A Very Clever Bum

This is obviously a photoshop creation, sort of like this bit of Occupy humor, but let’s suspend reality and give this bum some credit for being entrepreneurial.

In the real world, though, the bum probably wouldn’t be this successful because the likely GOP nominee doesn’t offer a pro-freedom alternative.

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From Switzerland, Some Much-Needed Tax Humor

I thought I despised the IRS, but I’m just an amateur. I’m in Geneva, Switzerland, where I just finished speaking to a group of overseas Americans who have steam coming out of their ears.

These folks are livid with the tax system, thanks to awful policies such as America’s worldwide tax regime and punitive laws such as FATCA.

So let’s ease the pain with some tax humor.

Losing an arm and a leg isn’t much fun, which reminds me that some Congressman (I think) had a very good idea of shifting election day so that it coincides with tax day. Not a bad idea, given the message of the cartoon.

And if you like tax humor, I recommend this IRS pencil sharpener. And for those who don’t mind PG-13 humor, there’s a good joke about the Rabbi and the IRS agent.

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Leno and the Gang Rip the Political Class

Readers of this blog appreciate humor. The top two posts Since I started International Liberty are this cartoon about Obama’s economic prowess and this joke comparing Texas and California.

The one liners from the late-night talks shows also tend to be quite popular. And since I like anybody who mocks politicians, I’m happy to share the ones that get me to chuckle.

Jay Leno

• The Obama administration is trying to distance itself from remarks made by long-time Democratic adviser Hilary Rosen. She said that Mitt Romney’s wife, Ann, a stay-at-home mother of five who has cancer, has never worked a day in her life. The ironic part — because of that idiotic statement, she may never work another day in her life.
• And now, even vice president Joe Biden is furious. He said, “Making stupid comments that hurt the president, that’s my job. She has no right.”
• The average wedding now costs $27,000. Well, no wonder Newt Gingrich is broke. He’s constantly shelling out all that money.
• Newt Gingrich’s campaign paid $500 to get his name on the Utah primary ballot, and the check bounced. You know, if Newt is spending money he doesn’t have, maybe he really is qualified to be president.
• The price of gasoline has now doubled under President Obama’s administration. He and Jimmy Carter are the only presidents ever to have had that happen. But in fairness, at least under President Obama we don’t have to listen to disco.
• President Obama’s popularity is starting to dwindle among well-known liberals like Matt Damon and Gene Simmons. In fact, you know the number one liberal to turn against President Obama? Mitt Romney.
• Today was the annual White House Easter Egg Roll, or as Republicans call it, “President Obama’s socialist egg redistribution.”
• Mitt Romney had an Easter egg hunt as well. He does it a little differently. He hides money offshore and then the kids hunt for the nest egg.
• The earth’s population is now well past 7 billion people. And still, the Republicans can’t find one candidate they really like.
• Rick Santorum’s campaign is now formally calling on Newt Gingrich to drop out of the race. But you know Newt. He has vowed to stay in. And believe me, when Newt Gingrich takes a vow, he keeps it — unless, of course, you know, marriage.
• Sarah Palin co-hosted the “Today” show. She did a pretty good job, and they want to bring her back for a new version of “Where in the World is Matt Lauer?” What they’re going to do is release Matt into Central Park, and then Sarah will track him down “Hunger Games” style.
• Oh, here’s your tax dollars at work. This is what makes people furious. The head of the GSA, a woman named Martha Johnson, has resigned after they found out she spent over $830,000 on a four-day government conference in Las Vegas. And the president is furious. Not President Obama, the president of China. It’s his money. It’s his money she spent.

David Letterman

• Rick Santorum has dropped out of the race. He wanted to ban gambling and outlaw pornography. And this is a guy who claims Mitt Romney is out of touch with America.
• Gingrich is $5 million in debt. And he’s the guy who was going to fix our economy.
• Mitt Romney is trying to get female voters and Rick Santorum said, “What? Women can vote? Are you kidding me?”

Conan

• George W. Bush said he wishes people would stop referring to his tax policy as the Bush tax cuts. He also wishes people would stop referring to his presidency as the eight-year oopsy.
• Newt Gingrich says he still has a chance. He say people walk up to him all the time and beg him to stay in the presidential race. It’s a group of people known as Democrats.
• Three people have won the Mega Millions lottery. You know what that means — three more votes for Mitt Romney.
• Newt Gingrich said that Mitt Romney has no principles. In other words, he has given Romney his official endorsement.

Jimmy Kimmel

• There’s certainly nothing fun about paying taxes. But you have to remember that all the money goes to a good cause, like paying the salaries of the meter maids who give parking tickets, keep welfare checks flowing to the Octomom — important things like that.

Jimmy Fallon

• Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal announced that he is supporting Mitt Romney for president. Jindal said he couldn’t think of a better way to show his support than waiting until Romney was the only guy left.
• After dropping out of the GOP race, Rick Santorum emailed his supporters to ask for help paying off his campaign debt. So if you believe in his message of responsible spending and no handouts, just give him a handout to cover all his irresponsible spending.
• Over the weekend, Mitt Romney was actually spotted bodyboarding in California. Yeah, Romney would have gone surfing, but you know — he hates standing for something.
• Actually, it turned out there weren’t enough waves that day, so Romney asked Newt Gingrich to do a cannonball.
• Joe Biden launched a new Twitter account to give supporters updates from the campaign trail. His most recent update: “They still won’t let me go on the campaign trail.”
• Yesterday was April Fools’ Day. Mitt Romney’s staffers played a prank on him by staging a fake campaign event in an empty room — or as Newt Gingrich put it, “My staff has been playing that prank on me for six months.”

