Difference between revisions of "1971: Personal Data"

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(Explanation)
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This is not the first time [[Randall]] has made a comic about people having trouble understanding the US tax system in relation to an approaching tax day.  Other instances include the title text of [[1805: Unpublished Discoveries]] from March the year before this comic, and this one from August 2015: [[1566: Board Game]].
 
This is not the first time [[Randall]] has made a comic about people having trouble understanding the US tax system in relation to an approaching tax day.  Other instances include the title text of [[1805: Unpublished Discoveries]] from March the year before this comic, and this one from August 2015: [[1566: Board Game]].
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==Topics==
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This comic references several advanced topics that people commonly talk about, but may not actually understand well:
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* '''Personal data''':
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* '''The economy''':
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* '''Stocks''':
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* '''Taxes''':
  
 
==Transcript==
 
==Transcript==

Revision as of 17:18, 23 March 2018

Personal Data
Do I just leave money in my mailbox? How much? How much money do they need, anyway? I guess it probably depends how the economy is doing. If stocks go up, should I leave more money in my mailbox or less?
Title text: Do I just leave money in my mailbox? How much? How much money do they need, anyway? I guess it probably depends how the economy is doing. If stocks go up, should I leave more money in my mailbox or less?

Explanation

Ambox notice.png This explanation may be incomplete or incorrect: Created by a typical xkcd Adult... so need more... Add explanation of what Stock, what personal data is and what the economy and tax is as well. Maybe a table? PLEASE. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.
If you can address this issue, please edit the page! Thanks.

This is another comic poking fun at adults who have trouble dealing with grown-up issues.

The comic starts with Cueball wondering what "personal data" is, saying he doesn't understand what it is, and it is an abstract concept. Ponytail follows by pointing out she doesn't understand what "the economy" is, and conjecturing that it is related to "stocks", although admitting that she also does not understand what stocks are. The punchline comes when White Hat says that he doesn't understand what "taxes" are and asks if he really has to pay them and to who. This surprises Cueball and Ponytail, who promptly advise him to learn about that one soon. The title text has White Hat asking another series of tax-related questions that adults are expected to know already, further compounding his troubles.

White Hat not knowing what taxes are indicates that he may not have paid his taxes in previous years, which would be alarming since tax evasion is punishable as a crime. Ponytail's remark that he should do this ideally in the next few weeks is referring to this year's US Tax Day which falls on April 17, 2018, less than four weeks after the release of this comic. So if you do not have your tax preparation under control, it is time to research how it works now.

This is not the first time Randall has made a comic about people having trouble understanding the US tax system in relation to an approaching tax day. Other instances include the title text of 1805: Unpublished Discoveries from March the year before this comic, and this one from August 2015: 1566: Board Game.

Topics

This comic references several advanced topics that people commonly talk about, but may not actually understand well:

  • Personal data:
  • The economy:
  • Stocks:
  • Taxes:

Transcript

[Cueball is talking to Ponytail and White Hat. Both of them are looking at Cueball.]
Cueball: Everyone keeps talking about "personal data." To be honest, I don't really know what it is.
Cueball: I mean, I understand the idea and know it's a thing I should protect. But it's so... abstract.
[Close-up on Ponytail.]
Ponytail: Yeah.
Ponytail: It's like "the economy." I don't really know what the economy is, if we're getting specific. I know stocks going up is good. For people who own stocks, at least.
Ponytail: Whatever "stocks" are.
[White Hat responds holding his arms slightly out. Both Ponytail and Cueball are looking at him.]
White Hat: Yeah, or taxes. Everyone talks about taxes. What are they? Do I have to pay them? And to who?
Cueball: OK, wait, you definitely need to learn about that one.
Ponytail: Yeah, ideally sometime in the next few weeks.


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Discussion

To _whom_...108.162.216.166 05:35, 23 March 2018 (UTC)

Added a very basic explanation, but I don't have the time to expand it or add links. Can someone work on it? Herobrine (talk) 06:01, 23 March 2018 (UTC)

White Hat may be speaking facetiously to illustrate that Cueball and Ponytail's ignorance of personal data and the economy are as egregiously irresponsible as ignorance of taxes. 162.158.78.130 18:15, 23 March 2018 (UTC) anaughtymaus

Yes of course, but if the title text is ascribed to him, then he seems to take it a long way. Based on previous White Hat comics, he often makes suck mistakes. I belive it is not seen like this. Not understanding the economy of your country/Stock market, is not a big issue if you don't trade stocks. Also not understanding what personal data is, may not change the way you protect your self with password or fire walls antivirus/spyware programs. But not paying taxes can get you in jail in the worst case, if it is perceived as fraud, rather than ignorance (White Hat) in which case a (huge) fine may be the result. So it is not the same... --Kynde (talk) 20:59, 23 March 2018 (UTC)
I don't recall ever seeing White Hat earn any money... Is it possible he has no income? ProphetZarquon (talk) 04:39, 25 March 2018 (UTC)

What does it mean "The US postal service prohibits sending cash by mail?" I checked, and I am pretty sure this is false. 141.101.107.114 18:44, 25 March 2018 (UTC)

It IS legal to send cash by US mail unless it is for illegal purposes. In fact you can insure up to $50,000 worth if sent by Registered Mail. "What are the Limits for Insuring Cash and Checks?" I think it is safe for me to remove that statement from the Explanation. These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For (talk) 11:06, 28 March 2018 (UTC)
New categories for this type of comic?

Do we need an economy category? Or a category about adults who have trouble dealing with grown-up issues, or still behave childlike? Here is a list that I just found from the first and following other links from there:

What do you think of the ideas for categories, and do you have an idea for what the grown up issues category should be called? --Kynde (talk) 21:09, 23 March 2018 (UTC)

Economy

In healthy economy it's not necessary to force people who wants to save their money to spend it. Inflation is a way to force responsible people to behave just as irresponsible and short-sighted as government itself. But our current economy is build on debt and is definitely neither healthy nor intuitive ... nor sustainable ... see Money as Debt -- Hkmaly (talk) 22:26, 23 March 2018 (UTC)

I completely agree about inflation being used to force responsible people to be irresponsible, and I think the description should be changed. But I've concluded that the Money As Debt film misdiagnoses our problems. There's nothing inherently wrong with debt – it just allows someone temporarily to use an IOU to buy goods or services before selling, while still committing them to selling goods or services later. Since sellers don't generally accept individuals' IOUs in payment, a prospective buyer who doesn't have any money yet goes to a bank, and offers their personal IOU in exchange for new IOUs from the bank. The bank's IOU is generally accepted by sellers, on the assumption that the bank is solvent. So money is a debt from a bank to the holder of the money, not the other way round. When the borrower has sold something later, the two debts between bank and borrower (one in each direction) can be written off. The real problem comes from people or corporations (whether commercial, charitable or government) writing IOUs which they can't or won't pay. For example, if banks make loads of loans to people with no income or assets, they rapidly become insolvent, meaning that their IOUs become worth less, perhaps much less. -- Striped-pad (talk) 22:30, 24 March 2018 (UTC)

Edited the impact stocks have on a person's tax reporting. The original explanation only referenced capital gains.