Caption Contest Commentary

First, today is my twin-daughters’ 16th birthday. Happy birthday, girls! Now, on to the commentary. In the late Charles Barsotti’s cartoon, a businessman has just been knocked off his feet by a ball-shaped doppelganger who’s happily rolling along the ground. The man who’s been knocked off his feet is speaking. This contest highlights the difference…
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Carolita Johnson’s cartoon is set in a psychiatrist’s office, where the patient is being levitated above the couch by a magician. The magician is passing a hoop over the patient to show that there are no invisible strings. The psychiatrist is speaking. I first tried to reconcile the disparate elements—magic and psychiatry—by referring to a…
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This contest, featuring a cartoon by Ernio Hernandez, may be the most challenging yet. I stared at the drawing for an hour, trying to figure out what was going on. There are two fish; that much I know. Though they appear to be on the outside of a fish tank—more on that in a bit—they…
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Benjamin Schwartz’s doctor is conducting a back-alley transaction. While checking to make sure there are no witnesses, he hands a picture of the coronavirus to a hitman. The doctor is speaking. I first made several references to former President Trump’s ridiculous comments about Covid-19 (e.g., “It’s going to disappear. One day, it’s like a miracle,…
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