The limit of humor

[Fibriel Solaer]

The rule of jokes:

You're not allowed to make fun of the suffering of real people without their consent.

e.g. if you make a rape joke, you have to make fun of the rapist or the concept of rape, not the rape victim(s).

If you make fun of Hitler or Stalin, you do not make fun of the millions of people they killed.

If you yourself are the butt of the joke, you cannot incidentally imply others are in the same boat with you by the nature of the joke. EXAMPLE: Pretend black-cloak-and-broomstick witches are real. You're a witch. You make a joke about yourself being burned at the stake which is a real thing that really happens to real witches in this example world. You're still making fun of people getting hurt. Not Okay.

[Tiger]

e.g. if you make a rape joke, you have to make fun of the rapist or the concept of rape, not the rape victim(s).

This I personally disagree with. I'm of the opinion that rape is overall just not a subject that's funny. The concept of rape is not entertaining to me, it is a traumatic event that the victims will have to live with for the rest of their lives, probably developing PTSD. I honestly just cannot find a concept like that to be humorous.

[Cyan Glaciertooth]

This is just my $0.02.

I think it all comes down to where and when it is okay to make certain jokes. As the old saying goes, "There is a time and a place for everything".

For example, South Park has its distasteful humor. But not everyone finds it offensive. In order to separate any potential backlash towards the show, from the non-concerned fanbase the show has, South Park aired on a time where most children were already in bed, and they also have a "TV-MA" rating to warn people about the show's content. At that point, South Park can present pretty much whatever kind of humor it wants because it's in a safe position to present that type of humor.

I tell ya, I used to have a friend who got silly quite often. Back when we were teens, he came up with some of the craziest, most outrageous jokes I ever heard. There was actually a time where all he would ever joke about was Hitler, the Nazis, WWII, etc. He came up with jokes like "Instead of 'Cops & Robbers', it's 'Nazis & Jews'". Despite how over-the-top the humor was, he never got in trouble telling them, because he knew where and when to share these jokes. However, in his early 20's, he was beginning to forget that there are times and places these sort of jokes are not allowed. I think he got in trouble at one time after bringing up such inappropriate humor at a baseball game he went to with someone he used to be friends with. Other people could hear him talking, and they got offended by his humor. After an argument with those people, security had to step in and boot him out.

[dirtypaws]

There's such a push to find out exactly what IS and ISN'T okay humor nowadays and i think people make it out to be a lot bigger of a deal than it really has to be.

there is no limit to humor, nor will there ever be. even people who are going through very traumatic times find ways to laugh at them sometimes, while others don't. the most important thing to remember is tact, and respect. If you honestly think things like sexual assault, abuse, genocide, racism, and other things of these natures are funny, the important thing is to remember that you are not the only person around you, and it's just as important to remember that on the internet as it is in real life. Take time to think "hey, while i think holocaust jokes are funny, there are those around me/reading this forum that might not, so maybe i should refrain until a more proper time". that's ALL you have to do.

Society nowadays is highly desensitized to hurtful topics. No one should be telling you "stop laughing at hurtful topics" because, well, you can't help that you think they're funny. even some people who have been through these situations laugh at them as a means of handling them better. i personally am one of them, i joke a lot about bad parts of my life because it makes me feel better. but i joke about them in places where it's appropriate, in groups of people that i know are not affected or hurt by these jokes. i never make jokes in public where others can see or hear what i said because i never know how that might affect someone around me who DOESN'T use humor as a coping mechanism. If someone comes up to me, though, and says "hey that joke you made actually upset me a lot" then the RESPONSIBLE AND POLITE thing to do is say "wow, i am really sorry i upset you" and not joke like that again around that person.

That's all there is to it. Think beforehand about what might upset someone, keep jokes on sensitive and upsetting topics in closed groups that are okay with that sort of humor, and apologize if you still accidentally upset someone. if you're so emotionally distraught about not getting to spout off rape jokes any chance you get then that's a problem YOU need to deal with and not something others around you should have to handle just because you need to be the center of attention.

[Manna]

This I personally disagree with. I'm of the opinion that rape is overall just not a subject that's funny. The concept of rape is not entertaining to me, it is a traumatic event that the victims will have to live with for the rest of their lives, probably developing PTSD. I honestly just cannot find a concept like that to be humorous.

Out of curiosity, what do you think on Wanda Sykes' bit called "The detachable puss"? It's considered by some to be an example of a "good rape joke", given that it's a joke that seeks to condemn rapists, but I wonder if you would call it that

[Dire Newt]

I don't believe there should be any forbidden topics when it comes to comedy, though there are situations in which jokes are not entirely appropriate.

[Fibriel Solaer]

This I personally disagree with. I'm of the opinion that rape is overall just not a subject that's funny. The concept of rape is not entertaining to me, it is a traumatic event that the victims will have to live with for the rest of their lives, probably developing PTSD. I honestly just cannot find a concept like that to be humorous.

I find that very picky and I'll use an example to illustrate why.

So in a competitive sport, one team is winning 1,000,000:0, and the fans say "Oh man they're just murdering the other team!"

To most people that's totally okay. But if a fan says "Oh man they're just raping the other team" that's suddenly not okay?

Because that's ridiculous and incredibly biased. Those are the same thing - utilizing a metaphor that when taken literally isn't humorous and is extremely tragic.

[piñardilla]

I find that very picky and I'll use an example to illustrate why.

So in a competitive sport, one team is winning 1,000,000:0, and the fans say "Oh man they're just murdering the other team!"

To most people that's totally okay. But if a fan says "Oh man they're just raping the other team" that's suddenly not okay?

Because that's ridiculous and incredibly biased. Those are the same thing - utilizing a metaphor that when taken literally isn't humorous and is extremely tragic.

Nobody that hears you say that has ever been murdered.

[FishNChips]

Nobody that hears you say that has ever been murdered.

But they could have lost their best friend, parent, child, partner, or spouse through murder, witnessing it, or have nearly been murdered themselves.

[Fibriel Solaer]

Nobody that hears you say that has ever been murdered.

Aaaand there you have it. The only reason you object is because now you're the joke. It's totally fine to make fun of everyone's suffering but yours.

You know what that's called? Narcissism. Comedians are much more likely to target narcissists, so you'd better get off your high horse and suck it up, because you're not special. All of us are the butt of jokes sometime or another and looking for an excuse to make your problem everyone else's problem does not deserve the slightest bit of respect.

If I find a comedian's jokes completely debase and tasteless, I... don't watch that comedian. I don't and cannot stop him from doing his bit because that isn't my place, and it isn't yours either.

(P.S. note that the author of the article linked above is a rape victim who is comfortable with tasteful rape jokes.)