Bob Eckstein

Bob Eckstein
Location
New York City, New York,
Birthday
February 27
Title
Publisher of Today's Snowman.com
Bio
Snowman expert, author of The History of the Snowman and cartoonist for the New Yorker, Reader's Digest, Wall Street Journal and others. Twitter; snowmanexpert

MY RECENT POSTS

Editor’s Pick
OCTOBER 2, 2008 11:45PM

Caption Contest II: Revenge of the Republicans

Rate: 26 Flag

vp debate contest

"Here in Delaware, we literally share a broad maritime border with Spain. So, when Zapatero rears his head, I'll be ready with this magic wand to turn him back! I'm wearing women's underwear! Hello? Is this on?"

That's the winning caption. Congratulations, Yablonowitz (Greg Martin)
(and he winner will receive a copy of  The History of the Snowman)


churchsign2

Author tags:

news, debate, comedy, cartoon, politics

Your tags:

TIP:

Enter the amount, and click "Tip" to submit!
Recipient's email address:
Personal message (optional):

Your email address:

Comments

Type your comment below:
"American Sign Language translation will be provided tonight for the hearing impaired. Later on CNN, Showbiz Tonight will interpret the debate for the culturally impaired."
Oh, and glad you're back for another go, Bob!
(rated & appreciated)
"Expecto Petroleum!"

(Sorry, I had to.)
"Hey! Hey! Hey! Is it the glasses? It's the glasses isn't it? 'Cause I can do glasses. Roosevelt had glasses. Hey! Hey!
"See, this sparkler represents the current state of the economy, and we definitely need to....uh, people, this is a debate. People? Did she have a wardrobe malfunction?"
"And now, for my next trick, I will stick my foot directly into my mouth. Hello? Hello? Is this thing on?"
"Pay no attention to the lipsticked pit bull - LOOK!! I have SOMETHING SHINY TOO!!!"
"And when I wave my magic wand, you click your heels three times and say, 'There's no place like home'. Repeat until the economy stabilizes."
"I'd like to thank the folks at Han-Dee Match company for the lights tonight, the folks at Lotsa Bull Sound for the bullhorn, and thanks to Sarah Silverman for signing the debate."
"Pay no attention to the woman behind the glasses..."
"Hey, doesn't a little EXPERIENCE count for something around here?... I mean...hey....Delaware IS the "First State" and all....What's she got that I haven't got, anyway?"

