How stupid have we become?

[McG]

SCHOOL -- 1957 vs. 2007

Scenario:
Jack goes quail hunting before school, pulls into school parking lot with shotgun in gun rack.
1957
- Vice Principal comes over, looks at Jack's shotgun, goes to his car and gets his shotgun to show Jack.
2007
- School goes into lock down, FBI called, Jack hauled off to
jail and never sees his truck or gun again. Counselors called in for
traumatized students and teachers.

Scenario:
Johnny and Mark get into a fistfight after school.
1957
-Crowd gathers. Mark wins. Johnny and Mark shake hands and end up buddies.
2007 - Police called, SWAT team arrives, arrests Johnny and Mark. Charge them with assault, both expelled even though Johnny started it.


Scenario:
Jeffrey won't be still in class, disrupts other students.
1957
-Jeffrey sent to office and given a good paddling by the Principal. Returns to class, sits still and does not disrupt class again.
2007 - Jeffrey given huge doses of Ritalin. Becomes a zombie Tested for ADD. School gets extra money from state because Jeffrey has a disability.


Scenario:
Billy breaks a window in his neighbor's car and his Dad gives him a whipping with his belt.
1957 - Billy is more careful next time, grows up normal, goes to college, and becomes a successful businessman.
2007 - Billy's dad is arrested for child abuse. Billy removed to foster care and joins a gang. State psychologist tells Billy's sister that she remembers being abused herself and their dad goes to prison. Billy's mom has affair with psychologist.


Scenario:
Mark gets a headache and takes some aspirin to school.
1957 -Mark shares aspirin with Principal out on the smoking dock.
2007 - Police called, Mark expelled from school for drug violations. Car searched for drugs and weapons.

Scenario:
Pedro fails high school English.
1957 - Pedro goes to summer school, passes English, goes to college.
2007 - Pedro's cause is taken up by state. Newspaper articles appear nationally explaining that teaching English as a requirement for graduation is racist. ACLU files class action lawsuit against state school system and Pedro's English teacher. English banned from core curriculum. Pedro given diploma anyway but ends up mowing lawns for a living because he cannot speak English.

Scenario:
Johnny takes apart leftover firecrackers from 4th of July, puts them in a model airplane paint bottle, blows up a red ant bed.
1957 - Ants die.
2007- BATF, Homeland Security, FBI called. Johnny charged with domestic terrorism, FBI investigates parents, siblings removed from home, computers confiscated, Johnny's Dad goes on a terror watch list and is never allowed to fly again.

Scenario:
Johnny falls while running during recess and scrapes his knee. He is found crying by his teacher, Mary. Mary hugs him to comfort him.
1957 -In a short time, Johnny feels better and goes on playing.
2007 - Mary is accused of being a sexual predator and loses her job. She faces 3 years in State Prison. Johnny undergoes 5 years of therapy.

[golfott]

how very American of you

[McG]

how very American of you

It's a joke that was sent to me. Some of it goes way overboard but some of it rings true.

I figured the first post would be the typical over-reaction like always and I was not disappointed. Must be nice to be able to judge people based on a few forum posts eh? Oops, I take back the "eh" since I'm American.

[sensfan63]

It's a joke that was sent to me. Some of it goes way overboard but some of it rings true.

I figured the first post would be the typical over-reaction like always and I was not disappointed. Must be nice to be able to judge people based on a few forum posts eh? Oops, I take back the "eh" since I'm American.

McG, I have learned never to underestimate a Canadian's willingness to put Americans down simply to satisfy their own ego.

[Golfbum]

You guys need to relax. It is a "JOKE" that has been around for the past few years.

It is not "ANTI AMERICAN"

You could substitute the words RCMP or OPP in there and it would ring true for Canada too.

You must admit there have been many changes in the past 50 years. Remember riding in the package tray in the back of your Dad's car when you were a kid? Now the Father would be charged for allowing that. Seatbelts in the 60's. What seatbelts?

All the fuss about lead water pipes in schools. Hey weren't those same lead pipes in there when I went to school By rights I should be dead from lead poisoning by now.

Anti American, give me a break. I talk to guys on the Ham Bands from the states. A couple of them live in Kentucky but were not born there. You should hear them run down the people who were born in Kentucky.

So McG I do not think your post was "ANTI AMERICAN", but a true look into todays society.

[TWoody]

how very American of you

Guy posts a joke on the web.
1995 - people read it and laugh
2008 - some laugh, some are disgusted, some dissect it to determine it's American propaganda.

