I've encountered this before, and it mostly makes sense. There are some outliers, though... Some humor involves resolution or revelation of misunderstanding (I don't have an example at hand, sorry). Some things are just plain hard (for me, anyway) to fit into categories.
For instance, ethnic jokes. As a rule, I hate them. I interrupt them when I can. Except for one. It's very dated now, but this thread is about old people, right? You remember when President Carter couldn't seem to do anything right about our people held hostage in Iran? Well, the Polish version went like this: "If the Poles had had our troubles in Iran, what would they have done?" The answer was "The same thing we did". It's still an ethnic joke, though its a bit muddy about who's the butt of it. But it still gives me a shiver of pleasure, preferring to believe the butt of the joke was both ethnic jokes themselves and also US arrogance. And I still hate ethnic jokes (except one). Maybe I was right the first time. I've lost my sense of humor. Sigh..... ++ kevin On Sun, 03 Oct 2004 14:29:18 -0500, Alma J Wetzker <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > If you look at the vast majority of our humor, it involves someone getting > inconvienenced in some way, shape or form. Most offensive is ethnic jokes but > even self depreciating humor is where you were hurt, embarrassed or humiliated. > > The only exception to that observation is word plays, puns, spoonerisms and > malaprops, puns being the easiest to do. I love puns.... > > -- Alma > > > > Kevin O'Gorman wrote: > > Maybe I've lost my sense of humor. Maybe. You tell me.... > > > > Reading this made me mindful not only of the general polarization of the > > electorate that seems to be unusually pronounced this election season, > > but also -- more ominsously -- of vandalism, the tendency to approve of > > hooliganism so long as it is in some way clever, and of plain vandalism. > > The possible excuse that the described action appears to be within the > > letter of the law (maybe; I'm not a lawyer) has become in my mind the > > "Enron defense". > > > > I'm about old enough to be thinking of what I'm going to do when I'm no > > longer in the mood to work, but I sure hope I find things that are positive > > than causing undeserved grief to people I disagree with. Like polite but > > firm criticism of uncivil behavior. Perhaps. I'm not sure it would play well > > in this day and age, I'll have to try it sometime and see what happens. > > > > ++ kevin > > > > > > On Fri, 24 Sep 2004 22:16:39 -0600, Collins Richey <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > >>Begin forwarded message: > >> > >>[ sender and distro list snipped ] > >> > >>Subject: WHAT RETIRED PEOPLE DO > >> > >>Working people frequently ask retired people what they do to make their days > >>interesting. I went to the store the other day. I was only in there for about 5 > >>minutes. When I came out there was a city cop writing out a parking ticket. I > >>went up to him and said, "Come on, buddy, how about giving a senior a break?" He > >>ignored me and continued writing the ticket. I called him a name. He glared at > >>me and started writing another ticket For having worn tires. So I called him a > >>worse name. He finished the second ticket and put it on the windshield with the > >>first. Then he started writing a third ticket. This went on for about 20 > >>minutes. The more I abused him the more tickets he wrote. I didn't care. My car > >>was parked around the corner and this one had a "Elect John Kerry" bumper > >>sticker on it. I try to have a little fun each day now that I'm retired. > >> > >>It's important at our age. > -- Kevin O'Gorman, PhD _______________________________________________ [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsub/Pause/Etc -> http://mail.linux-sxs.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/general
