We have met the enemy…
Anyone fortunate enough to be able to remember Walt Kelly’s Pogo Possum cartoons will know this quote well:
We have met the enemy, and he is us.
The history of the quote is pretty cool. It was first used on an Earth Day poster in 1970. Below are two versions of the original poster. I couldn’t find a better graphic of it online, but I think, with a little work, it could be used on websites, protest signs, etc.
Be careful, because the quote is a double-edged sword ( a tool Kelly was great at using.)
Sometimes we are our own enemies. And I don’t me “we” as in “them.” Sometimes the infighting within our ranks holds us back.
I’m not going to harp on this, because those who can, already know what I mean, and those who don’t know will never be convinced by facts or logic.
So let’s work on fighting “them” instead.
It might be nice to use these posters on Earth Day again, although I’m sure people do that every year.
The first two are versions of the 1970 Earth Day Poster.
Pogo 1970 Earth Day Poster
Pogo 1970 Earth Day Poster
This one is from the 1971 Earth Day poster:
Pogo 1971 Earth Day poster
My take on the issue:
We have met the enemy, and he is us.
Want to know more about Pogo, the quotation, and the poster? Check out these sites:
http://www.igopogo.com/final_authority.htm ZEROING IN ON THOSE POLLUTERS: WE HAVE MET THE ENEMY AND HE IS US, By Walt Kelly.
http://www.igopogo.com/we_have_met.htm From the foreword to The Pogo Papers, Copyright 1952-53
5 responses so far
This is great to know, given the aproaching 40th aniversary of Earth Day! You should publicize the fact that the poster was created by Kelly for the first earth day.
do you know where i can buy this poster
Jerry,
I don’t know where you can get the original. If you want my version, right click on it and download it to your computer and print it out. If you want a higher resolution version of it, e-mail me from the contact tab on this blog, and I’ll e-mail you the hi-res file.
Keep fighting the good fight,
Brian
Heather,
I don’t have one. I got the image for this post off of google images. It was a low-res .jpg file. Sorry I can’t help you.
I actually have a signed print of the 1971 Earth Day strip. It’s framed. Probably from the 1980′s. If anyone wants it, I’m willing to sell it. It says print 279/750, and is signed by Selby Kelly (his wife). The frame is ugly and would be a nightmare to ship. I would rather break it down and ship it in a tube. Let me know!I can send you pics and dimensions. (=
jeremycook79@yahoo