Mean Ghadafi Impersonations & Caricatures Roundup!

(AFP)

Now you know that there is such a thing as a Moammar Gadhafi* drag queen. 

(AP)

(Reuters)

These are disturbing, and not least because of the way the Star of David is used as defacement.

(Reuters)

Remember the Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance? Shoe imagery is still potent in the Muslim world.

(Reuters)

I like this one of Daffy as Nero:

(Reuters)

But I really love this cute rat:

(Getty Images)

Great caricature, but maybe not quite mean enough:

(Getty Images)

*Don't forget to have fun and be creative with the spelling each time you write about Khadoffee.

A Couple Of Wire Photos From Egypt You May Have Missed

An anti-government protester swings a metal chain and holds a poster representing Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak saying "I understand!!", accompanied by words beneath reading "The killer failed", at the continuing demonstration in Tahrir square in downtown Cairo, Egypt, Monday, Jan. 31, 2011. A coalition of opposition groups called for a million people to take to Cairo's streets Tuesday to demand the removal of President Hosni Mubarak. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

Well... my goodness! A decapitated demon-vampire! Also, why not bring your baby to a violent, unpredictable, revolutionary demonstration? Even better, just think of your infant as a handy sign-extender when lumber is scarce:

A bonding moment!

It's True

(Harmon Leon)

See more amusing Westboro Baptist counter-protest signs here.

Imagine YOU in a Photo-Op with Condi! It's Surprisingly Cheap!

What's Condi been up to? Not much! But now, thanks to Pony Pal™ Jessica, we know the awesome news that photo-ops with the Condibot are to be had for the totally affordable price of $250 each, $500 per couple. Just imagine it! Do you think it'll be matching armchairs set-up? That's less than a pair of Condi-worthy shoes! I'll pass, thanks, but wow, some Pony Pal should totally do it. The bad part is that you have to sit through her giving a speech about, like, "Perspectives on Peace and War", so OMG, it'll totally be blah blah blah Annapolis, so boring, no way.

Do you know what I love? I love it when people in other countries put on special puppet shows starring George Bush and Condi. On Saturday, a new Czech production debuted:

Police stand near dummies representing former U.S. President George W. Bush and former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, during a protest rally against a plan to build a U.S. missile defence shield in the Czech Republic, in Prague April 4, 2009. U.S. President Barack Obama will attend a summit between the United States and the 27-member European Union in Prague on Sunday. REUTERS / David W Cerny

So totally cute! I like this picture, too, because you can just make out a tiny Condi head with the international "NO" symbol on the sign carried by the lady:

As much as I love these fun puppet shows, they always seem to end the same way, with everybody loving the puppets so much they set them on fire, so imagine my delight when this production ended differently, with the adorable puppets being thrown comically into the river:

Hooray!

They All Look the Same to Me, Too

A student of Raza Academy, a Muslim rights and educational organization, touches a shoe to the head of a stuffed dog wearing a mask resembling the outgoing U.S. President George W. Bush during a demonstration in Mumbai to mark the end of Bush's presidency January 20, 2009. REUTERS/Arko Datta (INDIA)

I was afraid the Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance was totally succumbing to dullness and repetition, but this late entry is quite sophisticated and bizarre, obviously inspired by Mike Kelley's innovative work with plush toys.

So, you know, A for effort and everything, but somebody's gotta tell that kid that he's got the wrong George Bush! What's H.W. ever done to him? Tsk.

Shoe Art Update

A shoe and red paint is seen on the street near the United States consulate after a demonstration organised to protest at the Israeli involvement in the conflict in Gaza, in Edinburgh, Scotland January 10, 2009. REUTERS/David Moir (BRITAIN)

I kinda got bored with the Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance™ and didn't pay attention for a few days, but this one really is too good to let pass. The American Flag Chuck Taylor is an excellent touch, calling to mind Jasper Johns' flag paintings, but the rest is pure abstract expressionism in the vein of Franz Kline or Jackson Pollock. Great image!

Fabuloso! Arte da Sapata em Brasil! Outra Vez!

A man throws a shoe to the U.S. Embassy, during a protest against Israel's military strikes on the Gaza Strip, in Rio de Janeiro, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

OK, so you might want to carry an umbrella for the next couple of weeks, because shoes are flying through the air everywhere, all over the world. They are just plain not only for feet anymore, that's all.

Shoe Art is So Hot Everywhere Right Now That I Left One Out. So Here's Brazil with the Protesting & the Shoes.

Demonstrators throw shoes against pictures of U.S. President George W. Bush during a protest against Israel's military strikes on Gaza in Sao Paulo, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009. (AP Photo/Nelson Antoine)

Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance™ Jumps the... Atlantic!

Players of Israel's Bnei Hasharon warm up as a shoe thrown by a protester lies on the court before their ULEB Eurocup Group D basketball game with Turkey's Turk Telekom in Ankara January 6, 2009. The basketball game was suspended on Tuesday after Turkish fans erupted in protests against the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip, Turkish media reported. A referee suspended the game and ordered the players back to the dressing room after hundreds of Turkish fans began chanting "Israel, killers!" in an Ankara sports centre, SkyTurk broadcaster reported. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY)

As much as I'm enjoying the Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance, it's a little disappointing to see how quickly it's devolving, beset by bandwagon-jumpers and johnny-come-latelys. How long, I wonder, before some clever entrepreneur comes up with the one-size-fits-all shoe expressly –and cheaply!– produced for protest purposes, neither wearability nor durability required? Can I buy ad space on one?

Wouldn't it have been great if the original shoe-tosser had been a lady reporter? And it had been a pump? Seriously, the imagery would just be better. Or, ha ha, what if she had thrown her handbag at Bush, and the above photo would show some random, like, Judith Leiber sequined squirrel sitting incongruously at mid-court. Funnier!

Anyway, wow, I'm really rambling, so right, yes, as I said in the title, the whole thing has successfully crossed the Atlantic because here's some people from a protest maybe still happening right now in New York City:

Protesters carry a picture of Mayor Michael Bloomberg with a shoe stuck in it at a rally near city hall in support of Gaza and against Mayor Michael Bloomberg's support of Israel in New York, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Hmm, so OK, you make a sign with a big face on it and then hot-glue-gun some random shoe on it. Maybe the Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance is growing a bit tiresome, after all? But... well, no, because I work the waterfront when it comes to shoe-centric news, if you know what I mean, so what's a pony to do? And how long will it last? Will shoe iconography endure in protest art for many years to come, a versatile shorthand symbol of "DO NOT LIKE" for our grandchildren and their grandchildren? Maybe the Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance is only in its infancy, far from waning, ready to embark upon a glorious Mannerist phase, decadent and over-stylized, lewd and grotesque. In other words, maybe there will be a great Fellini of the Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance! Or Pasolini! Neat!

Or am I hoping for too much? It's really just going to be a lot of shoes hot-glue-gunned onto posters, or just simply hoisted up into the air, a disappointingly minimalist gesture seen this morning in Nicaragua:

(AP Photo)

So I guess you could say I'm still interesting in the MESAR, but I pine for its missed opportunities...

...I mean, come on. All this would have been so much better if a chick had tossed a slingback in the first place.

Tsk.

Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance™ Spreads to the Philippines

Protesters display a huge shoe effigy prior to hurling it at the Israeli Embassy at Manila's financial district of Makati city on Tuesday Jan. 6, 2009 in continuing protest against Israeli attacks in Gaza. Protesters condemned both Israel and the United States for the alleged 'brutal and bloody all-out military invasion of Gaza' and urge the United Nations to sanction Israel for bombings. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)

It's barely 6AM and already a banner day for the MESAR. This event, obviously, reminds one again of Claes Oldenberg, but this coordinated absurdist street activity is unmistakably patterned more after the work of Oldenberg's cohort, Happenings conductor Allen Kaprow. And, thus, another obscure movement is revived by the crafty shoe artists.

Here they are hurling their creation:

Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance™ MEGAPOST!!

OMG, this is just totally my fave story of the year so far. The fabulous MESAR™ movement is gaining both complexity and geographical distribution. Starting with today and working backwards, let's go to Ramallah:

A Palestinian demonstrator displays a shoe on a banner showing Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, left, and Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, during a protest against Israel's military operation in Gaza, in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Monday, Jan. 5, 2009. Israeli forces pounded Gaza Strip houses, mosques and tunnels on Monday from the air, land and sea, killing at least seven children and six other civilians, as they consolidated a bruising land offensive against Palestinian militants. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

Quite nice! We've gotten used to mainly seeing contemporary inspirations upon the new shoe artists, so it's refreshing to see such a quaintly archaizing form, almost like an Early Netherlandish diptych. Ah, but our tour is just starting. Next up, Tehran, where we find this kinda Lichtenstein-meets-Rauschenberg creation:

January 5, 2009. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi (IRAN)

And next, we're on to Barcelona, where a sizable shoe art happening...um... happened yesterday. I really love the Arte Povera-like minimalism in the Spanish shoe artwork:

REUTERS/Gustau Nacarino(SPAIN)

I swear, if you just covered that whole thing in white plaster, people would think it was a real Paolini.

