Those Poor, Poor Billionaires
August 31st, 2026 Barry Posted in Economic cartoons | No Comments »
TRANSCRIPT OF CARTOON
This cartoon has four panels. The first three show a wealthy, middle-aged couple in their luxurious living room with their poodle. I’ll call them MAN and WOMAN.
PANEL 1
The man leaps up from the sofa, staring with horror at his phone. The woman, sitting beside him, looks concerned.
MAN: Oh my God!! How could they do this?
WOMAN: What? What’s happened?
PANEL 2
A close-up of the anguished man holding his phone toward us. The phone displays a news page with the giant headline “NEW TAX.”
MAN: They’ve passed a new tax on billionaires!
PANEL 3
Back in the living room, the man sits hunched forward with his face in his hands. The woman throws her arms into the air, wailing.
MAN: Why are they doing this to us?
WOMAN: Because billionaires are the only minority it’s still acceptable to pick on! They won’t stop until we’re absolutely crushed!
PANEL 4
A large caption says “TWO YEARS LATER.”
The Woman from the first three panels is with a friend, relaxing in swimsuits on cushioned lounge chairs on a yacht, beside a swimming pool. A waiter approaches with a tray.
FRIEND: So how did that “billionaire tax” turn out for you two?
WOMAN: Devastating! We still haven’t recovered.
WAITER: Hors d’oeuvre?
CHICKEN FAT WATCH
“Chicken fat” is old-fashioned cartoonists’ slang for little unimportant but hopefully fun details in the art.
Panel 1: The painting on the wall is American Gothic, but with Statler and Waldorf from The Muppet Show. The coffee-table books are titled “RICH: YOU DESERVE IT!,” “POOR: THEY DESERVE ZIP!” and “MIDDLE CLASS: WHO CARES?” A poodle naps beside the couple, while a Koons balloon-dog sculpture is on the coffee table. Outside the window, a giant hand atop a building flashes a peace sign.
Panel 2: Other stories on the phone include “ABE VIGODA FOUND ALIVE,” “SHOCKER! RICH IDIOT BUYS $40,000 PHONE!” and (in a partially cropped off thumbnail) “CROP truncate shorten cut off.” The “$40,000 phone” image shows the same phone the man is holding up —and even the same hand. (And yes, that phone — the “Agent Q Himalaya Alligator Gold & Diamond” — is real.)
Panel 3: The coffee-table books now refer to Abbott and Costello’s “Who’s on First?” routine: “WHO — FIRST,” “WHAT — SECOND” and “DON’T CARE — SHORTSTOP.” A framed photo of the Monopoly Man sits on the end table. A rat in a tux holds a cocktail. The poodle pees on the Koons sculpture.
Panel 4: The poodle wears sunglasses and reads a magazine. The Loch Ness Monster (but with a duck head) swims in the ocean. The rat from panel 3, wearing swim trunks, is doing the back float in the pool.
