![[0505] Death To Infidels](/comics/2013-08-19-0505-death-to-infidels.png "[0505] Death To Infidels")
Have you already seen my blog post about “Posters for fans”?
Most readers now: “Huh, but Novil has never written a comic about killing kittens?!” Damn right. Or do you think I’m suicidal? I remember well what Gary Larson, the creator of The Far Side, wrote in his “The Complete Far Side” anthology:
„I remember the time I incurred the wrath of some Christian fundamentalists. (I know why, but I was at more risk from the cat lovers.”)
And let’s not forget German cartoonist Ralph Ruthe who now has to live incognito in Bhutan after publishing his infamous cat killer cartoon [in German] earlier this year!
I think it’s time to finally stand up against feline fundamentalism! Cartoonists must be allowed to make tasteless jokes about cats without having to fear for their life just as they’re allowed to make tasteless jokes about religion!
- Protester: There he is!!
- Sandra: Radical anti-abortion activists?
- Larisa: Nah.
- Protester: Death to infidels!
- Sandra: Radical converts?
- Larisa: Worse.
- Protester: Revenge for Mittens!
- Larisa: Radical cat lovers. They’re after a cartoonist who drew nasty comics about killing kittens.
- Sandra: That guy’s a goner.
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Tom & Jerry?
Quick translation of the ruthe-cartoon:
How about 101 Uses for a Dead Cat by Simon Bond. Wikipedia link. Amazon link. Yes, the author got hate mail. Or does anyone remember the Cat-A-Pult flash game where you had to use stones from a catapult to knock cute kitty cats through holes in that wall from Gladiator… or impale them on the spikes. People got death threats just for playing that!
@Novil: after you killed Tweety (and safed Sylvester from a lot of pain), you should be safe of the cat-lovers ;-).
let’s be honest, a lot of cat owners are terrible people, so this is entirely possible “but of course I should let my cat out at night to terrorise the wildlife, whyever not?”
Yet, here in the U.S,of A., one of the least controversial things you can say about a comic strip is “DEATH TO GARFIELD!”
*Returns to website and discovers comments and Novil’s text I missed before*
Wait, these people actually exist!? I thought it was just a gag! This is some Dr. Evil shit right here…
I am a person who creates highly violent cartoons of killing kittens and I find this offensive.
This is making me think of your story arc about that one squirrel killing the bobcat mother. . .
abowden wrote:
Oh, boohoo, those poor rodents that only wanted to destroy people’s gardens. Also, those poor defenseless birds that are too stupid to fly away. And let us not forget the hundreds of thousands of innocent little insects that get killed each day by cats. I pray for their souls.
@ abowden:
A lot of cat owners honestly probably don’t know the full extent of the damage a cat can cause because they only bring home 1/3 of what they kill and for many people it can just seem like the natural thing to do is to let your cats outside. I have cats and NEVER let them outside and people question it as if it was weird. A lot of people just think they HAVE to let cats out while forgetting they will kill many animals they won’t eat and can be killed by cars and wild animals.
@ Mr_Nabby:
I was about to comment about that…..good one
watch out, novil, they may start publishing comics featuring tasteless jokes about raccoons…oh wait…in a way, there’s one already…it’s called “Over The Hedge”…
“A comedian can spend an hour getting a crowd laughing at dead baby jokes and the lewd behavior of creepy sex-offenders, but the moment… The moment you joke about killing kittens or puppies, things get really ugly, really fast! And no matter how fast you run… No matter how well you can hide… No matter how far you can travel… They will find you, and you’ll be sooo ing ed!!!”
@ abowden:
Most endangered species, or even just indigenous wildlife, don’t live anywhere near civilisation. Those that do are already terrorised by the noise, pollution, and traffic of humans.
Far worse is letting your dog roam loose and night, at least cats don’t kill people.
@ Sam:
They can also be fitter, happier, and healthier. Birds and mice are far better for your cat than anything you can by in a can. Don’t even get me started on dried food.
Anon wrote:
Demonstrably false by the fact that indoor cats live longer. As odd as it may seem the canned food gives them everything they need.
