SAVE A TAP

[GoodTaste]

Does "save a tap slap a jap" refer to "save your energy and use it to slap a Japanese"?

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SAVE A TAP
SLAP A JAP

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f2/Save_A_Tap._Slap_A_Jap^_-_NARA_-_533908.jpg

-Oliver Stone's Untold History of the United States

 

[Skrej]

My only guess is that it could be a reference to 'tap' as slang for a gunshot, frequently used in the context of 'a double tap' - a quick one-two shot used to ensure fatality. So perhaps it's some kind of reference to conserving bullets, and instead physically striking your opponent?

That of course wouldn't make much practical sense in terms of warfare, but I'm guessing they were stretching for anything that rhymed with the slur 'Jap'.

Edit: And along those lines, it could also convey a sense that it's more psychologically rewarding to physically strike your enemy than merely shoot him from a distance. That would also draw on elements of bravery, etc., perhaps as an attempt to encourage volunteerism, or install a sense of bravado in the corps.

Again, more of a rhyming option rather than a sound strategic option.

Edit #2: I also just noticed the fine print at the bottom states that it was produced by an electric company. There was a large push for conservation and rationing in the US during WW II, and a 'tap' is a component of an electrical transformer. so perhaps it was actually one of the many conservation slogans of the period.

 

[GoodTaste]

Does "the bottom states" refer to the states that are at the bottom of the List of U.S. states by income?