Ian's blog

Comments on current events and ideas
Permalink : http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/anterian36

Thursday , November 5 , 2009

Insults, perceived or real?

Posted by Ian , Reader : 403 , 15:02:25

Recently in my blog "views of Asia" Piset posted a humourous sign in Chinese, I posted several "tongue in cheek" pictures myself. About a year ago in these blogs there was a blog about "Chinglish" signs. many bloggers in other websites have at time poked fun at Thai names, and invented fanciful ones such as "Wattapong" , "Bang cock" etc. Many jokes are directed at ethnic or national groupings, sports fans make jokes about rival teams, men make jokes about women and women make jokes about men. So I ask this, when does a joke cross the borderline and become an insult? Does it depend upon the speaker and the listener, is the same comment from one speaker a joke and from another an insult. Are some listeners more sensitive than others? Take this joke, "What did God say when he created the first black man? Ohh! S**t I burnt one" Now this joke is both racial and irreligious, is it out of order then? How about this joke, is it funny or crude? "What did the elephant say to the naked man? "How do you breathe through that thing?" Is this joke an insult to dyslexics? "Did you hear about the dyslexic pimp? He bought a warehouse..." Are there some jokes that you know but would be unwilling to repeat because they offend your sensibilities?

Recently in my blog "views of Asia" Piset posted a humourous sign in Chinese, I posted several "tongue in cheek" pictures myself. About a year ago in these blogs there was a blog about "Chinglish" signs.

many bloggers in other websites have at time poked fun at Thai names, and invented fanciful ones such as "Wattapong" , "Bang cock" etc.

Many jokes are directed at ethnic or national groupings, sports fans make jokes about rival teams, men make jokes about women and women make jokes about men.

So I ask this, when does a joke cross the borderline and become an insult? Does it depend upon the speaker and the listener, is the same comment from one speaker a joke and from another an insult. Are some listeners more sensitive than others?

Take this joke,

"What did God say when he created the first black man?
Ohh! S**t I burnt one"

Now this joke is both racial and irreligious, is it out of order then?

How about this joke, is it funny or crude?

"What did the elephant say to the naked man?
"How do you breathe through that thing?"

Is this joke an insult to dyslexics?

"Did you hear about the dyslexic pimp? He bought a warehouse..."

Are there some jokes that you know but would be unwilling to repeat because they offend your sensibilities?

Post comment | send mail to friend

Read comment

comment 21
Ian date : 08/11/2009 time : 10.55
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/anterian36

comment 18. "hole full of soap" just for those who could not complete the punch line.

comment 20
happyjack date : 08/11/2009 time : 07.05

Ian,i find youre joke offensive,my Son has laughed has laughed his nuts of,i dont allow any thing like that in my Concentration Camp.Any more,and ill slap the back of yoyr legs.YABUA

comment 19
catch22 date : 07/11/2009 time : 08.50
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/catch22

C10 - ...........Because she had tried all the x small Thai hot dogs and needed a Brockwurst?.......or would that be a Knackwurst

comment 18
Ian date : 06/11/2009 time : 19.54
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/anterian36

There is a class of joke where the listener supplies his own ending, or if too slow you might eventually tell him. This is partly a test of the listener's sensitivities.

Q, why is a woman leaving church like a woman getting out of the bath?

A. the woman leaving church has a 'soul' full of 'hope', the woman getting out of the bath has a ............

comment 17
noonin date : 06/11/2009 time : 19.19
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/noonin

Don't forget, we are all victims now

comment 16
Alien date : 06/11/2009 time : 19.13
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/alien

Comment 14 - Here's the American version:

Kids: Can Johnny come out to play baseball?

Mom: You know Johnny has no arms and no legs.

Kids: We want to use him for second base.

comment 15
happyjack date : 06/11/2009 time : 16.12

Whats the difference between an Egg and a Fuck. ?,.....you can beat an Egg................

comment 14
Ian date : 06/11/2009 time : 15.35
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/anterian36

another factor in jokes is the age of the participants/targets. Here is a well known sick joke.

Kids, "Missus Brown can we come in and play with Jimmy?"
Mrs Brown, "I'm sorry he is dead from an accident".
Kids, "Can we just play with his body then?".

On the surface just a sick joke, but the underlying message is that kids do not understand the concept of death.

