Books
Be wary of strong drink. It can make you shoot at tax collectors, and miss.
— Robert Heinlein • Time Enough for Love
Behind the line May contain spoilers.
Our reading
An editorial interpretation.
Heinlein jokes that strong drink wrecks your judgment and your aim. Picking a fight with tax collectors is bad enough, but missing is the real insult. Drunkenness makes even a rebellion incompetent, which is the joke.
Context reviewed