Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau for November 06, 2020

“I don’t want to know, and the kid doesn’t have to know.”

How long can you cover your ears and say NAH NAH NAH.

You’re no longer an orphan, Earl. And your father is a fake priest, drug addict and cheat .

IIRC (and I could easily be wrong) the strip has rarely indicated that Duke has any real interest in sex. Some people just have very low sex drives, that’s simply a thing that’s true. We just rarely hear about them because, well, because they don’t engage in sexual escapades that draw our interest.

Sharp character that he is, Duke knows that sex would unnecessarily complicate his life (as it has demonstrably done in this very case; maybe he was just really, really drunk and/or high at the time) and skew his priorities, so perhaps he just represses it (allowing other, less savory traits to come that much closer to the surface). That’s evidently how Honey, who has devoted her entire life to a man who rarely shows her any affection whatsoever — certainly not romantic affection - handles the situation. :|

After all, despite the common sentiment “you need to get laid,” sex doesn’t solve problems, it creates them. The anecdotal evidence to support this is overwhelming. ;-)

The interesting thing is that while Earl has his father’s self-serving drive, he also has at least some traces of a conscience.

It’s Mini He.

The strip is a perfect commentary on today…..

I suppose it could work out. I mean, if Duke is his dad, then Earl isn’t an orphan any more and can’t live in the orphanage. …right?

Cue the group once called The Dixie Chicks singing “Goodbye Earl”…..

“in this age of personal responsibility”?

I must REALLY not have been paying attention in the eighties…

Wow, that news almost sobered Duke up.

Next to appear on The Maury Povich Show. . .

Don’t worry, the kids going to grow up and be a great asset for you.

I wonder how old Earl is compared to Alex, Samantha, Jeff, Zipper, and any other “second generation” cast members. (Zipper’s not Zonker’s son, of course, but he’s Jeff’s peer and thus about the same age.)

Disinherit him and emancipate him.

Honey and Duke are always having two completely different conversations.

Duke takes as much responsibility as Trump.

You just have to love her.