It’s one of the funniest cartoons we’ve seen in a long time, even if it is nothing but sour grapes.
Cartoonist David Horsey of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer – miffed that Boeing Corp. chose North Charleston, S.C. over Everett, Washington to assemble its second line of 787 Dreamliners – took pen to paper (well, not paper, really) to vent some of his frustration against the Palmetto State.
“How many non-union South Carolinian workers does it take to attach a wing to a Boeing airplane?” Horsey’s cartoon asks, portraying several dim-witted rednecks attempting to attach a wing to an airplane with duct tape.
“Five … and a dog,” it answers.
In addition to the duct tape, there’s also a rebel flag, a moonshine apparatus and a guy who looks an awful lot like our founding editor (third from bottom, beneath wing).
Horsey isn’t alone in venting some condescending angst at South Carolina. A local community college professor from just south of Seattle, T.M. Sell, caused a stir earlier this week by calling South Carolina workers “the functional equivalent of Walmart greeters.”
Sadly, we haven’t done much to prove them wrong …
Here’s Horsey’s cartoon (click to enlarge) …
UPDATE – Thanks to Katherine Jenerette for pointing this out (see comments section below), but the cartoon also appears to feature a noose dangling just above the wing. Wonder what Horsey was implying by that? We emailed him a moment ago in an effort to find out, and we’ll be sure to bring you his response, if there is one.
By Funny but not funny enough November 3, 2009 at 6:03 pm
The cartoon is missing something. Not sure what it is. I don’t think they got all the stereotypes quite right.
By duh November 3, 2009 at 6:06 pm
Is that supposed to be Sanford looking out of the plane window?
By larry November 3, 2009 at 6:14 pm
Strange. I gues the US Gov’t doesn’t have a problem with those same South Carolina workers building IED-proof vehicles at Force Protection in North Charleston…
By Brandon November 3, 2009 at 6:22 pm
He obviously doesn’t understand the first thing about building a still.
By Katherine Jenerette November 3, 2009 at 6:52 pm
Will, look at the cartoon again – You missed the ropes: he not only hit us on being ‘Southern-Stupid’ but it looks like Cartoonist David Horsey ‘slipped’ in the noose, a symbol of lynching on the upper left. Not very funny to me or to most of the people of this Congressional District where these jobs will be located.
Or are my eyes just playing red-neck tricks on my South-Carolina-Mind?
That’s all for now.
Katherine
By BIN News Editorial Staff November 3, 2009 at 7:03 pm
The guy on the wing looks like our Funding Editor’s 5th husband.
God rest his soul.
He didn’t realize the fumes from his last batch of corn whiskey had built up so heavy in the barn after he installed a new radiator off of 52 Nash Rambler they had on blocks in the front yard.
After he hooked it up, he drew a pint of ‘shine, sat on a bale of hay and struck a match to a Tampa Nugget.
As he took his first sip from the Mason jar the fumes ignited.
All they found was his gold tooth our Funding Editor bought him for their first anniversary. It was stuck in a pine tree next to the outhouse about 100 yards away. Our Funding Editor treasures that tooth.
The barn burned down along with all the evidence.
BIN News Editorial Staff
Flair and Balanced
By CNSYD November 3, 2009 at 7:19 pm
Yes all these dumb SC workers used to refuel fleet ballistic missle and fast attack nuclear submarines in Charleston. They used to work on submarine hulls that could dive to still classified depths. The “white train” used to roll into Goose Creek and warheads that would make the bombs that were dropped on Japan look like firecrackers would be unloaded. Poseiden missles were assembled with MIRVed warheads. They would then be loaded into FBM submarines. The workers in Charleston were so efficient at their jobs no missles were ever fired in anger and the Soviet Union surrendered. Yes those dumb SC workers.
By Ynot November 3, 2009 at 7:39 pm
He got the Moon right on the airplane door.
By SnakeMD November 3, 2009 at 8:16 pm
And don’t forgit that the Port Of Charleston is one the most efficient ports in the country. The cartoonist should have also included a rooster somewhere in the pic ’cause we breed some of the best fighting cocks in the world. And our dog fighting rings aren’t to bad either. Wonder how we are going to attach those Confederate mud flaps of Yosemite Sam to the Dreamliner that say: “Hell no–we ain’t forgettin!”
By Soft Sigh From Hell November 3, 2009 at 8:31 pm
Jeez, just smile and laugh along with it. We ridicule yankees all the time. Turnabout is fair play. And if Ariel had drawn it (as he almost could have) we’d laugh at ourselves. Taking offense just makes it more effective as a barb. The real joke is in the opposite direction. The plant and jobs and bragging rights are coming here.
