Rube Humour

In my tireless mission to unearth Rubists the world over I came across this during a particularly stultifying search through Bushcountry. I am absolutely in favour of the use of humour to advance political argument as it provides a unique perspective outside the realm of traditional debate. Much like mathematics or science where an idea or a equation is taken to extremes in order to test its validity. The content of this rightwing strip is not the thrust of my argument today. Instead there's a subtlety here that I need to bring to the attention of the Rubewatch community which underlines many of the characteristics of the typical rube.

What I find interesting, no, enlightening, is the design of the main protagonists in this strip. Take the father for instance. Note the goatee and the earring in the right ear. The mother's minimalist glasses and lack of a perm. Note again the piercings and unconventional hairstyles of the children (please suppress your frustration at the naming of the son's character). A picture is building. Given that US liberal politics are 180 degrees out of phase with those of the cartoonist and his target audience, one must conclude that these characters are reversals of US conservatives. Lets take a moment to imagine the appearance of the audience...

Dad: Is it a wig or could it be real? Its got a deep parting on the left which is the product of aggressive and repeated brushing throughout childhood by a woman who looked like his wife. There's a styling substance in there, but not to create this shape and hold the parting, rather to enforce control on any unruly hairs which might stray from the vinyl curves. This is a man who wears a tie on Saturdays.

Mom: The hair may be permed or sprayed to the extent where it appears to be entirely removable creating a Velcro-like sound. Whatever it is its BIG. The glasses are large and self-tinting.

Kids: These poor bastards don't know any better. They are clones of the above. Blank canvasses on which the parents paint an image of themselves. They are bullied at school.

Recognise them. Save the kids, but expose the adults here at Rubewatch.