Is It Just The Brits Who Make Jokes About Disasters? (page 2)

Simon

I think it is a way of coping with tragedy and awful events.

Some time ago I heard a guy interviewed who had investigated many, many scenes of horror such as massacres in Rwanda. They made jokes about things and he said that if anyone heard them they would be horrified ... but they needed to do it as a kind of mental protection so that they could stay somewhat detached and do their work instead of breaking down in tears at the horror of it all.

Having said that, some people are just sick and have no taste. They will just laugh and someone elses misfortune and make no attempt to help.

FMZ

Simon, yep, I've come across that too.

When I was working in the Walmart photo department, a couple of cops came in with pictures they wanted blowing up to 8x10. They came to me and asked for assistance, so I took on the job of helping out. Well, the pictures were of a murder scene, the corpse, the rest of the corpse 6 feet away, etc.. As we were doing the enlargements, I asked the cops how they deal with it all. They said humor. They have to make jokes, otherwise it would be impossible to cope.

Very interesting "coping" mechanism.

FMZ

GermanXJW

On Friday, German gay fashion designer Rudolf Mooshammer was found dead in his appartment. He was strungled with a telephone cord.

Today, I saw a fake ad with his face on it. It was for cordless telephones. "Cordless Safety - If I had known I would have bought one."

ballistic

I don't have a problem with jokes about the tsunami, but I would draw the line with the 150000 people who die because of war or poverty in Africa every week, it's kind of "beyond a joke".

belbab

There was a Jewish festival.

The celebrants were telling jokes,

Moishe starts off: Two rabbis were heading to the synagogue......

Mendelbaum interrupts: I think it is very improper for us to make jokes about ourselves.

Moishe replies: Yes. Mendel, I agree. I will cease at once. So, two chinamen were heading for the synagogue.......

At this site there is an essay about Holocaust Humor.

Humor as a defense mechanism in the Holocaust

http://www.remember.org/humor/absractn.html

franklin J

I agree that it depends on the circustance; degree of pressure one is under ; and that laughing could be a way to cope.

As for the British doing some laughing; I suspect Prince Harry is not laughing at this moment; too bad the tabloids have to be so tough on the kid.

Is It Just The Brits Who Make Jokes About Disasters?