Tell me a joke! The OF humor thread :-D

Posts
4,846
Likes
16,899
Superficially amusing, but wildly inaccurate in its implications.

If that's a suggestion for a new name for this thread, I second it.

Edit: That's the one you find inaccurate?
Edited:
 
Posts
7,615
Likes
26,355
That's the one you find inaccurate?

Actually, yes. Of course I'm not referring to absurdist humor, which I happen to like very much, and which is abundant here. But with the joke in question, the more that a viewer believes the essential message to be accurate, the more effective it is. So my reaction was essentially that the premise is so inaccurate, the joke doesn't work very well.

It's a bit like when people argue that the world isn't becoming hotter because it's currently snowing where they live. 😁
 
Posts
4,846
Likes
16,899
. So my reaction was essentially that the premise is so inaccurate, the joke doesn't work very well.

So all the misogynistic stuff is different?

‐‐----------

Little Billy hears screaming coming from his parents door and goes to investigate.

He opens the door and sees his parents going at it. His dad says, "Go to your room, Billy. I'll be there to tuck you into bed in 20 mins."

Twenty minutes later his dad hears screaming from Billy's room. He opens the door and sees Billy screwing his grandmother. The dad yells "What the hell are you doing?!"

Billy says? "It's not so funny when it's your mom!"
 
Posts
7,615
Likes
26,355
So all the misogynistic stuff is different?

I would say that they aren't analogous. To take it a step or two further, well-constructed misogynist, or even racist jokes, can be very funny, in my view. Of course they may offend some, or even many, and we could argue about where and when it should, or should not be appropriate to display (or tell) such jokes. But as there is often at least a small amount of truth to be found in stereotypes, it is possible for people, including many who are neither misogynists, nor racists, to "get", and appreciate the jokes.

In contrast, the premise of the subject joke is false, as technology in the form of mobile phones actually has, broadly speaking, degraded the social skills of the generations that were weaned on such devices. So in order for the joke to really work, it would be necessary for readers to set that rather inconvenient fact aside.

Put in much simpler terms, that joke doesn't work, while those jokes that might be distasteful to many people, often do.
Edited:
 
Posts
4,846
Likes
16,899
@Tony C. Appreciate your thoughtful reply, even though I don't agree. Like my joke, how we respond to humor often depends on who is doing the screwing and who is being screwed.

Myself, I think the kids are okay.
 
Posts
7,615
Likes
26,355
Thanks. No doubt some are, and I'd like very much to be wrong about the others.
 
Posts
1,530
Likes
3,563
^ plus one!

EDIT : post above removed?
Edited:
 
Posts
5,339
Likes
9,103
People reading newspapers -- they are largely being antisocial.

People playing on their phones -- many may be texting or otherwise socially interacting with others.
 
Posts
7,615
Likes
26,355
People reading newspapers -- they are largely being antisocial.

People playing on their phones -- many may be texting or otherwise socially interacting with others.

Reading newspapers was not then, nor is it not now, "antisocial" behavior. Virtually no one read (or reads) newspapers for 6, 8, or 10 (or more) hours a day. You also can't define "antisocial" as any action that happens to temporarily preclude socializing. If young people were only on their phones for an hour a day, the impacts would be dramatically different.

It is true that there is a great deal of a form of social interaction on phones, but the original, and widely accepted (and relevant) definition of "antisocial" is not being sociable or wanting the company of others. I would argue that there is a rather large, and important distinction between socializing on-line, and face to face. Mobile phone use has undoubtedly had a meaningful impact in extending the former, and reducing the latter.
 
Posts
5,339
Likes
9,103
Everyone has different experiences. My son's mobile phone allows him to interact with his friends and grandparents a lot more than he could do otherwise. There are no other kids his age within walking distance, so they largely interact in the afternoons/ evenings via mobile phone. A mobile phone has been an immense help in getting his to socialize more.
 
Posts
7,615
Likes
26,355
No doubt there are many positive aspects to them, but there's also a meaningful amount of what might be considered related, addictive behavior.
 
Posts
792
Likes
3,727
No doubt there are many positive aspects to them, but there's also a meaningful amount of what might be considered related, addictive behavior.

Hi @Tony C. It is rather nice that my wry little contribution sparked off a real discussion from you about the impact of mobile phones on today's world. They are undoubtedly addictive devices - mine is a constant companion that provides access to knowledge on things I want to google, instant messaging from family and friends, weather reports and so on. And as someone who remembers the days when we had to rely on public phone boxes when out and about, having the modern ability to call anyone at any time from anyplace (with signal access), I am glad to have them.

However I agree with your reservations. Dodging phone zombies in public places, trying to get kids to put the damn things away when we are having family gatherings, watching drivers wobble over the road while they look at their phones, and similar frustrations are familiar to all of us.

Comparing them with people reading newspapers is facetious, but it still made me smile.
 
Posts
7,615
Likes
26,355
Comparing them with people reading newspapers is facetious, but it still made me smile.

Thanks. I wasn't in any way criticizing you, but merely commenting on the content, and what provoked my reaction was that many, if not most internet users, would probably think, at least initially, that the two are comparable.

While I obviously do have serious concerns about some of the impacts of mobile devices on societies, and on young people in particular, I am a heavy internet user, and something of a "digital nomad" these days. So I am ambivalent at worst, and have benefited in many ways from the digital (online) revolution.

Having said that, I completely disconnect whenever I leave the house, partly in order to provide some balance, and partly because I really have no interest in being distracted from the real world.
 
Posts
5,339
Likes
9,103
Easy enough to look up tons of jokes on your mobile phone ::rimshot::
 
Posts
7,615
Likes
26,355
What a bummer I used to come to this thread for a good laugh.

Ah yes, the good old days. Was that back in mid-June, which appears to be the date of your very first post on the forum? 😁
 
Posts
792
Likes
3,727
Tribal wisdom passed on from generation to generation says that, "When you discover that you are riding a dead horse the best strategy is to dismount".


However, in the corporate and government world more advanced strategies are often employed, such as:


1. Using a stronger whip.

2. Changing riders.

3. Appointing a committee to study the horse.

4. Arranging a visit to other countries to see how other cultures ride dead horses.

5. Lowering the standard so that the dead horse can be included.

6. Reclassifying the dead horse as being living-impaired.

7. Hiring quality accredited outside contractors to ride the dead horse.

8. Harnessing several dead horses together to increase speed.

9. Providing additional counselling and/or training to increase the dead horse's performance.

10. Doing a productivity study to see if lighter riders would improve the dead horse's performance.

11. Declaring that as the dead horse does not have to be fed, it is less costly, carries lower overhead and therefore contributes substantially more to the bottom line of the economy than do some other horses.

12. Rewriting the expected performance requirements for all horses - unions can make a major contribution in this process.

AND.....a favourite

13. Promoting the dead horse to a supervisory position.