Where has all the funny gone?

Over the last few days I've noticed a startling trend on the internet that rather disturbs me. And no, it's not silly mothers letting their children fend for themselves for a few minutes so they can check their email.

It's the fact that the interwebs, for the most part, have completely lost their sense of humor.

Or humour (for the damn Canadians and their fucked up spelling).

Is it me or are the jokes gone?

Maybe it's the recession, or the high fructose corn syrup, or that people have larger than usual sticks stuck up their assholes, but it's impossible to make a funny, dare I say be "tongue in cheek" without at least someone, or group of someones, getting their big old panties in a wad.

Because I'm sorry. If you can't take a joke, you're wearing big ugly panties. And if you can take a joke and you wear big ugly panties then you will not be offended by that statement. You will think it's funny.

I noticed it back a month or so ago when I tweeted about the Newfoundland Premier getting surgery in the United States, no doubt to avoid the complimentary coochie exams Canadians are giving out during their surgeries at teaching hospitals.

I mean, dudes don't have coochies so it should be obvious right there that I was making a joke. But even then, considering the timing of it all - you know, Canadian Premier gets surgery out of the country just as news broke that Canadian women were getting non-consensual vaginal exams during surgery - I thought that it was kind of funny.

IRONIC EVEN.

*Gasp*

Remember irony?

But instead, a few people actually tweeted to me that Newfoundland is an island and a small one at that and so therefore it requires him to get his major surgery done here in the USA.

And PS @mublogger it's not a Prime Minister [as I had originally tweeted from the freaking treadmill because good jokes can't wait people], it's a Premier. No "e" because we're Canadian and we spell weird.

Um, okey dokey then. So much for my good joke erection.

And then there was Alice Bradley's recent hilarious Redbook column called "When Kids Attack!" that caused people to comment that she was raising a serial killer. I realize that perhaps some people might not be familiar with Alice's writing style or the fact that she herself is quite lovely and funny, and from what I can tell is only raising a child to be a city snob who hates Jersey and doesn't really like to eat certain foods, even cookies, which could be cause for some concern, but certainly does not make her a serial killer baby mama.

(Is that what they're called? I'm not familiar with the terminology).

And honestly, I think a disdain for Jersey could be considered well adjusted on some personality scales.

And then there's the Mominatrix, that bitch, who when taken out of context, could be seen as a hater of women. And probably men. Or even babies too. I'm sure there's something that could be twisted in there to make it sound like I hate babies.

Now look. I get that people who have been on the receiving end of non-consensual gynecological exams, violent children, and vaginal or bodily trauma that may affect their receptiveness to jokes about post partum sex may not be able to find these things funny. In fact, they may find them down right offensive - TREASONOUS!

(Dude. I made up a word).

But in my humble experience, especially when it comes to parenting and vaginas, if I wasn't laughing, I'd be crying.

And I'm sorry, but that's just not good for my stunning complexion.

Comments

[LeastLikely2Breed]

Did someone say Frankenvulva?

[Jennie]

Girl, you are FINE. The funny is definitely gone for some, but not for all. Keep it up!

[tng]

I'm with you, sister.

WITH YOU.

I mean, SHIT. I had a morbidly--MORBIDLY!--obese mother and I can STILL appreciate a 'Yo Momma So Fat' joke with the best of them.

Right?

Like, 'When she sit around the house, she sit AROUND THE HOUSE.'

Whatever. Life is too short to be touchy about your big, gramma panties. (Ilovemineomg.)

[jenn]

oh, humour, so difficult to find when automatic spell checks are constantly telling you that you've erred when, really, humour, labelled and cheque are valid words. damn it.

[Amelia Sprout]

I'm guilty of being serious a lot lately. Not so much in my reactions to people but more my overall 'tude.

Consider it corrected.

[Suebob]

I was judging a contest the other day and the chief judge was going over the rules. When he got done, he asked "Any questions?" and I said "So you're saying is ISN'T ok if we take bribes from the contestants?" Everyone just stood there looking at me like they thought I was serious.

