Editing 2481: 1991 and 2021
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This comic shows a Cueball from 2021 who is [[2280:_2010_and_2020|once again]] discussing the future's technology with White Hat, this time in 1991 instead of 2010. White Hat is awed by the advances in technology, but is not expecting that the law combating laser attacks on passenger aircraft is not the most important thing mentioned. | This comic shows a Cueball from 2021 who is [[2280:_2010_and_2020|once again]] discussing the future's technology with White Hat, this time in 1991 instead of 2010. White Hat is awed by the advances in technology, but is not expecting that the law combating laser attacks on passenger aircraft is not the most important thing mentioned. | ||
| − | "Laser attacks on airliners" ''sounds'' dramatic and important, and White Hat probably thinks that {{w|laser weapon}}s have been developed and used to attack aircraft. Given that "a [US] federal law" has been passed to combat such attacks, White Hat may be envisioning a future where US citizens have access to laser guns, and some reckless individuals have been firing them at airplanes. (If it were some other group like terrorists or foreign militaries, a federal law would be unlikely to dissuade them.) | + | "Laser attacks on airliners" ''sounds'' dramatic and important, and White Hat probably thinks that {{w|laser weapon}}s have been developed and have been used to attack aircraft. Given that "a [US] federal law" has been passed to combat such attacks, White Hat may be envisioning a future where US citizens have access to laser guns, and some reckless individuals have been firing them at airplanes. (If it were some other group like terrorists or foreign militaries, a federal law would be unlikely to dissuade them.) |
In reality, the "lasers" in question are low-powered laser pointers, which some people aim at passenger airliners as a (dangerous) prank. When the beam hits the airplane, it cannot damage the plane itself, much less shoot it from the sky;{{citation needed}} it can, however, blind the pilot, which poses a threat to them and their passengers. A law ([https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/39A 18 USC §39A]) was thus passed in 2012 to criminalize this. | In reality, the "lasers" in question are low-powered laser pointers, which some people aim at passenger airliners as a (dangerous) prank. When the beam hits the airplane, it cannot damage the plane itself, much less shoot it from the sky;{{citation needed}} it can, however, blind the pilot, which poses a threat to them and their passengers. A law ([https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/39A 18 USC §39A]) was thus passed in 2012 to criminalize this. | ||
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The title text horrifies '90s White Hat, as it not only refers to a pandemic serious enough to induce lockdowns, but mentions it casually, in reference to the existence of computer webcams. [[:Category:COVID-19|COVID-19]] is already a hugely impactful deadly disease, but by mentioning it without details, it leaves White Hat to guess as to the details. Cueball doesn't specify whether there have been one or more pandemics (the plural use of 'lockdowns' could be taken to imply that there were more than one), or how serious they were, how long-lasting or how many lives were lost to them. In consequence, White Hat could easily be assuming a dystopian future even worse than what really happened. | The title text horrifies '90s White Hat, as it not only refers to a pandemic serious enough to induce lockdowns, but mentions it casually, in reference to the existence of computer webcams. [[:Category:COVID-19|COVID-19]] is already a hugely impactful deadly disease, but by mentioning it without details, it leaves White Hat to guess as to the details. Cueball doesn't specify whether there have been one or more pandemics (the plural use of 'lockdowns' could be taken to imply that there were more than one), or how serious they were, how long-lasting or how many lives were lost to them. In consequence, White Hat could easily be assuming a dystopian future even worse than what really happened. | ||
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| + | ==Trivia== | ||
| + | On release, the title text was not actually included as such. It was instead included as the text of a "see also" link, which is often invisible to readers and is activated by clicking the comic. Such links have been used in the past for larger versions of the comic or for related information on other sites. Here, it linked back to the comic itself, and was evidently a mistake. | ||
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
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:White Hat: ...is it not the lasers? | :White Hat: ...is it not the lasers? | ||
:Cueball: It is not the lasers. | :Cueball: It is not the lasers. | ||
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{{comic discussion}} | {{comic discussion}} | ||
