good design! i'd support it!
i hadn't seen the article you linked to, but i did catch the special that ABC ran about bob woodruff & soldiers he met while at walter reed... pretty sad commentary on the state of the v.a. hospitals!

(Reply) (Thread)

The General who was in charge was fired and replaced with a guy who believes that a rat-infested building is totally acceptible conditions.

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread) (Expand)

Maybe it would be less blinding on an army-green type of shirt?

I like the design and thought and the activism, though, well done.

(Reply) (Thread)

whoa you changed the whole thing while i was typing that.

I like this one fine too. Still thinking a green shirt might be better, although I get you're going for the blue/white wheelchair logo thing.

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread) (Expand)

You know, I don't wear t-shirts with logos or witty designs anymore because I am now old and curmudgeonly. But I would wear this. I would wear it with pride.

(Reply) (Thread)

Totally wicked

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread)

I... I think they might honestly believe people would still care about Paris Hilton if they didn't tell people to care. I'm flabberghasted.

(Reply) (Thread)

Try the blue one with only white ink.
I like both colors on the green one, but I think the blue one would look better without the red ink.

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread)

I'm the guy who thinks it might be a bad idea. Could end up unintentionally offending more people than it amuses.

(Reply) (Thread)

At least it will spark discussion, and one can say that money went to a good cause. People will always find something to be offended by. I'd rather not play it safe and compromise my own feelings for the sake of people I don't actually care for or about. But hey, we could debate this all day.

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread) (Expand)

Jeff, this is a bad idea. Anyone wearing one of these near 45% or so of the people I served with will get their ass kicked.

I get the joke, I'm not offended, but if I didn't know you I probably would be.

(Reply) (Thread)

Why is it offensive to continue supporting troops after they've been injured in battle? Is it really that bad?

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread) (Expand)

I would not like to have the top of a star up my butt.

(Reply) (Thread)

Am I seriously the only one who gets that this is not really a joke shirt? There is a difference between using humor to make a point and making a joke about people who are getting seriously fucked up and then getting fucked over by the people who put them in the situation in the first place.

(Reply) (Thread) (Expand)

No, I get it, but partialy because I know Jeff and where he is coming from. Most people wont have that perspective.

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread)

And if you've made it this far....

(Reply) (Thread) (Expand)

Jeff, I love you.

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread)

It does look a little like the guy is farting or something.

That aside, I like the design. This thread, though, is what's convinced me to wear one.

(Reply) (Thread)

wow, they went a whole week without reporting on hilton? and now they're patting themselves on the backs. it's like getting to the punchline without anyone realizing you were telling a joke.

(Reply) (Thread)

I'm not easily offended by political statements, and I usually really love all your designs, but this might be a little much for me. It's hard to articulate exactly why it feels a little inappropriate. What UncleWillie says is true, it could be easily misinterpreted as a crude joke rather than a show of support. I also think the design says something really important about what's going on, but it might be a little too flippant to put it on a shirt.

as a only-marginally-related anecdote, I'm a grad student, and there's a guy in my program who served for several years in Iraq. He was very seriously injured by a roadside bomb, and now has a prosthetic leg. He's super smart, and has a lot of well-educated criticisms of the war, but I think he'd probably kick me in the face if I wore that shirt. Some things might just be too heavy to put on a shirt? Ack, I don't know.

MOST INARTICULATE COMMENT EVER.

(Reply) (Thread)

I think the percieved offense may come from people reading this shirt an assuming that it means *all* of our troops are physically disabled/wounded. There's a lot of masculinity tied to the military, and a certain resilience. We cheer when a soldier is able to walk again thanks to prosthetics and physical therapy.

My dad was in the military and we lived on a military base for about 2 or 3 years. Men in the military might look at this shirt and think it's scary to... face their vulnerabilities.

I love the shirt. I think it's awesome. But I also know my dad and his military buddies, and these are men who can't imagine themselves in a position of weakness.

As for the "scared of everything... still vote" shirt, I would buy a bajillion of them if I had the money. Awesome.