By mark g November 3, 2009 at 9:46 pm
Seattle still has political cartoonists?! Whatever happened to Arial?
SC gives humorists a lot to work with. But the heart of the matter is that SC workers are docile and nonunion; Seattle workers are active and pro-union. It’s a bitter pill for WA state workers to swallow that SC workers will take such low wages out of desperation.
You can’t blame WA state workers for being mad; you can’t blame Boeing for going where there’s cheap labor and billions in incentives; and you can’t blame SC for taking advantage of it all.
But it’s nothing for SC to gloat about.
By No Way! November 3, 2009 at 9:49 pm
Let them publish their cartoons! I bet their newspapers will be broke in a few years. Furthermore, maybe the unions can run more business into the ground in Washington sending even more jobs to South Carolina! Thanks for the cartoon! If you guys in Washington state need help with recruiting multi-million dollar corporations with up to a billion in impacts, call us and we will help. Until then, why don’t you draw cartoons. My 5 year old can draw better cartoons than that! HA!
By Groundball November 3, 2009 at 9:55 pm
No Duh, that can’t be Sanford looking out the window. That seat would be in coach!
This cartoonist is a real “Horsey’s Ass”. Who cares what anyone in Washington state thinks. After all, this is the state that has given us ….. well something.
By Steve V November 3, 2009 at 10:09 pm
how many non union workers does it take to bang his wife?
By Roscoe November 3, 2009 at 11:23 pm
Hmmmm……..S.C. is about 30% black while Washington is only about 4% black. Think maybe someone doesn’t believe black people can build airplanes?
By GP53 November 3, 2009 at 11:42 pm
How many non union workers does it take to build a plane? About half as many as the union workers and get it done right the first time with no rework overtime.
By jeff forslund November 3, 2009 at 11:43 pm
Half of our workforce in SC is black. How racist of this cartoonist to suggest all South Carolinian workers are white. Bigots seem to dominate in the all white northeast. Maybe because the sun shines so infrequently there that they are just mushroom brained liberal dems.
By K Trane November 3, 2009 at 11:58 pm
Sounds like Washington has some sore losers! Non-union workforce FTW!
By jazzgrrrl25 November 4, 2009 at 12:03 am
much ado about nothing…there are four “nooses” in the cartoon…three are holding up the wing…nothing more than rope and pulleys, guys.
it’s not like we don’t rag on yankees and such.
By jazzgrrrl25 November 4, 2009 at 12:04 am
and, even if it were a noose, it wasn’t so long ago that we lived up to it.
By BC November 4, 2009 at 1:54 am
Mark G hit the issue squarely on the head. SC workers need to wake up and see what the rest of the nation is doing. Here’s an example, why are retirees from other states (regardless of industry) able to retire wherever they please but most retiring SC residents do not have that luxury? This is because most states have very successful unions (regardless of how you might feel about them) that provide powerful benefits to their members. This translates into not only higher wages but also greater retirement packages.
These retirees cannot only travel freely but move to areas of the country with lower cost of living and stretch those dollars even further. Sadly, most SC retirees have their retirement benefits locked and established for the area and do not have that kind of flexibility. This is why many northerners relocated to the south because those retirement checks see a significant increase in purchasing power. As previously mention, many SC retirees do not see an increase in their purchasing power and are restricted.
Wake up people. Stop allowing the rest of the nation to past you by and obviously take advantage of you!
By Cooter Brown November 4, 2009 at 7:16 am
All ye SC haters can go t’ hell! Betta yet, move t’ a mo pregressive state whare dey aint no flags, no sex scandals, an’ th’ lan flows wit yankee milk an’ socialist huney. Wee dont care ’bout th’ rest ov th’ nashun, mista BC. We jest wanna bee left alone, raise our families, an’ bee free self haitin’ scalawags, know-it-all yankees, an’ every ism an’ ology forced on us since da wahr!
Stop whinin’ ’bout whut ol’ Carolinie aint and start embracin’ whut she iz. A dawg aint a cat an’ a cat aint a dawg, but both hav’ skrenths dat th’ otha dont. Dont take yer cat on a coon hunt or yer dawg on a mice hunt or yer bound t’ bee disappointed wit da results. Wee aint Warshingtun, folks, an’ dey hate us fer dat…
By EduCrat November 4, 2009 at 8:42 am
The real problem is that South Carolina workers will be treated precisely as depicted in the cartoon. Yes, we need big industry. Historically however, the management level/high paying jobs go to the “imported workers” and the menial jobs and wages go to SC workers. There is little upward mobility for SC workers.
