where's the joke?

[Mark Spahn]

I don't understand this cartoon.  Would someone please explain it?

http://maverickphilosopher.typepad.com/maverick_philosopher/2018/08/one-advantage-of-being-a-liberal.html

[Mark Spahn]

On 8/26/2018 12:04 AM, Mark Spahn wrote:

I don't understand this cartoon.  Would someone please explain it?

http://maverickphilosopher.typepad.com/maverick_philosopher/2018/08/one-advantage-of-being-a-liberal.html

...

The joke has been explained to me.  The cartoon shows four characters from "The Wizard of Oz", and the viewer is supposed to ask, "Which one of these is not like the others?"  We see that the Scarecrow is enjoying licking his two-scoop ice-cream cone, while the other three are holding a hand to their forehead as if they have a headache.  But the biggest clue (which I missed entirely) is found by hovering the cursor over the cartoon, which produces a label [Brain-Freeze].  This is otherwise known as as
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold-stimulus_headache

"A cold-stimulus headache, also known as brain freeze, ice-cream headache, trigeminal headache^[1][2] or its given scientific name sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia (meaning "pain of the sphenopalatine ganglion"), is a form of brief pain or headache commonly associated with consumption (particularly quick consumption) of cold beverages or foods such as ice cream and ice pops. It is caused by having something cold touch the roof of the mouth, and is believed to result from a nerve response causing rapid constriction and swelling of blood vessels^[3] or a "referring" of pain from the roof of the mouth to the head.^[4][5] The rate of intake for cold foods has been studied as a contributing factor.^[6][7] A cold-stimulus headache is distinct from dentin hypersensitivity, a type of pain that can occur under similar circumstances.
Cats and other animals have been observed experiencing a similar reaction when presented with a similar stimulus.^[8]"

That last sentence explains the Japanese expression "nekojita" 猫舌 (cat-tongue), which is glossed as "a dislike of very hot [or very cold!] food or drink". 

Another reason I did not get the joke is that I have never experienced an ice-cream headache, possibly because of my high intracranial cellulose content.

The title of the cartoon, "One Advantage of Being a _____", is generic, and is a clever way of saying "______s are brainless."  I am glad someone told me the joke, because otherwise I would waste a lot of time contemplating every little feature of the art work, such as:  Why does the lion have only four toes? Why is the Tin Man wearing Turkish slippers?  Why is Dorothy's hair in a braid (it wasn't in "The Wizard of Oz")?  Why does the Scarecrow have such a grotesquely enormous tongue?  Why are the Scarecrow's pupils of unequal size?

-- Mark Spahn (West Seneca, NY)

[Rene]

On 8/26/18, Mark Spahn <mark...@twc.com> wrote:
> I don't understand this cartoon. Would someone please explain it?
>
> http://maverickphilosopher.typepad.com/maverick_philosopher/2018/08/one-advantage-of-being-a-liberal.html

Something to do with the Wizard of Oz, no?

http://www.powerofslow.com/2013/01/25/the-scarecrow-the-tin-man-and-the-lion/

"For the Scarecrow, it is about finding his brain."

You can replace him with a typical CNN watching Dale these days...