Merry Felonies: Democracy without opposition is tyranny
I had some time to reflect on the catastrophic reaction of Spain’s President, Mariano Rajoy to Catalan’s referendum for independence.
Democracy involves balance between the party in power and the opposition. When one party monopolizes power and violently cracks down on opposing views or criticism, they have ventured far from democracy and into oppression. A democratic government must be able to participate effectively and responsibly in the political process, regardless of whether or not they agree. Either you’re a president, a king or a dictator. You must choose one.
“Protest beyond the law is not a departure from democracy; it is absolutely essential to it.” ― Howard Zinn
“We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people.” [Remarks on the 20th Anniversary of the Voice of America; Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, February 26, 1962]” ― John F. Kennedy
“All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.” ― Arthur Schopenhauer
Learn more:
• Catalonia’s 2017 independence referendum: a timeline
• Catalonia independence referendum: What just happened?
• The Spanish Court Decision That Sparked the Modern Catalan Independence Movement
• Spain passes bill granting amnesty to Catalan secessionists
News from the wrong perspective
Have you ever read the news and thought something like this…
• Is this true?
• No! This must be a joke.
• Are these people are crazy?
• You’ve got to be kidding!
• Is this guy on drugs?
Well, you’re not alone. Merry Felonies is our form of relief. A way to lighten our spirits when the news is too damn much! So, when we see something ridiculous, we have to make fun of it.
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જ⁀➴ Read ALL of our Merry Felonies cartoons!
How did the comic strip start?
The idea for Merry Felonies started with our reaction to the news. Miguel and I would watch or read the news and make sarcastic comments. If there was something particularly funny, Miguel would sketch something out and I’d think of a punchline.
When our good friend and favorite renegade economist Steve Keen worked with IDEA Economics, a small outfit that worked to educate regular people about how economics functions, we were hired to provide the comic strip. It ran from about 2015 – 2020.
It’s interesting to look back at that era and realize that not only have things not changed much, they’ve somehow gotten worse (economically speaking). Now we’ll republish all the comic strip here.
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