So we started this series of Occupy Wall Street related comix with the goal of achieving a higher level of moderate-ness in word and image than we had anytime elsewhere achieved. But now, rolling onto the seventh comic in our intended 10 comic run of Occupy comix, I feel a little bit of an antagonizing tone creeping in. Part of it is the subject matter, after months of hearing reports of cops pepper spraying peaceful protesters, women, grandmothers, students; one is bound to lose a little bit of patience with law enforcement. Part of it is probably just our underground cartooning upbringing pushing its way back out. But whatever, we only have three more comix to go to fulfill our pledge, and then we might just get back to cartooning on our own terms… That, and most of those piggie eyed violence junkies deserve a good swift poke in the eye.

Bonus fun fact, Mikey was pushing for me to draw the halo above the cop in the last panel as a donut, but I was already thinking the last panel was pretty harsh. Eh, maybe a missed opportunity there.

Oh yeah, this comic was written by Audrey, who drew the first and 5th panels, Mikey drew the 2nd and 3rd panels, Rio drew the 4th and 8th panels, “Kate Silver” drew the 6th panel, and Antonio drew the 7th one.

Mikey: This minicomic was a bit crabby, but sometimes there’s no way around that.  There’s been a lot in the news about police using excessive force on protesters, and at least in my mind there’s the police related fatalities by bart police, and SF and Oakland police that happened last year.  The focus on this comic was mainly about police over-use of pepper spray and tazers.  I think that it is to some degree a nature of the beast type of thing, absolute power corrupts absolutely.  If you have police, there will be abuse of power and corruption, but how do we minimize those things, or are we just stuck with things being the way they are?

Is it possible to have a civilized society without police?

I leave you with this William Godwin quote(I have no idea who this guy is, but I like the cut of his gib): “(force)…is contrary to the nature of the intellect, which cannot but be improved by conviction and persuasion…if he who employs coercion against me could mold me to his purposes by argument, no doubt, he would…He pretends to punish me because his argument is strong; but he really punishes me because he is weak.”