Dear Lord, Glenn McCoy. That Is One Nasty Cartoon

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Take a look at this.

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If there is some point here relevant to the headlines — beyond the fact that Obama is pro-choice — I don’t know what it is. I’m not sure it matters. This is so foul is goes beyond any standard of good taste and common decency. I tend to give satire a pretty wide berth; this is beyond the pale.

Barack Obama beating fetuses with a bloody baseball bat in a dumpster? I can’t even look at it for more than a few seconds.

Here’s the thing. A few years back I had a coworker who wrote a feminist blog on the side. We used to joke about the way hardcore pro-lifers saw her, as an activist for abortion rights. “They probably think you eat fetuses in a bowl for breakfast,” I would say. “With chopsticks!” she would respond.

We knew it was over the top. It was ridiculous. It was parody. And apparently, stunningly, it had elements of truth.

Update: Here’s what this is about. As you would guess, it in no way justifies this cartoon. And EF makes a great point in the comments — if Democrats produced something equally disgusting about John McCain, there would be a backlash with serious consequences. It would start, of course, with Fox News, the in-house network of the Republican Party.

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We don't answer to billionaires. We answer to you.

You've watched it happen in real time: corporate media cutting staff, killing stories, and bending to power. The giants of American media have owners to protect, and the truth pays the price.

None of it should surprise us. The problem with American journalism has always been that we entrusted this vital public service to for-profit companies whose allegiance could shift with the political winds and the bottom line.

That is why Mother Jones is independent from billionaires, corporations, and any other deep-pockets owner—and has been since we were founded 50 years ago. We’re only answering to our readers. To you.

We’re funded by our readers too. This week, we have a generous $50,000 match for all donations, meaning that your donation—and your impact—will be doubled. Gifts from readers like you help keep us fiercely independent and telling the truth about those in power.

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