POST 15: INDIVIDUAL DOCUMENT AS ILLUSTRATION OF 'SPACES & EXCHANGES' NOTION

Drawn by Lalo Alcaraz in 2002, this cartoon was distributed by "Universal Press Syndicate" - it was an independent press syndicate - in order to denounce the way US people consider Native Americans cause. The artist is an American cartoonist most known for being the author of the comic La Cucaracha which has become one of the most controversial in the history of American comic strips. 

American history is marked by the conquest of the West, which was a period in which settlers arrived in a new space and forced those already inhabiting the territories to adapt to themselves.

This cartoon is a clear criticism of how American people are misinformed on the Native American cause and have many clichés on it. It is exemplified by the way the right-side character bers the typical war-paintings associated with Native American warriors.

Moreover Indian culture has become something commercial and ,worst of all, a reason to disguise on Halloween or Carnival - as shown by the way the American is dressed up, a feather hat and tomahawk earrings.

Also, we can see the disregard they have for this cause - and how they use it as a distraction - because the American has painted on himself some mottos as some sports fans would do, he has also a drink in his hand and a flag in his other hand. The inscriptions he has painted also have a very cliché meaning as it is "Kill 'em", which is not a very elaborated message.

The document illustrates well the notion of Spaces & Exchanges as it refers to the Cultural Shock that may happen when two different cultures meet each other. Indeed, it involves a change of area and also a lot of exchanges !

This picture shows a true encounter between a Native American and an Indian fan. It is very relevant and a bit incredible because it's exactly the same situation as in the cartoon, yet it is not a set up.

POST 14: OUTSOURCING/OFFSHORING: Two Cartoons

Outsourcing/Offshoring

 In the first cartoon, we can see a man standing on a little island which is suppose to represent the Cayman Islands, a notorious Caribbean tax haven - a country or independent area where taxes are levied at a low rate - while, far away behind him, there are two others tax heavens : Bermuda and Switzerland.

On the left of the image, seated on the bow of a boat bearing a phrase - which is almost the same of Mitt Romney's motto "We believe in America" - there are two characters who seem to be children. Both are listening attentively to the man : he explains them what's the difference between outsourcing and offshoring and how it's a good deal to do it. Thanks to his face and his motto we can easily recognize the American businessman and politician who was the Republican Party's nominee for President of the United States in the 2012 election. The kids look amazed by his speech and even suggest him to become president !
Here, the cartoonist is clearly criticising the corruption of politicians that value profit over anything else as well as the American people's way of thinking regarding their reaction to the treasure chest full of dollars.
There is also a criticism of a globalised system where some spaces or countries are completly exploited for personal profit with no regards for the population, and where people who were supposed to better the future of humanity lie and cheat on the system they are meant to enforce.

MATSON, Cagle Cartoons, 2012

This second cartoon is much more simplistic as it is only made up of three frames in which two characters are having a discussion. It was published on the GEEK and POKE  blog in 2008 in order to explain in a very simple - and satirical - way the issue of offshoring jobs.
Of course, we already know it thanks to Mitt Romney(from the first cartoon), but let's see how these men describe it !
According to the way they are dressed and what we read in the balloons, we can be a hundred percent sure that these characters are business leaders or, at least, businessmen. Thus, the first one is talking about a decision that his company has taken because of what "the folks" wanted, whereas the other one seems to be astonished. Indeed, people simply wanted to get paid for their hard work so the company just had to move to the next country.
The irony of this cartoon is explicit enough as what they are saying is completely staggering and absurd : no one could really have this sort of thougths ! The cartoonist is obviously criticizing business leaders who seem to have not a single hint of empathy regarding their employees and adopt an inhuman behaviour. We can also grasp that the author is denouncing our actual labor market which is entirely disconnected from the reality of "normal" people, favouring offshoring, and yearning only for profit, disregarding working conditions.

GEEK And POKE, 2008

In conclusion, these two documents are related to the notion spaces & exchanges as both criticise offshoring and how the internationalisation of exchanges and disappearence of tax borders has evolved in the wrong way, loosing the advantages that it offered to the people. Moreover, it has created more inequalities between spaces as some received all the profits of this new form of exchange while others are completely put aside.