Ontario

Graeme Gallery 2003

April 8, 2003

Here, on the last Saturday of 2003, is our annual retrospective on the distinctive work – and the equally distinctive perspective on events of Spectator editorial cartoonist Graeme MacKay. Choosing a representative sampler from about 200 editorial cartoons is no easy task. MacKay narrowed it down to a short list and his editors made the final selection. We tried to give a taste of Graeme’s international, national, provincial and distinctly local cartoons. His “portrait” of Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, published at the height of public debate over govern ment relaxation of marijuana laws, got pride of place on these two pages because it seemed the best illustration of MacKay’s uncanny ability to blend razor sharp satire, wicked caricature and nonetheless, an affection for his subjects. MacKay came in for his usual share of compliments from readers and complaints from those taking umbrage at his, um, humour. But no one called to say he was boring. On the rest of this page MacKay offers his own comments on this gallery.

April 10, 2003 ‘Simple always works best in an editorial cartoon. At least two other cartoonists came up with the same idea after U.S. troops pulled down the massive Saddam Hussein statue in Baghdad. Almost every cartoonist referred to the image in some way this year when other “regimes” or personalities came crashing down – among them Ernie Eves, Michael Jackson, Conrad Black and California Governor Gray Davis.’ - Graeme MacKay

April 10, 2003

April 10, 2003
‘Simple always works best in an editorial cartoon. At least two other cartoonists came up with the same idea after U.S. troops pulled down the massive Saddam Hussein statue in Baghdad. Almost every cartoonist referred to the image in some way this year when other “regimes” or personalities came crashing down – among them Ernie Eves, Michael Jackson, Conrad Black and California Governor Gray Davis.’

May 27, 2003 ‘This was the year in which it seemed the province waited – and waited – for an election to be called. The SARS outbreak was the first reason for the Tories to delay an election; by August the great blackout did it again. By October, the delays had taken their toll on the government and voters went for change.’ - Graeme MacKay

May 27, 2003

May 27, 2003
‘This was the year in which it seemed the province waited – and waited – for an election to be called. The SARS outbreak was the first reason for the Tories to delay an election; by August the great blackout did it again. By October, the delays had taken their toll on the government and voters went for change.’

January 23, 2003 ‘To his credit, then Ward 1 Councillor Marvin Caplan was the only council member to show up at the devastating flood on Locke Street in February. His moral support for residents seemed of little consolation once the cameras rolled. The image of a warmly dressed gentlemen wearing a fur hat, among a group of angry residents, was the perfect stuff for ridicule.’

January 23, 2003
‘To his credit, then Ward 1 Councillor Marvin Caplan was the only council member to show up at the devastating flood on Locke Street in February. His moral support for residents seemed of little consolation once the cameras rolled. The image of a warmly dressed gentlemen wearing a fur hat, among a group of angry residents, was the perfect stuff for ridicule.’

April 3, 2003 ‘The woes of Air Canada were the subject of this cartoon. Among the problems plaguing the national carrier were a blossoming debt, declining service and damage brought on to the travel industry due to terrorism, SARS, and the war in Iraq. But as the colossal airline was getting sicker, WestJet was getting stronger.’ - Graeme MacKay

April 3, 2003

April 3, 2003
‘The woes of Air Canada were the subject of this cartoon. Among the problems plaguing the national carrier were a blossoming debt, declining service and damage brought on to the travel industry due to terrorism, SARS, and the war in Iraq. But as the colossal airline was getting sicker, WestJet was getting stronger.’

February 19, 2003 ‘John Manley was able to deliver just one federal budget as finance minister after Jean Chrétien fired Paul Martin. Unlike previous budgets, his contained all kinds of spending initiatives designed to shore up a social-policy legacy for the retiring prime minister.’ - Graeme MacKay

February 19, 2003

February 19, 2003
‘John Manley was able to deliver just one federal budget as finance minister after Jean Chrétien fired Paul Martin. Unlike previous budgets, his contained all kinds of spending initiatives designed to shore up a social-policy legacy for the retiring prime minister.’

