Figure of Speech

Sometimes I think that the phrase “babies can’t fly rocket ships” is overused, to the point of cliché:

At the Restaurant

Mom: You can’t just eat chocolate fudge cake for dinner. That’s why Mommy chooses dinner for you. Babies can’t fly rocket ships, you know.

Selling your company to Microsoft

Bill Gates: Listen, that’s the best offer I can make on such a young tech-business. Take it or leave it. I mean: babies can’t fly rocket ships, am I right?

On a rocket ship

Co-pilot: Okay, you just need to ease off the fuel and then we can go into auto-pilot till we hit the asteroid belt…Hey, are you listening? I said we need to ease off the fuel—wait a second. Oh my God! Babies can’t fly rocket ships! I’m going to have to drive this hunk of junk myself.