This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 6 Barbara Brandon-Croft wrote a pitch that, 34 years later, has lost none of its punch. "Few Black Cartoonists have entered national syndication since the 1970s," began the boldfaced heading to her letter to newspaper syndicates. "None have been Black Women." What Brandon-Croft was offering the gatekeepers of such mass distribution was not a shaming as much as a way to course-correct. They could overcome their lack of representation while also reaching new audiences. "We all gain from the Black experience," she wrote in the letter. "Moreover, everyone's to gain from the Black female experience in particular." Her precise verbal strike caught the eye of Universal Press Syndicate editor Lee Salem, who had nurtured such strips as "Calvin and Hobbes" and "Cathy" and later discovered "The Boondocks." He knew excellence when he saw it, replying to her: "It's rare to … [Read more...] about A trailblazer who brought a Black woman’s voice to comics
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2023 Honda Accord First Drive Review: Hybrid-Heavy Honor Roll
Verdict 9.0 / 10 Unlike some of its competitors, Honda has no intention of giving up on the sedan market. Its Accord and Civic are today’s most popular vehicles for first-time buyers, Generation Z, and Hispanic customers, and the automaker isn’t about to cede that crown by abandoning the segments that made it a household name in the US. But tastes and environmental sensibilities demand some evolution, which is why the 2023 Accord is leaning heavily into electrification. Although not a fully electric vehicle (yet), the redesigned sedan is ditching the lusty turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder in its top trims, with an efficient hybrid powertrain taking its place. Although the base LX and slightly better-equipped EX trims soldier on with Honda’s adequate 1.5-liter turbo, every other model (Sport, EX-L, Sport-L, and Touring) now comes exclusively with the hybrid powertrain. I’ll freely admit that Honda’s decision to go heavy on electrification had me a bit skeptical … [Read more...] about 2023 Honda Accord First Drive Review: Hybrid-Heavy Honor Roll
‘Magic Mike’ deeper, darker than ads let on
By Sally M. Hill / movie reviews The commercials make “Magic Mike” out be a fun, light-hearted night out with the girls, without the two-drink minimum or the need for a bunch of ones to stick in g-strings. Actually though, “Mike” tries to be more than that, darker and deeper, but alas, it’s as superficial as a spray on tan. Too bad. Director Steven Soderbergh (“Traffic,” “Ocean’s Eleven,” “The Informant!,” “Contagion”) has made some interesting movies. He was the reason I thought “Mike” could be more than just a bunch of guys shaking their booties. He and screenwriter Reid Carolin (his first feature film) have attempted to make a character study disguised as a comedic stripper film, but the characters aren’t interesting beyond their stripping. Even if one character pleads unconvincingly, “I’m not what I do.” Character studies only work when a person is interesting and you care about what happens to them. The filmmakers do acknowledge our hard economic times and the troubled … [Read more...] about ‘Magic Mike’ deeper, darker than ads let on
Why the pandemic’s economic impact on F1 goes far beyond a disrupted calendar · RaceFans
Two statistics lay bare the astonishing impact Covid-19 has had on Formula 1. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free First, since the pathogen intensified its spread across world in March almost half this season’s scheduled 22 races have been cancelled or (optimistically, in the view of some) postponed. Second, the obligatory annual team shutdown – usually a three-week break in summer – has now been in place for three times as long. Although speculative calendars are increasingly doing the rounds, these count for nought as long as authorities restrict the movement of people across the world. What use is a calendar which schedules races in countries which refuse to admit foreigners or make concessions for sport activities? The pandemic’s effect on the 10 teams has been disastrous . Most have furloughed staff, some are expected to be ‘retrenched’, ‘de-hired’ or similar, while a number of independent teams have availed themselves of advances on future F1 revenues … [Read more...] about Why the pandemic’s economic impact on F1 goes far beyond a disrupted calendar · RaceFans
Zhou: Less pressure this year after “nervous” start in 2022
Listen to this article Zhou says that he never felt more nervous than he did before his first grand prix start in Bahrain last year, a race in which he scored a point with 10th place. As the only newcomer on the 2022 grid, he went on to enjoy a solid season, despite being hit by reliability issues that cost him valuable points, and the team took up its option to keep him for this year. "For sure less," he said when asked if he felt pressure ahead of the 2023 season. "This year of course I need to perform, I need to make a good step up, and I need to do much better than last year. "Last year for me everything felt very new, and you don't know how you can do. "You can do as many simulator runs as you can but it's not the same on track, and also handling the pressures. Here with the team, more the outside world, for me last year was the pressure that I really need to let's say show my potential. "Which I was very happy that I was able to do. But coming to this … [Read more...] about Zhou: Less pressure this year after “nervous” start in 2022
