The 'How Many Times Do We Have to Teach You This Lesson, Old Man?' meme originates from the Season 3 SpongeBob SquarePants episode titled 'The Bully,' which first aired in 2002. In the scene, a misunderstanding leads a crowd of angry Bikini Bottom citizens to repeatedly threaten an innocent elderly fish. Since its emergence as a viral reaction image, it has become the go-to template for situations where someone—or something—fails to learn from past mistakes. It is frequently used to mock companies that ignore customer feedback, software that keeps re-enabling unwanted features, or historical events that seem to repeat themselves. The humor lies in the aggressive overkill of the crowd's reaction toward a seemingly harmless or persistent subject.