2011-11-21
Explanation
This comic satirizes how public figures respond to scientific correction by simply substituting one wrong term for another. In the first panel, a politician at a podium declares to a crowd: "And in our lifetimes, we will find a CURE for CANCER!" This is a common crowd-pleasing proclamation heard in speeches.
In the second panel, labeled "Later...," a scientist explains to the politician that it does not make sense to say "a cure for cancer" because cancer is actually a wide variety of disorders with different manifestations and etiology. The scientist argues it makes as much sense as saying "a cure for virus." The politician nods thoughtfully: "I see what you'''re saying." In the final panel, labeled "And so...," the politician returns to the podium and triumphantly announces: "And in our lifetimes, we will find a CURE for VIRUS!" -- taking the scientist'''s analogy literally and adopting the nonsensical phrase instead of understanding the underlying point.
The joke captures a familiar frustration: when experts try to explain nuance to public figures, the takeaway is often completely wrong. The politician understood the surface-level comparison (cancer is like virus) but missed the actual argument (that both terms are too broad to meaningfully talk about "curing"). The votey extends this escalation with someone shouting: "We demand a cure for SICK!" -- pushing the category error to its most absurd extreme, where all illness is collapsed into a single word.