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We have an explanation for all 3306 xkcd comics, the 21 extra comics, and everything xkcd-related.Only 52 explanations (1.6%) are incomplete. Help us finish them!
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| Accelerator Energies |
 Title text: Fans at Daytona always get extra excited when officials decide to introduce some antimatter cars circling the track in the opposite direction. |
Explanation
Transcript
- [A scatter plot graph. The Y axis is labeled "Collision Energy" and shows values from 1 eV to 1027 eV. The X axis is labeled "Track Length" and shows values from 10 cm to 100 km.]
This Week's Explanation for Improvement
As part of the Explanation Improvement Project, each week the community selects one older, stagnant, or otherwise neglected explanation to expand and polish together. This week's pick is comic 172: Skateboarding is Not a Crime, you can help us by editing its explanation!
To get involved with the project, you can also nominate an explanation that you think should be improved, or vote on current nominations!
| Skateboarding is Not a Crime |
 Title text: 'Arrest me, I'm a skateboarder' is an even more obnoxious variant. |
Explanation
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Welcome to This Week's Explanation for Improvement! Anyone is encouraged to help explain comic 172: Skateboarding is Not a Crime; click here to get started! If you are new to wiki editing, you can read our editing FAQ for guidance. Here are some suggestions for improving this explanation: .svg){kind=icon} Better explain the controversy around skateboarding, the stickers, and similar occurrences. (You can learn more about the protest on Wikipedia's page for Skateboarding is not a crime)
.svg){kind=icon} The last parts of the explanation read more like a transcript, so improve the explanation of the caption & title text instead of just describing what they say.
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Skateboarding culture emerged in the 1980s, especially among young people (high schoolers, college students) as a countercultural movement initially associated with the "punk" movement. In addition, because skateboarding can take place in public locations with railings and benches, many cities have adopted specific measures to either increase the difficulty of skateboarding (Skatestopper), or by trying to pass laws to prohibit the act of skateboarding in public parks. In addition to the stated public safety concerns of fast-moving skateboarders among pedestrians, many cities unfairly associate skateboarders with those who drink, do drugs, or engage in acts of juvenile delinquency, such as truancy or underage drinking.
As a result, the skateboarding subculture has taken up the slogan "skateboarding is not a crime" as a protest against these restrictions from cities. This slogan began in 1987, and since then, several skateboard manufacturing companies have adopted it. At one point, the slogan was a countercultural push against those who would consider skateboarding to be a crime, but as the phrase became more popular (by 2006, the time at which the comic was posted), there was likely a backlash against the slogan. Perhaps some people, both within the community of skateboarders and outside, would consider this sticker to be obnoxious, or to appear to have a persecution complex. For instance, in this comic, the slogan is the *only* sticker displayed on these lockers, perhaps put there as a way of the locker owner trying to stand out, in a "not like the other girls" manner.
Randall apparently really does not like these stickers, therefore he states that when he becomes president (a common expression that is equivalent to "If I were in charge, ..."), stickers bearing the phrase will be considered a felony, though skateboarding itself will still be legal. Actually implementing this in the US would be against the first amendment and would be unlikely to ever become a real law. Even if it did, the rule would be so trivial and disproportionate that it would be unlikely to be enforced. Still, some schools and other establishments ban or restrict stickers on lockers, and may use a similar rule.
The title text comments on another protest phrase, "Arrest me, I'm a skateboarder", that Randall appears to hate even more than the first, potentially for the more standoffish tone of the message. It is unsurprising that he hates this phrase, as it has a similar message and tone.
Transcript
- [A set of lockers, that are dark pink, blue, yellow, dark pink then blue. The yellow locker at center has a white sticker attached to it at an angle reading "Skateboarding is not a crime".]
- [Outside and under the Panel] When I'm president, skateboarding will still be legal, but display of those stupid stickers will be a felony.
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