This cartoon was published on November 18, 2009 in the Creators Syndicate by Daniel Kurtzman. I choose this cartoon because it conveyed a bunch of underlying meanings. For instance, the most obvious being the large bag of debt owed to China President Obama must now carry upon his back which is what is making him bow.
Another thing Kurtzman decided to play off of was the whole uprising among conservatives and republicans on how Obama chose to bow to the Asian officials. Apparently it made the United States seem "weak and ineffective" and "ugly" according to the conservative Bill Bennett. Really? Not only is it a custom in most Asian countries to bow in the presence of officials but also incase the conservatives never got the memo, we're in debt by the billions to China so I'm pretty sure this gesture of respect is really the least of our worries.
I disagree with the cartoon's message conveying that the reason Obama bowed was because of the huge debt we owe to China, I just believe that he wanted to honor the Asian tradition and not seem to represent the United States as a snobby jerk [even though there are some of those here] who doesn't have to respect foreign leaders either. With all the media attention on this particular event, I have grown much more respect for Obama because he really has to put up with a bunch of pointless crap and scrutiny with every little thing he does but he still stands proudly by his decisions.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Political Cartoon #1; Obama's Bow
Posted by Elysia at 2:14 PM
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5 comments:
I agree. I don't understand what is so wrong with us appearing humble before other countries, anyway, because it's no secret that many countries think our country as a whole is incredibly egotistical. Maybe bowing to other world leaders won't make much of a difference, but it shows that at least our President realizes we must show repect to countries that hold something over us.
I also agree with your point of view. I think Obama has a lot of issues that he must fix,even though a lot of them are old issues, and as you said he stands proudly by his decisions, which makes him look really sure about what he is doing. As Melissa said we should show respect to other countries, not only to those that hold something over us but to every single one.
It is difficult for the former leaders of the leader of the world to admit that they owe a country who was so recently far below us in global standings. However, now that we owe them money and they are also leaders in the world. So I also agree that bowing to china was not wrong.
I totally agree with you. I think Obama was just showing some respect for other world cultures. This issue has gained a lot of media attention while I think the media should focus on some big issues like the huge amount of debt that the US owes to China.
haha. i thought that was a huge afro at first. now I get it.. And I do think that Obama seems to make a big effort to respect other cultures. When I met him, he seemed like a cool guy. I don't think he's cocky, but I don't think he would degrade the U.S. in any way. I think he's proud of our country and wants to improve it any way he can.
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