I have the Free Trade shirt and wear it all the time!! :D

(Reply) (Thread)

i am not offended by this shirt. but i would not wear it, and i dont think it belongs on a shirt. You've hit something gold, and it deserves a higher status than tshirt fodder. tshirts have become the realm of hipster irony, prefaded logos, swirly vector shit, and obscure in-jokes. This idea belongs in the same place its inspiration came from- a propaganda style poster. i *would* put it on my wall, and stick small versions around public places tag-stylez. in that case it would probably serve better having the icon larger and the slogan smaller. But yes. two cents, put in!

(Reply) (Thread)

I really had to stare at the shirts and reread all of this to be offended. I'm still not offended. I think I have too much faith J-Ro, because I really did read them at face value, with no levels of irony, sarcasm, or sass.
I want the "I'm Afraid of Everything" shirt. I feel it's important that I have it.

(Reply) (Thread)

are there anywhere on the shirt that's going to have the link for veterns for peace? It just seems like that'd soften the blow...

It's going to take alot of guts for me to wear this shirt, because I suck at arguing or explaining under stress. That, and I don't like fists blossoming bruises all over my body.

(Reply) (Thread)

I initially read this shirt as "Support our troops (who are going to get blown the fuck up)". I showed it to my boyfriend and he read it similarly. I can see it offending people on that level. I like "support all our troops" though it takes some of the edge off of the message. I guess it depends on if you want to make nice or not? I like the idea until I think about soldiers/families of soldiers seeing it, and then I'm not so sure.

(Reply) (Thread)

I would wear it. It reminds me of my grandpa.

(Reply) (Thread)

I would buy both of these shirts.

Multiple times.

(Reply) (Thread)

I have to disagree with most of your readers. I find the shirts very obviously offensive. The shirts are making a joke about our veterans who have been paralyzed in combat. These soldiers are victims in so many ways: most of them come from disadvantaged backgrounds to start with, were brutalized in Iraq, lost their limbs and livelihood, and finally return to a country that refuses to provide adequate health care. You can't claim "We're laughing with you, not at you" about somebody losing the ability to walk for the rest of their life. If a wounded veteran saw me wearing that, I would feel immensely ashamed of myself.

(Reply) (Thread) (Expand)

So what do you find offensive about the idea of giving them support? Should the troops who are injured in battle just be ignored?

This shirt isn't MEANT to be funny, and the fact that you're trying to inject humor into it offends me.

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread) (Expand)

This is the most loaded question ever but I am asking it: Why are people so paranoid about mocking the troops / why would you get your ass kicked for wearing this? The prevailing attitude even among the loopier circles I run in seems to be that the soldiers are people doing hard and thankless jobs and they are getting shafted; nobody's calling anyone baby killers this war around. Or am I just missing that? Or does the military tend to be extremely sensitive about how its component people are perceived? I am not trying to be a prick here, I am straight up ignorant.

(Reply) (Thread) (Expand)

Maybe because the military is the most respected american institution? You know, risking their lives by serving the country.

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread) (Expand)

I don't like it. I know it's not supposed to be a joke, but I can't help but think that it could be taken as a cruel joke. A serious message deserves, well, a more serious shirt and a more toned-down theme.

Or, at the very least, there needs to be a url for the veterans for peace on the back or whatever.

I'm sorry, but I don't think I could ever buy that shirt and wear it in public.

(Reply) (Thread)

The only argument I can brook against this is: toned-down arguments are easier to ignore.

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread) (Expand)

i havnt read every reply, so this may have been said....


But maybe have it read "Support ALL our troops" would go to convey a "don't forget vets" message i think you were hitting for.

(Reply) (Thread)

It has been said, I am pretty sure, but you can say it again because I think it is a good idea that can clear up some of the ambiguity. Of course, I am a big fan of that sort of stuff, so either way it would be cool.

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread) (Expand)

I don't find it offensive because I get your point, but in my first look I assume you're applying the image on the shirt to the "traditional" image of troops, like it's saying they're handicapped or we should send handicaped people to war. I suppose if you only spend 2 seconds looking at it you'd be offended, but then again I don't spend that much time figuring out peoples shirts. I know someone already said this, but the addition of "all" would make it clear.

(Reply) (Thread)

At first sight, the message I read from the shirt was that being crippled is the destiny of troops for following cap'n wacko commander in chief orders. So yeah, to get the message through you must add the word 'all', maybe even capitalized.

(Reply) (Thread)

duh, the whole sentence is capitalized. Well, you know, I meant highlighted.

(Reply) (Parent) (Thread)