{"id":3373,"date":"2013-04-03T16:04:43","date_gmt":"2013-04-03T20:04:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/?p=3373"},"modified":"2013-04-03T16:05:30","modified_gmt":"2013-04-03T20:05:30","slug":"sex-religion-place-where-jokes-come-from-and-go-to","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/2013\/04\/03\/sex-religion-place-where-jokes-come-from-and-go-to\/","title":{"rendered":"Sex, religion, place: where jokes come from…and go to"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo: Joseph Bremson\/excitingsounds (via Creative Commons, some restrictions)<\/p><\/div>\n

A priest, a rabbi and a minister go into a bar…<\/p>\n

A senator, a doctor and a lawyer are on a plane…<\/p>\n

A 75 year old man goes to the doctor for advice about his marriage…<\/p>\n

How can you tell you’re from the north country…<\/p>\n

Lots of jokes circulate around the internet these days. Some are funny, many are not. Some are “kosher” for sharing, many are not. What makes a joke “shareable”–acceptable to send back out into the ether with your name attached to it?<\/p>\n

For me, the joke has to be funny (like I said, this is not a given), it can’t be offensively lewd, and it can’t be mean-spirited or downright racist.<\/p>\n

If the butt of the joke is a person or people I am not connected to, I’m unlikely to share, even if it doesn’t feel mean-spirited. There are exceptions, but I’m careful. For example, even a gentle joke about an Irishman in a pub would be red-flagged for me because the humor is rooted in a troubling stereotype.<\/p>\n

Does this seem too “politically correct?” I don’t think so, at least not when I’m sharing out into the unknown digital frontier.<\/p>\n

Okay, having said all of this, I received a set of Jewish jokes (yes, I’m Jewish) from a non-Jewish friend. They’re kind of silly and fun. I found them perfectly fine, even though they’re based on some (innocuous) stereotypes.\u00a0 I’m curious. What are your boundaries? Read these jokes and tell me if you think any of them are funny and\/or offensive.<\/p>\n

Jewish marriage philosophy
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A Jewish woman goes to see her Rabbi and asks, “Yankele and Yosele are both in love with me, who will be the lucky one?”<\/p>\n

The wise old Rabbi answers, “Yankele will marry you. Yosele will be the lucky one.”<\/p>\n

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If a married<\/strong> Jewish man is walking alone in a park and expresses an opinion without anybody hearing him, is he still wrong?<\/p>\n

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My father said, “Marry a girl who has the same belief as the family.” I said, “Dad, why would I marry a girl who thinks I’m a schmuck?”<\/p>\n

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Jewish Marriage advice: “Don’t marry a beautiful person. They may leave you. Of course, an ugly person may leave you too. But who cares?”<\/p>\n

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Jewish proverb: “A Jewish wife will forgive and forget, but she’ll never forget what she forgave.”<\/p>\n

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Photo: stlphotoblogger (from Creative Commons, some restrictions)<\/p><\/div>\n

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PLUS THIS ONE:<\/p>\n

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The Italian says, “I’m tired and thirsty. I must have wine.”<\/p>\n

The Frenchman says, “I’m tired and thirsty. I must have cognac.”<\/p>\n

The Russian says, “I’m tired and thirsty. I must have vodka.”<\/p>\n

The German says, “I’m tired and thirsty. I must have beer.”<\/p>\n

The Mexican says, “I’m tired and thirsty. I must have tequila.”<\/p>\n

The Jew says, “I’m tired and thirsty. I must have diabetes.”<\/p>\n

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Ethnic humor at its best gives a feel for a culture or group, the flavor. Here’s a video from a group called OLD JEWS TELLING JOKES. There are lots more like this one–dozens of older Jews, not professional entertainers, telling jokes…mostly at their own expense. Warning: some are a bit off-color, though the one I’ve selected is not.<\/p>\n