Originally Posted by Boomer (Post 2175942)

I think this one crosses the line, actually more than one line. . .

There are some things that should not be the stuff of jokes.

Boomer

Originally Posted by bruce213 (Post 2176019)

I laughed.

Originally Posted by RICH1 (Post 2175900)

Not funny to those who lost Family !

Originally Posted by Boomer (Post 2175942)

I think this one crosses the line, actually more than one line. . .

There are some things that should not be the stuff of jokes.

Boomer

Originally Posted by Boomer (Post 2175942)

I think this one crosses the line, actually more than one line. . .

There are some things that should not be the stuff of jokes.

Boomer

Originally Posted by ThirdOfFive (Post 2176001)

Our skins get progressively thinner and thinner.

Back in the day, just out of high school, I worked taconite plant construction on Minnesota's Mesabi Iron Range. Tough work but the pay was good and for a young buck just getting out into the real world it was great. As you can imagine the humor among the workers was as rough and ready as the workers themselves. Jokes that made the rounds then would never be told today (at least in some places). Much of the work force were "Bohunks"; Serbians, Slovenians, Croatians. Lots of Italians there too, only we never called them that. I was a Bohunk. A standard joke was "how do you tell the (Italians) from the Bohunks?" "Simple. The (Italians) were the guys in suits looking down into the pit. The Bohunks were the guys with shovels at the BOTTOM of the pit."

It was funny, and regardless of ethnicity we all laughed at it. No one felt put down, racially slammed, etc. The Professionally Offended didn't exist back then. Today? Odds are that the thinner-skinned folks would be offended, or at least think they should be offended, at the joke.

I don't necessarily think that represents progress.

Originally Posted by Boomer (Post 2176197)

Nope. Not thin skinned. Also, not surprised that I was immediately categorized. I knew what the reaction would be when I wrote that post this morning.

Here’s the thing — the example given by the first one to take umbrage with me — and quoted here above — is not the same thing…….

Ethnic jokes have been a part of our American Melting Pot forever and those kinds of jokes can let us laugh at ourselves — and laugh with others…..

For instance:

All those “how many (whoever) to change a lightbulb” jokes are funny to me. Those can be ethnic jokes. They can also be religious denomination jokes or regional jokes or job jokes. All in fun.

Anyway, I am not thin skinned. But Holocaust jokes cross the line where I am concerned. And I feel the same way about Helen Keller jokes.

Hope that’s not too nuanced to be understood.

Boomer

Originally Posted by Boomer (Post 2176197)

Nope. Not thin skinned. Also, not surprised that I was immediately categorized. I knew what the reaction would be when I wrote that post this morning.

Here’s the thing — the example given by the first one to take umbrage with me — and quoted here above — is not the same thing…….

Ethnic jokes have been a part of our American Melting Pot forever and those kinds of jokes can let us laugh at ourselves — and laugh with others…..

For instance:

All those “how many (whoever) to change a lightbulb” jokes are funny to me. Those can be ethnic jokes. They can also be religious denomination jokes or regional jokes or job jokes. All in fun.

Anyway, I am not thin skinned. But Holocaust jokes cross the line where I am concerned. And I feel the same way about Helen Keller jokes. (There is no lightness, no snappy comebacks, to such jokes.)

Hope that’s not too nuanced to be understood.

Boomer

Originally Posted by RICH1 (Post 2175900)

Not funny to those who lost Family !

Originally Posted by larbud (Post 2175871)

An elderly Italian man who lived in rural Italy, went to the local church for confession. When the priest slid open the panel in the confessional, the man said:



"Father.. During World War II, a beautiful Jewish woman from our neighborhood knocked urgently on my door and asked me to hide her from the Nazis. So, I hid her in my attic."



The priest replied:



"That was a wonderful thing you did, and you have no need to confess that."



"There is more to tell, Father. She started to repay me with sexual favours. This happened several times a week and sometimes twice on Sundays."



The priest said, "That was a long time ago and by doing what you did, you placed the two of you in great danger, but two people under those circumstances can easily succumb to the weakness of the flesh. However, if you are truly sorry for your actions, you are indeed forgiven."



"Thank you, Father. That's a great load off my mind. But I do have one more question."



"And what is that?" asked the priest.



"Should I tell her the war is over?

Originally Posted by larbud (Post 2175871)

An elderly Italian man who lived in rural Italy, went to the local church for confession. When the priest slid open the panel in the confessional, the man said:



"Father.. During World War II, a beautiful Jewish woman from our neighborhood knocked urgently on my door and asked me to hide her from the Nazis. So, I hid her in my attic."



The priest replied:



"That was a wonderful thing you did, and you have no need to confess that."



"There is more to tell, Father. She started to repay me with sexual favours. This happened several times a week and sometimes twice on Sundays."



The priest said, "That was a long time ago and by doing what you did, you placed the two of you in great danger, but two people under those circumstances can easily succumb to the weakness of the flesh. However, if you are truly sorry for your actions, you are indeed forgiven."



"Thank you, Father. That's a great load off my mind. But I do have one more question."



