Life, 1928-07-05 · page 40 of 50
Life — July 5, 1928 — page 40: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two advertisements and a satirical letter defending "Bunk" against Life magazine's apparent endorsement of Will Rogers for president. **The Letter**: A U.S. Senator writes indignantly that Life is nominating a stage comedian (Rogers) on a "bunkless" platform. The senator defends "Bunk"—political nonsense and empty rhetoric—as a glorious institution that has guided civilization for centuries. He warns that voting for Rogers would cause voter debauchery, the downfall of American womanhood, and national ruin. He's particularly offended that Rogers addresses President Calvin Coolidge casually as "Cal." **The Satire**: The letter satirizes pompous politicians who defend corrupt, meaningless political speech. By having a senator eloquently advocate for "Bunk" itself, Life mocks how politicians value empty rhetoric over substance. Will Rogers was a famous humorist and social critic known for sharp political commentary—the opposite of "bunk." Life is suggesting Rogers's honesty threatens the establishment. **Historical Context**: This likely dates to the 1920s when Rogers was humorously discussed as a political figure. The satire targets political hypocrisy and the Senate's resistance to outsider candidates.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
32 LIFE because you like it and because ...... eemans IN GUM cligestion The fresh flavor and smooth quality in Beeman’s Pepsin Gum alone would make it a favorite—and for over 30 years it has been the choice of dis- criminating people because it also aids digestion. Don’t forget your stick of Beeman’s Pepsin Gum after meals! FLASHES FROM Sport-li The Optimist: “I can see good in anything.” The Motorist: “That so? Can you see good in driving at night without a SPORT-LITE?” The ae promemen! on my ¢riving lights Longer, Stronger Beam easiest to operate. Most beautiful appearing — moder- ately priced. A standard acces- sory with most cars. Complies wit legal restrictions in all states. DeLuxe size $25.00— small size $17.50. Fill out coupon for information. UNITY MEG. CO. 2017S. Michigan Ave. Chicago UNITY MFG. CO. 2017S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. Please send information on SPORT-LITES, Make of car is — Name Address. City... In Defense of Bunk To tHe Epttor or Lire. Sir: My secretary has recently directed my attention to an issue of your not in- frequently entertaining periodical in which to my indignant amazement you announce your intention of nominating for the Chief Magistracy of the foremost nation on the globe a stage comedian—a STAGE COMEDIAN, sir!—one Wil- liam, or Will, Rogers, upon a platform tastelessly characterized by the slangy and inelegant adjective “bunkless’’! I, sir, am a member of the Senate of the United States, and as such I am clothed with the authority to record my colleagues’ unanimous and unqualified disapproval of your intemperate, ill-timed and scandalous crusade against an institu- tion which has directed the politics of the civilized world for countless centuries and is but now coming triumphantly into its own in our own glorious land. I refer, sir, to the institution of Bunk. Striving (not, as I have been given reason to believe, ineffectually) through- out my political career, humble as that may have been, to bring home to my fel- low citizens a conception of the blessings of this glorious institution, I with difh- culty repress my personal inclination to regard your proposed campaign as any- thing but an example of the jejune humor to which college students in their initial semesters are notoriously prone. Never- theless, I can hardly bring myself to be- lieve that the editor of a paper of influ- ence as far-reaching as that of your own could, even in jest, seriously question the beneficence of the influence of Bunk. It is, therefore, in all earnestness that I beg you ere you decide finally to com- mit yourself to a program which at its best can merit no more than the charac- terization of witless buffoonery and at its worst may easily result in the debauchery of the voter, the downfall of American Womanhood and even more serious evils to the welfare of the nation, to consider what will be the result if the electorate, however improbably, were really to take you seriously and actually vote for your preposterous “candidate”; a candidate, sir, whose published opinions betray none of the old-fashioned respect of our fathers for the dignity of the representatives of the people who guide the destinies of the Ship of State; a candidate who is so lack- ing in deference to those high in office as to address the Chief Executive in print as “Cal”; a candidate who—but I pause lest in my righteous resentment I be betrayed into saying something the intemperance of whose utterance might justly be cause for personal reprehension by my con- stituents. Sir, have you seriously given thought to what is to happen if your unpatriotic so-called “‘bunkless” campaign should be, Heaven forfend, successful? What will comicbooks.com