My Super Scientific GOP Candidate Poll

To all my Republican friends (and non-Republican for that matter). If you could do me a solid and take my super scientific, one click poll over there on the right. I'd greatly appreciate it. I would simply ask on a Facebook post but I realize some people would rather keep their answers private.

The reason I'm doing this is to gauge who the most popular candidates are at this early stage in the race among fans of SAM. I'm curious to see if there are any clear front runners or trends. If you could please take two seconds and click who your choice is I'd deeply appreciate it. Voting ends 10/3. Thanks!

Meet the new Simon

MICE 9/24 At University Hall in Porter Square

This Saturday there's a really cool event called MICE (Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo) happening in Porter Square, steps from the Red Line station. There will be scores of hard working, independent comic artists there selling their work so please come by and support them.

There will also be workshops and panels throughout the day. I'm going to be on one at 1:30 called Comics and Social Justice: Cartoons with a Cause. The moderator will be Che Shalazar and the panelists will include Rebecca Midgal (World War Three Illustrated), Colin Tedford (Trees & Hills Comics Group) and Anna Mudd (Harvard Center for Middle Eastern Studies).

I'll be at the DigBoston table spreading the word about our Sunday Comics Project and giving out some goodies as well. See you there!

Guess Who's Back?

@NYU THIS TUESDAY 9/20

A little last minute but totally psyched to be there. I'll be going down to NYC for a series of fun events at NYU. Details below:

Tuesday, September 20, 2011
A/P/A Institute at NYU
7th Floor Gallery
41-51 E. 11th Street
6:00-9:00PM

RSVP: online at www. apa.nyu.edu | apa.rsvp@nyu.edu | 212.992.9653
Free and open to the public.

Larry Hama: Artist-in-Residence
Join us as we welcome Larry Hama as our 2011-2012 Artist-in-Residence!

Hama will speak about his project plans for an online comic anthology and participate in the panel Beyond The Funny Pages: Comics, Culture and Communication curated and moderated by Marvels & Monsters exhibition curator and cultural critic Jeff Yang.

Beyond The Funny Pages: Comics, Culture and Communication Panel
7PM-8PM
The panel focuses on applications of comic art in venues beyond entertainment — from politics to preservation of history to a new language for instruction. The panel features those who are subverting or pushing the boundaries of the form such as Larry Hama, Christine Norrie, Greg Pak, Tak Toyoshima and GB Tran. Moderated by Jeff Yang.

More information about Larry Hama and the panelists.

Exhibition Opening for “Marvels & Monsters: Unmasking Asian Images in U.S. Comics, 1942-1986
Over four decades that included some of the most turbulent times in our nation's history, science fiction author and cultural studies scholar William F. Wu painstakingly gathered an archive of comics distinguished not only by its size and reach, but by its scope: It is perhaps the world's only, and certainly the largest, collection of comic books featuring images of Asians and Asian Americans. The exhibition Marvels and Monsters: Unmasking Asian Images in U.S. Comics, 1942-1986

The pulp phantasmagoria of Wu's archive isn't just a treasure trove for fans of graphic fiction, it's also a unique and fascinating look at America's evolving racial and cultural sensibility — showing how images that began as racist and xenophobic propaganda during times of war and nativist unrest have coalesced into archetypes that in many ways still define America's perception of Asians today.

The Twin Towers

As the 10th anniversary of 9/11 arrives, I find a lot of people are reflecting on where they were, what they were doing and how they felt on that day. I'm no different but having been born and raised in the shadow of the Twin Towers I find myself also thinking of the good times I spent in that neighborhood. This week's "strip" is just a snapshot of a time when NYC was my world. It's strange to think that not only are the towers gone, but the West Side Highway that I'm riding on. That bike is probably in a junkyard somewhere too.

But alas 9/11 isn't about buildings and lost things. It's about people. Give a thought to those we lost.

It's time for an Admiral Ackbar comeback

The good admiral knows how to get down.