explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

204: America

2021-04-02T18:50:33Z

Fyndegil: /* Explanation */ more precise language

{{comic
| number =204
| date =January 1, 2007
| title =America
| image =america.png
| titletext =The younger folk in the audience think this is a joke.
}}

==Explanation==
On April 20, 1979, U.S. President {{w|Jimmy Carter}} was allegedly "{{w|Jimmy_Carter_rabbit_incident|attacked by a giant swimming rabbit}}" while solo-fishing on a boat in his hometown. The reality is a little more nuanced: According to Carter, the rabbit had actually been chased into the water by some hounds and swam near his boat. Carter splashed some water on it to compel the rabbit not to come any closer.

Nevertheless, the newspapers ate it up, reveling in the ridiculous notion that anyone would feel threatened by a rabbit (considered by some to be small, harmless herbivores{{Citation needed}}), with respected paper ''{{w|The Washington Post}}'' putting the story "President Attacked by Rabbit" on the front page. Since the White House refused to release the photograph, the paper created a cartoon parody of the rabbit, calling it PAWS, in reference to the blockbuster film ''{{w|Jaws (film)|JAWS}},'' about a killer shark. Carter's opponents used it as fodder for their arguments that Carter's presidency was weak and ineffectual, and basically, the whole thing was blown way out of proportion by the American media, as so often happens with goofy events such as this.

This comic treats the Killer Rabbit attack as a dark day for the United States and uses the phrase "America Must Never Forget," which usually applies to days like the {{w|Attack on Pearl Harbor|Pearl Harbor attack}} or {{w|September 11 attacks|9/11}}. It essentially claims that, for the entire history of the United States (which starts with the signing of the {{w|United States Declaration of Independence|Declaration of Independence}}), it is the only event worth remembering.

The rabbit incident is also referenced in [[1688: Map Age Guide]] and in [[2086: History Department]].

The title text is an assumption that the event has not been remembered in the way the comic jokes that it should have been, and as a result, younger readers will think he is kidding when he says Carter was attacked by a rabbit.

==Transcript==
:[A timeline with only three ticks with years noted. Each tick is labeled with a line going to the tick. The second tick is much closer to the last on the right and has its year written below the line. The other two have it above the line and vice versa with the labels. Below in the middle there is a caption.]
:1776
::Declaration of independence
:1979
::Jimmy Carter attacked by giant swimming rabbit.
:2007
::Present day

:[Caption:]
:America must never forget.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Timelines]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Comics featuring politicians]] 
[[Category:Animals]]

Talk:2419: Hug Count

2021-02-26T19:32:03Z

Fyndegil:

I don't know how this makes me feel. I just don't hug. Maybe a couple of female relatives as I leave the traditional Christmas gathering (that didn't happen in 2020) because ''they'' expect it of me. But some societies (I'll namecheck the Italians, but there are many others) would possibly break those totals in a day (pre-Covid) just by going to the market-place and sealing deals with the local tradespeople. So my chart dipped drastically ast year, but not so much by absolute count. (No, not looking for sympathy, or virtual hugs, just saying...) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.77.126|141.101.77.126]] 23:33, 1 February 2021 (UTC)

What happened in 2007? Seems like a sizeable spike. Being in a reception line at a wedding, for instance? [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.211|173.245.54.211]] 23:43, 1 February 2021 (UTC)

No citation. Is this Randall's personal chart, do you figure? [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 00:18, 2 February 2021 (UTC)
:The title text would certainly suggest so. [[User:Fyndegil|Fyndegil]] ([[User talk:Fyndegil|talk]]) 19:32, 26 February 2021 (UTC)

2007 was the year of the xkcd meetup, which involved a lot of hugs, some of which may have involved Randall. Randall also moved from Virginia to Massachusetts that year, which may have resulted in separate small groups of people hugged in the same year. (Both of these facts are mentioned in his blog post from that October 1st.) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.56|108.162.219.56]] 01:35, 2 February 2021 (UTC)

The {{w|Free Hugs Campaign}} peaked between 2006 and 2007.