Many jokes seem to have this dual nature, humour plus philosophical comment.

comment 13
Outsider date : 06/11/2009 time : 12.32
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/outsider

I think your response to jokes has to do with your upbringing and general experience in life. Having worked in many places and with people from different cultures I often find myself laughing at ethnic jokes. I do personally find jokes about disabled people tasteless and offensive but I know others think differently.

comment 12
anthonyford date : 06/11/2009 time : 12.24
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/anthonyford
The Truth is Freedom

C8- Unfortunately with the exception of only a few special groups most people do not see the hypocrisy in their sensitivities. I have tried to explain this concept to a number of people with great difficulty.

You do not have to be Isaac Newton to understand it (Einstein’s a fraud and I am not being anti semantic) but for a reason unknown to me, the concept is not easily understood. Maybe nowadays the incentives to be a victim are too attractive.

comment 11
GGrass date : 06/11/2009 time : 11.35
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/GGrass

I used to know a lot of Blonde and Polish being stupid jokes... Jews being stingy jokes... Niggers being black jokes... Prostitutes being whore jokes...

And then there's the animal jokes...

Q : Where is the sex organ of an elephant located?
A : On its feet. Coz if it steps on you, you're fucked!

comment 10
happyjack date : 06/11/2009 time : 06.09

I only tell jokes to P.C. people.you always get a reaction.Nigger jokes are my favourite.Did you hear the one about the Thai Tart who married a German .

comment 9
Alien date : 05/11/2009 time : 23.09
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/alien

It seems that any time you are telling any joke nowadays, you are walking on thin ice. Due to the "Politically Correct" movement, anyone can take offense at any joke, even if it's not about them. People are becoming "thin-skinned". Don't forget, we are all victims now so if anyone tells a joke, they are not being funny, they are showing what an insensitive brute they really are. I am, therefore I am a victim. People are now very careful of who they tell jokes to.

comment 8
Ian date : 05/11/2009 time : 22.31
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/anterian36

Jokes seem come in many categories, yet I remember from my anthropology studies that in fact all jokes fall into just 13 groups.
I think the jokes which are probably the most offences are not the "black jokes" that Panya illustrated, but rather the jokes aimed a creating a sense of us superior to them.

To take Anthony's final sentence. Consider this joke.

"The Polish press report that a two seater light Cessna plane crashed into a cemetery last night.
So far the police have recovered 100 bodies and are still searching."

This joke is obviously implying that Poles are stupid, would a pole find it offensive?

Move the joke to England and it would not work, the British know they are not that stupid.

Move it to Thailand and it would not work, Thais don't have cemeteries.

comment 7
panya date : 05/11/2009 time : 20.40
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/diversion

Sorry, the answer should read "A baby sucking ........"

comment 6
panya date : 05/11/2009 time : 20.39
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/diversion

Yes, I think it depends on the speaker, the speaker's tone, the listener, the context, the situation, the circumstances and even the medium which is used for the joke. And different people do usually have different levels of sensitivity.

Jokes do not always translate too well into different languages, either.

I remember in my youth being surprised that a student mag was prosecuted for the joke Q: -"What's red and sits in the corner crying? - A: A bay sucking a razor-blade".

comment 5
Plaadip date : 05/11/2009 time : 19.53

About C4, I mean, somebody who cannot find any inferiority in themselves is a fool. That's also you meant, right? You should call a spade a spade. Ian will not get angry with it, because he understands humor.

comment 4
Plaadip date : 05/11/2009 time : 19.46

C3, You said it. We tend to call somebody who cannot find any inferiority, a fool. I think Al already explained it in another blog.

comment 3
anthonyford date : 05/11/2009 time : 17.40
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/anthonyford
The Truth is Freedom

Offence to these kinds of jokes usually demonstrates an inferiority complex and a lack of confidence in ones postion in the world. The level of offence or acceptance varies from person to person.. So you need to make a judgement call on each situtation. that being said, :

It is difficult to insult an Englishman: They don’t have inferiority complexes.

comment 2
Plaadip date : 05/11/2009 time : 17.25

First joke.....not funny, we can't call it insult humor because there is no wit in it

Second joke....hahahah...funny,

Third one, I can't understand what it means because I am dyslexic

comment 1
happyjack date : 05/11/2009 time : 15.30

Anything goes , but Jokes about illness,or afflictions are a no no with me.

Comment

"If you are not member, please register to comment.
It take only a few steps."

member sign in | member register

name :
email :
website :
comment :

		back top

<<	November 2009					>>
s	m	t	w	t	f	s
1	2	3	4	5	6	7
8	9	10	11	12	13	14
15	16	17	18	19	20	21
22	23	24	25	26	27	28
29	30