About DonkeyHotey.com
Bill Kristol's NeoCon Dream by DonkeyHotey
DonkeyHotey.com is primarily a showcase for the cartoons and caricatures created by DonkeyHotey and serves as a point of contact for possible commission work. DonkeyHotey.com also explores information related to the art of caricature, caricature artists, editorial cartoons, and political photo illustrations.
Since 2010, I have been posting caricatures and cartoons on Flickr under Creative Commons License for writers and editors to use, at no cost, to add interest to news and opinion posts on websites. In 2014, I started doing photo editing and cartoons for WhoWhatWhy.
I took a break from my regular routine and do some research about caricature history. I also wanted to study the period in US History from the American Revolution to the end of the Gilded Age. Our current times have much in common with the Gilded Age and a review of the issues as presented in political cartoons of the era is enlightening.
I Worry About America
Cowboy Governor Rick Perry by DonkeyHotey
Americans need to wake up to the fact that powerful monied interests are working non-stop to capture government at all levels with the intent of getting friendly regulations, free data, tax breaks, unsupervised government contracts, unequal application of justice and an insecure labor force willing to except lower wages and benefits.
This country is ill-served by major news-entertainment media. We are distracted by fantasy outrages, petty social differences, and celebrity trivia. The corporations and billionaires of our world learned from the Robber Barons that you need to make the activities of graft and corruption legal or unenforceable to avoid consequences. It should not be a surprise that the Koch Family, Scaifes, Adelsons, Petersons, and others fund networks of groups tasked with writing the justifications, drafting laws and doing the organizing needed to return America to an unequal past. It is not a conspiracy, but rather the natural result of fallible humans seeking profits above all other goals.
The sad fact is that the citizens of the United States could stop this slide into serfdom. All it would take is for more people to work to improve their communities and for most people to vote and express their opinions to their elected representatives on a regular basis. When legislators hear from their constituents en masse they become afraid for their jobs. When voters respond to giveaways and corruption by voting legislators out off office the system slowly changes. That is the necessary counterbalance to corrupted government.
megaNewt by DonkeyHotey
Cartoonists Help Expose the Truth
The political cartoonist's primary job is to illustrate to the average busy person how they are being cheated by powerful interests and to accomplish that in a memorable and humorous way. Caricature is important because malicious and stupid laws and policies are not the result of a system. They are the result of the individual acts of individual characters over time.
In the early days of the Pictorial Press; Nast, Keppler and Gillam had the attention of the public and were feared by politicians and tycoons. Today, it would be hard to name individuals who have the reach of past cartoonists. Some of the most viewed political images today are the “photoshops” and random memes shared via email, messaging, and social media.
As digital media evolves there may be opportunity to develop a new form of political cartoon and delivery to achieve a more viral reach. I am not claiming that I can do that, but I want to think about what the possibilities are.
To these ends I decided to build DonkeyHotey.com. The content and purpose of this site will evolve.
My goal is continue to post cartoons and caricatures at Flickr and to add new content to DonkeyHotey.com as often as possible. I would also like to get more paid work on a commission basis and/or become involved with an appropriate enterprise.
An Evolving Collection
Exploring the art of caricature, caricature artists, editorial cartoons, and political and cultural illustrations. - DonkeyHotey