Craig Ferguson

• The protesters say Google is underestimating the dangers of merging man with machine. Well, they’re a little late to stop that half-man, half-cyborg thing. They’re already here. One of them just captured the Republican nomination.

If you’re a recent reader and want to catch up on these barbed remarks, you can peruse previous editions by clicking here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

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A Great Political Cartoon (after a bit of editing)

I periodically praise Chuck Asay for being a great political cartoonist. I’m not sure if my favorite is this one featuring the three little pigs, or this one showing why parasites shouldn’t kill their host animal.

And you’ll find some other funny ones here, here, here, and here.

But now I’m conflicted. Mr. Asay has a new cartoon that is really good and really bad. So I’m taking some liberties and showing the good part first (you get your ice cream before your spinach in this post).

Needless to say, you don’t want Obama to be your lifeguard. The details of the cartoon are what make it so effective, including the characters in the lower right of the frame.

And if you like the use of the anchor, here’s another cartoon that you’ll appreciate. It’s not by Chuck Asay, but it bashes the value-added tax, and that’s a quick way to get on my good side.

So what’s the bad part of the cartoon? Well, here’s the full image. As you can see, Romney has a co-starring role, and it portrays him as a supporter of free enterprise.

We should be so lucky. Romney is sympathetic to a VAT. Is that free enterprise?

Romney criticized personal retirement accounts earlier in the campaign. Is that free enterprise?

Romney supports corrupt ethanol subsidies. Is that free enterprise?

Romney still says nice things about the TARP bailout. Is that free enterprise?

And I don’t need to remind anybody about Obamacare’s evil twin. Is that free enterprise?

The moral of the story is that red anchors are just as ineffective as blue anchors.

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Obama Unveils Official 2012 Campaign Cigarette

Here’s a joke that is somewhat similar to the Colonel Sanders sign that I shared last month.

And it’s a good match for the Obama campaign theme song that I posted last year, so here’s the official cigarette of the Obama reelection effort.

But while the creator of this image gets high marks for creativity, I do have one small suggestion. Given Obama’s preference for class-warfare tax hikes, perhaps the image would be more accurate if $100 bills were used.

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Some Cartoons to Help You Prepare for Tax Week

Tax day is just around the corner, and we even get a one-day reprieve since April 15 falls on a Sunday.

And since everyone knows that I’m a big fan of the current tax system and the IRS (speaking of which, here’s a very good joke), let’s celebrate by digging into the Jeff MacNelly archives for these two tax cartoons.

First, here’s what many of us will be doing next weekend. Click to enlarge the cartoon. Every line is worth reading.

It would be nice to have a simple and fair system like the flat tax, requiring a 10-line return that can fit on a postcard. But be wary of some “simple” plans, as shown by Barack Obama’s two-line plan for a flat tax.

And here’s another cartoon showing how tax laws are developed. Very appropriate when you think about the IRS’s proposed interest-reporting regulation or the new FATCA law.

Jeff MacNelly was my favorite political cartoonist during my formative years. Sadly, he passed away far too early.

For good political cartoons today, I recommend starting with Michael Ramirez and Lisa Benson.

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Socialism for Kids, the Obama Version

I have several amusing posts about the left’s fixation on redistributionism, including this Halloween classic, this Elizabeth Warren takedown, this mockery of the Occupy Wall Street nitwits, and this caricature of Obama’s class warfare.

In this grand tradition, here’s a funny poster sent to me by a reader.

This is an appropriate point for the disclaimer that Obama is not a socialist, which technically requires government ownership of the means of production. As I’ve explained before, it’s much more accurate to say he’s a statist, a corporatist, or a redistributionist.

And since we’re looking at definitions and this post features young children, I’m reminded of the great description of libertarianism put forth by my Cato colleague David Boaz.

You could say that you learn the essence of libertarianism — which is also the essence of civilization —  in kindergarten: don’t hit other people, don’t take their stuff, keep your promises.

That definition isn’t amusing, like what’s portrayed in this satirical video or shown in this mocking poster featuring the 24 types of libertarians, but it has the advantage of being simple and accurate.

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Obama vs. the Founding Fathers

I’ve repeatedly said that Michael Ramirez is a good political cartoonist (see here, here, here, here, here, and here), and he’s proved his worth in this cartoon that cleverly mocks the cavalier attitude that statists have about America’s founding principles.

And here are two more Ramirez cartoons, including one that also uses the theme of Obama vs the Founding Fathers.

Finally, for those who want some analysis of why schemes like Obamacare are inconsistent with the Constitution, here’s some good analysis by Walter Williams, Thomas Sowell, Philip Klein and Damon Root, and yours truly.

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More Much-Deserved Abuse of the Political Class by Leno, Letterman, and the Rest of the Late-Night Gang

I’m periodically asked why I share political humor on  this blog. The glib and easy answer is that it’s good to share amusing material.

But there’s also a serious point, especially when disseminating jokes from the late-night talk shows. Politicians should be mocked. And the more pretentious they are, the more vicious we should be.