By Soft Sigh From Hell November 4, 2009 at 8:44 am
“Bigots seem to dominate in the all white northeast.”
It’s the STATE of Washington, in the northWEST.
Ah the state of SC schooling, public or home or church.
By Mr. Dart November 4, 2009 at 9:23 am
The bigotry in lilly white Seattle knows no bounds.
By Workin' Tommy C November 4, 2009 at 10:17 am
I LOVE IT!
The more bigoted, sectionalist, racist lies they spread about us, the better. Let those arrogant, smug, “open-minded” fascist-socialists keep thinking what they’re thinking.
The worse they think of us, the fewer will move down here and we have way too many obnoxious Yankee transplants as it is.
(BTW: Why didn’t the cartoon show some of the hundreds of black workers that will be hired by Boeing??? They are nearly all white in the state of Washington and we’re about one third black in this state. What is Whorsey trying to say?)
I hope, though, they understand that the stereotype also includes Southerners being very violent and hot-tempered at times. They’d better watch their backs if they insult us.
Despite what they think, the bell curve down here is no different than up there. Some “dumb-sounding” Southerner with an IQ of 160 that they have blithely dismissed may just take them by surprise–in a way they won’t easily recover from.
By darth November 4, 2009 at 11:37 am
Ditto CNSYD, we did have a branch of the union that killed Eastern Airlines at that shipyard and a few others in the metal trades cateegory. Maybe it is just bad Karma in WA Staid that got to keep its nuke yard rather than the curious real estate dealings and did I suggest nepotism, at least ethical on paper acquisition of DoD assets at a nuclear ship yard on the Cooper…
I’d photoshop a starbucks sign onto the still, though it does look like a WV or Arkansas style or still.
By 2 Cents November 4, 2009 at 1:37 pm
Charleston is quite different from the rest of SC. It’s very diversified. People there tend to be quite tolerant and open-minded.
The rest of SC could crumble & fall but Charleston would remain intact & prosper.
By Mike November 4, 2009 at 2:04 pm
If any of you would like to see a ‘southern editorial cartoonist’s reply’….go to The Palmetto Scoop. I do not take kindly to having the folks of my state bad-mouthed by some blowhard yankees!
By ohara November 4, 2009 at 2:56 pm
Lighten up, SC-after all, what does it say about Washington workers if they lose out to a bunch of local still makers? Sounds like a quality issue to me, they’re just not up to the job.
BTW, Washington cartoonists know nothing. Having that still’s hooch receptacle on a short ladder is a clear safety violation. No SC worker would ever risk the efficacy of the final product in that manner. Geesh.
By BC November 4, 2009 at 3:10 pm
@ Cooter Brown. Sadly, what you have done with your post is bring to light the very stereotype the cartoonist was trying to display. So you just keep right on posting that crap exactly the same way.
I realize many South Carolinians do not behave the way the cartoon depicts, but your posting keeps that alive. Please! If you’re gonna try to insult someone at least use whole sentences and proper grammar.
By CNSYD November 4, 2009 at 5:17 pm
darth, the metal trades council and its unions did not have the ability to strike or to negotiate wages and benefits as that is illegal in a government yard. So at best they were an irritant to management over nits. Same went for AFGE which covered technicians. Curious about your statement irt real estates dealings and nepotism irt Charleston Exactly what are you referring to?
By SnakeMD November 4, 2009 at 6:09 pm
Reading Cooter’s postings is like being forced to watch “Gone With The Wind” in a room full of people dressed like Colonel Sanders. That black-face talk kind of went out the window with Amos and Andy. Is Cooter really Sen Glenn McConnell? Maybe Cooter could switch to a low-country Gullah dialect. Cooter’s picture reminds me of my uncle from Mule Holler, NC. He used to pick his teeth with his truck keys and roasted marshmallows with his cigarette lighter. He met his wife, my aunt at a family reunion. His only claim to fame was his pet hog. He tried to teach it to smoke cigars, so he he could show it at the state fair to make money. His buddies constantly poked fun at him, telling him that it would take forever to teach a hog to smoke. His reply, “What’s time to a hog!”
By DrFeedback November 4, 2009 at 9:47 pm
Q: How many union workers does it take to build a 787.
A: No one knows, they’ve never done it.
By Patricia L. November 5, 2009 at 1:38 am
But who in the end got the contract? Those dumb South Carolinians, must have done something right to be able to get a 2nd contract!!!! GO SC! GO SC! The cartoonist should be thankful after all because he will need that moonshine that he drew to keep his butt warm this winter — it will be a very cold one this year!!!!
