The Humour Club discussion

New year... New idea.

Remarkably, we love silliness as children, but often lose our capacity to appreciate it as adults—a genuine shame, because...

silly adjective - having or showing a lack of common sense or judgment; absurd and foolish

Seriously, doesn't that sound like a good bit of fun. And now, you have a place to post it.

Sometimes, you need professional help.

My other car is a...

Sometimes, the advertising is wrong.

Silliness is good. We had some at dinner last night. Had us all giggling, though now I can't recall what about. Who cares? It wouldn't translate, and the point is giggling with one's teenagers, not what about.

It's not true that the young have no interest in ancient wisdom.

Hmmm yes, well, one of my interns, I seem to remember, completed her PhD in this. I believe the title of her thesis was something like An Inter-cultural Analysis of Silliness as a Comparative Indicator of Norms of Societal Maturity. The concepts upon which she enlarged were not very complicated, and I am sure you will grasp them readily. In essence silliness emerged as an example of what the German Frudenlike school terms 'weldschnargeheeisse', albeit with pre-modal modifications. Across a spectrum of micro-societies, spanning such extremes as a US Marines training camp, a school for novices of the silent Tormalite order, the Chenari tribe in New Guinea, and a Calcutta knitting trade union, the beta-covariance showed a remarkably tight theta-factor.
Of course, the fundamental challenge facing any attempt to analyse silliness is the lack of a suitable objective scale for quantifying the attribute. However, I am announcing, today, a new concept in the measurement of silliness- the Ocram scale.

The Ocram scale will do for the study of comparative silliotics what the Richter scale has done for seismology, and the Beaufort scale for meteorology. It will provide an objective quantitative basis for measurement and comparison.

The Ocram scale could not be simpler to understand or apply. It ranges from zero to one hundred- zero denoting an entity or concept which no-one would describe as silly, and one hundred denoting one that everyone would. Indeed the measurement of silliness in Ocrams is performed by showing the item in question to a sample of people: the silliness of the thing, in Ocrams, is simply the percentage of the people who thought it silly.

Now, then, is your chance to participate in an historic experiment- the first ever public application of the Ocram scale, and a self-reflexive one at that. Humour Club members, can I ask you please to declare whether you find the Ocram scale itself to be silly. Please vote simply yes or no. We will count the votes for and against, express their ratio as a percentage, and that will be the silliness of the Ocram scale in Ocrams.

Voting starts now!

Marco wrote: "Please vote simply yes or no. ..."

Didn't you see what happened the last time we voted?

Thanks to major advances in forensic science...

Thank you, doctor...

Fortunately, young people know the value of acquiring new skills.

People share the strangest thoughts with their pets.

Now, tell me he doesn't cheat on his scorecard.

Had to happen eventually.

He may have a point.

I never said he was stupid; I said he misspelled IQ.

The FDA has not approved 'dropping your prescription bottle on the floor' as a reliable safety test.

MISSION CONTROL: "I don't think we heard that right. Can you repeat that, Neil?"

The "alternate" meaning of "parental control".

And he doesn't have to wait in line.

Thinking back, unemployment wasn't so bad.

Jay wrote: "Thinking back, unemployment wasn't so bad.


"

This is every job I have ever had, and I love organizing. Once it is all in order and a system established, I get bored. I am an odd one.

Brena wrote: "Jay wrote: "

This is every job I have ever had, and I love organizing. Once it is all in order and a system established, I get bored. I am an odd one."

I'm not that extreme, but I can't help noticing how obsessive I am about neatness and order at work (at the library...maybe that's why), given that I'm horrible at it at home. Mind, I LIKE everything to be orderly. I just can't keep it that way more than about 10 minutes.

Some things never die.

Admittedly, kids are handy on occasion.

At times, everyone's a little forgetful.

Trial and error example????

Admit it. Sometimes, you read the end of a story first.

I've heard that baked goods go right to your hips, but this is a little ridiculous!

Melki wrote: "I've heard that baked goods go right to your hips, but this is a little ridiculous!"

Obviously, an incomplete outfit. Where's the trendy cup of hot coffee?

I've heard it said that a woman can look 'delicious,' but me thinks this one is trying too hard.

Just in entertainment value, that should be worth $400 an hour!

I wonder if he's willing to share?

And it still takes them six hours to shop!

Excellent choice, madam.

Hey, kids!!! Here's another "new stupid" versus "new style" dilemma.

For truly silly, very little beats a chicken.

Desperate times, desperate measures.

I think everyone knows this little fellow.

On occasion, I have a genuine appreciation of fashion protests.

There's one in every class.

Guys are always willing to help a friend practice.

Too much truth in advertising????

Love it!

If we ever come up with a "HC Silliness Award," this guy is definitely in the running.

It's a miracle!

Were you really good at these when you were a kid?

It's always nice when celebrities have a heart.

Jay wrote: "It's always nice when celebrities have a heart."

I'm assuming they ate the meat suit.

Ready in just minutes!

How to keep your party guests on their toes: