O.K., Luann (the comix) has gotten ickily racy. Near my personal boycott.

[UTUSN]

Yes, I exert personal boycotts of comic strips. The full ramifications of personal boycotts of comic strips are: Reading the funnies is a solitary activity, such that boycotting is inherently futile--no impact on the artist, the newspaper, nobody else. However, skipping past certain strips *does* resolve whatever frustration, anxiety, unpleasantness those strips were inducing.

Here are my benchmarks for boycotting:

1) All "soap opera" type comix are goners.

2) Obviously, the politically wingnut, lame ones: Family Circus. Mallard the Duck.

3) Some "classic" franchises, re-runs, where the original artist has died: Peanuts. However, certain others have flourished or maintained the quality: Shoe; Blondie. B.C. seems to have ditched the late Johnny HART's Fundie-ism and gotten sharper and more Lib.

4) Some that are just ANNOYING: Sally Forth. For Better or for Worse. Frazz is close to getting there.

Now, I've been putting up with Luann for, lo, these many years. But the endless swings from one crush to another (both for her and brother Brad's girlfriend) are getting old and anxiety-producing.

But this week was SHOCKING. Apparently Luann has seen Gunther's thing-a-ma-jig and the "symbolism" suggests she is impressed.

All I know is that ever since I started skipping For Better or for Worse, my downer level diminished considerably in finishing the morning paper and my day was off to a better start. Maybe it's time for Luann to go.

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