Tag Archives: THEODORE ROOSEVELT

TRUMP: A POLITICAL JANUS LIKE THEODORE ROOSEVELT

puck joseph keppler

Here at Balladeer’s Blog I’ve long made clear my fascination with the political humor magazine Puck (1871-1918). Puck political cartoons – especially from the covers – are still much sought-after and I own a few myself.

The magazine started out as a German language publication targeted at new arrivals from Europe and the cartoons stood out early on. There is no language barrier to satirical political cartoons, so even Americans who spoke no German could follow the editorial drift of those humorous illustrations. In 1877 Puck began publishing both English AND German language editions.

Here’s a cartoon from its pro-Theodore Roosevelt heyday depicting the wildly different opinions of the bombastic, “rock the boat of political corruption” Teddy Roosevelt. President Trump is a lot like T.R. and his cousin F.D.R. – hated by corrupt career politicians but loved by the working class and the poor. Like Trump, Theodore Roosevelt was at odds with the loathsome Republican Party establishment – think of vermin like Mitt Romney and the Bush Family.   

theodore roosevelt like donald trump

Finally the paper shortage during World War One brought about the end of this iconoclastic magazine.

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Filed under humor, LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES, Neglected History, opinion, Puck Magazine

PUCK MAGAZINE: THE POLITICAL JANUS

puck joseph kepplerJanuary is an appropriate month for this latest post about Puck magazine (1871-1918). Here at Balladeer’s Blog I’ve long made clear my fascination with that political humor magazine. Puck political cartoons – especially from the covers – are still much sought-after and I own a few myself.

The magazine was a German language publication targeted at new arrivals from Europe and the cartoons stood out early on. There is no language barrier to satirical political cartoons, so even Americans who spoke no German could follow the editorial drift of those humorous illustrations. In 1877 Puck began publishing both English AND German language editions.

Here’s a cartoon from its pro-Theodore Roosevelt heyday depicting the wildly different opinions of the bombastic, “rock the boat of political corruption” Teddy Roosevelt. President Trump is a lot like T.R. and his cousin F.D.R. – hated by corrupt career politicians but loved by the working class and the poor.   

theodore roosevelt like donald trump  Continue reading

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Filed under LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES, Neglected History, opinion, Puck Magazine

1912: BATTLE OF THE THREE PRESIDENTS

Mascot with demo and repub headsHappy Presidents Day! Balladeer’s Blog’s seasonal posts continue with this look at the presidential election of 1912.

I won’t bury this item in unnecessary detail to the point where it becomes boring. My emphasis will be on its three-way battle’s relevance to us in 2018. 

Woodrow WilsonDEMOCRAT: Woodrow Wilson, the victor. To this very day many Republicans blame Wilson for starting the country on its path toward all the things they don’t like.

They ignore the fact that their own party’s movers and shakers of the time spitefully ensured Wilson’s victory by refusing to accept the popular Theodore Roosevelt as the Republican candidate.

That drove him to the Third Party called the Progressive Party, thus splitting the anti-Wilson vote in such a way that enabled the Democrat to win.

Theodore RooseveltPROGRESSIVE: Former Republican President Theodore Roosevelt had come out of retirement to run again because he was thoroughly disenchanted with his hand-picked successor, incumbent Republican President William Howard Taft.

The reason? Theodore felt that Taft was undoing the few inroads that he (Theodore) had made against the moneyed rich pig class. Republican tycoons of the time often expressed their feeling that Teddy was a traitor to his class – an accusation that they would REALLY overuse against Theodore’s Democrat cousin Franklin Roosevelt decades later.  

This is similar to the way current President Donald Trump is often attacked by today’s bloated rich pigs, both Republican AND Democrat, because of the few inroads that HE has made against his fellows in the moneyed class. Some of the rich pigs of Teddy’s era openly referred to the way they generally carry America’s elected officials around in their pockets by saying “We bought the son of a bitch but he wouldn’t stay bought.”       

Let that sink in: Both the brazenness of the public statement AND the notion of people so wealthy they could afford to buy even an Old Money figure like Theodore Roosevelt. This too, shows how dangerous those still-prevalent plutocratic forces are and the uphill fight faced by President Trump, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt and John F Kennedy.

