Humor – When It’s Funny and When it Ain’t
The scene: Forbes‘ publisher keynoting a tech event in Hilton Head, SC. We were thrilled — up til his wisecrack on student IQs at The Citadel. I realized then why Rich flies his own plane. Winged getaways are wise when you offend a roomful of grads from The Military College of South Carolina.
Poking fun at others is fine & dandy — the basis of much humor — just try to make sure they aren’t sitting in the front row. And if you’re going to pick on somebody, target a big guy or some pompous ass who has it comin’, not average Joes. We’ve got enough problems without having you in our faces.
I learned this the hard way, as I do most things. Some years back, the VP of my business unit had to address an all-hands meeting, and asked me to weave a few chuckles into his remarks. I thought it would be a hoot to have him make light of his colleagues and employees, which he proceeded to do — to a sea of stony faces. As my boss left the podium our CEO leaned over and whispered in his ear. “What’d he say?” I asked afterward. With a sick grin the Veep replied, “Only that he thinks I’m mentally ill.”
Had I counseled my boss to turned his barbs on the CEO or himself, different story. Plenty of material there, guaranteed for a giggle or guffaw, and ready-made empathy from his audience, too. Might’ve got him fired, but employees would still be sending flowers.
Comic genius Art Buchwald is enshrined in the hearts of those who remember his drop-dead-funny columns, or ever had the fortune to hear him speak. Buchwald built his career on satirizing The Great. Classic Buchwald: “I have nothing against Richard Nixon — I worship the quicksand he walks on.” Who, other than Tricky Dick and his Latter Day Schutzstaffel, would take offense at that?
A firm believer in equal opportunity lampooning, Buchwald famously harpooned Nixon’s arch liberal opponent, Sen. George McGovern, too. During the 1972 Presidential race, news reports revealed that McGovern’s running mate, Sen. Tom Eagleton, had undergone shock therapy for depression — then as now, considered a sign of “weakness” in leaders (VPs must be strong like Dick Cheney, able to order torture without blinking). At first, McGovern said he “stood 1000%” behind Eagleton. The next day, McGovern flipped and asked Eagleton to resign from the campaign.
Buchwald had a field day, speculating that Republican veep Spiro Agnew was terrified because Nixon only supported him 500%. To reassure Agnew, Buchwald needled, Nixon should stand behind him 2000%.
Taking potshots at the Uberclass is a time-honored tradition in the American press. As a former journalist and current blogger, I actively exercise this right. Lately I’ve taken shots at social media pundits. I’m sure they’re fine people, and I’ve nothing agin ‘em personally. But in their summons to be “one of us” and “gather an army,” I hear the jackboots of the self-appointed elite marching in the distance. I’m certainly no Art Buchwald — he’s way out of my league. Just aiming for a laugh at the undeserving mighty. Humor is always the best way to dethrone.
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