February 13, 2003 ‘I drew this cartoon of familiar European stereotypes at the height of the brinkmanship in the lead-up to the war in Iraq, with the French and Germans on one side and the hawkish Americans on the other. There was a healthy surge of jokes and slights based on nationalities, including a favourite of mine from The Simpsons characterizing the French as “cheese-eating surrender monkeys.’ - Graeme MacKay

February 13, 2003

February 13, 2003
‘I drew this cartoon of familiar European stereotypes at the height of the brinkmanship in the lead-up to the war in Iraq, with the French and Germans on one side and the hawkish Americans on the other. There was a healthy surge of jokes and slights based on nationalities, including a favourite of mine from The Simpsons characterizing the French as “cheese-eating surrender monkeys.’

August 19, 2003 ‘Opponents to the Red Hill Creek Expressway found new allies among some First Nations natives claiming treaty rights. One of the arguments by opponents was the harm that would be inflicted on wildlife, such as the southern flying squirrel. The irony in this was the partnership between those wanting to protect squirrels and people demanding the right to hunt in the valley.’ - Graeme MacKay

August 19, 2003

August 19, 2003
‘Opponents to the Red Hill Creek Expressway found new allies among some First Nations natives claiming treaty rights. One of the arguments by opponents was the harm that would be inflicted on wildlife, such as the southern flying squirrel. The irony in this was the partnership between those wanting to protect squirrels and people demanding the right to hunt in the valley.’

June 19, 2003 ‘Gay marriage made big headlines in 2003, and all of a sudden Prime Minister Jean Chrétien became its biggest champion. It – along with marijuana decriminalization and the stance against the American-led war in Iraq – brought out a left-leaning side of Chrétien that had been suppressed for quite some time.’ - Graeme MacKay

June 19, 2003

June 19, 2003
‘Gay marriage made big headlines in 2003, and all of a sudden Prime Minister Jean Chrétien became its biggest champion. It – along with marijuana decriminalization and the stance against the American-led war in Iraq – brought out a left-leaning side of Chrétien that had been suppressed for quite some time.’

August 8, 2003 ‘To those who never watched the ’80s TV show, Diff’rent Strokes, apologies are in order for not getting a chuckle from this cartoon. More than any other cartoon I drew this year, this one seemed to be a hit among a generation of 30-somethings who, like me, grew up watching the stupid program featuring pint-size actor Gary Coleman.’ - Graeme MacKay

August 8, 2003

August 8, 2003
‘To those who never watched the ’80s TV show, Diff’rent Strokes, apologies are in order for not getting a chuckle from this cartoon. More than any other cartoon I drew this year, this one seemed to be a hit among a generation of 30-somethings who, like me, grew up watching the stupid program featuring pint-size actor Gary Coleman.’

April 17, 2003 ‘The fall of Baghdad came with widespread looting of museums and palaces. Video footage showed jubilant men, women and children dragging furniture out of ransacked government buildings. Many artifacts and treasures were stolen out of museum display cases and safes. No doubt a lot of the items have found new homes for display and decoration in private collections.’ - Graeme MacKay

April 17, 2003

April 17, 2003
‘The fall of Baghdad came with widespread looting of museums and palaces. Video footage showed jubilant men, women and children dragging furniture out of ransacked government buildings. Many artifacts and treasures were stolen out of museum display cases and safes. No doubt a lot of the items have found new homes for display and decoration in private collections.’

May 1, 2003

May 1, 2003
‘Sheila Copps was reprimanded by the Prime Minister’s Office after her leadership aspirations apparently overstepped cabinet solidarity. She had publicly criticized Health Minister Anne McLellan’s handling of the SARS crisis and had a public tiff with Finance Minister John Manley over the Canadian Television Fund.’

