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Saturday, December 23, 2023

That darn Ramirez, WuMo and Blondie

A white elephant gift to Putin



The Dec. 12 editorial cartoon. (Michael Ramirez/Las Vegas Review-Journal for The Washington Post)

Michael Ramirez's marvelous Dec. 12 editorial cartoon, "Medal of dishonor," should be copied and posted on the office door of every member of Congress who has cravenly linked further Ukraine aid to the border. As Ukraine runs out of the means to adequately defend itself against Russian President Vladimir Putin's wanton aggression, the deeds of advancing Russian troops in heretofore free, democratic Ukrainian territory will make Gaza seem almost trivial. To those in power who are either blind to history or covertly wish Putin well will go the blame and the historic shame.

John Williams, Fairfax Station

Michael Ramirez's Dec. 12 editorial cartoon, displaying a notional Order of Putin for the Republican Party, was brilliant. It somehow brought to mind a photograph of Rudy Giuliani meeting with Soviet-born operatives for Donald Trump.

Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman were convicted of funneling foreign funds into U.S. election campaigns and landed in jail. Any election interference consequences for Giuliani are yet to be determined.

David Leatherwood, Reston



The Dec. 12 "Blondie." (Dean Young and John Marshall/King Features Syndicate) (.)

We deserve a knuckle Dagwood

Though the comics pages are not generally the place to address serious issues, I was very disappointed in the Dec. 12 "Blondie." The very serious issue of extinction should not be a punchline when species are going extinct faster than at any time in history, including when an asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs.

The black-footed ferret and other imperiled species in the United States and around the world need protection from the very source of their imperilment: humans. We all depend on nature to supply us with food, oxygen, clean water and myriad other ecosystem services. Nature has significant value for people, serving as a vital source of social, cultural and spiritual strength.

This month marks the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Endangered Species Act, which has saved hundreds of species from disappearing, forever, from Earth. The ESA is one of the most important environmental laws passed anywhere in the world, and we should be celebrating its success, not making the elimination of a species from our planet a joke, considering that more than one-third of species in the United States are at risk of extinction. A donation to any environmental group working to prevent extinction is a gift to the future and should not be made light of, given the challenge facing humanity and nature. Don't be a Dagwood Bumstead; support the future of life on Earth. Future generations depend on your generosity.

Sean T. O'Brien, Alexandria

The writer is president and chief executive of NatureServe.



The Dec. 11 "WuMo." (Mikael Wulff and Anders Morgenthaler/Andrews McMeel Syndication) (.)

Mr. Smith goes to Michigan

Is there a Pulitzer Prize for comics? If so, the Dec. 11 "WuMo" strip should win it for the explanation of the Adam Smith "invisible hand" (in your pocket) theory.

Robert W. Dickie, Bethesda

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