About the Tap27 cartoon archives

Welcome to Tap27

Trauma and stress are daily reality for people on the front lines — in the military, law enforcement, fire services, and emergency medicine. For many, dark humour isn't a lapse in judgment; it's a necessary coping mechanism, a defence against the "black dog" of depression, and a bridge back to reality, sanity, and everyday values.

There's often trouble when this therapeutic humour surfaces and outside observers can rush to take offence. Here's a truth: offence is taken, not given. It lives entirely in the mind of the beholder, the audience: you.

Demanding that service personnel censor their survival instincts to accommodate outside sensibilities isn't only misguided — it’s an act of passive aggression. Weaponizing offence isolates veterans and first responders, severing the vital social connections they need to heal and actively compounding their stress.

Why Cartoons?

Cartoons create a healthy distance. They transform raw, taboo realities into defensible art. They offer a mirror rather than a target. A single panel invites you to pause, laugh, or reflect on why a joke makes you uncomfortable, much like the observational edge of modern stand-up comedy.

As a cartoonist, this platform is an outlet for the messy, dark, and resilient reality of service life. If a Tap27 toon offends you, use that moment to look inward and ask yourself why. And if you still find yourself searching for a reason to be outraged? Consider this your polite, emphatic invitation to feck right off to a different corner of the internet.

For everyone else: welcome, enjoy the moment, and laugh off the stress while you still can.