2014-12-28
Explanation
The Joke
A child asks his father what he would do if he had a time machine. The father replies that he would travel back four years and wear a condom on the day he conceived the child'''s sister. The child points out that he does not have a sister. The father says, "One sec," and the child tells him to go clean his room. The father says, "Yes, sir."
The Humor
The joke has a darkly comedic twist. The father'''s time travel wish is to prevent the conception of the child'''s sister -- but the child says he does not have a sister. This implies the father has already successfully used a time machine to prevent the sister'''s birth, creating a paradox where the child has no memory of a sister who was erased from the timeline. The father'''s brief "one sec" pause suggests he momentarily forgot that he already changed the timeline. The final panel, where the child firmly tells the father to clean his room and the father obediently complies, reverses the typical parent-child power dynamic, adding an additional layer of absurdity.