It’s Iimi! Whataboutism

Sean thinks Nancy Pelosi was right when she responded to Archbishop Cordileone by saying he should also be focusing on Catholics who support the death penalty. Iimi, on the other hand, recognizes this is nothing more than “whataboutism.”

Preliminary Notes: While I’m sure some will see this as a “political” comic, the point is that the attacks on Archbishop Cordileone are a political backlash to his actions. Abortion is not a political issue. It is a moral issue that has been politicized. 

It’s Iimi! At The Point of Breaking!

Krysta is struggling with what to do about Daryl constantly warring with Iimi. A discussion with Kismetta after witnessing an argument over Archbishop Cordileone’s response to Nancy Pelosi makes her realize how those outside the Church view the scandal of dissent and disrespect. Realizing she and Daryl are on opposite sides, she resolves to talk with him. But what will happen when she does?

(While the cover says 5/25, I decided to push it forward to today because of the escalating attacks)

Archbishop Cordileone’s statement to Pelosi and his statement to the faithful can be seen at these links:
 https://www.sfarchdiocese.org/notification-to-the-speaker-of-the-house-of-representatives-of-the-united-states-congress-nancy-pelosi/

 https://sfarchdiocese.org/letter-to-the-faithful-on-the-notification-sent-to-speaker-nancy-pelosi/

It’s Iimi! They Drew First Blood

The political divide, especially over the defense of life has gotten to the point where some assume there can be no justification for the pro-life position. Pro-lifers can find themselves attacked without warning and accused of things they simply do not hold. Meanwhile, those who think abortion is a “right” often make unjust attacks and then get defensive when pro-lifers respond, forgetting that… They Drew First Blood.

Preliminary Notes: A lot of notes today.

In another case of the news moving faster than I can create these comics: as I was finalizing it, news hit of Oklahoma banning abortion from conception. So, it was only mentioned in passing in this comic. But, Iimi would say, “One down, 49 to go.”

Also, the news of the Archbishop of San Francisco applying canon 915 to Nancy Pelosi came out after the comic was finalized. (https://www.politico.com/f/?id=00000180-e2f4-d5d6-a1d4-fef5a9cc0000 ) I would (and if it had been known to me before the comic was uploaded, Iimi would) certainly pray that this action shows her how serious it is. Neither I in real life nor Iimi in comic would wish her damnation. 

This comic doesn’t exist in a vacuum, making ipse dixit statements. It would help to review earlier comics (Moral Monsters lays out the four squares on what it means if the four most common positions on abortion are true). Or, better yet, see Peter Kreeft’s The Unaborted Socrates. 

For people new to this comic: No, Principal Julius Barrett wasn’t named for Amy Coney Barrett. He was named because I was playing Final Fantasy VII at the time when I needed a name.

One of the tricky things about doing a Rambo-themed send-up for the title and cover was balance. It was originally going to be called Nothing is Over! I rejected that because I figured there would be dangers of people thinking I was making light of the suffering real-life veterans with PTSD struggled with. On the other side, that theme would need to deal with Iimi’s Aspergers trauma in a way that would diminish the focus on defense of the pro-life cause. On the cover, I decided it was best to not give Iimi any Rambo-style firearms out of concern this would be unintentionally linked to school shootings or any abortion related violence (none so far) that might arise. Perhaps this was all overthinking, but that was my approach. You may spot a few “Easter eggs”, however.

It’s Iimi! Busted!

It was bound to happen. Kismetta lacked prudence when she asked her questions and ended up offending everyone at the mosque with her aggressive tone. When the Mosque calls to tell her mother about her behavior, how will Kismetta respond to being BUSTED?

Preliminary Notes: While the arguments presented here are ones that I have seen Muslims use online, I don’t want to have cartoonish villains as foils for the main characters. So, in portraying the annoyed reactions to Kismetta’s questions, I asked myself how those attending a Catholic youth group might respond to a Catholic youth asking those kinds of questions in a similar tone. 

Zara (Bahrudin’s second wife probably needs her name explained for Western readers. The naming conventions of the UAE would be her given name (Zara) + bint (daughter of) her father’s name (Raziq) + ibn (son of) her grandfather’s name (Daaood) + her family name (Aslam). So formally we’d have “Zara bint Raziq ibn Daaood Aslam.” However, except for formal documents, the “ibn Daaood” and often the “bint Raziq” would be dropped. I’m told that the practice for Muslim women in the Middle East is to keep their own family name and not change it to their husband’s. So, in America, she might simply be known as “Zara Aslam.” Sumeja, marrying Bahrudin in the United States, followed the American custom and does use her husband’s last name. Kismetta is simply Kismetta Dhumzur from the American convention, though in the UAE she might be formally introduced as “Kismetta bint Bahrudin Dhumzur.”

One unexpected thing that happened during the creation of this comic was the death of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler (nominally since his stroke) of the UAE. The country is currently undergoing 40 days of mourning. I found this out after I completed the comic on 5/13/22. I had to re-edit the dialogue on the last two pages to reflect this change.

It’s Iimi! Kashira, Kashira? A Tale of Rash Judgment

On a typical day, a typical conversation occurs. The typical misinterpretation happens. The rumor is completely wrong, but everyone believes it. That’s rash judgment.

Post Comic Notes: かしら、かしら、 ご存じ かしら？ (Kashira, kashira, gozonji kashira?) is from the anime Revolutionary Girl Utena, in which some silhouetted characters gossip about the school's events.