Monday 27 September 2010

Today's Non-Story



To the despair delight of the London Borough of Barnet Council tax payers, their worthy servants have issued a 12-page booklet entitled 'cultural awareness'.  The cost is not known.

It states: 'Humour can be incredibly culture-specific and is very open to misinterpretation or even offense [sic] by other cultures.  And don't forget when you don't know what people are laughing at, it is very easy to imagine that they are laughing at you.'

'British mother-in-law jokes, as well as offensively sexist in their own right, can also be seen as offensive on the grounds that they disrespect elders or parents.'

No humour allowed in Barnet.  The writer John Sessions accused the council of having a 'sense of humour by-pass'.  Remembering what I do about Barnet from some years ago I'd say a sense of humour was a requisite if you were a resident.  Is forbidding humour part of Dave's Big Society?

9 comments:

Joe Public said...

The solution is for a FOI request to determine the full [Labour & Material] cost [including the total time spent by each & every council employee in reading the Directive] & deduct that sum from next-year's Council Budget.

Richard said...

'British mother-in-law jokes, as well as offensively sexist in their own right ...'

I love this. Not 'are seen by some people as offensive' or 'might be considered offensive', but ARE offensive. No ifs, no buts, and if you disagree then you are wrong. I just hate the way that council people assume that their PC prejudices are shared by normal people.

And thenk you for the [sic] after 'offense'. Believing that Microsoft is better at spelling then you are is the first sign of a weak mind.

hatfield girl said...

If Barnet Council politico correctos think the British have a monopoly on mother-in-law-jokes they need to brush up their knowledge of other cultures.

Mother-in-law jokes are the front runners for a universal cross cultural category.

Derek said...

I got married first time round in Barnet, the suit was pretty hysterical. I think that was what people were laughing at . . .

The first shared bed-sit wasn't so funny though.

subrosa said...

That wasn't in the report though Joe.

subrosa said...

I love it too in my cynical way Richard. When is it all going to stop?

subrosa said...

Well said HG. Not many know that.

banned said...

The current political composition of the Council is:

Conservative: 37
Labour: 20
Liberal Democrat: 6

(Wiki).

subrosa said...

Thanks for that banned. I thought labour were in charge.

Goes to show none of them have a sense of humour.

Related Posts with Thumbnails