This Modern World. For those that don’t know, This Modern World is a syndicated comic strip run in many weekly newspapers throughout the country. The creator also keeps a weblog. Both the weblog and the cartoon are constantly criticizing the American government while maintaining a sense of humor about it all. I’ve grown especially fond of the weblog. Here’s an excerpt from a recent entry:

“I’ve still got a big red target painted on my ass, because if you want to kill large numbers of civilians and simultaneously strike another symbolic blow against America, the city I call home is still the number one most likely target (with the possible temporary exception of Salt Lake City)—and none of that changes the fact that I am also terribly afraid for the future of our democracy, as I watch the eagerness with which my fellow citizens trade off their liberties piecemeal, like survivors trapped in a cabin after a winter storm chopping up the furniture for firewood until one day they find that there is no furniture left to burn and damn, it’s cold outside.

On the bright side, my dog ran into all of his friends at the same time in the park this morning, and had a really, really, really good time.”

The rant went on for a long while, but I thought the tail end would make the point.