Montana Is Now the Victim of Political Satire
It shouldn't come as a surprise that Montana would gain the attention of cartoonists, or political cartoonists for that matter. Given the headline-grabbing events over the past months, it seems only fitting, and that the time had come. A quick recap:
- a Chinese spy balloon was spotted over Billings, Montana
- Transgender Montana Representative Zooey Zephyr was censured by the Montana State Legislature.
- Montana becomes the first state to ban TikTok.
It's not that Montana can't take a joke. And speaking of banning TikTok, there are plenty of TikTok and YouTube accounts that poke fun at the nature of being Montanan, and they got hundreds even thousands of views. But a recent cartoon about Montana strikes a different tone. Mainly because it's satire.
Political cartoonist, Mike Smith (not to be confused with that Mike Smith) works for the Las Vegas Sun and King Features Syndicate according to his Instagram account. He also creates NASCAR cartoons. In a post from June 3, Smith creates a cartoon about Montana.
If you need a refresher, here's a definition of satire:
the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues. - Oxford Languages
True to form, one of the comments on the post reads "Don't move here. We hate people. Thanks."
I think what I appreciate about the cartoon is that there are multiple points of view that might be criticized. But I think what I find nettlesome is the fact that our state is part of this conversation at all. What happened, Montana? Did we get too popular? Do you think we, as a state, are deserving of satire?
Quiz: Do you know your state insect?