Pearls Before Swine by Stephan Pastis for December 15, 2021

I’d like to know what is Rat smoking.

Wow, a rare talking snowman! Or is it the old taperecorder inside the snowman trick?

The snow-folk will experience reincarnation – snow, water, vaper, water, snow; repeat.

All Rat can expect, bone and dust.

In real life rats don’t live that long either. Average lifespan is about 2 years

What would be a better name? Gonzalo?

Rat’s second choice: Puddle.

I’d have gone with Puddles.

Hans Christian Andersen wrote a wonderful story about a snowman looking inside a window and being attracted to a hot stove! (After he melted, it turned out that his backbone was the stove’s coal shovel…)

At least Rat dresses for the weather.

As was his dad Ohshitspringalready. And his Granddad Dontthrowthesaltinmydirection.

Rat is illogical, snowmen are not alive!

no cap for his head and no caption for the toon. Where is your holiday spirit Pastis? and don’t be blaming it on Rat. A true rat fink be Stephan.

Very appropriate name I am afraid!

gonesoon the snow goon…?

Well Rat if you have a freezer you can let Gonesoon live there ;-)

“I am kind of disappointed in the quality of my creator as well.”

Must be the 3 button suit, like a cupcake or twinkle

Rat, you’ve only got three or five years to live, so your kind doesn’t live very long either. It’s much longer than a snowman, but still.

is a long life really that desirable anymore?

He doesn’t live at all.

“Soon” is such a relative term. In Wisconsin, the cold seems to last a long time. After a diagnosis, not so much.

If Rat had any class, he’d have named his snowman “Ephemeral”.

Call him Brevity. it’s funnier, because “Brevity is the soul of wit “. (Okay, I’m already leaving..)

Ah yes. Gonesoon Puddlemaker. I knew ye well.

Yeah, when snow-goons are angry you do NOT want to put a magic hat on them…

RAT sure has no compassion

I’ll bet Gonesoon smells carrots constantly

Rat could have named him something much worse

Gonesoon, caught in a monsoon, was Soongone

Goonsoon got what we all get, a lifetime.

We’re here for a good time, not a long time!

Isn’t his name Parson Brown?

He can talk without the top hat! What sorcery is this?

Rat, if people renamed you I’d bet you wouldn’t care for your new name either.

Careful, nasty little rodent! His full name may be Gonesoon the RatSlayer!

The cartoon is a GREAT comment on how we’ve put identity issues above things that are (or should be!) more important and more real. Snowman has a real problem — he’s gonna die! — but his big issue is whether someone uses the right name for him. A lot like what progressive politics in the US has turned into — unfortunately.