Malcadon wrote:
I must ask, what was that a quote from, and what was that last part SUPPOSED to say? XD
You know, I’d have a lot less trouble with cats if they’d stop putting pawprints all over my vehicles, and trying to get in my garage when I’m working.
If I gotta keep a dog fenced or chained, why are cats allowed to run free? At least dogs have a better sense of their place…
Really, the first thing is “radical anti-abortion activists?” Praying peacefully outside abortion clinics is not “radical.” I prayed outside of Planned Parenthood in the last 40 days for life and let me tell you, there was nothing radical about it. The other side has much more of a tendency to be radical. Have you heard about the abortion activists chanting “Hail Satan” while pro-lifers prayed peacefully? Or the grandma who had her phone forcibly taken from her because she was recording an ambulance leaving an abortion clinic? Or some of the signs held up by abortion activists? And let me tell you, I am the first to call people out when they are using the pro-life identity to be hateful. But radical? No. Not enough that it justifies being the first thing mentioned, or even there at all.
This seems like perfectly reasonable behaviour.
@ Greenwood Goat:
“101 Uses For A Dead Cat” I remember reading that book way back in the 80s.
Gary Larson used to get regular threatening emails from Amnesty International any and every time he made a joke about executioners or torturers (no matter how archaic or historical it appeared). While I get where both the cartoonist and the charity are coming from, it still feels like a waste of time for the latter to harass the former.
The most complains he ever got though was for the comic “Tethercat”. Look up both the original comic and the “tethercat principle” and you’ll see why.
A minivan commercial a few years ago had the family dog doing the narrating. In the commercial the van nearly hits a cat. The first few times the advert was shown the dog is saying “Get That Cat! Get That Cat!” as the minivan is about to hit the cat. Fortunately, the ABS brakes stop the minivan in time, making the dog say “Darn those ABS brakes!” Three days after it was first aired, the dog’s lines changed to “Watch That Cat!” and “Oh good, ABS brakes!”
KILL THE CARTOONIST!!!! D:<
@ Chris:
Any well looked after outdoor cat, barring accident, will live a comparable lifespan to an indoor cat. I have two cats, brothers, and one of them usually doesn’t wander too far anyway. The other loves the outdoors soooo much he actually turns wild if you try to keep him in. I can’t imagine either of them living permanently in the house, or us having to try and keep all the doors and windows closed 24/7.
While canned food can give cats 100% dietary requirements, it can’t clean their teeth. Some of them don’t give cats a chance to chew at all, to the point of being awkward for them to eat. And dried food isn’t the solution, we weened our cats off their part dried food diet and the health and attitude improvements are night and day.
@ Mariah:
You realize that praying peaceful is NOT radical, and therefore those who do, such as yourself, are not included in the category of “radical anti-abortion activists”? Why are you getting so offended about something that isn’t even about you? It’s more about the actual radicals, who send death threats and pelt abortion clinics with baby dolls full of red paint. And they do exist. Every ideology in the world has its share of the crazies.
More on topic: The internet loves cats. Regardless of anyone’s personal feelings about it, do go and read up on some of the crazy vigilante acts people on the internet have done to anyone caught harming a cat, or even talking about it. I would never dare. Although I may occasionally joke about silly revenge on my own cat when he’s being annoying, its always blatantly clear that I would never really harm him. On purpose. Now, when he plops down where i’m walking and I step on his tail, that’s his own fault.
Yep, crazy comes in all the flavors you can imagine! If the beans had not been spilled, Sandra could have been guessing for years to come.
Please, nobody hurt me. I have nothing against beans or spilling!
OMG! A cat lover is laughing at the last panel! (That would be me.)
@ illeatyourself:
It was me.
I formatted the text wrong. The missing profanity were meant to be “beeps” bookend with those cones symbols, when I should have used “{{” instead. I also forgot to add “-Me, one drunken, bawdy night.” at the end. Sorry about that.
Yay for tasteless jokes, lest we forget the strip series of this very comic that was one long boner joke!