Here's where the whole thing gets freaky. Remember about how Bill "Papa Bear" Richardson was going to be secretary of commerce and everything until he wasn't? And they said it was because of some grand jury thingee or something? Well, the real reason is that he was photographed at a violent shoe art demonstration in Australia (Australia!) on Sunday. I hope it was worth it, Bill:

(AP Photo/Mark Baker)

Australia! The Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance has become the Global Shoe Art Renaissance, and isn't it thrilling! And the best thing about it is that the movement is so adaptable. In some far-off lands, Bosnia for instance, they've charmingly tailored shoe art to meet their own needs, as in this case where local rulers were substituted for George Bush in a rousing public loafer-toss:

(AFP/Elvis Barukcic)

And as happens when anything anywhere gets trendy, eventually the Brits will find out about it:

A demonstrator throws a shoe near the Downing Street residence of Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown, during a protest against the Israeli attacks on Gaza at Trafalgar Square in London January 3, 2009. (Luke MacGregor/Reuters)

And naturally, if it's worth doing in London, it's worth overdoing:

(Reuters)

God, so totally fun! Where will shoe art erupt next?

Condi Finally Dragged into Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance

Turks set an effigy of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on fire, with a shoe fixed to her head, as they shout slogans during protest against Israel's attacks against the Gaza Strip, in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008. Several thousands of protesters carrying Palestinian flags chanted anti-Israel and anti-U.S. slogans and called for an end of Israel's attacks against Gaza. (AP Photo/Ibrahim Usta)

I knew it was only a matter of time, but it doesn't make it any less thrilling!

And again the Middle Eastern Shoe Art Renaissance™ defies expectations. First we saw the homages to Oldenburg and Rauschenberg, then Jeff Koons, so naturally I thought the forward momentum through art history would continue. I envisioned perhaps a shoey Damien Hirst, either encrusted with diamonds or suspended in formaldehyde, or maybe a Chris Ofili tribute dotted with elephant dung. But no! They've gone back to the 1930s and found inspiration from an unlikely source: Elsa Schiaparelli's famous Shoe Hat, her wonderful collaboration with Salvador Dali (memorably referenced by Terry Gilliam in Brazil). And then, like another great modernist, Edward Steichen, they immediately grew disaffected with their creation and set it on fire.

I'm through trying to predict the future of this delightful art movement. Like the rest of you, all I can do is sit back and wait for whatever marvels lie ahead.

EDIT: Condi's praising the Bush legacy some more. A+! Two Ferragamos way up!

Sabotage

Pakistani protesters hold up shoes and caracatures of U.S. President George W. Bush during a demonstration in support of Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zeidi in Lahore, Pakistan, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2008. Dozens of protestors gathered to demand the release of Al-Zaidi, who threw his shoes at U.S. President George W. Bush during a news conference in Iraq on Sunday, Dec. 14. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

I speculated yesterday that the Middle Eastern shoe art renaissance could possibly lead to the rise of a Kuwaiti Jasper Johns or an Afghan Jim Dine. What I meant to say, of course, was that it would lead to a whole troop of Pakistani Jeff Koons (Koonses?). I regret the error.

Shoe-Inspired Mid-East Art Renaissance Continues

A Jordanian protestor holds up a picture of U.S. President George W. Bush with a shoe fixed on it, during a demonstration in support of Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zeidi in Amman, Jordan, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2008. Dozens of protestors gathered to demand the release of Al-Zaidi, who threw his shoes at U.S. President George W. Bush during a news conference in Iraq on Sunday, Dec. 14. (AP Photo/Nader Daoud)

I pointed out yesterday that the popular shoe hurling incident had unexpectedly given birth to the Turkish Claes Oldenburg. Now, as you can see above, it has also had the happy payoff of a Jordanian Robert Rauschenberg. I can't wait for the Kuwaiti Jasper Johns and the Afghan Jim Dine. Good times!