Welcome back, Bob.
Cleverly disguised, Tina Fey slipped into the signer's position, where she proceeded to alternate amusing and obscene hand gestures for the rest of the night.
Ladies and Gentleman, My name is Joe Biden and by the time this sparkler is done burning I will probably have said something really dumb. But Sarah Palin will still be dangerously unqualified to be Vice President."
What we have here is a failure to communicate.
If you don't pay attention to me by the time this burns out, I'll put on my own swimsuit competition right here and now.
Will someone point out to the representatives of the Fox Network that she is standing on the far right of me? Oh, I"m sorry, they put her there themselves!
"...and for my next trick, I will turn the Smirking Chimp back into the current President of the United States..."
"Yes, she can lose without me being mic'd up....But still, would somebody just turn the mic on here? Really, I still have to tie one hand behind my back to make it fair?"
And I will simply let the sign-language interpreter's image speak for itself as to what will happen to YOU under a McCain/Palin administration...
Tina! Is it true you're filling in as the mental body double for Sarah Palin?
"People always love a freak show."
"Hmph, and they say special education doesn't work."
"Yes, that's right, the Statue of Liberty. Next, I was going to pull a rabbit out of my jacket but Governor Palin shot the little bastard. Stew, anyone?"
"CAN YOU HEAR ME IN THE SHITTY SEATS?"
"And now, Governor Palin will shoot the flame off this match, assisted by Vice President Cheney. Who has my body armor?"
"Sarah! Sarah! Sarah! Are those Russian glasses? Who designed your suit? Is it true your opponent has refused to appear with you tonight?"
"And as I wave the wand from side to side, you are forgetting about Republicans. There ARE NO REPUBLICANS, only DEMOCRATS. On the count of three, you will all awaken and feel refreshed."
Here in Delaware, we literally share a broad maritime border with Spain. So, when Zapatero rears his head, I'll be ready with this magic wand to turn him back! I'm wearing women's underwear! Hello? Is this on?
"No, Joe Blow is a blogger on Open Salon. I'm Joe BIDEN."
"The bullhorn? Oh, that's so you can hear me over this loud signing lady behind me in the 'Bob' skirt."
yab - I love the "broad maritime border with Spain"!
"And for the talent portion of the program, I'll twirl this tiny baton while singing 'God Bless America'."
"See, this is what you get when 999 points of light are extinguished at once."
"Poor Sarah. She's simply hounded by the 'liberal' media."
"So try to understand, try to understand, try try try to understand - I'm a magic man!"
"Lastly, Senator Obama and I are proud to unveil our secret weapon in the war on terror - the sparkly wand of maiming!"
"Now, in my right hand I hold -- no, that's not John's hacked off dick peeking through the palace gates -- a hyperboloidal toroid representing the Large Hadron Collider particle accelerator complex.
Would Ms. Palin care to address the issues involved here?"
"This is embarrassing...Everything about this moment sucks; but I want you to know RIGHT NOW that I'm not going to stop talking until somebody has the decency to explain to me what the F#$K I'm holding in my hand."
"What do I have to do to get some attention over here...set myself on fire?"
"Look at me! Look at me! look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! "
" . . . and in closing, the dual threats of nuclear proliferation, and attacks against the infrastructure of technologically advanced countries by insurgent forces employing the methods of fourth generation warfare are the greatest . . . .hello . . . . hello . . . . can anyone hear me?"
"Governor, you're no Jackie Kennedy."
"....and if you order in the next ten minutes, folks, you'll get the genuine replica Tinker Bell wand along with the 'McCain Sucks' bumper sticker."
"I don't care how many stupid things she's said lately, I'm the original gaffe machine!"
"The bidding starts at $400 for Mrs Palin's Pap Smear. 400 for the man in the "Jesus Rocks" shirt. Do I hear $500?"
"I love America too (dammit!)... I was raised in Scranton and have small town values (holy sh_t)!...I'm the real change agent...(B_tch!!!)"
"Now that I've pulled this transceiver out of Governor Palin's ass, let's see how she does in the debate!"
Opening question: "What are the words to the Pledge of Allegiance?" Following two minutes of silence from Governor Palin, Senator Biden delivers a patriotic version of “God Bless America”.
"This sonic transducer - it is, I suppose, some sort of audio-vibratory physio-molecular transport device?"
"All you freaks are pissing me off and I WILL use this sparkler to detonate the body explosives I have hidden under my jacket if it will save the world from the menace of a potential Sarah Palin presidency"
"Believe me folks, those photographers are her family."
"Folks, I beg your pardon if this looks like a cartoon to you."
"I'm not sure why I'm holding this. It just feels good."
Now I have to picture Bill in fishnets.

Heh
"This isn't a debate! It's an insane asylum!!!"

(With apologies to "M.A.S.H.")
HEY, YOU GUYS, I WON THE DEBATE! Jeez, what do I have to do to get an interview?
"Pay no attention to the ideology behind the woman"
“…I repeat, Witches be gone! Witches be gone!”
"Frankly, all this media attention Governor Palin's getting strikes me as sexist. Pardon my Y chromosome, but I'd like a little freakin' coverage, guys... come on... please?"
Bob, I love reading these. Thanks everybody!
"About a year ago I said that Barack Obama was the first clean and intelligent mainstream African-American candidate. You guys and gals in the press just about ripped me another as@#%e. I immediately apologized for sounding exactly like an old racist white man. I never should have said that about Barack. It was incredibly stupid. But it is certainly even stupider that tonight I've just now reminded you of those awful comments that I made last year about Barack Obama. Ladies and gentlemen, my mouth simply won't shut up and, unfortunately, I expect only more awful and ridiculous comments to continue pouring out ...I can tell that I'm getting ready to say something utterly distasteful about..."
Here are my entries...

"Attention, voters! Since you're all appaently blind to my opponent's weaknesses, I've brought an assistant to help me get my points across to you."

"Attention members of the press! If you folks don't pay a bit more attention over here soon, there's going to be a vacancy at this podium as well."