Even the ones we like should be subject to ridicule. Elected officials often get very egotistical because they spend all day being flattered by lobbyists. Our role is to make sure there’s a countervailing force.

So enjoy these gems.

Jay Leno

• What do you think your odds are of winning that jackpot? The last odds I checked, 176 million to 1. But then again, still better odds than Newt Gingrich getting the nomination.
• I think even President Obama realizes the Obamacare thing is not looking good in front of the Supreme Court. He’s starting to downplay it. Like today he called it Bidencare.
• Newt Gingrich announced today he is laying off a third of his campaign staff. Is that surprising? He laid off two-thirds of his wives.
• In New York City this week, they had the annual Greek Independence Day Parade. In fact, it was so authentically Greek that before the parade even started it was $12 million in debt.
• A madam in New York City claims that John Edwards was a customer in her brothel. You hear that kind of thing and it really makes you lose respect for prostitutes, doesn’t it?
• This weekend former Vice President Dick Cheney received a heart transplant. And I thought this was nice — they let him shoot the donor himself.
• Fox News sent Dick Cheney flowers. MSNBC sent chili cheese fries.

David Letterman

• Rick Santorum wants to ban pornography. That’s one of the few thriving industries America has left.

Conan

• Yesterday, Mitt Romney told what he thought was a humorous story about how his father closed down a Michigan factory. Then Romney went on to quote some of his favorite funny quotes from the movie “Schindler’s List.”
• The Supreme Court is deciding right now whether the government can mandate that all Americans buy health insurance. Rick Santorum said, “There’s no way I’m letting the government make me go on a man date.”
• In Germany, a court has ruled that German police are allowed to racially profile citizens. But don’t worry. It’s Germany, so things shouldn’t get out of hand.
• Today is Ann and Mitt Romney’s 43rd wedding anniversary. This means that 43 years ago Mitt proposed to his wife and due to a weak field of candidates, she said yes.

Jimmy Fallon

• A new poll found that President Obama’s approval rating is above 50 percent for the first time since last May. Obama made sure to thank the people who made that possible — Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, and Ron Paul.
• Rick Santorum gave a speech at the Jelly Belly factory in California. Incidentally, “Jelly Belly Factory” was also Newt Gingrich’s nickname in college.
• A recent survey showed that Rick Santorum is the favorite GOP candidate among Republican women. When he heard that, Santorum was like, “Wait — women have the right to vote?”
• Ron Paul said it’s still too early to count him out as the Republican nominee. Seriously? That’s like Newt Gingrich saying it’s too early to count him out as an Abercrombie model.
• That’s right — Rick Santorum was seen lying on the beach without his shirt on. He would have worn sunscreen, but he’s not really into protection.

Jimmy Kimmel

• Some top Republicans are urging Newt Gingrich to leave the race, but he says he’s sticking around. If they could get him to marry the race, he would probably leave it eventually.
• This Wednesday Mitt Romney goes one-on-one in a debate against the one man who stands in the way of his nomination: Mitt Romney.
• Rick Santorum wants to crack down on pornography. Most political analysts say it could hurt him with the “every single man in America” vote.

If you find these one-liners amusing, you can enjoy previous editions by clicking here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

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Two Very Good Political Cartoons

I’ve recently become a fan of Lisa Benson’s cartoons (see here, here and here), and this may be her best piece of work.

My only quibble is that there should be an elephant somewhere on the wagon since Schwarzenegger also was a big spender.

I’m also a big fan of the work of Michael Ramirez work (see here, here, here, here,here, and here), and he has a new cartoon about Paul Ryan’s plan for Medicare reform.

What makes this cartoon especially biting is that Ryan’s current plan isn’t quite as good as the one he proposed last year, but that isn’t stopping demagogues from complaining.

Which raises a good issue. If you’re going to be viciously demagogued regardless of whether you solve 5 percent of a problem or 100 percent of a problem, why not go all the way?

Maybe I’ll call this “Mitchell’s Don’t-Cross-a-Canyon-in-Two-Leaps Principle,” to complement “Mitchell’s Law” and “Mitchell’s Golden Rule.”

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What Do Barack Obama and Colonel Sanders Have in Common?

With all the talk about budgets in Washington, and given Obama’s support for class warfare, higher tax rates, and double taxation, this image I received seems rather appropriate.

It’s quite possible, of course, that this is a photo-shop production, but that’s not really important. Good humor is worth sharing even if it’s based on doctored photos, exaggerated stories, dicey numbers, unverified quotes, and urban legends.

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A Simple Choice: Barack Obama or Rutherford Hayes?

Other than my ongoing adulation for Ronald Reagan, occasional praise for Calvin Coolidge, and one post about John F. Kennedy, I don’t have many nice things to say about previous Presidents.

But I feel the need to rise to the defense of Rutherford B. Hayes, who was mocked recently by the current President. This Mark Steyn column is a deliciously vicious commentary on Obama’s speech, so no need for me to delve into the details.

Instead, I want to jump on the bandwagon and produce some posters comparing the 19th President and the 44th President (if you’re not aware, posters of Pres. Hayes with self-created captions have been all over the Internet).

You won’t be surprised to learn that I’m focused on the policy differences between Hayes and Obama.

Most important, Hayes largely was true to the Founding Fathers’ vision of a limited central government. Government spending averaged only about 6 percent of economic output during his tenure (probably less, the data are not very robust, so I took the worst-case numbers) and America was blessedly free of the income tax.

