The Chicago Tribune once had the grand reputation of objective journalism. For your musing, a poignant example from an editorial cartoon from April 21, 1934. From Roger’s Rules. Click the images for enlarged views.
And history repeats itself….
“Planned Economy or Planned Destruction. Tugwell Head. Brain Twister Truster. Power. Whoopee! Ickes. Wallace. Richberg. Young Pinkies from Columbia and Harvard. Depleting the resources of the soundest government in the world. ‘It worked in Russia.’ Plan of action for the U.S. Spend! Spend! Spend under the guise of recovery – bust the government – blame the capitalists for the failure – Junk the constitution and decree a dictatorship. How red the sunrise is getting – Stalin. Copyright by The Chicago Tribune. Orr.”
Image courtesy of http://www.tommcmahon.net/2009/04/planned-economy-or-planned-destruction-a-1934-editorial-cartoon-thats-just-as-relevant-today-as-it-w.html.
“Bush’s massive deficit. Obama’s investment. See the difference?”
Image courtesy of Eric Allie June 19, 2009 at http://furiousdiaper.com/?p=1640.
Goes hand in hand with Confidence in Stimulus Plan Ebbs, Poll Finds
…worries about the deficit remain widespread, with almost nine in 10 Americans saying they are “very” or “somewhat” concerned about its size.
Hat tip to reader Kirby under the Comments for deciphering the Brain Twister under the Tugwell Head!
Hat tip to reader Earle Cummings under the Comments for providing a revision to the “Brain Twister” to “Brain Truster” after Tugwell. History appreciated! Brain Trust at Wikipedia quick summary.
The core of the first Roosevelt brain trust consisted of a group of Columbia law professors (Moley, Tugwell, and Berle). These men played a key role in shaping the policies of the First New Deal (1933). Although they never met together as a group, they each had Roosevelt’s ear. Many newspaper editorials and editorial cartoons ridiculed them as impractical idealists.
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3 responses so far ↓
Planned Economy or Planned Destruction | Notebook | Mike Mattner // June 30, 2009 at 12:57 pm
[...] An editorial cartoon from the Chicago Tribune, 1934. How poignant, relevant, and true to circumstances today this editorial cartoon from 1934 is. Planned Economy or Planned Destruction, courtesy of Quipster [...]
Kirby L. Wallace // July 5, 2009 at 3:46 pm
BTW – there is text under the “Tugwell Head” that appears to be his title: “Brain Twister”.
It’s pretty small, but quite readable if you zoom in a bit.
Earle Cummings // July 16, 2009 at 3:54 am
Not Brain Twister. Brain Truster. Roosevelt’s tame academics were referred to as the “Brain Trust.” Those who didn’t learn from history are condemned to repeat it.