"I'm sorry, Gwen, I'm afraid you'll have to speak up. I can't hear you over the clamor of adoration from the Fox News team here to my right."

"I have a confession to make. A couple of weeks ago, I used this magic wand to exchange the brains of Tina Fey and Sarah Palin and now I don't seem to be able to switch them back."
"It's all fizzle, folks...all sizzle and no steak, as my Dad used to say back in Scranton. It's not a pit bull with lipstick. It's just lipstick. Who's this chick with the sign language?"
"I'm talking over here, folks. Are you people deaf?"
"Ah, good - the power is back on. Hey - where the hell did everyone GO?"
"And now, for something completely different - a governor talking out of her ass."
Poor Joe Biden says, “Hey wait a minute, I am not running for President this time, just for VP. Can’t I get a little bit of the media attention?”
"A new media tracking poll asks: Which vice presidential candidate would you rather shop with?"
"Every time that Governor Palin avoids a question I'm going to poke her with this cattle prod."
"OK!... Now that I have everyone's attention, I realize her good looks might suggest otherwise, but she IS NOT MY ILLEGITIMATE LOVE CHILD!"
"NOW! I ask you, would I be holding a sparkler is I wasn't serious?"
"Ask yourselves: Why do sparklers have to come out before any discussion can turn serious?"
"RECYCLING?.....You bet. I'm all for it. My idea to use sparklers at the convention was shelved at the last minute. Are my feelings hurt?....No, no way,and I wanted to take this opportunity to announce to the American people that when we win the White House, there is a box of these waiting for you in Washington......"
Listen, you can hear Karl Rove answering her questions for her. She is a fem-bot...
"We're going to take the bull by the horns and whip the sparkle out of her in the debate? I thought you said TAKE A BULLHORN AND A SPARKLER TO THE DEBATE!"
You see, like, I was, like, in second grade, like, when he was in like that senate thing and well I'm a lot cuter and like the economy and like the healthcare and Russia is over the credit horizon and I can see Putin from my house and like the environment in Alaska is all good, well except for the coasts but like, ummm, aren't I cute... And like I'm totally ready to be like the president and ummm, but like what does he do? and like aren't I cute... And a was in the PTA and like my husband is like so cute and he races snowmobiles and such...
Debate tactics 101; How to Dazzle the Press. Or not.
“Jill, honey, please come up on stage and prove to everyone that you look better in a swimsuit than Sarah”
"You want change? Okay... ZAP! Call me 'Joe Six Pack' Biden. Let's get drunk and skew."
The non-hearing crowd remains immune to the mumblings of a woman put in place by the mere fact that she is cuter than John McCain. It's amazing they didn't run a Yellow Lab as VP, or did they...

On a serious note, I am so worried that they will pull it off but when has playing to the stupidity of Americans ever failed?
"Let me be clear: I did not insult that woman!"
"I mean, you got the first mainstream redneck woman who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking gal," Biden said. "I mean, that's a storybook, man."
"My opponent knows NOTHING about nano-sources of energy."
"I can make it through the entire debate without blinking. I've been practicing, and I can say, with all due respect to Ms. Palin, it's harder than it looks."
".....and I ask the American people: Does Senator McCain's choice look SANE to you?"
I've been to the desert on a horse with no name. It felt good to get out of the rain. La lalalala, lah lal la la.
Attention, I have just returned from the Hogwarts School where I have learned how to fix the economy with a wave of my wand...
This is just like my High School Prom. Everyone paid attention to my date and I was left holding my sparkler.
And now... The J. Geils Band!
Sarah Palin three years from now:

"And the former governor of Alaska is now the new champion on the Price is Right for correctly guessing the cost of this brand new bull horn!"
Country First, Alaskan hotties Second
Bill S - Your bullhorn and sparkler one is too much! You are on a serious roll today, my friend.

All of you people are hysterical. Thanks for much needed laughs today and to Bob for being brave enough to do this again.
(Amended from previous ... )

"Read my lipstick. I did NOT insult that woman!"
"If I do well tonight, Maybe it will lead to my own talk show".
"Hey fourth estate, such as."
here's a couple:

"Like SNL, the debate was entertaining to the Palin family, who watched it on 'mute'"

"silly white people"

"When I miss the train, I use a this bullhorn and semaphore device to communicate with my peers in Washington."