[rancherJ]

So McG I do not think your post was "ANTI AMERICAN", but a true look into todays society

[NoBack]

Guy posts a joke on the web.
1995 - people read it and laugh
2008 - some laugh, some are disgusted, some dissect it to determine it's American propaganda.

well said!
it's a joke, and nothing more.

[rancherJ]

how about a US / Canada blend ?
scenario: large urban centers face decisions on mixed race education choices
1957: segregated schools declared unconstitutional by supreme court of USA
(a victory for human rights)
2008: All Black school approved by the Toronto public school board trustees, scheduled to open 2009
(a victory for?)

[The Saint]

Whoa..

Let's just laugh at the "then and now" humour of it all and not take it down the road for debate. ok?

Yeah it's bit exagerated but so is alot of humour.

[justsomeguy]

Whoa..

Let's just laugh at the "then and now" humour of it all and not take it down the road for debate. ok?

As a "then and now" piece of humour I've seen this before and I personally don't have any problem with it.

However, I think the thread title has decidedly political and insulting overtones that take it beyond a simple "then and now" piece of humour. I can understand why some people would take exception to that.

[McG]

However, I think the thread title has decidedly political and insulting overtones that take it beyond a simple "then and now" piece of humour. I can understand why some people would take exception to that.

That was exactly the point why I did not label it a joke. Back in the day, everybody would have just laughed without it. Nowdays, a person can be labeled racist or whatever simply because of something like this.

People always assume the worst now instead of giving the benefit of the doubt to anyone. We're ready to crucify each other at the drop of a hat.

[golfott]

so why not candianize the joke then,

it is the use of FBI, SWAT, ACLU, Homeland security etc that i find rediculous.

go ahead, subsitutue soem for RCMP etc, although yes i feel that this applies more so to the american culture than it does to canadian culture.

Thankfully

[golfott]

as well, i guess you could have titled it "how stupid we once were"

why not

take the first "scenerio" provided and then think about all the school shootings in recent history. now maybe it is not so funny to some

[Kilroy]

Kinda ironic. A bit of comedy that spawns a reaction proving just how "on the mark" the piece really is.

I would not have expected it from that piece, I for one assumed that "FBI" could be replaced with the agency of choice. It was more a comment on how society has changed, not anti-US.

This is why we don't allow political debate here. It goes south fast. So, if you want to comment on society and how it has changed over 50 years, great, have at it. Otherwise it will be closed.

[justsomeguy]

That was exactly the point why I did not label it a joke. Back in the day, everybody would have just laughed without it. Nowdays, a person can be labeled racist or whatever simply because of something like this.

People always assume the worst now instead of giving the benefit of the doubt to anyone. We're ready to crucify each other at the drop of a hat.

If you wanted the benefit of the doubt, then perhaps you should not have called people "stupid". Especially if your post was NOT intended as a joke but as a prelude to a discussion on political and/or societal issues.

[Kilroy]

Come on now, this is getting ridiculous. You can't even call society as a whole stupid in the context of comedy, as in poking fun, without insulting someone? Don't be silly.

[1972Apex]

Obviously we have become not only stupid, but very, very sensitive....

[sensfan63]

Come on now, this is getting ridiculous. You can't even call society as a whole stupid in the context of comedy, as in poking fun, without insulting someone? Don't be silly.

Careful...you may have just called society as a whole "silly."

Somewhere, someone has been offended.

[justsomeguy]

Come on now, this is getting ridiculous. You can't even call society as a whole stupid in the context of comedy, as in poking fun, without insulting someone? Don't be silly.

As I stated earlier, I personally have no problem here.

...but the guy is acting like a troll. He has admitted that his post was NOT done in the context of comedy or to poke fun. Humour was certainly the context of the "original" version of this joke that has been all over the Internet for some time - but he seems to have made it pretty clear why it was posted outside of the Humour section here.

I'm just not surprised that some people have risen to the bait, that's all.

[rancherJ]

As I stated earlier, I personally have no problem here.

[Golfbum]

so why not candianize the joke then,

it is the use of FBI, SWAT, ACLU, Homeland security etc that i find rediculous.

go ahead, subsitutue soem for RCMP etc, although yes i feel that this applies more so to the american culture than it does to canadian culture.

Thankfully

Funny thing is, this joke originated in the United States of America How do I know this? A friend of mine who lives in USA sent this same joke to me last year. We had a good laugh about it. So if he, as an American was not upset why are Canadians getting all bent out of shape about this?

[Kilroy]

Enough.