@ Sam:
My cat walks on a leash, and I think that’s the best thing to do to protect her from cars and other things, and to prevent her from destroying people’s yards and killing other animals : D
@ Mariah:
You may wish to remove those rose-colored glasses and pay attention to what’s going on in the world. There are just as many radicals against as for abortion.
The written word is Far more potent when the images are left to form in the reader’s mind.
For comparison, with props and credits to the respective authors. Paste at the last slash mark at your own discretion
http://sarakleeyo.webcomic.ws/comics/30/ (with pic)
http://www.spinnyverse.com/2013/07/08/07082013/ (without pic)
Waaaait a minute…
“revenge for Mittens”
guy drives a Mini Cooper…
Is that sposed to be me?
@ LoLo:
How did you teach her to do that?? Do you have to start very young?
Ah, I remember that quote, I have the entire Farside collection.
Hilarious. 🙂
Cant say I feel too sorry for the guy.
Nick/Tyrong wrote:
Hee hee hee! You do realise how that reads, don’t you?
Emotions: Making people irrational since Creation. (Or since Evolution, if you’re one of those crazies who believes the Second Law of Thermodynamics takes holidays).
I’m usually just a silent reader, but I never thought people would be chased to death because of a comic where cats are killed. Secretly I find Ralph Ruthe’s comic pretty funny, even though it’s a bit tasteless. Still had to laugh a little, though. XD
I love cats. My boyfriends has the sweetest cat, which I wouldn’t mind being in my house when we move in together someday. <3 Animal cruelty makes me sick, but there's a difference between a comic and reality … I mean, come on.
@ Sam:
People let theirs cats go outside? not here in Canada… Coyotes or stupid drivers would get them…
@ Chris:
They may live longer, but they also tend more toward blindness (possibly because blind cats don’t last long outside human care).
When I was driving a taxi, there was one lady whom we hated to give a ride to (but we were required by law because she was considered indigent).
We called her the ‘cat-woman’ because her house was over-flowing with cats (last attempt to count stopped at 200). Thankfully, the only time she wanted a ride was to take some of her cats to the free veterinarian clinic each week.
But, she always took at least 8 cats in a special coat and they NEVER left the cab ‘unsoiled’.
One day, she called and demanded I never give her a ride again. The other drivers wanted to know my secret. Let’s say, when she asked if I liked cats, I said “yes, they’re delicious.”
Mariah wrote:
I’m pro-life too, and I pray outside of abortion clinics, but that’s why she specified “radical.” Radical anything is dangerous.
@ ASP:
Really ASP? That cute kitty (I love them in Chinese food or deep fried) are not going after rodents ya schmuck! They are going after song birds, game birds (if you don’t know the difference you aren’t a real enviormentalist) rare birds, protected birds and other wild life. Most often that ‘pretty pussy’ doesn’t even eat the dang bird. When I do go hunting, obviously during hunting seasons…IF I see a feral cat i.e. any cat without a collar it’s a DEAD cat. It’s called protecting the environment one killing machine at a time and make no mistake people. That cute pussy you love petting, even though it’s happiest ripping your flesh from your arms and face, that is a killing machine that is only happy when something else is tortured to death. So, yeah…I’d be pelting those pick wielding freaks with rocks, bats, busted bottles, my trucks bumper you know, whatever is handy.
@ Valkeiper2012:
Yikes. I feel pity for this lady.
She was an OBVIOUS hoarder just from that breif description.
I hope her and those animals got some help and an intervention.
@ A Person:
That’s not my point, my point is that there is not enough radical in the pro-life movement to justify it being in the comic, let alone the go-to thing. 🙂
@ Melkior:
There are NOT ENOUGH up-votes in the world to express my love for the last part of this comment. XDDD
The other side is far more violent, and wile some may throw paint at a clinic, the other side will throw jars of piss and such, that happened just recently. Also a group of gays beat up a guy holding a sign saying God loves you (or something like that, basicly not the God hates gays sign like the wesbroo assholes) and they got out of jail that night despite sending the guy to the hospital.
@ Melkior:
Considering the Creation includes some holidays for Second Law of Thermodynamics obviously, I’m not sure what you wanted to say.