"Hillary! Hillary! Are you out there?! Can you come up here for a minute?!"
Biden: "Okay, so I know I blew it in the swimsuit competition, but I've been preparing for the talent portion for too long. SOMEONE is going to watch me perform 'Hollaback Girl' with live firecrackers. Hey! Hey! Is anyone looking?! Sigh. This shit is bananas. "
Once again, I call for a suspension of these debates until the candidate with the foot hole is invited.
Jodi Kasten said:
Now I have to picture Bill in fishnets.

Heh

Aw, trust me that's NOT an image you want to go to bed with, lady. :-D

Lisa Kern said:
Bill S - Your bullhorn and sparkler one is too much! You are on a serious roll today, my friend.


Thanks, Lisa. Bob's cartoons just get me going. There so many damn good ones here from everyone this time, too, so I don't envy Richard Belzer and Lenore Skenazy.
If you don't stop taking pictures of that idiot, Tina Fey is going to do something with her fist that will make us all very uncomfortable. And Richard Belzer is a genius!
Biden's handlers later decided he should have worn a yellow tie.
"Now, in the interests of full disclosure and thanks to the miracle of fiber optics, I'm going to have a colonoscopy right here on stage. My opponent was invited to do the same, however she declined."
wow. that sounded funnier in my head. How about:

Later, Biden's handlers decided he should have went with the yellow tie.
"...can you hear me NOW?"
EddyPo; that's real funny!
You're right Seamuss, and I would even go further and say the judges, comedian Richard Belzer and humorist Lenore Skenazyare are both brilliant, attractive and probably two of the most interesting folks in the history of the universe.
"Dang,..... people, I have to say whenever I hear that station break music, I just have to DIRECT."
".......while my opponent has never understood the importance of pyrotechnics."
Bulldog. Bullhorn. Bullshit.
Eddypo: I love it. And I like the first formulation the best!
Governor, you're no Geraldine Ferraro. And, you know, I'm no Hillary Clinton.
(Biden whispering to Sarah through the bullhorn): Why do you think this woman behind me has two belly buttons?
Sigh, Sarah gets to have guns and I have to settle for a woman kung fu expert.
Hey media! I've got a news flash. The viagra's working.
I wonder what Neil Kinnock would say in this situation.
If you are going to ask me "boxers or briefs?" then you better ask her "hair or bare?"
I want to offer my thoughts and prayers to Sarah Palin's husband, Todd Palin, who was just admitted minutes ago to a local hospital in serious condition. Mr Palin, endearingly called "second dude" by republican hopefuls, was shot by secret service agents while trying to hug the Governor. Witnesses say Mrs. Palin confused him with either a moose, or a jew -- and screamed.
"My opponent has Dumb covered, so I figured that leaves me with Blind and Deaf."
"Here's a sparkler for you, Gwen. President Lincoln fired Gen. McClellan in 1862; and McClellan was in Virginia at the time."
I was hoping it wouldn't be a pro-Biden caption, but, I have to admit, that is very very funny! Congrats, Greg. And thanks for more fun Bob.
I love the variety of wits that come out in this kind of thing. My personal favorite, by EddiePo, reminds me of what I love about Albert Brooks:

"Biden's handlers later decided he should have worn a yellow tie."

EddyO!
Congratulations, Yablonowitz (Greg Martin)!!!!!!!!
Good job!!!!!
I agree - the best caption was chosen. I had repeated the "broad maritime border" comment to several people off-Salon since I read it here, and it never failed to get a guffaw. Congrats, Greg!
Thanks once again for an awesome contest, Bob. Kudos to Greg for a witty and funny line - definitely a winner.

Big thanks as well to everyone who participated - y'all are a damn funny bunch. :-D

I hope you do this again some time, Bob - it really helped to get my mind moving in the morning, more so than a good cup of coffee.
Thanks all. This has been fun!
Thanks JD. You're awesome. I thought of it while trying to stay awake in lab meeting.

Another fun post Bob. And congrats Greg.
Suppose all cannot be happy with the choice. I thought all of Ms. Frank's were positively riotous.