Alert But Not Alarmed by Shaun Tan

This illustration from 'Tales from Outer Suburbia' for the story of the same title about a community program allowing suburban civilians to store and maintain intercontinental missiles in their own backyards and the ways that good-hearted suburbanites find ways to subvert their fear. It was inspired by a conversation with a Lebanese taxi driver who described the neighbourhood recycling an unexploded missile in Beirut and also the Howard government's distribution of questionable 'War on Terror' pamphlets using the phrase 'Be Alert But Not Alarmed' warning of unspecified ambiguous threats to the 'Australian way of life'. The illustration has been widely exhibited internationally and the story frequently referenced by primary and high school educators.