Red, White and Fuzzy

Spiegelman's comics allude to a 'blind' America in a number of different panels. On page 5, for example, the Ostrich Party rules while its citizenry is stuck with their heads in the ground. In the upper right of Page 7, Spiegelman makes a poignant comment about an America blinded by patriotism. The panel reads, “I should feel safer under here, but – Damn it – I can’t see a thing!” and depicts a person hiding under a flag. The caption beneath it says, “Homeland Security Advisory: Red, White and Blue Alert! Virtual Certitude of Terrorist Attack.” Spiegelman argues that, under the guise of patriotism, the US made a lot of shortsighted or poorly reasoned decisions. The nearly unanimous vote to invade Iraq and the United States Patriot Act are two examples of such behavior. When he goes on to a show a larger panel of an anti-war protest, one protestor is holding a sign that says, “If you aren’t outraged, you aren’t paying attention!” Americans, particularly the population of ‘Red America’ – the 47.9% of America that voted for George W. Bush – does not feel protected by the flag, but has been distracted by it enough to keep from being outraged.