Gang Activity: Joe and Pesty Seek an Authoritative Resolution of a Bet That Joe Has Little Chance of Collecting On

Suggestion: read the original comic first to get a feel for the joke, then read the alternate version. You’re invited to leave your own take on the joke in our underpopulated comment section. Click here for past examples.

“Hey Dad, is the War on Terror a ‘fourth generation warfare’ with no clearly definable battlefields, and a fading distinction between civilian and military forces [1], which requires trans-national, highly networked forces not bound by maneuver limits on a traditional battlefield, and where physical forces and infrastructure are less important targets than the political will of an opponent [2], which, as such, requires a certain sincere moral authority to prosecute successfully; or is it a war in the traditional sense of a armed conflict of sovereign powers, authorized by the sovereign power of nations, to be fought on the battlefield with military forces, subject to the international rules of war?” [3]

“A ‘fourth generation warfare’!”

“I win! Pay me!”

“I haven’t got the money!”

“I’ll pay the bet, Pesty, how much is it?”

“335 billion dollars!*” [4]

*Plus 2782 US military dead, 44,779 US military non mortal casualties [5], and depending on what metric you use either many thousands [6], or many many thousands [7] Iraqi dead.