The major change Alfa Romeo made after being “stuck in a corner” last year · RaceFans
Two anticipated trends in 2023 Formula 1 car design were evident in the first new chassis presented for the upcoming season today. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free While Red Bull, Haas and Williams relied on models or old cars to reveal their new liveries over the past week, Alfa Romeo became the first team to show something approaching a genuine 2023 machine. Their video broadcast showed Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu revealing the car in a similar configuration to what they will run when testing begins in Bahrain in two weeks’ time. The team also issued images of its car in launch specification. One obvious change is the shift towards a darker livery, just as fellow Ferrari power unit customers Haas have done. Teams have been removing paint and exposing the carbon fibre beneath for years in an effort to save weight, but the introduction of new regulations last year prompted many to go a step further. It’s striking that Alfa Romeo, who began last … [Read more...] about The major change Alfa Romeo made after being “stuck in a corner” last year · RaceFans
Texans brace for the end of nearly three years of pandemic Medicaid coverage
One day, Alexandria Robertson’s carefully crafted life suddenly started falling apart. She returned from vacation in January 2020 to learn she’d been laid off from her corporate job in the Austin area. Her car was totaled in an accident. At the same time, she found out she was pregnant with her first child. “I was pregnant. I had no job. I had no car. And I had no health insurance,” Robertson said. “I at the time just did not have money for the expenses of having a baby.” Robertson qualified for Medicaid, but since Texas is one of just 11 states that haven’t expanded the program, she would be covered only up to two months after childbirth. But then, just a few weeks later, COVID-19 descended on the United States. For the length of the public health emergency — which turns three next month — no one would be moved off of Medicaid. The state is urging people on Medicaid to ensure their information is up to date at YourTexasBenefits.com and to respond to renewal notices … [Read more...] about Texans brace for the end of nearly three years of pandemic Medicaid coverage
F1 2023 liveries: See all the new season looks as they are unveiled
F1 2023 is fast approaching as teams take the covers off and reveal their colours ahead of a brand new season of action. There is every reason to be excited about the F1 2023 season, teams having had the chance to put their wealth of learnings about the new Technical Regulations to use with their second attempts, the 2023 challengers. And the first key step ahead of seeing these new creations on the track is launch season, as the teams, while often hiding many of their clever innovations, are at least more than happy to show us what their cars are going to look like. Our luck really is in because with 10 teams making up the grid, you guessed it, that means we have 10 different livery reveals to enjoy. So, let’s take a look at the designs which we will clap eyes on in F1 2023… Haas Haas did the honours of kicking-off launch season for 2023 when they revealed the livery for their 2023 challenger, the VF-23, on January 31. The American outfit struck a new title … [Read more...] about F1 2023 liveries: See all the new season looks as they are unveiled
Christian Horner rues having to spend on porpoising floor changes that were ‘probably not needed’
Christian Horner says floor tweaks imposed by the FIA this season to minimise porpoising came at “quite a lot of expense” and were “probably not needed”. Making the change from over-car airflow to ground effect aerodynamics last season, many of the teams were caught out by porpoising. Some more than others. While Red Bull, their RB18 designed by Adrian Newey who is said to be able to ‘see air’, had hardly any bouncing, their 2021 title rivals Mercedes had it to the extremes. Such was the ferocity of the W13’s porpoising, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell complained of back pain, head aches with Hamilton also saying “there’s a lot more bruising after the races nowadays”. But with Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff advocating for the FIA to get involved, citing long-term health concerns, Horner said if his RB18 had the same problem he’d also be telling his drivers “ to bitch as much as they could over the radio and make as big an issue out of it as they possibly could”. As … [Read more...] about Christian Horner rues having to spend on porpoising floor changes that were ‘probably not needed’