TOW 15

This political cartoon depicts a man packed as if he is ready to go on vacation with a woman, presumably his wife, inquiring if he was really going to Colorado to ski.  Some characteristics of the man include him wearing a Grateful Dead shirt and carrying snack foods, things that are synonymous with marijuana smokers.  The joke is meant to have the reader infer that the man is not really going to ski but is instead going because of the legality of marijuana in Colorado.  The reason skiing is brought up is because that is really the only draw to Colorado.  If someone were to say they were going to Florida or California the assumption would be that you were going for the beach.  If they were to say New York the assumption would be to visit the city.  For Colorado the normal assumption is that people are going to ski.  The joke is now there is another reason to go to Colorado and that “skiing” may really just be an excuse for something else.  Jeff Koterba, a prominent cartoonist who drawls about 6 a week for the Omaha World-News, drew this cartoon as a way of poking fun at the fact that the legalization of marijuana may bring about other changes in Colorado inadvertently.  Although there was the obvious source of revenue to the state through the taxation of the controlled substance a newer emerging result is higher likelihood for people to travel to Colorado.  It is even creating a mini-industry for marijuana minded tourists.  This joke is seen through his humor and one joke, which comments on a much bigger topic.  His brazenness in his image also helps his cause.  Having the man be so obviously following pot smoker stereotypes it is easy to make the assumption that he is not going to ski and makes the cartoon funny.