[A Vapid Blonde]

I am not Canadian but I use the U all the time. I also don't have anything up my butt as I stated at 4:30 this morning when I was writing my last post. I find I can only really concentrate on funny things...kind of like shiny things for me.

[Lindsay Ferrier]

I actually have a wonderfully warped reader whose only aim in coming to my site is to convince everyone that I am really a very bad writer because SHE doesn't get my JOKES and if I were a GOOD writer, EVERYONE would get my jokes, and WHY WON'T ANYONE ACKNOWLEDGE THIS???!!!!111!!!

I think that's pretty funny...

[Karen (SubMommy)]

No kidding. I hate having to censor my nasty sense of humor.

I think a giant chill pill is in order here.

Frankenvulva? Sweet.

[jaimes]

I run into the humorless all the time in the real world, too, and it sucks. I don't expect everyone to BE funny, but at least appreciate humor! The stick up the ass is an epidemic that seems to escalate once we have children, which is totally ironic because most kids are hilarious. They're like little stand-up comics that tell it like it is because they don't have the social graces yet to do otherwise. I pity the family that does not laugh at their kids' fart jokes, as well as the moms who do not make jokes about their vaginas.

[Sandrine]

As long as the bloggess and the mominatrix are still going, I don't think there's much risk of humo(u)r disappearing off the internet! Else, has P.G. Wodehouse got a twitter account?

[Katie Krank]

As an Albertan my take on the whole uproar is that Newfies were upset about the vag exam is because most of Canada has long acknowledged that Newfies are some of the whiniest and most useless vag's there are!

[Stacia]

My thought to those who find these things offensive is: If you don't like it, don't read it. There are enough stops on ye olde superhighway to find some place where what's written matches what you want to read. (And, personally, I'm looking forward to a Frankenvulva update. It's funny. it's honest. It's real.)

[Meagan Francis]

I think the word "panties" is misogynistic. Why can't we have briefs or boxers or just underpants? Why do we have to have the diminutive "ies" on the end?

man, I'm already bored of myself, and I just got started. Back to the coochie talk.

[Issa]

The Mominatrix tweets? Crack my ass up. Just sayin.

I think it's that people are so busy trying to see how everyone has treated them badly, just waiting to jump on someone for something, that people have lost their sense of humor. Which is really sad.

I do think it goes in cycles though. Right now seems to be a troll/everyone with their panties up their butt cycle.

[Holly Gault]

Oh Sweetie, I have people you will love.
http://lucymarch.com/
Particularly:
http://lucymarch.com/?p=661

http://www.arghink.com/
Particularly:
http://www.arghink.com/2010/03/21/random-sunday-drama-queen-edition/
and
http://www.arghink.com/2009/12/26/random-sunday-the-bad-parenting-edition/

[Kristy]

Stopping by from Finding My Weigh. Love it! I love being inappropriate. People take themselves wayyyy too seriously.

[Gillian]

Great sense of humor...or humour as I would spell it. I don't really care how it's spelled as long as it's about something funny or ice cream.

FYI, I just awarded you 2 blog awards. You can see them on my site. :)

[SoMo]

I don't get all the fuss over the flailing kid or the blogging article. I, also, didn't see any of the comments on the flailing kid and only tolerated a couple on the blogging one. *shrugs*

[Mads Mom]

If he's cute, I'll take anything stiff from Sven.

Ooh, did I just type that? Must be the hormones. Someone get me a drink!

This is where I shy away b/c I shamefully realize that I commented on comments rather than the post.
Leaving now.

[Angella]

Speaking of the f-ed up spelling of Canadian words, I wholeheartedly agree that the U should be abolished.

I left it out of a comment on a post by Deb on the Rocks about the Canadian hockey team and had a reader send me a HATEFUL EMAIL for leaving it out.

When even the Canadians have lost their sense of humor, you know we're in trouble.

