Recently in work, I told a colleague a joke. I’m not going to repeat it, unless anyone really wants me to, because it isn’t relevant to this post. However this joke was what most people would class as inappropriate, and I’m sure that everyone has encountered jokes of this kind, that treat topics such as racism, sexual abuse, death, etc, as humorous.
Now in response to my joke, my colleague told me I was a sick sick person, and probably going to hell. They were offended. I found this a tad hypocritical as they had only a few weeks ago been spouting off so called offensive jokes.
I tend to think that if you can laugh at some things, but not others where do you draw that line? How can you decided what is allowed to be laughed at and what not? Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t tell a joke about rape directly to someone who has been raped, but I don’t think there is anything wrong with offensive jokes.
My question is, is there are topics which humour cannot touch. Or is all fair game in the name of a laugh?