Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau for January 24, 2017

Yup, she’s a twofer.

This would be Mike’s wife. I remember the arc when she was adopted, then later when she would quote Jimmy Carter.

Yes, that’s Kim, who was introduced in the strip as a baby and later marries Mike.

I think the problem is that, in U.S. high schools, Popular and Smart are two separate groups, and the kids believe a kid can only be in 1 group. And 99% of them think it’s better to be Popular than Smart.

Of course, later, they’re surprised to find themselves working for someone who was Smart (most Managers were Smart in high school). And the Smart kids are surprised to find themselves working for someone who was Popular (most CEOs were Popular in high school, which explains a lot).

The late, great American science-fiction author Isaac Asimov said about that: “There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.’”

Given your country’s latest presidential administration, I’d say the attitude of which Asimov spoke has reached its apex.

“Can you spell racism, boys and girls”?

Somehow I missed this era of Doonesbury. I don’t ever recall seeing Kim as a teenager.

Notice how Kim stops smiling after P1 and it only gets worse.

Say no less, either!