"And what is that?" asked the priest.



"Should I tell her the war is over?

Originally Posted by larbud (Post 2175871)

An elderly Italian man who lived in rural Italy, went to the local church for confession. When the priest slid open the panel in the confessional, the man said:



"Father.. During World War II, a beautiful Jewish woman from our neighborhood knocked urgently on my door and asked me to hide her from the Nazis. So, I hid her in my attic."



The priest replied:



"That was a wonderful thing you did, and you have no need to confess that."



"There is more to tell, Father. She started to repay me with sexual favours. This happened several times a week and sometimes twice on Sundays."



The priest said, "That was a long time ago and by doing what you did, you placed the two of you in great danger, but two people under those circumstances can easily succumb to the weakness of the flesh. However, if you are truly sorry for your actions, you are indeed forgiven."



"Thank you, Father. That's a great load off my mind. But I do have one more question."



"And what is that?" asked the priest.



"Should I tell her the war is over?

Originally Posted by sdifede313@aol.com (Post 2176498)

The first thing to go in old age is, one’s sense of humor. 🤣

Originally Posted by Boomer (Post 2175942)

I think this one crosses the line, actually more than one line. . .

There are some things that should not be the stuff of jokes.

Boomer

Originally Posted by oldtimes (Post 2176533)

Tolerance:
the ability or willingness to tolerate something, in particular the existence of opinions or behavior that one does not necessarily agree with.

Has been replaced with

Virtue Signaling:
the act or practice of conspicuously displaying one's awareness of and attentiveness to political issues, matters of social and racial justice, etc.

Originally Posted by Kenswing (Post 2176511)

And since this was WWII the subjects of this joke would be close to 100 years old. I doubt there's much hanky panky going on at this point.

Originally Posted by sdifede313@aol.com (Post 2176498)

The first thing to go in old age is, one’s sense of humor. 🤣

Originally Posted by oldtimes (Post 2176533)

Tolerance:
the ability or willingness to tolerate something, in particular the existence of opinions or behavior that one does not necessarily agree with.

Has been replaced with

Virtue Signaling:
the act or practice of conspicuously displaying one's awareness of and attentiveness to political issues, matters of social and racial justice, etc.

Originally Posted by RiderOnTheStorm (Post 2176551)

Respectfully, your point (above) suggests that it is OK to agree or disagree on whether or not the holocaust was a bad thing.I think this goes beyond "tolerance".

Nonetheless I will make you a deal: Share this "joke" with your Jewish friends. If they find it as humorous as some others do I will concede that I need a thicker skin.

Originally Posted by RiderOnTheStorm (Post 2176551)

Respectfully, your point (above) suggests that it is OK to agree or disagree on whether or not the holocaust was a bad thing.I think this goes beyond "tolerance".

Originally Posted by JMintzer (Post 2176556)

There is nothing in that joke that comes close to saying the holocaust was not a bad thing.



Exhibit A right here. 65 yo Jew here... I found the joke funny (albeit, not a knee slapper)...

I remember Joan Rivers' comments, when confronted about her "Holocaust Jokes". She had many and some made this one look like a "knock-knock joke"...

She stated that NOTHING was "out of bounds" when it came to humor. If people would groan at her concerts, she would double down and hit them with and even more outrageous joke...

She had Hitler Jokes, Concentration Camp jokes, Anne Frank jokes, even jokes about the Crematoriums!

When commenting on Heidi Klum's show stopping Oscars gold dress with a seriously plunging neckline, Rivers remarked Monday, “The last time a German looked this hot was when they were pushing Jews into the ovens.”

She even told a joke about he husband Edgar (who lost most of his family in the Holocaust), who lost a leg in Europe, fighting the Nazis. She said "Leaving his leg there was "littering", and That's Wrong!"

She said she told the joke to "shake people's memories"...

Here is an interesting article titled the "Schlemiel Theory" that may enlighten some:

Joan Rivers and Holocaust Humor | Schlemiel Theory

Originally Posted by Boomer (Post 2176558)

Hahahahaha, this thread is speaking volumes. When I called out the first post, I knew what would happen.

I knew what I was setting up to get -- just a tedious litany of knee-jerk, pre-programmed reactions indicating no thought given to how this joke is different.

It's different! I tellya! It's different!

Now, I am being called a virtue signaler, on top of being called a liberal. (gasp) Oh my, my, my, I must take to my fainting couch and clutch my pearls. HAH!

Btw, speaking of pearls. . .I don't have time to cast any more right now.

Boomer (who is actually a common sense, moderate type -- an endangered species (sigh))

Originally Posted by oldtimes (Post 2176552)

When I read this the only thing I took from it was that it was a joke about a horny little man. The Holocaust never crossed my my mind until the thought police arrived.

Originally Posted by Whitley (Post 2176767)

I find your portrayal of the Italian as a little old horny man objectionable. That is xenophobic and I will throw in transphobic not because it makes any sense, but just because.

Originally Posted by ThirdOfFive (Post 2176781)

Why not a "tasteless joke of the day" thread?