The Negative Side of Humor
Where there's a positive side of thingsthere's usually a negative side, and that applies to humor as well.

Unfortunately, the negative side of humor can be uglyit can hurt feelings, and can be damaging and destructive! There are people in this world who will do almost anything for money. There are people in this world who will do almost anything for power. There are people in this world who will do almost anything for fame. And, there are people in this world who will do almost anything to get a laughand if they hurt somebody in the processno apologiesbusiness as usual!

Many years, the senior George Bush said, "What we need is a kinder, gentler nation." He said it again at the Coretta King funeral in early 2006. What he was talking about, in my view, was what we are doing to each other as a People! Racism; road rage; identity theft; discrimination; gossip; resentment; rude; cruel; jealousy; disrespect; manner-less; thoughtless; thankless; attitude and the list goes on and on!

In my view, this country is suffering from a big fat attitude problem that needs to be fixed! What are parents teaching their kidsto be corrupt? What happened to manners and respect? I haven't seen a local news broadcast on television for years! Why? It's the same old broken recordonly the names change. The same old tired storieswho murdered whowho robbed whoanother woman was raped, and there is more and more corruptionscandal, etc. All of this gets old after a while. You have to wonder if there is any good news in America anymore! Yes, there is, but good news doesn't sell newspapers, and the television ratings will fall if there is no bad news!

I think this society is turning more and more negative, and all that negativity rubs off on the children and grandchildren. There so much negativity in this society, that some of the people who are supposed to be leaders and model citizens in the community are being busted for one thing or another. Corruption; DWI; bad behavior in general. Two world famous (Indy) racing brothers here Albuquerque, N.M. got arrested for bad behavior against the police recently! The local newspaper, in an editorial, had some pretty nasty words to say about the two brothers, who resisted arrest! These are the type of people that the kids look up torole modelsaren't they?

How does humor fit into all this bad behavior? Put down of othersjust to get a laugh! Ethnic jokesjust to get a laugh! Racial slursjust to get a laugh! Dirty jokesjust to get a laugh! Teasing of othersjust to get a laugh! Negative humor, like booz; prostitution; drugs will always be with us, and we all have to live with it, etc. Negative humor is another black eye for America!

A few years ago, was when we heard of the violence on a few high school campuses around the country. Students and others were shot and murdered on school grounds! There is no doubt in my mind, that some of this violence started, at least in part, because of teasing kids until they couldn't take it anymoreJUST TO GET A LAUGH!

What are parents teaching their kids today? Have they ever heard of mutual-respect? If they've heard of it, do they teach mutual-respect to their kids? Many of us have been teased in school, I know I have. Being Hispanic, I remember I was teased because I didn't speak or write the English well. Kids would make fun of meJUST TO GET A LAUGH! It was so upsetting to me, that I didn't want to go back to school! Everyone knows kids can be awful. I was always reluctant to give an oral book report for fear that the kids would laugh at me! I will always remember those awful days of ridicule and hate!

If you've ever been put down, by those who I refer to as "the jokesters and people of put-down," who enjoy getting a laugh at somebody else's expense, then you know how awful it can sting! I'm reminded of a comedian (so he calls himself), who goes around the country, putting down and making fun of the disabled and the challengedJUST TO GET A LAUGH! This guy is the lowest of the low! What kind of humor is this? What kind of people would go to see this JERK, who finds laughing at challenged people amusing! This so-called comedian and his followers are what I call "the little minds of the world!" They're warpedall of them, who would do something like this!

Where is this country headed when we allow this kind of thing, that is, making fun of the disabled and the mentally challenged? I know the issue of free speech in involvedand not much can be done about it! Will you allow your children to see this so-called comedian putting down the disabled and the challenged?

* I don't see anything funny or amusing about a person who has suffered an illness; an accident and who will spend the rest of his or her life in a wheelchair.

* I don't see anything funny or amusing about a person who was born with a deformity.

* I don't see anything funny or amusing about a blind person who is struggling to cope.

* I don't see anything funny or amusing about a person who has a speech impediment, hearing loss or severe burns!

Regrettably, humor can play a part in all this, because there the "little minds of the world," that I spoke of earlier, who laugh at all this to get their kicksUNTIL A TRAGEDY HAPPENS TO THEM! But, there IS a solution to all this, and it lies only with the parents. Parents have to teach their kids to respect othersteasing or the put-down of others is out of bounds! Parents have to tell their kids to stay away from negative people, so they don't become negative themselves.

Negative and dirty humor is NOT acceptable to me! A person doesn't have to be dirty to be funny! Negative humor can sting, if you are on the receiving end of it! George Bush, Sr. is rightwe DO need a kinder and gentler nation! But, it's going to have to start with the PARENTS who have to teach their children to have respect for others, etc. Each of us has to do our part, to "put down" negative humor, because negative humor and everything associated with it is NO laughing matter!