Obama, on the other hand, is repeating all of Bush’s mistakes and making government an even bigger burden, and then compounding his error by pursuing class warfare tax policy.

So which President would you prefer, Hayes or Obama?

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How Many Bureaucrats Does It Take to Screw in a Light Bulb?

I posted the other day about the federal government giving $10 million of our tax dollars to a private company for developing an “affordable” light bulb that costs $50.

Now, thanks to the pen of Alexander Hoffman (creator of this gem), we have an excellent cartoon to commemorate this achievement.

Since we’re on this topic, I want to atone for an admission in my previous post (as noted by Seth, Bill, Dan, and Talon’s Point).

If you believe the calculations cited in the article from the post, it’s possible that this light bulb might save money in the long run. I should have noted that there are two possible interpretations of that data.

a) It’s wrong, which is what you’d expect from the crowd that routinely trumpets misleading data on everything from global warming to job creation.

b) It’s right, in which case there’s no need for a $10 million taxpayer handout since consumers will figure out that the bulbs save money.

Which is why, in the absence of war, I’ll relentlessly publicize this poster showing that more government is not the answer.

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The Tax System Explained in Beer

In my explanations of the Laffer Curve, I’ve shown evidence that high tax rates discourage productive behavior and boost the underground economy.

And if higher tax rates are sufficiently onerous, the resulting reductions in taxable income can completely offset the revenue-generating impact of higher tax rates. Indeed, this is what’s already happened with the “Snooki tax.”

And the same thing happens in reverse. If lower tax rates lead to a big enough increase in taxable income, the government actually collects more revenue – which is exactly what happened when the top tax rate was lowered in the 1980s.

I’ve also tried to explain, shifting from economics to philosophy, that confiscatory tax rates are unfair and immoral. And I’m glad to see that most Americans agree, with 75 percent of all people saying that nobody should ever face a tax rate of more than 30 percent.

Notwithstanding that polling data, though, I fear that many people don’t really understand the economics of taxation. So I’m happy to share this little story that periodically winds up in my inbox.

===============================================

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this…

• The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing
• The fifth would pay $1
• The sixth would pay $3
• The seventh would pay $7
• The eighth would pay $12
• The ninth would pay $18
• The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59

So, that’s what they decided to do.

The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve ball.

“Since you are all such good customers,” he said, “I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20″. Drinks for the ten men would now cost just $80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes. So the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men ? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his fair share?

The bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill by a higher percentage the poorer he was, to follow the principle of the tax system they had been using, and he proceeded to work out the amounts he suggested that each should now pay.

• And so the fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% saving).
• The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% saving).
• The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28% saving).
• The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% saving).
• The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% saving).
• The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% saving).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But, once outside the bar, the men began to compare their savings.

“I only got a dollar out of the $20 saving,” declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man,”but he got $10!”

“Yeah, that’s right,” exclaimed the fifth man. “I only saved a dollar too. It’s unfair that he got ten times more benefit than me!”

“That’s true!” shouted the seventh man. “Why should he get $10 back, when I got only $2? The wealthy get all the breaks!”

“Wait a minute,” yelled the first four men in unison, “we didn’t get anything at all. This new tax system exploits the poor!”

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks so the nine sat down and had their beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn’t have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!

And that, boys and girls, journalists and government ministers, is how our tax system works. The people who already pay the highest taxes will naturally get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas, where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

===============================================

Very well done. Reminds me of the PC version of the story about the ant and the grasshopper, or perhaps the joke about using two cows to explain various economic and political systems.

And if you like those, you’ll appreciate this modern fable about bureaucracy, featuring an ant and a lion.

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Great Cartoon Showing How Gun Control Endangers Innocent Lives

Remember the Fort Hood shootings, when the crazed Islamist killed a bunch of people? How many of us know that Major Hasan had the ability to kill so many people because of a government rule limiting gun possession on military bases? In other words, the government created a safe zone for the killer.

This is why “gun-free” zones are stupid at best and more likely to create dangerous environments. If you’re a vile, evil, or crazy person, that’s where you’ll go because nobody can shoot back.

This great Chuck Asay cartoon makes this point, celebrating a recent Colorado Court decision (you can see more of his cartoons here, here, here, here, and here).

The cartoon is superb, but I also recommend this post reviewing a Cato study on the use of guns in self defense. And these posts about Chicago and New York City will probably get you upset.

And here’s some great analysis of gun control by Stephen Hunter, and my NRA-TV interview on the importance of gun ownership if America suffers a European-style societal breakdown.

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From England, the “Modern” Glossary of Financial Terms

I’ve always admired the English sense of humor, and this post on terrorism alerts is a good example.

In that spirit, here’s something that just arrived in my inbox, originally from this website.

For your reading enjoyment, a financial glossary for modern times, including in many cases an example of how the term should be used.

BANK, n. Bottomless cavity in the ground that sucks in money and the unwary.
I had quite a bit of money but then I put it in the bank.

BOND, n. A profitless contrivance used for catching the gullible or feeble-minded.
That pension fund is 100% in bonds now.

BROKER, adj. A comparative descriptive state for a client of a Wall Street bank.
He didn’t exactly have a lot of money before he started dealing with Goldman Sachs. Now he’s even broker.

BUBBLE, n. Fundamental prerequisite for a functioning Anglo-Saxon economy.
We need a new bubble to replace the ones we had in dotcom and property.