[Jodi Cohen]

So true! i don't know when we all started taking ourselves so seriously. parenting is supposed to be fun. now, if i could just find the perfect line to help remind other parents of the same, especially in those terse moments.

[Redneck Mommy]

I lost my funny bone. I'm firmly convinced it's shoved up high most people's arses.

[ClumberKim]

I can't help think of Hugh Grant in Bridget Jones' Diary and the whole giant panties bit. Hilarious. Who says the internet isn't funny?

[Zoot]

I'm offended by this entry to my very core. There is nothing funny about parenting OR vaginas.

[baltimoregal]

Agreed. Humorlessness is the fly in the ointment. And ruins it for the rest of us.

I think it goes both ways, though- at times people who write blogs can become uber-sensitive and jump to conclusions about feedback. Not that I'm completely blaming them because they get some really crappy letters and some really do go over the line into harassment, stalking, trolling, etc. (Although I hate it when they call negative/disagreeing people trolls because they disagree, as much as that can be irksome, that isn't really being a troll. See NYT http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/03/magazine/03trolls-t.html?_r=1 or Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troll_(Internet))

When you put up personal stuff, I understand why you take it personally. But once you put it out to the public there needs to be the understanding that some people aren't going to agree with you. If they're polite or decent and not meanly funny about it, I don't see the point in getting all jacked up.

[Julie Pippert]

I do wear big ugly panties but I call them knickers and though I often joke about them getting twisted, that only happens while watching Cantor on CSPAN. So yes, since you wondered, my knickers WERE all twisted all last night, thank you very much. Thankfully, all flattened today. So far...

[Julia]

Tis true - I just ran into an old college friend who informed me his wife is having her second on July 28 - to which I said, "she's had two scheduled c's - wow, she must be really committed to preserving her parts" - he smirked in that way that can only say "clearly you did not care enough to do the same"...I can live with it -- at least with the blended family I got 4 kinder for the price of two deliveries! Cheers!

[julie @ Mommy Said What?]

So, apparently, is my ability to post a link: http://bit.ly/9ej7sX

[julie @ Mommy Said What?]

HumoUr is out. Haven't you read this? http://bit.ly/9ej7sX(From Gawker)

[Annie @ PhD in Parenting]

I tried to lighten up an otherwise serious post recently with a snarky comment about people in my own socioeconomic cohort (not even making fun of others) and ... well ... let's just say it didn't go all that well.

[Minnie]

Great post. There is lacking humor all over of late.

Besides, those who find no silly in Mominatrix and Frankenvulva just suck.

[Tricia]

Jo stole my B.U.P. joke. Now I'm pissed. No more jokes allowed on the Internet.

[Motherhood Uncensored]

Actually Suzanne, I think they need a nice drink and a stiff massage from Sven. Ahem.

[Nicole Pelton]

I've discovered the wonderful world of stand-up comedian podcasts, and they are always saying that no matter how obvious and sarcastic a tweet/post is, someone (or many someones) out there will deem to take it seriously and respond :) There are still some of us with a sense of humor out here, I swear.

[Suzanne]

So if my child bites me, it's a sign he's going to be a serial killer? Ok, what does it mean if he killed our next door neighbor?

I think the whole internet needs a stiff drink and a nice massage from a guy named Sven. Sven does great work.

[Jo]

HOW DARE YOU INSULT MY BIG UGLY PANTIES??!!1?

[mom101]

Your free vag exam line just made me laugh so hard, I almost choked on my quiche. And I'm not saying that for comic effect. I really am eating quiche.

Go ahead, make fun of me. I can take it.

[Julie @ The Mom Slant]

Of course the Mominatrix hates babies. Look what babies do to pristine vaginas. DOWN WITH BABIES!

Well, unless they come out via elective c-section. Then they're okay.

[Her Bad Mother]

I've been trying to drum up the courage to write about The Further Misadventures Of Frankenvulva but, as you say, the lack of humor on the internets leads me to fear that some anti-frankenvulvites might attack me with their anti-frankenvulvite pitchforks, and then where would I be?

A shame, I tell you.