Life, 1928-11-02 · page 11 of 48
Life — November 2, 1928 — page 11: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is Will Rogers's satirical commentary on the 1928 U.S. presidential election, expressing pessimism about his party's candidate and platform. **The figures:** Rogers discusses Hoover and Smith as the two main candidates, with Smith appearing to be the Democratic nominee. **The satire:** Rogers claims Democrats are "a hundred years ahead of times with our platform of No Bunk"—meaning their progressive policies are too radical for voters to accept. He worries the South (shown on the electoral map) will abandon Democrats, and that even appealing to religious voters won't help if Smith is perceived as non-Christian. **The joke:** The cartoon shows a worried figure examining the electoral map saying "I should worry!"—expressing resignation that defeat is inevitable despite having superior ideas.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
OUR CANDIDATE Is NOT OPTIMISTIC “The Trouble with Us Is We're Too Far Ahead of Our Time with a Platform of No Bunk” Wet this is the last appeal I will make to the voters. The chances are Hoover and Smith both will keep right on “Yapping” right up to the minute that the boys go to cast their salable product. And of course the henchmen and Campaign managers will keep the treasury open as long as there is a vote left unpaid for. But this little communication that you are reading is the last appeal to the reason and common. sense folks of our great commonwealth, Us Anti-Bunks may lose. I have had none of the optomistic reports that have given such great consolation to the other Candidates from their State leaders. My leaders tell me that even though I have come personally to New York and consentrated my entire efforts to this one City that I may in the end lose it. by WILL ROGERS It looks like it will go just about as it always did go, Smith will be elected Presi- dent of New York City, and Hoover will be elected President of New York State, just the same as Smith has always been elected Governor of New York City, while his opponent has always been elected Governor of all the rest of the State. I may also lose the South, where or- dinarily I am the strongest. They won't break party lines enough to make any difference in the electoral vote. : Don’t let ‘em tell you Smith won't get the South. He will. They are very religious down there, But that “Love thy neighbor as thyself” never was meant to apply to any neigh- bor that happened to be a Republican. So the old South would be right in the Democratic columns even if their Can- didate was a “Mohamaden” by religion. The Turk never saw the day that he was held in as low esteem by even an Ar- menian, as the Republican is held by the southern Democrat. It’s been a great race, One that we won't hear the last of during our life- times, The thing that has stopped our party is that we are a hundred years ahead of times with our platform of No Bunk. Why it looks like the smarter the voters are supposed to get the more they fall for the old Political applesauce. In the year 2028 the acceptance speeches will read, “I pledge myself if elected, to appoint a Committee to look into the con- dition of the farmer, to keep the tarriff so that it will protect the most voters, and absolutely pledge myself to take the ques- comicbooks.com