CENTRAL BANK, n. Lobbyist for commercial banks well versed in alchemy.

CURRENCY, n. Largely intangible substance with an inherent property that tends to instantaneous evaporation, the destruction of life and the permanent impairment of wealth.
I had money once but then I exchanged it for currency in a moment of madness.

DEFAULT, n. Semi-mythical celestial occurrence that passes by Earth every 76 years.
I was worried for a second about that Greek default, but I realise there’s nothing to see now and all is well.

FEDERAL RESERVE, n. A wholly owned subsidiary of Goldman Sachs.
The Federal Reserve voted to give a few more billion dollars to Wall Street.

GREECE, n. An undesirable or unfortunate happening that occurs unintentionally but results in harm, injury, damage and colossal loss of wealth. And profits for Goldman Sachs.
Did you see Greece ? Sheesh.

HORLICK, n. Progressive and insufficiently appreciated investment visionary.

HOUSE, n. In most countries, simply a place to live. In Britain, a theoretically infinite source of perpetual tax revenue for deluded Lib Dems.¹
(¹This is tautological. – Ed.)

INVESTOR, n. Plucky protagonist admired for brave deeds and quixotic struggling who is about to get shafted by Wall Street interests.
I was an investor in euro zone sovereign bonds but then everything went Greek.

JAPAN, n. Where hopes of profit go to die.

KEYNES, n. Slang: Vulgar. Disparaging and offensive.
That joker Posen is a complete Keynes.

POLITICIAN, n. Someone better informed than you about how to spend your money.

RATINGS AGENCY, n. A professional entertainer who amuses by relating absurd and fantastical tales.
That ratings agency’s credit assessment was so funny, I had to change my trousers.

RESTRUCTURING, n. Statutory rape.
Those bondholders are undergoing a voluntary restructuring – you might even call it a ‘credit event’.

ROGUE TRADER, n. Unprofitable proprietary trader. (Hat-tip to Killian Connolly.)

SOCIETY, n. The process whereby wealth is diverted from taxpayers to banks.

TAXPAYER, n. Simple-minded dolt too foolish to be working for the government.

US GOVERNMENT, n. Another wholly owned subsidiary of Goldman Sachs.
We seem to be running out of Goldman Sachs alumni here in the Treasury. No, wait, we’ve still got hundreds of ‘em.

VINCE CABLE, n. (No longer in technical use; considered offensive) a person of the lowest order in a former and discarded classification of mental retardation.
Don’t be a Vince Cable – get down off that wardrobe and come and eat your tea!

Here’s one last joke that I assume was concocted by someone in England.

Also from the U.K., here are two youtube videos, one on the “end of the world in 3 minutes” (might be Australian, but close enough) and the other on the “subprime crisis.”

P.S. I have no idea who or what a “Horlick” is, but I can give you this clue and this clue about Vince Cable.

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A Humorous Look at Obama’s Green-Energy Boondoggle

Actually, I’m not sure this is humorous. Whether we’re looking at ethanol, Solyndra, or other green-energy scams that promote corruption and undermine the economy, this is not a laughing matter.

After all, we’re the taxpayers and consumers who are pushing this turkey up the hill.

I’m adding Lisa Benson to my list of good cartoonists. Her monopoly cartoon at this link (the second of the two cartoons) is also disturbingly accurate.

And if you like humor about energy policy, check out these three cartoons.

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The Latest Batch of Political Jokes

Continuing my tradition of periodically sharing the good political jokes from the late-night talk show hosts (you can enjoy previous editions by clicking here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here), you’ll find below the latest ones that passed the got-me-to-laugh test.

Jay Leno

• While visiting a GM plant President Obama pledged to buy a Chevy Volt after his presidency ends in five years. Today Mitt Romney said, “Make it one year and I’ll buy it for you.”
• I think Romney’s a good man but he just doesn’t inspire people. Even his new campaign slogan: “I guess you’re stuck with me.”
• Not a good day for Rick Santorum. I haven’t seen him this depressed since they invented the birth control pill.
• It’s leap day tomorrow. This is God’s way of punishing us by making the election year even longer.
• President Obama talked about rising gas prices today. He focused on the positive things his administration has done when it comes to energy prices. So, in other words, it was the shortest speech he’s ever given.
• President Obama is starting to get a little overconfident. In an interview with Univision radio, he said, “My presidency isn’t over yet, and I’ve still got five more years.” Even his predictions are over budget.
• I saw the worst reality show last night. Have you seen this one? It’s called “The Republican Debate.”
• Rick Santorum is claiming that Mitt Romney and Ron Paul have teamed up against him. Which is kind of ironic — that Santorum can be brought down by two men forming a civil union.
• Santorum says that Satan has his sights set on the United States of America. And today Satan said he tries to avoid politics because it makes him feel dirty.
• Italian police seized $6 trillion worth of fake, worthless U.S. bonds. Let that be a lesson. If you want to try and sell worthless financial instruments, you’d better be Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. That’s the only way you’re going to get away with it.

David Letterman

• It’s tax time. I switched to a new tax guy and I think he’s fantastic. He wants me to establish my full-time residence in Syria.
• Every time I drive up to my new tax guy’s office, he says the same thing. “You weren’t tailed, were you?”
• Today is the 100th anniversary of the Oreo cookie. For New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, it’s a holy day.