"Dalton Gump, what more can be said about Ontario's newly elected Premier?" -Graeme MacKay

October 4, 2003

October 4, 2003
“Dalton Gump, what more can be said about Ontario’s newly elected Premier?” 

Tuesday October 28, 2003

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday October 28, 2003

Bring on the Broken Promises

Now that power has been officially handed over to the new government, the Liberal backtrack strategy is moving into higher gear.

Mind you, McGuinty himself doesn’t talk about such things any more. At his swearing-in on Thursday, the new premier reinforced his image as an endearing square by talking about Cub Scouts and making lunch for the kids.

But in the background, the usual array of unnamed highly-placed Liberal sources have been busy explaining why McGuinty chose Greg Sorbara as finance minister over Gerry Phillips, the party’s veteran treasury critic and obvious choice for the job.

Phillips, the usual sources say, is too nice. Sorbara, on the other hand, is said to be mean enough to make the kind of tough spending cuts McGuinty wants.

This is an interesting rationale. Those who know Sorbara don’t find him that mean; in fact, he’s quite charming and rather likeable. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

 

Saturday October 4, 2003

"Dalton Gump, what more can be said about Ontario's newly elected Premier?" -Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday October 4, 2003

Our New Premier

Graeme’s Gallery 2003

In the summer of 2002, Peter Byrne, a partner at the advertising firm Bensimon Byrne D’Arcy, was contacted by a friend involved with the Dalton McGuinty campaign. Byrne had never done political advertising before, but he agreed to meet with McGuinty — although the Liberal leader’s reputation preceded him.

“Really, I didn’t know the guy from Adam,” Byrne said. “But I had heard that he was dull, and wooden and stiff.” 

Indeed, McGuinty’s campaign image was freighted with some difficult cargo — a holdover, perhaps from a disastrous 1999 campaign in which he appeared flustered and awkward, feebly parrying Mike Harris’s aggressive political blows. 

This time, he told Byrne, it would be different. “Dalton said, `I’ll be happy to lose, I hope I win, but I want to be me this time,'” Byrne recalled. 

So began an image makeover so obvious that it seemed to hide in plain sight: Against all conventional wisdom, McGuinty, soft-spoken, wholesome and sincere, would simply be himself. (CP)

 

Tuesday June 17, 2003

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday June 17, 2003

The Year of the Great Student Squish

Universities in Ontario are turning tennis courts into classrooms to handle a surge in students this autumn after the province shortened high school from five years to four and is graduating two classes at once.

The province says the transition is going well, and students will not lose out. But teachers and students say the crush of the so-called double cohort will overload a system that is already strained by education spending cuts.

“The government has pressured the university presidents to put as many students into the university as possible because they promised parents there will be a place for your child. But they don’t say what kind of place.”

Ontario’s Grade 13 has been an anomaly in Canada for almost four decades, adding to education costs in the country’s richest and most populous province. The province decided five years ago to eliminate the added grade and this is its final year. (Reuters)

 

Saturday June 7, 2003

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday June 7, 2003

A Former Premier Speaks Out

Bill Davis showed all the signs of a man who has held his tongue for too long when he spoke last week at the Toronto City Summit Alliance. 

September 21, 2002

The former Ontario premier launched an emotional defence of the public education system and its teachers, reminding his audience that everyone will pay a price down the road if we shortchange young people’s education. Davis earned a standing ovation when he pleaded for the public to show support for teachers, who he says work hard, are not overpaid, and perform one of the community’s most important jobs.

“Show me a good doctor, a good lawyer, a good whatever and I’ll show you a good kindergarten teacher, a good high school teacher and a good university professor,” Davis said.

He went on to chastise the provincial government for fragmenting the public education system with its new tax credit for parents whose children attend private schools.

Davis is a cautious man, and still is a member of the Ontario Conservative party. He denied his speech was aimed at the current Tory government or Premier Ernie Eves, but his intention was unmistakable. He still carries a lot of weight in Ontario, and was right to speak out. (CP)