2011 is the year Randall announced his gf's cancer. This might mean more people hugged him in support. 2010 might have been a time when some people close to him already knew about that (before the announcement), this would explain the big number in 2010, too. In 2015 he went on a book tour and had many signing sessions, where people might have hugged him. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.129.59|162.158.129.59]] 03:54, 2 February 2021 (UTC)

Mine is between 0-3 every year since 4th grade. Primarily my sister, my mother, and now my niece. I am nearly old enough now to go through a midlife crisis. Any other true anti-social people here just now realizing how little you get out? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.134|108.162.237.134]] 09:22, 2 February 2021 (UTC)
:I'm probably in the 10-15 range most years, but around 5 for the past year. Being mostly confined to the house really hasn't bothered me, though, so I might well qualify as anti-social... [[Special:Contributions/162.158.78.108|162.158.78.108]] 12:42, 2 February 2021 (UTC)
:Thinking about it, there are just three months in year (and not even WHOLE months) I'm getting out less with covid than without. Winter vacation with possibly shopping for it, summer vacation with possibly shopping for it, and then I'm going on one con. Outside of those three opportunities I don't really mind AND nothing really changed. I'm still angry for losing those three opportunities. Also, well, outside of family the con tends to be only opportunity to hug someone ... -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 13:53, 3 February 2021 (UTC)

Whether or not this is significantly less for some people or not, it's still sad for me. Of course, being an extrovert might have impacted that, but to me, it just represents everything, in general, that's happened. [[User:Char Latte49|Char Latte49]]
:It's sad about 2020, but appears to be hopeful about 2021. He already has 2 hug in the first month. If that trend continues, it should end up being an average year. And it may accelerate as more people are vaccinated. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 18:13, 2 February 2021 (UTC)
:: If he has a small set of people he can get hug under Covid rules, likely he'd hug them early in the year, and the number would look normal at first but then not increase much in later months. Just saying: hope is good, yes, but the number of hugs in January doesn't really mean much. --[[User:Pi one|Pi one]] ([[User talk:Pi one|talk]]) 19:23, 2 February 2021 (UTC)

Talk:375: Pod Bay Doors

2021-02-26T19:23:18Z

Fyndegil:

Made the "WHAT?" text italic, Because that's the way it is in the comic :3 [[Special:Contributions/121.54.48.38|121.54.48.38]] 01:34, 14 May 2013 (UTC)

Fantastic cartoon featuring two of my favourite characters... and with both the pod and the Discovery's hull being spherical they could even stand-in for 'cores'... quite literally "in spaaaaaace".[[User:Squirreltape|Squirreltape]] ([[User talk:Squirreltape|talk]]) 19:42, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) said: OK, how is it possible that when I search YouTube AND Google, I don't get any direct matches for ' "daisy bell" "still alive" '? Where's our duet?
* HAL sings "Daisy" https://youtu.be/OuEN5TjYRCE
* GlaDDOS sings "Still Alive" https://youtu.be/Y6ljFaKRTrI
:{{unsigned|Iggynelix}}
**It is "GLaDOS for "Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System"

So, what is the small thing? I thought maybe it was an LED coming to replace the lightbulb. Is it something like that, or is it just a spaceship?? --Selah
:It's an EVA pod from the film, I believe. [[User:Booyahhayoob|Booyahhayoob]] ([[User talk:Booyahhayoob|talk]]) 00:06, 21 May 2015 (UTC)
*eats potatOS* YUM! {{unsigned ip|173.245.54.5}}

But wasn't GLaDOS technically female? {{unsigned ip|173.245.48.87}}

The song isn't "Daisy Bell", but, as Randall wrote, "Daisy Daisy" aka "A Bicycle Built for Two". This song dates, IIRC, from the late 19th or early 20th century.
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.241.123|108.162.241.123]] 22:00, 3 October 2016 (UTC)
:"Daisy Bell" appears to be the original title.[https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Daisy_Bell] [[User:Fyndegil|Fyndegil]] ([[User talk:Fyndegil|talk]]) 19:23, 26 February 2021 (UTC)

Technically, GLaDOS becomes the deuteragonist in Portal 2. Check Please! [[User:StillNotOriginal|StillNotOriginal]] ([[User talk:StillNotOriginal|Talk to me!]]) 19:39, 18 May 2018 (UTC)

Yes, you are forced to cooperate with her after Wheatley knocks you both into Old Aperture. [[User:TheresAFlyAttackingMe|TheresAFlyAttackingMe]]

Amusingly, H.A.L. 9000 and GLaDOS do get to interact in the LEGO Dimensions level GLaD to See You - with GLaDOS being very much annoyed with H.A.L.'s presence and the references to "Dave".
https://lego-dimensions.fandom.com/wiki/H.A.L._9000
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5zzndGoM3U