Conan

• A new study found that government employees are the happiest workers. The study was not conducted at the DMV.
• It’s being reported that Snooki is pregnant. When Rick Santorum heard the news, he immediately came out in favor of birth control.
• Mitt Romney has accused Rick Santorum of saying outrageous things just so Santorum can appeal to the most extreme voters. Santorum denied this and said, “That’s exactly the kind of misrepresentation I’d expect from gay abortion doctor Mitt Romney.”
• As of today, Rick Santorum will be assigned Secret Service agents. This is the first time Santorum has agreed to use any kind of protection.

Jimmy Kimmel

• Kid Rock gave Mitt Romney an endorsement. He also endorsed porn, Jack Daniels, and hepatitis C.

Jimmy Fallon

• Mitt Romney accused the other GOP candidates of pandering to voters to get support. Romney was like, “I would never pander to voters. I mean, unless you guys want me to.”

Craig Ferguson

• President Obama is trying to come up with a new campaign slogan that would replace “hope and change.” He’s thinking of going with “I am not Mitt Romney.”
• There are rumors that Mitt Romney will ask Ron Paul to be his running mate. He was originally going to reach out to Rick Santorum. But Rick’s not crazy about other dudes reaching out for him.
• Everyone throws beads on Mardi Gras. The beads are paid for by local businessmen who ride on elaborate floats and toss little trinkets to the desperate masses in the streets. Which is also Mitt Romney’s economic plan.
• People should stop believing bizarre stories about U.S. presidents. George Washington did not have wooden teeth. Abe Lincoln did not write the Gettysburg address on an envelope. And President Obama wasn’t born in Kenya. It was Tanzania.
• Obama was going to be born in Kenya but it wasn’t socialist enough.

I can’t resist one parting shot, regarding the Conan joke about happy government workers. Of course they’re happy, since their compensation is twice as high as people in the productive sector of the economy.

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Another Reason TV Video: Mocking Ms. Fluke, Remy Says It’s Time for a Cough Drop Mandate

I’ve already posted some humor about Sandra Fluke and the Obama Administration’s contraception mandate, including this set of four cartoons and posters.

But the folks at Reason TV always do things worth sharing, so here’s a video about a cough drop mandate. As you can see, a healthy dose of sarcasm.

By the way, if you want something more serious about the issue, including a discussion of third-party payer and the proper role of insurance, check out the excellent analysis of Prof. Cochrane in this post.

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Fluke Humor

I’m a big fan of political humor, particularly when it exposes absurdity. This is why I shared all these jokes (here, here, here, here, here, and here) about the Occupy Wall Street crowd.

But I also appreciate good jokes that target me and other libertarians (here, here, here, here, and here).

If I had to pick a favorite, though, it would be the jokes that teach economics. That’s why I like this joke about Keynesian economics, this cartoon about Obama’s stimulus, this video on Halloween taxes, this cartoon about the minimum wage, and this joke about the perverse incentives of redistribution.

And it’s also why I shared the cartoon yesterday about Ms. Fluke and the controversy over the birth control mandate.

This motivated readers to send several others, all of which make the point that this is an issue about subsidies and redistribution, not birth control.

Here’s one that was posted on the Powerline blog.

This one’s obviously a photoshop creation, but definitely appeals to me because of my support for the 2nd Amendment.

And here are a couple of posters featuring Ms. Fluke.

I especially like these two posters because there’s no attempt to personally demonize Ms. Fluke. It’s her ideas are bad because she wants to coerce others.

I’m not making an indirect dig at Limbaugh, by the way, who does a rather impressive job of staying on the right side of the line while spending three hours every day trying to be funny, entertaining, and informative. I shudder to think how often I would step in you-know-what if I tried to do the same thing.

Instead, my goal is to change hearts and minds. We won’t win the battle for liberty if we focus on personalities as opposed to ideas.

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Hilarious Spoof on the Chevy Volt

This might not be quite as funny as the Iowahawk video on the Pelosi GTxi SS/RT, but it’s a close call. In any event, this is extremely clever, makes an important philosophical point, and deserves to be shared widely.

And since we’re on the topic of mooching car companies, here’s another very good parody, featuring the sleek new Obummer from Government Motors.

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I’ll Stay Out of Your Bedroom, Ms. Fluke, if You Stay Out of My Wallet

I’ve already explained that the Obamacare contraception-coverage controversy is about economics and religious liberty, not birth control.

But now that the debate has been transformed by the remarks of a Georgetown student, this cartoon seems rather appropriate.

The bubble quotes in the cartoon do a good job of capturing the statist mentality. They want me to leave them alone (which I’m happy to do), but they won’t leave me alone.

So here’s a deal for Ms. Fluke and her fellow travelers. I’ll agree to you doing whatever you want behind closed doors (heck, you can even leave the doors open, as far as I’m concerned). But, in exchange, I want you to leave me alone, which means I don’t want to pay higher taxes OR higher insurance premiums to subsidize your birth control.

In a nutshell, this is the non-aggression principle that motivates libertarianism.

I’m quite disappointed, by the way, that the cartoon portrays the student in an unflattering light. This is the mistake Rush made (not for the first time), and it enables the left to deflect attention from the real issue of whether the government should be mandating subsidies.

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Obama’s 9-9-9 Plan and other Jokes about Energy Policy

I get agitated when I think about”energy policy” in Washington.

