Original artwork, not a still
Do you kids wanna be like the real U.N., or do you just wanna squabble and waste time?
— The Simpsons · 1989
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
The speaker asks children to choose between acting like the real United Nations and squabbling while wasting time. The joke leaves an awkward comparison hanging: the supposedly inferior behaviour may sound rather like the institution offered as a model. The rebuke can therefore undermine its own ideal.
Context reviewed
