Justice League of America Vol. 1 (1960-1987) #66

Plot

During a JLA meeting at the Secret Sanctuary, tensions begin to rise. Batman, Green Arrow, and the Atom engage in casual "shop talk" while Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern grow impatient. When Snapper Carr mentions a recent burglary at Happy Harbor College—the theft of Professor Howard Aiken's "Morale Machine"—the League splits into two factions. The three less-powerful members believe the theft warrants investigation, while the three mightier heroes dismiss it as trivial. After exchanging sharp words and insults, the group divides: Batman, Green Arrow, the Atom, and Snapper Carr leave to investigate the missing machine, while Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern remain behind

Unbeknownst to the League, the Morale Machine has been stolen by Generalissimo Demmy Gog, a comical dictator of the tiny European nation of Offalia. Gog and his rag-tag "Dirty Half-Dozen" army plan to use the device to conquer North America. The machine detects and manipulates the brain's "morale" impulses, creating excess morale in some people and a deficit in others

The split teams soon face the consequences of the device's effects. On the Happy Harbor College campus, Batman's group falls into Gog's traps as a boost of morale turns ordinary students and football players into formidable opponents who nearly defeat the heroes. Meanwhile, back at the Sanctuary, a profound apathy settles over Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern. Their morale drained, they lose all interest in using their powers, Green Lantern's ring stops glowing, and the three mightiest heroes of Earth are reduced to hitchhiking to the college

When both teams finally converge, they fall into Gog's death-trap. The villain gloats about his foolproof plan while the heroes are glued in place. Only the Atom, using his immense willpower, manages to rally himself, escape his bonds, and switch off the Morale Machine. With the device deactivated, the League's full powers return. They easily defeat Gog's half-dozen followers, and Gog himself—now filled with an excess of morale—foolishly attempts to single-handedly overcome Superman, with predictable results. Their differences of opinion resolved, the JLA once again stands united