The Argyle Sweater by Scott Hilburn for October 05, 2009

So it’s 6 months after the fact. I don’t care, I just discovered this strip and saw this mess. There are problems with this strip, but it has nothing to do with a long passed-on and beloved by many singer. First, Karen Carpenter is simply the most universally known Carpenter the artist could have chosen to make the joke. The focus of the humor is on the fact that these are not regular carpenter ants. The next best option is probably the director, John Carpenter. Given the nature of his movies, however, it’s likely you would not want to be attacked by John Carpenter ants. Second, the implication is that Karen Carpenter ants are harmless, and should not be sprayed. If anything, wouldn’t a Karen Carpenter ant probably make soothing, perhaps romantic sounds to only enhance the picnic experience? Third, Carpenter ants are not going to “attack” picnickers. They live in dead trees and rotting floorboards and are nuisance to unlucky homeowners. Had the artist written, “Those are French Army ants, then we’re just poking fun at the notoriously wimpy French and everyone has a good laugh and gets on with it. Except for maybe a couple of Parisian immigrants who angrily hurl their croissants halfway across the bistro table.

While I found the cartoon to be only mildly amusing, it is certainly not offensive to Karen Carpenter or her family. Perhaps the strong emotional reaction many have had are simply due to the depth of feeling you have for Ms. Carpenter and her music, and you feel any humorous reference to her is in poor taste. Or maybe if the “husband” in the cartoon had simply not yet sprayed, it wouldn’t have been such a big deal because then none of the Karen Carpenter ants would be killed.

I’ll probably never post here again, but for anyone that reads this, I hope it makes sense.