Dilbert cartoon first published on Sunday 15th March 1992

Dilbert//1065, first published 34 years ago on Sunday 15th March 1992

Tags

dogbert tax perparation help math classes inadequacies taxes deviation cosine depreciation polynormail owe preparer confusion

Official transcript

Dogbert sits at a desk under a sign that says, "Tax Preparation $5.00."

A man enters the office and says, "I need some help . . ."

Dogbert says, "Sit down."

The man says, "I always fooled around during math classes. Now I can't do my own taxes."

Dogbert looks at the form and says, "We can prattle about your inadequacies later."

Dogbert says as he fills out the form, "I'll do your taxes and talk at the same time so you really feel dumb."

Dogbert continues, "Hmm . . . Simply multiply the standard deviation of the cosine of your depreciation and integrate the resulting polynomial . . . There."

Dogbert continues, "According to this, you owe your tax preparer an additional two thousand dollars."

A pile of money sits on Dogbert's desk. Dogbert says to the reader, "Confusion - it works for the IRS and it can work for you."

originally published on dilbert.com

Open source transcript

TAX PREPARATION $5 00 I NEED SOME HELP DOWN I ALWAYS FOOLED AROUND DURING MATH CLASSES. NOW I CAN'T DO MY OWN TAXES.

WE CAN PRATTLE ABOUT YOUR INADEQUACIES LATER.

I'LL DO YOUR TAXES AND TALK AT THE SAME TIME SO YOU REALLY FEEL DUMB.

HMM... SIMPLY MULTIPLY THE STANDARD DEVIATION OF THE COSINE OF YOUR DEPRECIATION AND INTEGRATE THE RESULTING POLYNOMIAL ... THERE.

ACCORDING TO THIS, YOU OWE YOUR TAX PREPARER AN ADDITIONAL TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS CONFUSION - IT WORKS FOR THE IRS AND IT CAN WORK FOR YOU.

collated from github.com/jvarn/dilbert-archive

AI Analysis

Title: "Tax Preparation Blues"

Summary:

The comic strip revolves around a man seeking tax preparation services, only to be met with frustration and confusion. The tax preparer, seemingly oblivious to the man's concerns, becomes fixated on a mathematical formula, further exacerbating the situation.

Key Panels:

• The man requests help with his taxes, but the preparer is distracted by a mathematical equation.
• The preparer becomes increasingly absorbed in the formula, ignoring the man's concerns.
• The man's frustration grows as the preparer continues to focus on the math.
• The preparer finally acknowledges the man's presence, but only to reveal that they owe an additional $2,000 in taxes.
• The man is left bewildered, with the preparer still fixated on the mathematical formula.

Humor and Satire:

The comic strip pokes fun at the often-complex and confusing world of tax preparation, highlighting the absurdity of a professional becoming overly engrossed in mathematical calculations while neglecting their client's needs. The humor lies in the exaggerated portrayal of the preparer's obsession with the formula, as well as the man's growing frustration and confusion.

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