» About     » Archive     » Submit     » Authors     » Search     » Random     » Specials     » Statistics     » Forum     » RSS Feed     Updates Daily

No. 1212: Big Society Garfield

First | Previous | 2012-09-12 | Next | Latest

Big Society Garfield

First | Previous | 2012-09-12 | Next | Latest

Permanent URL: https://mezzacotta.net/garfield/?comic=1212

Strip by: Manyhills

Garfield: Hmmm, Jon's drawing board. Hmmm, some paper. Hmmm, some ink
Garfield: I think this world would be a nicer place in which to live: If countries could settle their differences without hurting anybody. If everyone smiled at even people they didn't know.
Garfield: If nobody had to steal. If people laughed more. If everyone fed their cats all the lasagna they could eat. If we all took more pride in our home and our neighborhoods.
Garfield: If we respected our senior citizens more. If there were no violence in movies and television. If everyone could read and write. If families talked more.
Garfield: If friends hugged more. If everyone stopped at least one a week to stroke a cat. After all, we're all in this together.
Jon: Hey, Garfield.
Jon: {holding a copy of the 2010 Conservative Party manifesto} What's this?
Garfield: Oh, just the Tory Party manifesto.

The author writes:

To Wikipedia it's a song and dance routine from High School Musical; to the Britpop fan it might call to mind Mansun's "Ski Jump Nose"; but to the contemporary Briton, the phrase "We're all in this together" will almost certainly first conjure up the image of our current government. The phrase is used by senior politicians to express an ideal of community and people power that ties in with the government's other notion of the Big Society: given his prescient outlining of the nebulous but cosy principles thereof in this strip, Garfield is clearly a fan. Others - such as the (possibly now former) Archbishop of Canterbury - are not so in favour, as others are wont to be; how they could disagree with such a natty teatowel is quite beyond my ken.

[[Original strip: 1979-03-18.]]

Original strip: 1979-03-18.