Bush Haters Worldwide Finally Have Their Unifying Symbol

A Turkish leftist holds a model of shoe as he marches to the U. S. embassy to protest against the invasion in Iraq and to express the solidarity with Iraqi journalist Muntadar al-Zeidi, in Ankara, Turkey, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2008. (AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici)

So creative! Indeed, al-Zeidi performed a valuable public service by providing pretty much the entire world with a single, potent symbol of dislike for our dreadful outgoing president. Well done! Also from yesterday's demonstration in Turkey:

(AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici)

And the offers are pouring in:

Also Friday, the head of a large West Bank family said it is willing to offer one of its eligible females as a bride for al-Zeidi. The leader, 75-year-old Ahmad Salim Judeh, said that the 500-member clan had raised $30,000 for al-Zeidi's legal defense.

Something tells me al-Zeidi isn't going to suffer much more, and then afterward... jackpot!

(Reuters)

He should be at least as celebrated as the guy who created the Obama logo. The shoe thing is really funny! I wonder if they know it could be a potent anti-Condi symbol as well? It's always all about the shoes, people, as I've been saying all along:

(Reuters)

Iraqis Stage Special Puppet Show in Honor of George 'n' Condi!

Effigies of US President George W. Bush and his Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice lie against a wall as Iraqi followers of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr get ready to take to the streets of Baghdad on October 18. (AFP/Ahmad al-Rubaye)

Oh, hey, what's this? al-Sadr is going to stage some special show in honor of Condi? Neat! That's so totally nice! I assume they're going to totally greet Pantomime George and Pantomime Condi as liberators 'n' stuff. Uh, oh! Hey, you crazy kids, keep those things away from the fire:

Oh no! They burst into flames! What could have caused such an unfortunate accident? I'm sure the people are scrambling around, looking for extinguishers. Oooooh, too late:

What's the moral of this story? I dunno. Something about fire-retardant pajamas, maybe?

But you know what? I bet that McCain/Palin supporters will be putting on superfun puppet shows just like this dedicated to Obama any day now! It's bound to be more delightful than, say, shooting a bear in the head and covering it with Obama signs. That kind of humor is just too broad for my tastes.

Um, I should probably clarify that I don't really like puppet shows like this.

Condi the Barbarian

Ossetian protesters demonstrate outside NATO headquarters in Brussels, Tuesday Aug. 19, 2008. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her NATO counterparts are reviewing relations with Moscow and are expected to curtail high level meetings and military cooperation with Russia if it does not abandon crucial positions across Georgia. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)

Wow, gender-fucktastic! I'm wavering between feeling very sick and frightened and being totally, all, you know, I wish I had thought of that! And while extreme, I guess this approach is a little more direct than, say, a nice picture of Condi knitting by the fire with a caption saying, you know, Don't get up, hon, we'll handle it. But, OMG, at least that one won't haunt my dreams!

Japan Welcomes Condi!

A protester wearing a mask of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice walks past police officers in Kyoto, western Japan, where foreign ministers from top industrialized countries open two-day meeting Thursday, June 26, 2008. (AP Photo/Shizuo Kambayashi)

So cute! So creative! So... Condilicious:

(Reuters, 06/25/08)

Burning Up for Their Serbian Love

People burn a poster of Serbian President Boris Tadic and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (R) during a protest in the northern Kosovo flashpoint town of Mitrovica May 1, 2008. The words on the poster read "I gave Kosovo to the EU".
REUTERS/Nebojsa Markovic (KOSOVO)

They're hot 4 Condi! They used a shot of Dr. Ferragamo and Tadic from a photo-op in September, 2006, so enough with holding the grudges, OK? Sheesh!

*sob* Leave Condi alone! *sob* *sob* *mascara streaking*

Any way, can you believe that as diligently as I try to keep up with Condi's mad escapades, it's still possible to fall a little behind? So here's she is yesterday working the matching armchairs with a hot Lebanese lady:

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, right, with Lebanon's Social Affairs Minister Nayla Moawad, Wednesday, April 30, 2008,at the State Department in Washington. (AP Photo/Lawrence Jackson)

Social Affairs Minister? Is Condi planning a Lebanese cotillion?

Also, how could I have missed this exquisite shot from Tuesday, a sensitive portrait of a person whose outer glamor utterly reflects every last bit of goodness within:

AFP/Getty Images

Mean-Spirited Terrorist Cartoonists Reach New Levels of Sophistication, Cuteness

Hamas militants carry a banner showing a caricature of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on a banner in the Nusseirat Refugee Camp, central Gaza Strip, Friday, April 18, 2008. The arabic on banner reads "Calm down sweetie, calm down and damn the rocket that woke you out of your sleep. " (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)