freedom-from vs. freedom-to” manner (nicely put, by the way)… Hmm. What are YOU saying? Is conservatism? Frankly, I’m sick to death of the heights of absurdity to which we have been taken by party line polarization. The holier-than-thou b.s. gets us nowhere, and in the end, politicians are still answering to the same people. What is so scary about the idea of people getting together – truly – to determine how we can work on ways to design better systems that will be more beneficial to society overall? As opposed to crappy systems that benefit the very few? I really don’t get why low income conservatives think they are getting such a great deal on health care and insurance, for example, and I find it odd and ironic that being able to “stand on one’s own two feet,” seems to be such a strongly held conservative notion until there happens to be a giant, catastrophic boo-boo… then suddenly, it’s o.k. for other folks to pay for it.
My guess is that when it comes down to brass tacks, the things we both want are probably not all that different. Again; better systems that will be more beneficial to society overall. I think the biggest argument from conservatives herein, is “According to whom?” To which I respond: “of the people, by the people, for the people.”
Oh, and also, socialism isn’t evil, but I think people can be. Kinda like, “Guns don’t kill people. People kill people.”
Hmm. So what do you think about all the people who accuse Obama of being a socialist?
Cnderkeys, I think they are wrong, because I don’t think Obama is a socialist… at least, not yet
Hi,
While alienation with gapin’ void would be, imho, one step too far at the moment, I find the very particular moment extremely interesting.
It is the first time that a post on gapin’ void bugs me and actually the second since the last one wasn’t to my liking as well.
The actual problem is that it is not the cartoons bugging me but the prose on the side, the garnish if you like.
It is not a big, nor a new thing, artwork has a life of its own. Thus one could find the bp flower (contradiction in terms?) apologetic, while the evil planning socialists of today’s dish could indeed be evil, in a short of Srangelovish way making us crack a smile obfuscating at the same time Hugh’s evil agenda to make us remember and finally love the bomb.
So it’s the actual prose “explaining”, pointing to the “hidden agenda” voiced by Hugh that spoils the goods.
In my opinion the reason is that while the “Cartoons drawn on the back of business cards” have a voice of their own, pointing out stuff around us in a, most of the times, well versed and thoughtful manner Hugh’s “explanations” are wanting.
Hugh cannot pin down his drawn work with words. It could be a matter of quantity, brute force, i.e. the cartoons being images thus having the power of at least 1000 words while Hugh’s comments are certainly shorter than 1K. So ruff neck apologetics and over simplification of socialism/communism and its impact seem a little frail to me.
Still, its “Cartoons drawn on the back of business cards” not “Philosophy/History of Science/Political Science, etc, etc, drawn on the back of business cards” so live and let live.
Kind regards.
Hey George,
Yep, not everything I do is going to me everybody happy. Luckily, not everything they do makes me happy, either. Oh, well…
Now I wonder how people in Texas would react if you’d publish the same thing with:
“Texas is evil”
Jan,
I wonder how girl scouts would react to “Girl scouts are evil”.
I wonder how Latvians would react to “Latvia is evil”.
I wonder how pet shop owners would react to “Pet shop owners are evil”.
I wonder how North Carolinians would react to “North Carolina is evil”.
Sorry… what was your point again? Oh yeah, you don’t have one.…
To George:
I completely agree; alienation would be way too far. Whether he knows it or not, Hugh has changed my life for the better with his words and ideas (I might’ve mentioned it a time or two, actually). We haven’t met, but I love the guy.
Yes, art has a life of its own. I never liked the BP Flower in the past, but I have an altogether different feeling when I see it now, and just as another example, the Nazi flag will always make the hairs on my neck stand up. On the other hand, I find that the stories behind the art can be fascinating. For example, I didn’t know what things were like for him growing up in Scotland. Art on a page or in the form of a song can be very much the same as someone screaming. Sometimes it helps to learn why. Yes, cartoons on the back of business cards, are just that. And a swastika is just a cross with hooks. Words and expression matter. It’s where the phrase, “speak truth to power” comes from, and I believe there’s a biblical reference, there.
Cheers.
You people get way too wound up about a simple little cartoon.
I love it how the strongest defenders of socialism have never lived under a real socialist regime. I live in Spain. It sucks. And its not even East Germany bad.
Take care. Be free. Love your stuff Hugh. Keep it up.
I’m sure that girl scouts would react to “Girl scouts are evil” –but at least they are girl scouts.
Given that both the UK’s Labour Party and the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party are just slightly centre-left parties with a long tradition of operating within the democratic status quo (not unlike the US Democrats), I find the mentioning of communist regimes quite hard to understand.
So, it’s not the “Socialism is evil” design that perplexes me. It’s the inability to distinguish between a democracy and communism. I understand that the term “socialism” may have different meanings in USA and in Europe, but still…
UK –including Scotland– and Spain (just like the USA) have never experienced a regime that resembled the Eastern Block. They may have had bad or good governments, but the social democracy they know of has nothing to do with what the design refers to. Most of the time, people criticize those parties for being just as right-wing as their right-wing opponents!
I like the artwork but there are parts on the text that seem to describe an alternative reality. This comes as a surprise, since I’m used to Hugh having a much keener look on things.
From what you have written, I would say you know very little about Scottish politic, Surreality.
My opinion stands…
I claim to be no expert on the countless splits of the SNP or the Scottish Labour Party (or any other Scottish party for that matter…), nor I am particularly interested in both left-wing and right-wing Scottish nationalistic agenda.
All the same, I believe I’m not mistaken in saying that there was no communist regime in action right under the very nose of Margaret Thatcher. If there was one, the historians, the political analysts and the news media seem to have missed it.
Surreality, it’s OK, if you don’t think Socialism is evil, just say so. I will still like you
Your tolerance of my perceived feelings is heart-warming Hugh!
Who am I to oppose an argument appealing to feelings rather than intellect?
After three years of following your art and your ideas, I just have to keep on liking you, too.
Best wishes!
Hugh, I think the card it great and I was wondering if I could use it on the back of my business cards for BULGARIA — I am sure they will laugh and if they dont as is common I lose my knee caps.
I know (at least I think I remember so) you used to allow this but noticed this image doesnt have your web address on and I would like to overlay that on the image.
If you need more of a background please drop me a line.
And even if it is negative — keep up the inspirational work always makes me chuckle.