The jackasses in that town are requiring us to use crummy light bulbs. They’re mandating sub-standard washing machines. And they’ve coerced us into ridiculous “low-flow” toilets that don’t work very well if you happen to…um…deposit something that reminds you of Washington.

And let’s not forget examples of sleaze and corruption such as the Solyndra scam and the ethanol racket.

But I haven’t written anything on rising gas prices because, in general, I don’t think politicians can be blamed.

Yes, prices would be a bit lower if the crowd in Washington wasn’t blocking pipelines and hindering exploration, but those policies presumably don’t cause sudden price spikes. So I’ll mostly let Obama off the hook, just as I’ve sometimes defended him in the past.

That being said, the Administration’s energy policies are a joke – especially the plethora of green energy subsidies. So even though I don’t blame them for higher gas prices, I’m nonetheless amused that the White House is taking a beating on the issue.

As illustrated by these cartoons.

The Algaeman cartoon reminds me of President Bush’s silly switchgrass policy.

Here’s a Ramirez cartoon about the prevarication, dissembling, and obfuscation at the White House.

If you like Ramirez cartoons, you can see some of my favorites here, here, here, here, and here.

Last but not least, here’s a funny image a friend posted on my Facebook page.

These are all funny images, but the history of botched government intervention in the energy sector teaches an important lesson. As illustrated by this poster, you’ve asked a very silly question if more government is the answer.

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Obama Unveils 2012 Campaign Slogan

With banks and non-financial companies sitting on trillions of  dollars because of the negative economic environment created in part by his policies, this new poster is both funny and troubling.

However, I think this cartoon does the best job of capturing the destructive impact of big government on economic performance.

Sort of makes you wonder what Obama will do for an encore if he has another four years.

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Enjoy this TSA Invasiveness Contest

I’ve expressed my disdain for the bureaucrats from the Transportation Security Administration, including stories such as:

o Confiscating a plastic hammer from a mentally retarded man.

o Detaining a woman for carrying breast milk.

o Hassling a woman for the unexplained red flag of having sequentially numbered checks.

o Demanding that a handicapped 4-year old boy walk through a metal detector without his leg braces.

o Putting an 8-year old cub scout on the no-fly list.

o Stopping a teenager from flying because her purse had an image of a gun.

Yet these Keystone Cops still fail to catch guns and box cutters – even when using the body-scan equipment!

So let’s make fun of these bureaucrats by looking at some of my favorites images mocking the TSA from Cracked.com. There are 17 of them, and I’ve only picked four, so feel free to peruse the rest.

And here are three other pics that rank high on my list. Click to enlarge.

The only thing that worries me about these clever parodies is that some TSA bureaucrat may see them and decide they’re a good idea.

By the way, if you like music and TSA humor, enjoy this, this, this, and this.

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Two Amusing – but Disturbing – Cartoons about Dependency

I’ve always been partial to these dependency cartoons produced by a former Cato intern, but these two are well worth sharing.

If you want to see more of Chuck Asay’s great cartoons, click here, here, here, and here.

On a related theme, here’s a cartoon from Lisa Benson.

The good news, as shown in this polling data, is that a majority of Americans still believe in individual responsibility. Let’s hope that spirit of self reliance lasts long enough for us to roll back the welfare state.

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Why Libertarianism Is the Best Philosophy, as Demonstrated by a Cartoon

Every so often, I write about what makes libertarianism special and different.

In the future, though, I think I’ll simply share this excellent cartoon.

By the way, I actually think the cartoon is a bit unfair to conservatives. Unless I’m missing something, the right-wing position on birth control is to resist subsidies and mandates. As I recently wrote, that’s the economically sound and libertarian point of view.

That being said, one of the most obvious distinctions between libertarians and conservatives is that the latter do sometimes favor laws restricting private behavior when there is no harm imposed on third parties. The misguided War on Drugs is a good example, as illustrated by this Gary Johnson speech, this video, and this AP story.

The libertarian message isn’t that drug use is good, but rather that prohibition is ineffective and that the net result of the drug war is bigger government and less freedom.

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More Wonderfully Vicious One-Liners from the Late-Night Talk Shows

In recent weeks, I’ve shared several clever jokes making fun of noble and wonderful people such as myself (i.e., libertarians).

Let’s now have some fun by mocking despicable and loathsome people (i.e., politicians).

There are several good jabs at Gingrich below, but the first two Leno one-liners against Obama are very effective and funny.

Jay Leno:

• President Obama spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast. The president said that his Christian faith is the driving force behind his economic policies. So I guess instead of blaming Bush, it’s now all Jesus’ fault.
• A hiker who was lost in a blizzard said he stayed alive by digging a snow tunnel and burning dollar bills for warmth. Today he was offered a job as President Obama’s economic adviser.
• Obama said that he says a brief prayer every morning, but then Joe Biden shows up anyway. So I don’t know if it would really work.
• The House of Representatives has passed a bill that prohibits people from using welfare money in strip clubs or liquor stores. I agree with that. Strip clubs and liquor stores should be off limits for people who get government funds — you know, like congressmen.
• You know a really sad thing about Valentine’s Day? Some people can’t have the person they really love, so they settle for someone else. But enough about the Republicans and Mitt Romney.
• New Jersey has passed a bill legalizing gay marriage. Now comes the hard part — finding gay couples who want to actually live in New Jersey.
• Congratulations to Mitt Romney. He got an honorary Grammy for best spoken word for being able to speak out of both sides of his mouth at the same time.
• Things are not looking good for Romney. His popularity has really dropped. Right now he’s running behind Syrian President Assad.
• Mitt Romney said he is not concerned with the very poor. That statement worked out well for Marie Antoinette, didn’t it?
• Romney knows how President Obama thinks. Because when he was governor of Massachusetts, he thought the exact same way.
• Ron Paul was not in Florida, he was campaigning up in Maine. They think he was afraid that if he went to Florida, they’d grab him and put him in an old folks home.
• President Obama was in Disney World today where he unveiled his new plan to create jobs. He was joined by Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse but not Goofy. He had to stay behind to tend to his vice presidential duties.