By Brian R November 5, 2009 at 8:33 am
Only takes one to shoot down a plane full of idiots!
By Jimmy L. Shirley Jr. November 6, 2009 at 1:10 am
Southern White people are the last and only politically correct target the shouters of “diversity, tolerance and multi-culturalism” permit to be stereo-typed, derided, mocked and scorned. Shame on anyone and everyone who laughed at the cartoon but would be among the first to howl about one targeting Blacks, Jews, Latinos, etc.
So, in the wake of Fort Hood, I suggest this:
Some of you hunters out there ought to do this… When you bag a hog, take the head and toss it onto a mosque with a note attached to it, reading in big letters, “REMEMBER FORT HOOD!”
By Frank November 6, 2009 at 7:10 am
This cartoon begs for words to describe the ignorance of the writer. Being from the South, I find it extremely offensive. The only bright spot is the flag of honor; St. Andrews Cross. I am glad to see there is still an association with the flag and the mind of northerners. God save the south!
By David B November 6, 2009 at 12:02 pm
Let’s see. Seattle, a town that Anarchists tore apart. The town where Neo-Nazis have called home. In near by Whidbey island, Robert Mattews and other members of the Order shot it out with the FBI. Washington State is site of an annual Neo-Nzi gathering put on by the Aryan Nations. Survivalist Gather in the “Great White North west Bastion”….Yeah, I preffer Southern Hospitality. They may honor the confederate flag, but as a Sephardic Jew I feel safer and more welcome there then in a state known for Violent Street action.
By First Flight November 6, 2009 at 4:08 pm
Let’s be clear; this was an attempt by a cartoonist to make a business decision look funny – nothing more, nothing less. My guess is that the more realistic version; “How many Boeing Executives in Chicago does it take to…” was just to scary to be funny. Both the South and even the North has its share of very smart folks, so let’s just make sure that those knuckleheads from Chicago and Wall Street don’t get away with trying to profit from resurrecting the ol’ No. vs. So.
By Vindiciamus November 6, 2009 at 10:28 pm
The North vs. the South will never end until the yankees give us our Nation back. If you wonder why America is like it is today,just ask a Confederate to tell you about “Compromised Principles” and what that means in regards to our form of democracy Representative Republic.Also ask him about the Constitution and how we are to correct our government and the inequities of society,and when the attempt to comply is ignored.Y’all jez ask a Confederate.
By Vindiciamus November 6, 2009 at 10:35 pm
You wrote:
But who in the end got the contract? Those dumb South Carolinians, must have done something right to be able to get a 2nd contract!!!! GO SC! GO SC! The cartoonist should be thankful after all because he will need that moonshine that he drew to keep his butt warm this winter — it will be a very cold one this year!!!!
Washington State must be a union State and SC must be a right to work State.This would be a great example of North v.South.
“Vindiciamus”
By mangledman November 9, 2009 at 11:43 am
That cartoon is quite funny. And it looks like they’ll have plenty of time to read the funnies while their waiting in the unemployment line. OUCH!!!!!
By Charles Thompson November 9, 2009 at 8:30 pm
I’ve lost all respect for the simple minded ” should be X-journalist” at this ignorant paper….yes i am one of Boeing Charleston proud employees who positively am looking forward to all the upcoming jobs and events……….come down and visit this great area and u will change the way u think of us
By Jamie Sanderson December 4, 2009 at 9:42 pm
Stereotypes. It’s all real. It’s part of our history and present day. Hello? The racist flag on the tax-payer funded statehouse grounds. I love how you Republicans defend this. Excuse me. May I say that others see the truth? They do. Wake up.
By ed May 20, 2011 at 2:32 am
The cartoon depicting Carolinians as hill billies has already been done. Why not try something fresh for a change or do the lefties in the Seattle region lack imagination.
When it comes to ineptitude, I recall the northwest workers putting thousands of 787 fasteners in backwards.
A company like Boeing can’t afford to be held hostage to union demands or they’ll end up like the steel industry and the big three auto makers, barely hanging on. One thing union workers seem to ignore is that anyone can make just about anything, anywhere; if not in America, then overseas. You can be sure that Obama will not be there to hold your hand when you lose your job.
If the Seattle work force doesnt want to see abandoned plants like the ones around Detroit and Pittsburgh they better take heed and start thinking for themselves. Otherwise the day of reckoning will come. And there’s not enough Walmarts around Puget Sound to hire all the well paid machinists.