UPDATED: Another victory for the right! This time it's Greece!

For some reason, European (and North American) liberals have their hair on fire about this man, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, being elected on Sunday as Prime Minister of Greece. Can't be because his name is a mouthful for non-speakers of Greek. Maybe it's the optics of his victory salute. Or, more likely, it's the fact that his conservative New Democracy party delivered a body blow to pinko Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras after a tumultuous four years of socialist misrule, following the trend set last year by the Italians.

The pollsters and (((controlled media))) were taken by surprise, of course, having predicted Mr Tsipras would win the snap election called a few weeks ago. They were out of touch, it seems, with the feelings of nearly 40% of Greek voters, tired of crippling austerity (imposed by the European Union after Greece nearly crashed out of the Euro), not to mention high unemployment and the problems caused by millions of "refugees" and asylum-seekers washing up on the shores of the Greek islands.

Mr Mitsotakis said he had a clear mandate for change, pledging more investments and fewer taxes. "I am committed to fewer taxes, many investments, for good and new jobs, and growth which will bring better salaries and higher pensions in an efficient state," he said in his victory speech. Although Mr Mitsotakis is regarded as a moderate, New Democracy was accused by the lefties of "harbouring members with right-wing views", including many who left the ultra-right Golden Dawn party to back a winner and get rid of the liberals.

Strategic voting was in evidence with early results suggesting Golden Dawn might not reach the 3% threshold needed to enter the Greek parliament under the country's proportional representation system. It's possible, however, that Mr Mitsotakis may need their support should New Democracy fail to garner enough votes to form a majority government. Stay tuned.

FURTHER READING ADDED 25/7/19: "Why the outcome of Greece's election could spell danger for Justin Trudeau", opinion by George Athanassakos and Ben Graham in the Financial Post, 25/7/19.

MAD no longer

It was a noisy weekend in this neck of the woods, what with the July 4th celebrations and all. Independence Day was great, if not greater than ever. We didn't see any tanks rolling down main street but the Fort Mudge fire department put some extra wax on Old Number 1 and it looked great, pulled by those beautiful white horses. Over at the Arts Park (named after Art Holmgren, Art Ross and Art Fuldodger) last night concluded with a truly spectacular fireworks show, which must have lasted half an hour. Good weekend to be proud to be an American!

Walt was saddened, though, to hear that one of America's greatest-ever magazines, MAD, will no longer be available on newsstands after next month's issue. After that, they're going to do only reprints (with new covers) until subscriptions expire, and then it's lights out.

Perhaps it's just as well. The mag isn't what it was in the glory days of the `50s and `60s, when I first discovered it. Founded in 1952 by editor Harvey Kurtzman and publisher William Gaines, MAD launched as a comic book before it switching to a larger magazine format.

So it was when I first saw it on the shelf (amidst the Disney and Warner Bros. "comics") at McQueen's Variety Store (on Queen Street, natch). I was dismayed to see that the cover price was a whole quarter -- half my allowance for a week -- and more dismayed that Old Man McQueen, being a dour Scot, didn't take kindly to kids thumbing through his wares. I was forced to take a paper route to finance my reading.

I couldn't help it. I was hooked on MAD's well-written and well-illustrated satire on all aspects of life and popular culture, politics, entertainment, and public figures. My liking for their "humour in a jugular vein" (the subtitle to the early comic books) was heightened by the contributions of guest writers, notably Bob and Ray, whose radio show I never missed.

In its earliest years, MAD frequently used outside "name" talent, with Bob and Ray's [Bob's and Ray's? Ed.] contributing no fewer than 12 pieces, more than anyone else. MAD simply illustrated their preexisting material. When MAD learned that Tom Koch was the writer behind the Bob and Ray radio sketches, the editors hired him, and he wrote more than 300 MAD articles over the next 37 years.

Second only to Bob and Ray, Ernie Kovacs -- one of my TV favourites in the `50s -- contributed 11 pieces. His off-the-wall humour was perfect for MAD, if not for your average boob tube viewer. Other irregular contributors included Tom Lehrer, Wally Cox, Stan Freberg, Henry Morgan, and Sid Caesar. There were also single pieces by Charles M. Schulz, Chevy Chase, Will Eisner (the great "dark" illustrator), Jean Shepherd, Jules Feiffer, and the late great Walt Kelly, creator of Pogo.

MAD didn't rely solely on guest shots. It had its own excellent (and not-so-excellent) writers and illustrators, as well as writer-illustrators like Don Martin and Dave Berg. I was never a fan of either of them. Don Martin, in particular, pandered to the truly juvenile. Too bad he couldn't illustrate fart jokes.

The artists deserving of the name who stick in my mind were Wally Wood, Mort Drucker, Bill Elder and Jack Davis. Their work graces the issues of the `50s and `60s, and can be found in pocket-book collections of the early issues. Their drawings were really edgy. Wally Wood, in particular, used to crowd every panel with little bits and pieces which would only reveal themselves to the keen and careful reader. The more anodyne style of the more recent illustrators was, IMHO, one of the reasons for MAD's fall from the heights.

In 2015, "Weird Al" Yankovic served as MAD's first and only guest editor, writing some material and guiding the content in issue #533, while upping his own career Mad byline total from two to five. On social media this weekend "Weird Al" expressed his sorrow at the magazine's demise. "I am profoundly sad to hear that after 67 years, MAD Magazine is ceasing publication," said the singer-songwriter. "I can't begin to describe the impact it had on me as a young kid--it's pretty much the reason I turned out weird. Goodbye to one of the all-time greatest American institutions. #ThanksMAD."