William Howard TaftREPUBLICAN: William Howard Taft, the incumbent Republican President and a rich pig who was perfectly happy to conform to the desires of the plutocratic forces that his predecessor Theodore Roosevelt had fought.

When you think of Taft, think of today’s Republican trash like Jeb Bush, Lindsey Graham, John McCain, Mitch McConnell and all the other GOP wimps acceptable to the kind of moneyed pigs who continue to battle President Trump, even though he is nominally a member of their political party.

Virtually no one seriously doubts that Roosevelt would have defeated Woodrow Wilson if the Republicans had let the returning Teddy be their nominee in 1912. Instead, they coordinated Taft’s nomination at their convention because they knew that Theodore – like President Trump today – would have fought them on certain issues.

Roosevelt retaliated by running as the candidate of the Progressive Party aka Bull Moose Party. With Teddy and Taft splitting so much of the anti-Wilson vote, Woodrow went on to win the election, unleashing all those policies which many Republicans feel “started to destroy the country.”

One lesson from all of that is that the one percenters and bloated rich pigs who run the Republican Party have long been more than happy to spitefully enable the victory of a candidate whom their voters opposed just to block a Republican candidate that they don’t own.

So whenever right-wing Republicans go on a tirade against Woodrow Wilson it can take the conversation to interesting new places to point out that Wilson would never have become president in the first place if not for the spiteful behavior of the Republican Establishment.

This, too, is similar to the way that the Republican Party’s Never-Trump fools and the privileged white males at National Review continue to sabotage the Donald even though following his lead might ensure them a much, MUCH larger share of the working class vote and the African-American vote.

As in 1912 the greedy interests of RepubCorp’s bloated rich pigs matter more to them than the voters and the country as a whole.      Continue reading

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FRIDAY THE THIRTEENTH (1907)

friday-the-thirteenth-novelFRIDAY THE THIRTEENTH (1907) – Written by Thomas William Lawson, a writer and stock manipulator who made a fortune from shady stock deals … in between advocating for cleaning up Wall Street to shut down those fleece jobs. The reforms Lawson campaigned for were taken up decades later when Franklin Roosevelt appointed future Supreme Court Justice William O Douglas to head the Securities Exchange Commission.

Coincidentally enough the overall feel of Friday the Thirteenth put me in mind of FDR’s cousin, Theodore Roosevelt. The novel did that with its New York setting, with the way the story takes place late in T.R.’s presidency and most especially with the way it dealt with ethics in the marketplace.  

lawson-cartoon-betterJim Randolph, one of the novel’s main characters, is in the T.R. mold: he may be a bloated rich pig but at least he’s a bloated rich pig with a sense of noblesse oblige. Jim shares Teddy Roosevelt’s disdain for the Trusts and for con men who use the stock market to rip off their clients.

It’s not as if Jim Randolph is as fiery as Teddy Forstmann was in his opposition to Leveraged Buy Outs during the 1980s, but like Forstmann he has a sense of what makes for a healthy economy and frowns upon the fly-by-night operators who thrive on irresponsible “frenzied finance” as Randolph calls it.   Continue reading

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PRESIDENTIAL PROS AND CONS FROM BALLADEER’S BLOG: HARRISON TO OBAMA

23. BENJAMIN HARRISON – Motto: “What this country needs right now is a man whose grandfather was president  barely a month before dying.” *** Nickname: Baby McKee’s Grandfather *** Pro: Was the  president who first had the White House wired for electricity.  Con: His administration was slightly overshadowed by the press’ obsession with his terminally “cutesy” grandson, Baby McKee. 

24. GROVER CLEVELAND, TERM 2 – Motto: “He’s back … deadlier and more powerful than ever before!” ***  Nickname: King of the Wild Frontier *** Pro: Was 10 % doughier than in his first term.  Con: Came down harder on striking workers than some presidents come down on actual criminal behavior and called Eugene Debs “an enemy of the human race”. 

25. WILLIAM MCKINLEY – Motto: “Whatever Ohio Political Machine Boss Mark Hanna thinks my motto should be.” *** Nickname: McStudly *** Pro: Tried to establish a Continue reading

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HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY 2012

13 star american flagBalladeer’s Blog wishes a happy birthday to the USA! What happened in early July of 1776 certainly needs no rehashing (the Green Bay Packers won the very first Superbowl) so in keeping with my blog’s theme of addressing more out of the way subjects this post will examine various events that took place on other July 4th’s throughout American history.

JULY 4TH, 1778 – George Rogers Clark led his rebel forces in taking the British stronghold of Kaskaskia, near the confluence of the Mississippi and Kaskaskia Rivers. Clark and his Rangers were on a mission for then-Virginia Governor Patrick Henry.

JULY 4TH, 1783 – The Massachusetts Supreme Court is finalizing its written decision holding that slavery has been illegal in the state since adoption of the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights in 1780.

JULY 4TH, 1788 – The Constitution of the United States is finally in full effect this calendar year,  instituting the government we are still officially ruled by. First elections are scheduled for later in the year.

JULY 4TH, 1789 – Back in the days before the Continue reading

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MILESTONES IN LEAP DAY HISTORY

Charles “The Bearded Badass” Darwin

Some things happen only once every four years – things like Michael Moore having a coherent thought and Bill O’Reilly prying his head out of his ass. Another one of those things would be February 29th: Leap Day. Balladeer’s Blog takes a look at some of the milestone events that got cheated out of a yearly anniversary by happening on this date.

1704 – French provocateurs and Native Americans attack Deerfield, MA and kill roughly 50 inhabitants while abducting 100. Ronald Reagan’s ancestor recommends selling arms to Persia to secure the release of the abductees.

1712 – In Sweden February 29th is followed by February 30th to help usher in the new calendar system … and because Al Sharpton’s ancestor demanded an extra day in February to make Black History Month a little bit longer.  

1720 – Back to Sweden, where Queen Ulrica Eleonora resigns following general public ridicule of her name “Ulrica”. I’m kidding! But she did resign.

1784 – In France, the Marquis de Sade is transferred from the fortress of Vincennes to the Bastille in exchange for 3 other sadists and a masochist to be named later.

1832 – Charles Darwin explores the Brazilian jungle and gets a great idea for how he can screw with religious nuts even long after he’s dead.

Mascot FOUR original pics

Balladeer’s Blog

1836 – In Paris, Meyerbeers’ opera Les Huguenots premieres. Nobody cared back then either.

1840 – Future Penn State Coach Joe Paterno is born. (Disclaimer: that probably isn’t true.)

1868 – The first British government of Benjamin Disraeli is formed. Later in the year he would form his first Swedish government and first Argentinian government to much popular acclaim.

1892 – The United States and Great Britain sign a treaty regarding seal hunting in the Bering Sea. The seals, however, had no representation in the talks.

1904 – U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt appoints a 7 man Panama Canal committee. After countless staff-hours and $900 million dollars in taxpayer’s money they determine the canal hasn’t been built yet.

1908 – Dutch scientists produce solid helium. The world yawns.

1936 – U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt signs the 2nd Neutrality Act after nobody commited to the 1st one. (Thank you! I’m here all week!)

1940 – Gone with the Wind wins 8 Oscar awards. Conservatives bitterly complain about the movie promoting the homosexual agenda in some really obscure, indecipherable way.

Also 1940 – The international community notes that 45 U-Boats, total tonnage 170,000, were sunk in the 29 days of February. Decades later, liberals bitterly cite this as proof of man-made global warming in some really obscure, indecipherable way.

1944 – In World War Two action United States forces land on Los Negros in the Admiralty Islands. Al Sharpton’s ancestor demands the name be changed to Los Islands of Color. Michael Moore’s ancestor insists the U.S. is only in the Admiralty Islands for the oil and demands that the war effort be crippled.

1948 – As of this date the collective Muslim world has failed to provide a homeland for the Palestinians. Later in the year, after the official birth of the nation of Israel, the Muslim world will suddenly remember that the most important thing in all of their lives is providing a homeland for the Palestinians.  

1952 – The island of Heligoland is given back to Germany even though they don’t want it. (I’m kidding!)

1956 – The Islamic Republic of Pakistan is formed, vowing to “set back the clock on several centuries of social and scientific progress.” 

