Credit: Columbia Missourian / Cagle.com via Getty Images
Source: Cagle Cartoons
Byline: John Darkow
Byline Title: Editorial Cartoonist
Create Date: 20251022
Headline: US Economy Heads Wrong Way In Decline And Dead End
Category: A
Caption: COLUMBIA, MO - OCTOBER 22: In this satirical editorial cartoon titled "US Headed In Wrong Direction" by John Darkow, published by Columbia Missourian via Cagle Cartoons, an anthropomorphized pickup truck labeled "USA" is depicted speeding down a road toward multiple warning signs including "Wrong Way," "Do Not Enter," "Road Closed Ahead," "Underpass Clearance Decline," "Steep Decline," and "Dead End," with a speech bubble from the truck saying, "We Might Be Going In the Wrong Direction, But We're Making Good Time!" The cartoon addresses the topic of public opinion surveys on the declining state of the US economy, race relations, global standing, and democracy, with the cartoonist conveying that despite clear signs of trouble and a trajectory toward crisis or failure, American leadership or society is stubbornly accelerating in the wrong direction without course correction, satirizing denial or misguided optimism amid worsening conditions. (Illustration by John Darkow / Columbia Missourian / Cagle Cartoons via Getty Images)
Supplemental Categories: POL FIN HUM LIF DIS ECO
Copyright: Copyright - 2025 John Darkow
City: Columbia
State: MO
Country/Country Code: USA / United States
Keywords/Tags: Political Cartoons, Editorial Cartoon, Cagle Cartoons, John Darkow, Columbia Missourian, US Economy, Wrong Way, Do Not Enter, Road Closed Ahead, Steep Decline, Dead End, Pickup Truck, USA Truck, Survey, Race Relations, Global Standing, Democracy, Satirical Illustration, Economic Decline