Tough life being green... #MallardFillmore #ComicsKingdom #StPatricksDay

The gift of the season? Mutual guilt-free unfriending 😆✨#MallardFillmore #HolidayCheer #ChristmasSpirit #ComicsKingdom

I suspect this instalment of #LorenFishman's newspaper strip #MallardFillmore works whatever side of the political divide the reader falls into. And whichever they country they live in.

Version A: To fight the high suicide rates amongst preteen and teenage children, Florida legislators have proposed a bill that will further the sense of autonomy amongst students who feel safe enough to confide in school staff about personal matters, such as mental and physical health concerns. If passed, this bill will require that school staff must ensure that kids receive the care and treatment necessary for their welling being, regardless of if the child reports being subject to or fearful of abuse in the home in response to seeking such treatment. In other words, they’re outing queer kids. Version B: In response to the existence of queerness, Texas has begun the legislative equivalency of a tempter-tantrum, by repeatedly submitting bills that are merely rephrasing of previously rejected bills. These bills are justified under the guise of child-protective acts, when in fact, they are based on incorrect interpretations of data, non-peer-reviewed studies, and personal biases. It’s almost like they don’t really care about kids. Version C: In order to combat the rising concerns regarding child abuse, Texas has stepped in and broadened their definition of abuse under the law, so that other harmful behaviors previously not covered are now to be included. These behaviors include, but are not limited to; consenting to medical treatment backed by scientific research and completed under the supervision of a licensed medical professional. Basically, trans kids are illegal now. Version D: Texas is back in the news, yet again! This time, the bravery of the politicians running the state has reached new levels! As they not only seek to disregard the rules outlined by the constitution but also the basic framework of human morality! Nothing will stop them! They plan to redefine structures of the law, strip licenses from qualified medical professionals, and complete overhaul the public schooling system! Their goal: Eliminate queerness.

Version A: Did you hear that Florida is trying to prevent kids from being queer? How do you even do something like that? Is that even scientifically possible? It’s easy! Just don’t teach kids about anything to do about queerness, and rewrite queer people out of history! No amount of legislation will un-queer a queer child, you’re simply delaying the inevitable. DeSantis said it would work! Version B: Did you know that the public school system is trying to turn our kids trans?! Are you sure? That doesn’t sound realistic, let alone reasonable? It’s true! They’re teaching kids that gender is a spectrum, and that trans people exist! The fabrication of moral panic surrounding transness is just a ploy to justify government encroachment on bodily autonomy. How could a kid be trans? Version C: Florida is going to protect queer youth by forcefully outing kids to their families! But won’t that only endanger queer kids who don’t have an accepting home? The bill specifically doesn’t make exceptions and does not even clarify if the child will know they’re to be outed. It’s almost like the abuse, neglect, displacement, and death of queer youth is the actual goal of the proposed bills. But it’s to protect the kids? Version D: The public schools are trying to teach children about sex and sexuality! That’s not good! If they get proper sex education, they might actually explore their sexualities safely! There’s no choice! We’ve got to ban any piece of educational material about sexuality! Restricting access to education on sexuality and gender will only motivate children to seek out unqualified sources and attempt risky behaviors out of curiosity. We must set the kids up for failure!

Version A: Is that another new anti-trans bill? What’s this one on? Trapping kids. So its not enough to deprive them of healthcare, but they can’t even relocate? We’re talking about Idaho here, you think they trust anything that doctors say? Version B: Oh, is Abbot going off again? What is it this time? Queer Kids, again. Doesn’t he have anything better to do than make queer lives any harder? They already passed the voter suppression bill, so he’s gotta move onto another minority. Version C: A bill to protect queer kids? That’s great! What does it do? Outs them to their families. But, if they were already in a safe home, wouldn’t they already be out? Don’t worry, they get six weeks’ notice on their eviction. Version D: So what’s the point in making it so hard for trans kids to get proper healthcare? Prevents suicide. So, they’re reducing the suicide rate amongst detransitioners by increasing the suicide rate in trans youth? We’re talking about people who think most detransitioners willingly choose to detransition.

Memetics Project (Readable ver.)
Based on ‘Popeye the Sailor’ by Bud Sagendorf,
‘Mallard Fillmore’ by Loren Fishman,
& ‘Tiger’ by Bud Blake
Mar.2022 for GD270, made w/Adobe Illustrator
| #DigitalArt #GraphicDesign #NewspaperComics #Popeye #MallardFillmore #Tiger |

Memetics Project
Based on ‘Popeye the Sailor’ by Bud Sagendorf,
‘Mallard Fillmore’ by Loren Fishman,
& ‘Tiger’ by Bud Blake
Mar.2022 for GD270, made w/Adobe Illustrator
| #DigitalArt #GraphicDesign #NewspaperComics #Popeye #MallardFillmore #Tiger |