Join the celebration! Make Independence Day great again!

Ever been to a Bastille Day parade? I have, years ago, in the City of Light itself. So has President Trump, recently... like last year. He came away very impressed with the show of power and glory [not to mention pomp and circumstance. Ed.] put on by the French armed forces. Evidently he came away thinking, "If these cheese-eating surrender-monkeys can put on a show like that, when they haven't won even one war without help since the Middle Ages, why can't we have a bigger and better celebration of American power and glory... like next year?!"

And so it shall be. To hell with the beatniks, peaceniks, refuseniks and fascist antifas! Join the celebration! Make Independence Day great again!

WALT WHITEMAN, POOR LEN CANAYEN

[AND ED.! ED.]

WISH ALL OUR AMERICAN

FRIENDS AND READERS

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!

George Carlin predicts Islamic extremists will win

Here's something the late George Carlin wrote in When Will Jesus Bring the Porkchops? (Hyperion Books, 2004). Walt's guess is that nobody paid much attention because no-one ever knew whether or not to take George seriously. They... we... should have listened. Mr Carlin made us laugh, so we thought he was just being funny. But he was serious... deadly serious!

I hope you good, loyal Americans understand that in the long run the Islamist extremists are going to win. Because you can't beat numbers, and you can't beat fanaticism -- the willingness to die for an idea.

A country like ours, preoccupied with Jet Skis, off-road vehicles, snow boards, Jacuzzis, microwave ovens, pornography, lap dances, massage parlors, escort services, panty liners, penis enhancement, tummy tucks, thongs and Odor Eaters doesn't have a prayer -- not even a good, old-fashioned Christian prayer -- against a billion fanatics who hate that country, detest its materialism and have nothing really to lose. Maybe fifty years ago, but not today when germs and chemicals and nuclear materials are for sale everywhere.

People who don't give a shit and have nothing to lose will always prevail over people who are fighting for some vague sentiment scrawled on a piece of parchment. Folks, they're gonna getcha; and it ain't gonna be pleasant.

We can't drop a five-thousand-pound bomb on every one of them. They will either run all over us or, in trying, they will turn us into even bigger monsters than we already are.

And don't get all excited about this goofy idea, "the spread of democracy". No matter who the United States puts in charge to bring peace and order in Iraq or Palestine or anywhere else, those people will be killed. It's that simple. Anyone who supports the United States will be killed. Peace and order will not be tolerated. Start saving your cash for the black market, folks, you're gonna need it.

Pope Francis: "Need some more nails?"

At the request of our old friend, Michael J. Matt, editor of The Remnant Newspaper, Walt is pleased to repost this visual comment on the crisis in the Roman Catholic Church.

Mr Matt writes:

The war is on. The situation in Rome is beyond desperate.

Martin Luther was a Catholic priest who apostatized and got married. Francis -- a big fan of Luther's -- now wants to exploit the Amazon people and use them as an excuse to abolish the celibate priesthood.

One of the original four dubia cardinals, Cardinal Walter Brandmüller, recently called the Vatican’s working document (Instrumentum Laboris) for the upcoming Pan-Amazon Synod, "heretical" and an “apostasy” from Divine Revelation. He called upon Church leaders to "reject" it with all "decisiveness."

Francis must be stopped!

Footnote: I see that Mr Matt now refers to the pope as "Francis"... not "Pope Francis". This means something. There are those who have maintained since Day One that Jorge Bergoglio was not validly elected as pope. Indeed, they say, he couldn't be, since there was already a Pope -- Benedict XVI -- who could not, as a matter of canon law, abdicate or resign. That debate will continue until God removes one or both of them from the scene and we get a new pope who holds and teaches the Faith of our Fathers. So let us pray.

German Muslims irate over "Islamophobic" cartoons

Here we go again, with Muslim extremists and "progressives" around the world pissing and moaning about "Islamophobic" and (of course) "racist" cartoons by Franziska Becker, a German feminist artist. Unlike the Danish cartoons, which caused such righteous (if you're Muslim) indignation a couple of years ago, these cartoons do not depict the Prophet Mohammed. For some reason, though, liberals and multiculti types find them offensive. You be the judge!

Regarding the translation, according to a poster on Blazing Cat Fur, "Tja" is a slang term, something like LOL... or an expression that the apocalypse is at hand!

The second cartoon, below, was apparently inspired by the decision of the youth welfare office for the German state of Rhineland Palatinate to revoked the operating license of a Muslim kindergarten which promoted extremist Salafist ideology. See "Germany closes Muslim kindergarten over Islamist links".

Franziska Becker's works have come under the spotlight after the Female Journalists Association (Journalistinnenbund) awarded her a prize for her "keen-witted and sharp-tongued" depiction of men and women. The group hailed Becker as "one of the most prominent, feminism-oriented successful personalities"... until, that is, she published these cartoons making fun of Sharia Law and the Islamization of the Fatherland. Imagine that.

To all our Canadian readers, HAPPY CANADA DAY!

On this 152nd anniversary of Confederation, here's a

special message for our Canuck friends and readers

from Walt, Pure Len [and Ed.! Ed.]

If you want your country to last another 152 years, or even 15 years or 1 year...

Note from Ed.: Dear me! I hope that Elections Canada (which, as we all know, is absolutely independent of the Liberal Party) won't regard this message as some kind of foreign meddling in the upcoming election.