1942.11.09 "As strong as the weakest link" by Paul R Carmack

1942.11.09 “As strong as the weakest link”
by Paul R Carmack (1895-1977)
11 x 15 in., crayon and ink on board
Coppola Collection

Paul Carmack was a staff cartoonist for the Christian Science Monitor.

Operation Torch - the Allied landings in North Africa (Morocco and Algeria) on November 8 open a new front in the Mediterranean, directly threatening Axis control from the south.

The Atlantic/North Sea flank is strong, continuous, and fortified. Hitler in command. Western Europe bristling with defenses. The Mediterranean flank is fragmented, makeshift, porous, and Italy as the weak point. A “child’s popgun” and dejected stance of Benito Mussolini tell us that Italy is not just weaker, it is unreliable and inadequate. 

Hitler’s downward glance? The pressing problem is not the enemy, it’s your partner.