Satire, old jokes, DHMO and all that

[EL]

Since the DHMO-thread
https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=116849
was locked before I had the oportunity to reply on some post, I'll do it here. (Note that this is not a continuation on the specific subject DHMO, so there's no need to worry about this being an inapropriate "old joke-topic" again...)

 

[EL]

Seriously, I've noticed there seems to be a big difference between how easily satire is recognized (and also how well it is appreciated) in different parts of the world. I guess it's really a European thing, right?
Some weeks ago I tried to start a satiric thread in the Politics and World Affairs section about US invading Mexico, but to my surprise people (mostly non-european) instead took me literally, and started call me crazy and so on...and before I knew it the thread was locked by the (non-european) mentors who appearantly didn't get the satire either...

If that is a joke it wasn't funny Maybe Canada but not Mexico.And you posted in P&WA everything in fourm should seouris post it into GD if it isn't

But satire need not be funny. I never attempted to be funny (even though some people thought so). The subject was highly serious, although written in a satiric way. The reason why I chose Mexico was due to that large oil reservoirs were found there just a short time before I wrote my post, and I (maybe naively) really thought that was world top class news everyone had heard of. What my thread was aiming for was to discuss the reason for US’s invation of Iraq, wheter it was about oil or not. Anyway I won’t go deeper into my intentions with that thread here, since I’m currently waiting for one of the mentors to reply on a pm about that.

The Dihydrogen monoxide joke was taking seousisly by some polticans in califroina they tried ban it.It's hard to see it as a joke it just sounds bad.

Really?! Could you please provide a link about that?

 

[EL]

See, it was only kinda funny when people fell for it. But still only the first time - after that, it was kinda sad.

No, I think it was quite funny before scott1’s post too.
And to me it seems like BobG, brewnog, matthyaouw and Chi Meson also enjoyed our conversation.
If you don’t like it, fine for me. We all have a different sense of humor. Some likes this kind of jokes, others like farting guys. (I happen to like both of them…)

 

[EL]

It was probably funny the first time it was posted here, but that was so long ago, I barely remember. It might have been even a little funny the second or third time, but it gets a little less funny with each time the same thing is reposted. It's an OLD joke and has been posted at PF way too many times.

Sorry, but I had never seen this site before. It was new to me, and I guess also to some of the others. What’s wrong with letting us have a conversation about it? Even though you didn’t enjoy it, I did! I often see a lot of other jokes here in GD I’ve already heard, but I guess you've never seen me complaining about them?

 

[Gokul43201]

This thread is specifically about another thread here, and hence, really belongs in Feedback.

That said, I think it was unnecessary to lock the other thread. It seems, in my experience, that this is the first thread in GD, that has been locked for redundancy. Moreover, among the 5 or 6 DHMO threads, this, in my opinion (and going purely on memory), was probably the only one that was (i) actually funny, (ii) had people fall for it (the primary purpose of the joke), and (iii) also possibly the only one that appeared to have actually original contributions from several members.

There are jokes in the Science Jokes thread that have been repeated over a dozen times. Some variant of nearly every other joke being posted there has been posted before. No one ever locked threads for going on and on about the death of franzbear !

In any case, I suggest an alternative. The new thread, insted of being locked, can be "split off" in its entirety, and appended to one of the older DHMO threads. People that wish to continue contributing to it, may do so. Those that think it's an old joke needn't read it.

 

[brewnog]

Why lock the thread?! Yeah, it's an old joke, but so's the one about how to get a clown off a swing, and that's still funny.

I don't see why it should get locked just because Moonbear has seen it before! I fail to be amused by the ongoing deaths of Franzbear, but that thread remains oh-so-open! Not that I mind, I just don't bother reading any of it any more.

Really now, nobody was being insulted, nobody was being offended, and I thought that matthyizzaouw, Bob and Chimeson's posts were somewhere around 40% more amusing than most of the other crap that gets bounced around these walls. So why lock it?

 

[Moonbear]

I'm moving this to feedback. If you have a problem with a thread being locked, try asking via PM rather than starting another whole thread about it! It's not unheard of for us to consider unlocking a thread if approached with a reasonable request via PM.

That said, my judgement was that it had appeared at PF SOOOOOO many times before that there was no reason to start yet another new thread on it. I didn't expect a revolt over a tired old joke.

 

[BobG]

Why lock the thread?! Yeah, it's an old joke, but so's the one about how to get a clown off a swing, and that's still funny.

Okay, I'll bite. How do you get a clown off a swing?

Really?! Could you please provide a link about that?

The California city of Aliso Viejo had actually reached the point scheduling a City Council vote on whether or not styrofoam cups should be banned at city sponsored events (styrofoam cups use water in the manufacturing process). This is the reason for the references to Aliso Viejo on the web site.

http://www.snopes.com/science/dhmo.asp

 

[Chi Meson]

$0.02

The light bulb joke. Old? Definately.

Are there always new ways to tell it? Absolutely. Are we all done with the "Ask as stupid question" thread? It's an old joke too. That is, the premise is old. Yet it still kicks. I think the DHMO joke deserves to resurface every now and then, because it always "gets" someone (examine the thread: two if not three were "got"). Several new applications of the joke were created. This joke is not dead. I'd expect to see it again.

 

[scott1]

Really?! Could you please provide a link about that?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4534017/"

 

[EL]

I'm moving this to feedback. If you have a problem with a thread being locked, try asking via PM rather than starting another whole thread about it! It's not unheard of for us to consider unlocking a thread if approached with a reasonable request via PM.

Well, out of my own experience regarding PM-ing about locked threads, I didn't find that option very tempting. Since my thread about "US invading Mexico" was locked I have tried to discuss this via PM's with one of the GD moderators, but without greater success, to express it mildly. He/she just doesn't seem to be very interested in listening to my explanations at all...it's kind of talking to a wall...(and no, I've not been unpolite or obstinate at all.)
But maybe it wasn't fair by me to judge you Moonbear out from that, I apologize for it. I'll send you a PM.
However, I also started a new thread since I wanted to reply on scott1's and russ watter's posts in public.

That said, my judgement was that it had appeared at PF SOOOOOO many times before that there was no reason to start yet another new thread on it. I didn't expect a revolt over a tired old joke.

I can live with not continuing the discussion about that "tired old joke", but what I find anoying is to simply coming up with the idea of locking it. To me it feels a bit of "just because I can do it, i will do it".

 

[EL]

The California city of Aliso Viejo had actually reached the point scheduling a City Council vote on whether or not styrofoam cups should be banned at city sponsored events (styrofoam cups use water in the manufacturing process). This is the reason for the references to Aliso Viejo on the web site.

http://www.snopes.com/science/dhmo.asp

I wonder what if they did?

Amazing links! Thx.

(and scott1, just so you didn't get me wrong, I didn't doubt your words about it, I simply became interested)

 

[Moonbear]

Okay, okay, okay! I've been asked via PM about the thread. I've also discovered the search feature is still not working, so hunting down the original threads, which would still be unlocked for discussion and are where I'd normally tell people to post if they want to continue a discussion previously started, is impossible. So, all things considered, it's a harmless thread, so I'll reopen it. I didn't expect a mutiny over this!

But...I'm locking this one since the discussion is now moot.