David Letterman:

• Kim Jong Il would have been 70 years old today if he hadn’t died a couple of months ago. But don’t worry. Osama bin Laden threw him a surprise party in hell. (not political, but this is such a nice thought that I wanted to share)
• Mitt Romney is sinking in the polls. That is the magic of a Donald Trump endorsement right there.
• Newt Gingrich is against same-sex marriage. Well, actually, he’s against same-marriage sex.
• Newt Gingrich says that people who ride on subways here in New York are the elite. I was on the subway today and one of the elites sitting next to me was smoking crack.
• Newt Gingrich has criticized “New York elites” who ride the subway. One of those subway elites threw up on my pants this morning.
• Mitt Romney is quite a guy. At one point he and his wife bought a zoo and fired all the animals.

Jimmy Kimmel:

• President Obama’s approval rating is up to 50 percent. Only half the country dislikes him. Apparently his strategy of not being any of the Republican candidates is paying off.
• Part of me thinks that Rick Santorum is running for president just to show his high school crush she should have gone to the prom with him.
• Newt Gingrich didn’t bother to campaign in Colorado, Missouri, and Minnesota. But he’s vowed to stay in the race until the Republican convention. However, Newt doesn’t have a great track record as far as sticking to his vows go.
• During a debate, Mitt Romney said he grew up in the real streets of America. Yes, the real streets, where people pull up next to you and ask if you have any Grey Poupon.
• Gingrich is lining up impressive endorsements. Todd Palin, Gary Busey, and now, Chuck Norris. I’ll tell you, his endorsements could beat up Mitt Romney’s endorsements.

Conan:

• Yesterday Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, and Mitt Romney all said that if elected president they would eliminate porn. In a related story, President Obama has already been re-elected.
• Mitt Romney went to a McDonald’s and ordered burgers and fries and apparently everything was going well until Romney asked the cashier if she could break a $1 million bill.
• Snoop Dogg endorsed Ron Paul for president. Snoop said he likes Paul’s positions on everything from legalizing pot to legalizing pot.

Jimmy Fallon:

• Rick Santorum said women might not be suited for military action because their emotions aren’t suited for combat. Which can mean only one thing: He’s never seen an episode of “The View.”
• Because of large crowds at his campaign events, Mitt Romney will now receive protection from the Secret Service. Not to be outdone, Ron Paul will now receive protection from a mall cop on a Segway.
• President Obama took Michelle out to a steak restaurant for her birthday, marking the first time in months the words “Obama” and “well done” appeared in the same sentence.

Craig Ferguson:

• In Manhattan, the New York Giants had their own ticker tape parade. They don’t use much ticker tape on Wall Street anymore. Stock brokers just toss government bailout money from the windows.
• Rick Santorum says Newt Gingrich is too hot, Mitt Romney is too cold, but he’s the “Goldilocks candidate.” Yes, nothing gets voters excited like comparing yourself to tepid porridge.

And to preempt a bunch of emails from people who are too lazy to use the search function, you can read previous posts with similar jokes from the late-night talk shows by clicking here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

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Anti-Republican Humor (With an Important Exception)

When I first saw this picture, I thought it must have been created by a Ron Paul fan. And since Congressman Paul is the closest to my views according to the Reason political quiz, it’s easy to see why I would jump to that conclusion.

But maybe the person who created this image wasn’t really trying to boost Ron Paul, but was instead taking a swipe at other Republicans?

Since I’ve dinged Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, and Mitt Romney, that also appeals to me.

But what really matters is that corporatism is morally and economically odious, regardless of the party. That’s why the TARP bailout was reprehensible. It’s why Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac subsidies are disgusting. And it’s why industrial policy in the tax code is corrupt.

So regardless of how you interpret this picture, enjoy the humor and remember the lesson.

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Welfare Humor that Will Get You Pissed Off

After a series of posts making fun of libertarians (here, here, here, here, and here), it’s time to aim some humor at the left. Even if it means a lame pun in the title.

This poster is funny, but it also makes a serious point about whether there should be behavioral restrictions on people who want to live off taxpayers (sort of akin to the debate about whether food stamp recipients should be allowed to buy junk food).

My view is that the answer to the welfare problem is decentralization. Let fifty states and thousands of communities take responsibility for redistribution policy.

This will mean diversity and innovation, which will help give us answers to how to help the genuinely needy with ripping off taxpayers and/or trapping poor people in lives of dependency.

Maybe drug testing is a good idea. Maybe it’s not. But we won’t find out with a one-size-fits-all policy from Washington.

This interview and this video have more information for those who want a more detailed look at anti-poverty issues.

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