Bloom County by Berkeley Breathed for August 06, 2009

Are we SURE this cartoon is from the mid-1980s and not 2007?

If Opus is “in view,” then the wonderful, wise, compassionate agents of the FBI should realize he’s a penguin, no?

You’re asking for a lot of intelligence from an “intelligence organization”

It’s on page 46 of “Toons for our Times,” ISBN 0-316-10709-3, copyright 1984. If they stay in order, tomorrow’s strip has Yaz wearing a Styx t-shirt complaining to Opus on the weirdness of her name.

They seem to have forgotten him mentioning that he’s 2 1/2 feet tall.

little persons are not on the list of terrorist groups (the last i heard). as for asking for intelligence from intelligence organizations, i think it’s a bit much to ask (unless you’re asking mrs. virgil (emily) pollifax - who is a fictional character anyway)

Hi, fellow Emily Pollifax fan!

I guess incompetence in survelliance is kosher too. The one thing you don’t tell your target is that he’s being watched, unless you’re just trying to play mind games with him.

I am also an Emily fan! Feisty lady!! Rakkav is spot on as far as letting the target know he’s being watched. Sounds more like gang behaviour!

I have a friend over here who is a member of the Communist party and once we got talking about the surveillance thing, so I asked him if I’d ever be put under surveillance. He said “no, you’re too boring.” Ha ha ha, who knew that being as interesting as a lump of coal and as dangerous as a daisy could be such an advantage?

No, he wasn’t being rude, I’m just very harmless.

The White House just put out a notice that anyone receiving emails or seeing information in opposition to Obamacare - they call it “fishy disinformation - should contact the President’s Office at a certain specific email. Evidently, if you’re caught invoking your First Amendment right to free speech, Nancy Pelosi and Barny Frank will take you into custody and water board you or something. And remember, Nancy knows how to water board people because she really was briefed.

I feel your frustration Opus!

Ummmmmm, the FBI isn’t an “intelligence” organization. It’s quite possible the FBI isn’t an “intelligent” organization, either.

It is, however, an “investigation” bureau, and you have to admit that taken out of context, Opus’ statement might be rather worth investigating. (Maybe not by the FBI, though.)

Enough bashing of the FBI already! Just because we don’t hear about everything they do, doesn’t mean they don’t do their jobs! The better they are at their jobs, the less we hear. We only hear about the mistakes they make, not all the good they do. Give them a break!

The more things change, the more things stay the same.

Phillipmorris, you’re right. That is because people don’t really change and they continue to make the same stupid mistakes over and over and over again.

Looking boring & harmless is a subversive’s best disguise.

Pinkdryad: Yep. Speaking as somebody who once got picked up by her (very long) hair by a cop in the late 60s, I am nevertheless all in favor of cops, feds, judges, prosecutors (and defenders) – the official Good Guys, in short. It is just good, responsible citizenship to hold them all to the highest standards; but I wouldn’t want to live in a society that lacked them.

Berke Breathed was incredibly prophetic.

jrbj: That, by the way, is a paraphrase of Einstein’s definition of insanity.