Yes, bouncing about the internet are those lovely little sayings, and now its so popular to stick bumper stickers in your facebook news. The one I shall jump upon my soapbox this evening to highlight is: "My sense of humor may hurt your feelings. i suggest you get over it."
Why do people think that demeaning others is "funny"? Why do people think it is OK to get pleasure by causing another pain? How would they like it if it was their feelings being hurt, their lives being demeaned? What happened to that basic of respect, treating others as you would want to be treated?
Do people really think I ought to keep this in mind the next time I hear or see a "retard joke" in front of Joey? Sadly, they do. Really. I wonder what those people would think if I took a baseball bat and smacked them upside the head with it. Hey, lots of people think slapstick is funny, right? Do people not understand that emotional pain can be far more damaging than physical pain?
Humor is a very culturally determined thing. As culture emerges from the dark and learns how important respecting others really is- and how well it really works- we change our idea of what is funny. Little Black Sambo is not funny, it is demeaning; and when society realized it was demeaning, Little Black Sambo jokes disappeared.
But there are still groups and people that society do not see as fully human, and so demeaning them is seen as acceptable. When those groups begin to protest, telling them to just "get over it" is not acceptable, either. There are plenty of wonderful, joyous, and really hilarious moments in the world, without having to cause another any pain at all. Causing pain isn't funny. Hurting isn't humor.
No, I will not get over it. I hope that you will, instead, rise above it.
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2 comments:
People seem to think that if you say something egregiously offensive that it is funny. It's boring and it's lazy and all it does is hurt people.
And it isn't even funny.
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