The guns on this new P-38 are rusty and simply don't rate
Aircraft-armament cartoon for ground crews in the Joe Dope series: a caricatured armourer swings from a rusty cannon on a P-38 fighter while the pilot shakes a fist and Japanese aircraft attack in the sky. The verse blames Joe Dope's failure to check, a fear-appeal built on a late-delivery consequence, with name-calling in the character's name.
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1945
- Period
- Second World War
- Made by
- Ordnance Department, U.S. Army; artist Will Eisner
- Region
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- Military
- Regime
- Roosevelt Administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Audience
- Own forces
- Purpose
- Warn or inform
- Theme
- War and the military
- Event
- World War II
- Regime
- Roosevelt administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Posters, retrieved October 4, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (U.S. government work)
Ordnance Department, U.S. Army. National Archives and Records Administration, RG 44, 44-PA-1143NN (NAID 514712).
Text on the object
The guns on this new '-38 Are rusty and simply don't rate For Joe Dope who had slipped Didn't check, they were shipped To a base ... too useless, too late [signature: CWO Will Eisner, ORDNANCE, with further words [illegible]] [imprint:] U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1945-O-631774
