ohyesrobot.ordoliberal.com

2010-06-25

Original: 2010-06-25 on Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal

Transcript

Panel 1:
A balding man with glasses, wearing a brown blazer, stands at a lectern. Behind him is a poster of the Earth with motion lines around it. He speaks:

Speaker (Dr. Stern): "SCIENTISTS HAVE QUESTIONED WHY, IF THERE IS EXTRATERRESTRIAL INTELLIGENCE WE HAVE NEVER RECEIVED COMMUNICATION FROM THEM. BASED ON AN EXPERIENCE MANY OF WE ENGINEERS HAD IN HIGH SCHOOL, WE PROPOSE THE EARTH HAS SOME AS-YET-UNIDENTIFIED PROBLEM THAT MUST BE REMOVED."

Caption (below panel): "Dr. Stern proposes the Oblivious Smelly Kid Hypothesis."

Votey:
A close-up line-art drawing of the same bespectacled man speaking:

Speaker (Dr. Stern): "WE PROPOSE THE EARTH WEAR DEODORANT AND STOP READING ARCHIE COMICS ALONE DURING LUNCH PERIOD."

Alt text

A balding man in glasses and a brown blazer stands at a lectern, looking grave, with a poster of the Earth (with motion lines around it) behind him. His speech bubble reads: "Scientists have questioned why, if there is extraterrestrial intelligence we have never received communication from them. Based on an experience many of we engineers had in high school, we propose the Earth has some as-yet-unidentified problem that must be removed." The caption beneath reads: "Dr. Stern proposes the Oblivious Smelly Kid Hypothesis" — framing humanity's cosmic loneliness as Earth being the friendless, smelly outcast that aliens avoid. Votey: a close-up line drawing of the same man continuing: "We propose the Earth wear deodorant and stop reading Archie comics alone during lunch period."

Transcribed by Claude Opus 4.8.