Pages

Saturday, August 30, 2008

Georgia-Russia War in Cartoon Maps

The Russia-Georgia War has finally come into the realm of cartoon maps. These maps do not show spatial accuracy, not but a long shot, instead are meant to portray the feelings of the cartographer. Several new cartoon maps are interesting in what they portray.

Pro-Georgia


This map comes from Michael J. Totten's website. It shows Russia as a vampire stealing Abkhazia and South Ossetia from Georgia. The creature has the Nazi SS symbology equating Russia to Hitler's regime. The vampire matches Russia as a Eurasian regime, close to human (Europe) but different in a negative way (Eurasian culture)


The second map displays Putin's hipness with his toplessness and rhyming text while equating his regime to the Soviet Union.

Pro-Russia


This odd map going in chain e-mails shows the Russian bear fighting American and Israeli intervention in Georgia. The map does not shy away from Russia's militant tendencies showing them as a powerful (good) thing. The odd thing is that once the war started Israel stopped military ties to Georgia in a surprising pro-Russia move. The likely reason for the Jewish symbology on planes and in the "Georgia" name is standard, old Russian anti-semitism.

No comments: