Editing 1890: What to Bring
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| date = September 15, 2017 | | date = September 15, 2017 | ||
| title = What to Bring | | title = What to Bring | ||
− | | image = | + | | image = what_to_bring.png |
| titletext = I always figured you should never bring a gun to a gun fight because then you'll be part of a gun fight. | | titletext = I always figured you should never bring a gun to a gun fight because then you'll be part of a gun fight. | ||
}} | }} | ||
==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
− | This comic | + | This comic consists of a table showing variations of the phrase "never bring a knife to a gun fight", an idiom usually attributed to either {{w|Elmer Keith}} or ''{{w|The Untouchables (film)|The Untouchables}}''. Each cell visually expresses the phrase "Should you bring X to Y?". Each row gives an object (X) to bring to the situation, and each column describes the situation (Y) to which the object is brought. The first two columns show an opponent holding a knife and a gun, respectively, indicating a "knife fight" and "gun fight". These indicate situations of conflict. The third and fourth columns describe fighting (extinguishing) two types of fire (wood and oil). Neither one should be battled with knives or guns.{{Citation needed}} |
− | The squares in the table are highlighted in green to answer "Yes" to the question, where the specified object is appropriate or advantageous for the situation, or red to answer "No", usually because the object would not be helpful in resolving the situation. | + | The squares in the table are highlighted in green to answer "Yes" to the question, where the specified object is appropriate or advantageous for the situation, or red to answer "No", usually because the object would not be helpful in resolving the situation. With the exception of "bringing a gun to a knife fight", these are exactly diagonally arranged from the upper-left to the lower-right, corresponding to sentences that make logical sense. In the case of the gun to a knife fight, the situation is heavily skewed in your favor. |
− | The ultimate point of this comic may be in the title text. There is a phrase in American English, "to bring a knife to a gun fight," which means "to be so naive as to be unprepared." While Randall may be commenting specifically on managing {{w| | + | The ultimate point of this comic may be in the title text. There is a phrase in American English, "to bring a knife to a gun fight," which means "to be so naive as to be unprepared." While Randall may be commenting specifically on managing {{w|Conflict escalation}} by being adequately prepared for the situation, it is also possible that he is subtly expressing his opinion about the virtues of constraint. |
− | {| class="wikitable | + | {| class="wikitable" |
! Should you bring ... to ... | ! Should you bring ... to ... | ||
! scope="col"| a knife fight | ! scope="col"| a knife fight | ||
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|- | |- | ||
! scope="row"| a knife | ! scope="row"| a knife | ||
− | | | + | | Yes. If you bring a knife to a knife fight, you will be evenly matched with your opponent. |
− | | If you bring a knife to a gun fight, you will be at a perilous disadvantage. | + | | No. If you bring a knife to a gun fight, you will be at a perilous disadvantage. |
− | | Attempting to stab a wood fire with a knife will | + | | No. Attempting to stab a wood fire with a knife will lead to you being burned. |
− | | Attempting to stab an oil fire will | + | | No. Attempting to stab an oil fire will lead to you being burned, in addition to causing metallic scrapes on the pan. |
|- | |- | ||
! scope="row"| a gun | ! scope="row"| a gun | ||
− | | | + | | Yes. Bringing a gun to a knife fight will leave your opponent at a perilous disadvantage. (You may be accused of "not playing fair".) |
− | | | + | | Yes*. Bringing a gun to a gun fight will leave you {{w|Mexican standoff|evenly matched with your opponent}}. |
− | | colspan="2"| Shooting at a wood or an oil fire will not extinguish either one. | + | | colspan="2"| No. Shooting at a wood or an oil fire will not extinguish either one.{{Citation needed}} |
|- | |- | ||
! scope="row"| water | ! scope="row"| water | ||
− | | colspan="2"| Splashing either a knife-wielder or a gunman with water | + | | colspan="2"| No. Splashing either a knife-wielder or a gunman with water will serve only to agitate your opponent. (However, water can disable some older guns that use gunpowder, since the gunpowder will not ignite when wet.) |
− | | | + | | Yes. Wood fires are best extinguished with a well-aimed splash of water. |
− | | Pouring water on an oil fire is notorious for creating huge fireballs | + | | No! Pouring water on an oil fire is notorious for creating huge fireballs, aggravating the situation even more. |
|- | |- | ||
! scope="row"| a lid | ! scope="row"| a lid | ||
− | | colspan="2"| Attempting to put a lid on the head | + | | colspan="2"| No. Attempting to put a lid on the head of a knife-wielder or gunman will probably not help matters, as it may only serve to agitate said knife-wielder. There's a possibility that your attacker may be momentarily stunned by the surrealism of the situation, but even that will only buy you about a ten-foot running start. (However, a metal lid with the right sort of handle could serve as a makeshift {{w|buckler|shield}}.) |
− | | Trying to put out a wood fire with a lid would usually require a lid far too large for you to carry. | + | | No. Trying to put out a wood fire with a lid would usually require a lid far too large for you to carry. |
− | | | + | | Yes. An oil fire is best extinguished by cutting it off from oxygen; stove top oil fires generally occur in cooking pans, which often come with lids suited to making an airtight seal. |
|} | |} | ||
+ | |||
+ | * While the chart states that you should bring a gun to a gun fight, the title text makes the observation that bringing a gun to a gunfight might just raise your status from 'inconsequential bystander' to 'combatant'. So perhaps you shouldn't bring a gun to a gun fight if not bringing one is a way to avoid being considered part of the fight. It probably all depends on why there is a gun fight to begin with, and why you are choosing to go to it, with or without a gun (or knife or water or lid). | ||
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
− | + | {{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}} | |
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{{comic discussion}} | {{comic discussion}} | ||
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[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | ||
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]] | [[Category:Multiple Cueballs]] | ||
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