The year in cartoons: Security certifications, insourcing and light bulb procurements

I find it interesting that, as a cartoonist who attempts to make a statement in a singular, efficient image, I tend to write way too much in my blog posts for FCW.com. Maybe I'm finding a release for all the suppressed thoughts I gather when thinking about the cartoons. Maybe -- also -- that is why the editor asked me to pick some of my favorite cartoons from 2010 but to include only a sentence or two with each one; he knows enough to put the reins on.

This is harder than it sounds for two reasons. On the one hand, there’s my previously mentioned tendency to go on and on. On the other hand, the better cartoons and images speak for themselves, making the descriptions either redundant or lessening some of the potency of the cartoons themselves. So I end up wanting to say a lot when few words are necessary to begin with.

Nevertheless, I'll take a stab at it. I resolve to do a better job at self-editing in 2011 (either that or to spend less time on YouTube, I forget which).

A proposal to require more people to get security certification ignited a debate about whether certification training programs have any resemblance to real-life demands.

USA.gov asked for suggestions to improve its website. Unfortunately, some of the suggestions needed improvement.

FCW.com (OK, I) ran a contest asking for the punch line to the question "how many feds does it take to change a light bulb?"

In recruiting top talent for federal agencies, sometimes the biggest obstacle is the current employees.

The Obama administration’s insourcing initiative was driven, in part, by a concern that contractors are too closely involved in work that is "inherently governmental." (On a side note, I wish I had drawn this better. A stronger drawing would have made the cartoon more powerful.)

An Army Reserve colonel was fired after writing a column criticizing the military's reliance on PowerPoint.

In the latest skirmish in the never-ending war between feds and contractors, DOD recently began enforcing rules requiring contractors to identify themselves in all communications.

One of the most commented-upon stories for FCW in 2010 was "Why agencies can't attract top talent?"