Mrs Balladeer 2Also 1956 – Determined to further refine his golf game, U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower announces he will seek a 2nd term in office.

1960 – The 1st Playboy Club opens in Chicago. Later on, Gloria Steinem will pretend she uncovered something earth-shaking by revealing that the cocktail waitresses who work there don’t lead glamorous, exciting lives. Wow! Stop the presses on that one, Gloria! Here in the year 2016 cocktail waitresses in nearly every casino in Las Vegas wear outfits far more revealing than the Playboy Bunnies ever wore, proving that women can hold elected office, have high-powered careers and head major corporations no matter what allegedly “demeaning” outfits are worn by cocktail waitresses.

1964 – In New York, the musical Rugantino closed after a mere 28 performances. The comparatively brief run is explained by angry patrons who thought Rugantino was a new Italian dish.

Also 1964 – Frank Rugani sets the badminton shuttlecock distance record before a record crowd of 2 million spectators, all of whom mistakenly thought they were showing up for the musical Rugantino instead.  

Also 1964 – President Lyndon Johnson announces that the U.S. secretly developed the A-11 jet fighter, but nobody believes him. (Credibility gap jokes! Who doesn’t love them?)

1968 – Howard Hanson’s 6th Symphony premieres, causing widespread violence in the outraged Muslim world. (Well, that’s what I’m assuming, anyway, since it seems like anything and everything outrages the Muslim world.)  

Also 1968 – The Beatles’ album Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band wins a Grammy Award. The zombified corpse of Paul McCartney accepts the award on behalf of the band.

1972 – Hank Aaron becomes the 1st baseball player to sign a contract for $200,000 per year, causing widespread violence in the outraged Muslim world. 

1980 – In England, Michael Bracey was finally freed after 59 hours and 55 minutes trapped in an elevator. The rest of the world tells Bracey they don’t even want to know what he did about bathroom breaks.

1988 – Mark Greatbatch scores 107 vs England in his Test Cricket debut. Disgraced former president Richard Nixon accidentally gets a glimpse of Mark in the shower and says “It is indeed a Great Batch.”

Also 1988 – KWK in St Louis changes their call letters to WKBG … forever changing life as we know it.

Also 1988 – New York City mayor Ed Koch calls President Reagan a wimp in the war on drugs. Reagan offers to sell Hawk missiles to drug dealers to show Koch he means business.

1996 – In the Cricket World Cup Kenya defeats the West Indies, shocking citizens of both countries, who had no idea people still played cricket.  

2000 – Nothing much happens, causing the most widespread violence the outraged Muslim world has ever seen.

2004 – In Haiti, Jean Bertrand Aristide resigns as president following the public outcry over the fact that his name isn’t as catchy as “Papa Doc” and “Baby Doc” Duvalier.

2012 – At last, after 8 years of chaos, Aristide is replaced by college football player “Munchie” Legeaux, who isn’t even Haitian but has a really kickass nickname.

2020 – Democrats are still awaiting a prison sentence against de facto Third Party President Trump, which they are convinced will be handed down “any minute now!”

Take care, folks! Let’s do this again in four years.

FOR MY RELATED LOOK AT PRESIDENTIAL HISTORY CLICK HERE: https://glitternight.com/2012/02/19/balladeers-blogs-presidential-pros-and-cons/

https://glitternight.com/2012/02/19/balladeers-blogs-presidential-pros-and-cons-part-2-harrison-to-obama/

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BALLADEER’S BLOG’S PRESIDENTIAL PROS AND CONS PART 2 – HARRISON TO OBAMA

America’s first Amish president. I’m kidding!

23. BENJAMIN HARRISON – Motto: “What this country needs right now is a man whose grandfather was president  barely a month before dying.” *** Nickname: Baby McKee’s Grandfather *** Pro: Was the  president who first had the White House wired for electricity.  Con: His administration was slightly overshadowed by the press’ obsession with his terminally “cutesy” grandson, Baby McKee. 

24. GROVER CLEVELAND, TERM 2 – Motto: “He’s back … deadlier and more powerful than ever before!” ***  Nickname: King of the Wild Frontier *** Pro: Continue reading

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