Is it right to laugh at someone's misfortune though ie a dwarf, someone with Downs Syndrome, etc? I'm fairly confident that most of the people in those two groups wouldn't enjoy having a joke told about their condition. And it is, for the most part, about their 'condition' not about the person. I think that's where the 'harm' can sometimes be done. NO ONE wants to be a dwarf, have Downs Syndrome etc but they have it and have to live with it. They want to be accepted as a normal/average part of society. We never hear a joke that starts/contains the line: "A normal/average bloke walks into a bar...". Yes you will hear a joke that contains the line: "Bloke walks into a bar..." but the second line makes NO reference to the bloke's physical, mental abilities etc. The original joke in this thread may well be a 'play on words', a pun, but there is no getting away from the fact that those words are directly pointing toward the condition of dwarfism ie 'little'.
I whole heartedly agree, we need a sense of humour, especially with a government like this, but does humour have to point toward people's disabilities, their appearance, their mental ability, the colour of their skin/hair? NONE of those can be helped. You're either born that way or suffer some terrible accident or contract some awful disease etc. The LAST THING most people want is to have their particular disability, colour, appearance, etc etc pointed out.
Joe is right, if it's all ok then why isn't Alf Garnet, Love Thy Neighbour, Watch Your Language etc etc back on the box?
By the way, I'm no angel! Just like everyone else here, I've grown up with all the racist, poor taste jokes and perhaps I still see some humour in some of them but would I miss them if they weren't there? I doubt it. There are lots of things we can joke about without resorting to pointing out peoples disabilities. And I think it is possibly only those particular jokes that I am starting to see as hurtful.
