(Via All Hat No Cattle, hat-tip BRAD BLOG toon sherpa, Pokey Anderson!)

(Hat-tip, as ever, to BRAD BLOG Toon Sherpa Pokey Anderson!)

"Cartoons are the acid test of the First Amendment," Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist Doug Marlette once wrote [PDF]. We concur.

Marlette, whose work has been long recommended by The BRAD BLOG, was killed in a car accident in Mississippi earlier today. His independent, frequently politically-incorrect --- and even frequently right-leaning --- voice will be missed.

Marlette was 57.

(Hat tip BRAD BLOG Toon Scout, Pokey Anderson)

NOTE: While the above toon's suggestion, that the Constitution is protected each night from Dick Cheney, may be a joke, the part about powerful hydraulics lowering it into the ground each night is actually true. The company who made the high-tech security system, custom built to protect our nation's most important document: Diebold, Inc.

Yes, that Diebold, Inc.

(Hat-tip for the toon to BRAD BLOG's comic sherpa, Pokey Anderson)

From this week's San Diego Reader...

If you don't understand the above, a) You need to visit The BRAD BLOG more often, b) See this, and then c) See this, and then d) Pray for the good voters of the People's Republic of San Diego.

Thanks to artist Neal Obermeyer for paying attention! More good stuff from his own official site.

Two late-night Good News items for a change!

First, our friend and master progressive broadcaster, Tony Trupiano, returned to the airwaves today (actually yesterday) after a long self-imposed hiatus to run for the U.S. House in Michigan's 11th Congressional district. While he didn't win (this time), Michigan's loss is the world's gain as Tony is back on the air, on the Internets for the time being, every Monday through Friday from 12noon to 3pm ET (9am to 12noon PT).

Our weekly guest visits with the T-Man, which we had much missed, shall resume tomorrow (actually today) at 2pm ET (11am PT). We'll be there each and every Tuesday for your dancing pleasure at that hour. Listen up via TheTonyShow.com and/or call in and say hello or welcome back or whatever at (866) 209-8031!

UPDATE 5/15/07 12:30pm PT: Just finished up my first hour back with Tony T. Plenty to catch up on, along with breaking news and such. Listen up here [MP3] if you're inclined.

Also beginning again today (actually yesterday)...In the first close-to-intelligent move the LA Times has made in longer than I can remember, the paper has restored the Darrin Bell's Candorville to the funny pages!

BRAD BLOG readers may remember when the paper dumped one of their only progressive, urban-based strips last March. The cancellation was especially troubling to us, since it was virtually the only strip which dealt with voting machine issues!

But it looks like at least "6 or 7"* of you answered the call to make noise, as Bell wrote us today with the good news, to say...

Good work all! On behalf of all Los Angelenos, allow me to say thanks for that, and a big congrats and welcome back to Bell!

Check out his blog item today on all of this, in which he writes: "Score one for patriotic dissent, zero for the corporate media's dastardly plan to silence alternative viewpoints. Well, I guess that would be score 289,975 for the corporate media, and one for patriotic dissent, but you get my meaning."

We do, indeed...

* - For explanation of the "6 or 7" reference, see this classic April 2005 BRAD BLOG item for the genesis.

(Hat-tip David Swanson who has more thoughts at AfterDowningStreet.org)

Jesus' General has the rest...

The emailer who forwarded us the following toon, marking the 4th Anniversary of Bush's "Mission Accomplished" speech, aptly commented: "The amazing thing about this is that all of these people still have their jobs and appear as expert pundits in the media, while the people who were right all along are often portrayed as left-wing out-of-touch-with-reality naive nutty fools, and they don't get on the talk shows very much."

No kidding. The failure of our current corporate mainstream media in a nutshell.

But be sure to read through to the bottom of this post, for an additional stunning quote from Cal Thomas' April 15, 2003 column which Tom Tomorrow, the creator of this toon, mentioned he wasn't able to fit into this strip...

(Hat-tip to Super-Duper Friend Corey K.)