2010-09-22
Explanation
This comic presents the author's fantasy of requiring all political speeches to begin with the same preamble. A politician at a podium is shown clearing his throat and saying: "Based on my poor understanding of history, science, and ethics..."
The joke is a simple but pointed commentary on the disconnect between the confidence with which politicians make sweeping policy pronouncements and their actual level of expertise on the subjects they address. Politicians routinely make claims about complex scientific, historical, and ethical issues despite often having limited knowledge in these areas. The comic imagines how different political discourse would sound if speakers were forced to honestly acknowledge the limitations of their understanding before proceeding. The humor lies in the idea that this single mandatory disclaimer would deflate virtually every political speech ever given, since so few politicians possess the deep expertise their confident rhetoric implies.