"Deep down, we are afraid we may never be satisfied. An expanding archive of branded myths and icons feeds this fear."

For more on Velema's critique of consumerist iconography, visit DesignerGasMasks.com.

Now, some of you may think that using a gasmask to symbolize a connection between commodified Christianity and the culture of fear is a bit of a stretch. But then you probably haven't seen the logo of the alt Christian rock band Dumbkat, depicted below on a button from its (sold out!) gasmask-branded merch:

How the band explains its logo:

The Guy in the Gas Mask represents the fight of what is around us. . . The fight of what we cant see. . . The fight of everything crashing down all around us. . . The fight from within ourselves. . . It is important to recognize the problems in our lives, and seek a way to fix them. So we thought that this was the perfect way to resemble this fight.