One Bad Apple

According to CNN:

Handset world: Don't speak for us, Steve Jobs
"It may be true that no cell phone is perfect, but the handset world isn't taking too kindly to Apple CEO Steve Jobs' public assertion that other smartphones suffer from the same antenna and signal problems that have been widely reported regarding the iPhone 4.

And, in what's turned into an ugly back-and-forth PR mud fight, Apple is firing back by making its internal signal test results public to insist that it's not just pulling rivals' flaws out of thin air.

Hui-Meng Cheng, chief financial officer at HTC, told The Wall Street Journal on Monday that "the reception problems are certainly not common among smartphones," and a representative from Samsung said that it "hasn't received significant customer feedback on any signal reduction issue for the Omnia 2," one of the phones that Apple singled out as suffering from similar reception issues if held in a way that blocks the antenna.

The two Asia-based companies are by no means the only ones to come out swinging against Jobs' remarks that "every phone has weak spots" at the press conference that addressed the reports of poor reception."-more

History Repeats Itself (1981)

Today's Golden Oldie is a Dry Bones cartoon done 29 years ago this month, in 1981. It's a contender for the all-time best cartoon in the "I could run this today with no changes" category!!

I had to reread each panel a couple of times myself.
Uncanny!
No?

Iranian Dictatorship

You would think the kind of genocidal behavior displayed by the Ahmadinejad government in Tehran would be in violation of international law! Well, apparently there are some experts who also think so. The legal petition for action mentioned in today's cartoon is real. Here's Irwin Cotler (Canadian Liberal MP and former Justice Minister of Canada) as quoted in the Ottawa Citizen:

"We are witnessing in Ahmadinejad’s Iran the toxic convergence of four distinct dangers: the nuclear threat; the genocidal incitement threat; state-sponsored terrorism; and the systematic and widespread violations of the rights of the Iranian people.

Accordingly, a consortium of international law scholars, human rights advocates, former government leaders, parliamentarians and Iranian activists for democracy and freedom — The Responsibility to Prevent Coalition — has released a report on the danger of a nuclear, genocidal, and rights-violating Iran.

Let there be no mistake about it: Iran is in violation of international legal prohibitions against the development and proliferation of nuclear weapons; Iran has already committed the crime of incitement to genocide prohibited under the Genocide Convention; Iran is a leading state-sponsor of international terrorism; and Iran is engaged in widespread and systematic violations of the rights of its people." - more

Arafat's Flotilla (1988)

Today's Golden Oldie is a Dry Bones cartoon done 22 years ago in 1988.

Back in 1988, Yasser Arafat attempted to stir up international support by a boat-based public relations plan. It was the first version of the Gaza "Flotilla"! It didn't work out. Notice that the Palestinian terrorists in the cartoon are wearing ski masks. Such a popular terrorist fashion of the day that everyone who saw the cartoon back then would have immediately recognized the speakers as terrorists.

I've posted several previous golden oldies and columns about Arafat's "Refugee" Boat campaign which made waves back in 1988. Today's cartoon marked the final sinking of the enterprise.

For one posting click here.

For another click here.

Two Sea Stories

Sea story one.
According to the Voice of America:

Israel Urges Lebanon to Block Gaza Aid Ships
"Israel is bracing for another attempt to break its blockade on the Palestinian-ruled Gaza Strip.
Israel has appealed to the United Nations to prevent two ships in Lebanon from sailing to Gaza, in defiance of the Israeli blockade. In a letter to the U.N. secretary-general and the Security Council, Israel accused organizers of trying "to incite a confrontation and raise tensions" in the Middle East. The letter called on the Lebanese government "to demonstrate responsibility" and stop the ships from departing." -more

Sea story two.
According to ABC NEWS:

North Korea threatens 'sacred' nuclear war
"The Korean peninsula is on high alert today, with Pyongyang threatening a nuclear response to massive war games being held by the United States and South Korea.

Hundreds of war planes, dozens of ships and thousands of military personnel are taking part in the four-day drill designed as a show of force to North Korea after the sinking of a South Korean corvette four months ago." -more

How's Things?

1. Sometimes it helps to step back and take a look at the big picture.
2. Sometimes it's fun to just do a silly cartoon for a laugh.
3. Sometimes we get so involved with our cause that we spout our assessment of the situation to anyone who'll listen.

Today's cartoon is an attempt to deal with all three ideas.

Have a great weekend!

Bibi Negotiates (1998)

Yesterday's cartoon made reference to Prime Minister Netanyahu's being sucker-punched on Jonathan Pollard back in 1998 by then-President Clinton.

A "loyal reader" asked to see what I did on the topic at the time.