Posted by Tina
I’ve always agreed that laughter is good medicine. In these days of civic division and oppression from our governments it’s fitting and wise to keep a sense of humor always at hand. Not only does laughter relieve the tensions of the day and refresh the spirit but it also reminds us that in all circumstances no one can take the most important thing, our God given selves, from us…unless we willingly turn it over.
Kathryn Jean Lopez has a wonderful piece about freedom, tolerance, and the value of a sense of humor. Find it over at Natioanal Review. She begins with quotes from Bob Newhart.
Humor “makes us free.”
That was Bob Newhart’s observation during a commencement address at my alma mater, the Catholic University of America in 1997. “As long as the tyrant cannot control the minds of free men, they remain free,” the comedian continued. “Humor abounded behind the Iron Curtain and in POW camps. Humor is also our way of dealing with the inexplicable. We had an earthquake a couple of years ago in Los Angeles, and it wasn’t more than three or four days later that I heard the first earthquake joke. Someone said, ‘The traffic is stopped, but the freeways are moving.'”
“Laughter gives us distance,” he went on to say.
Newhart continued:
It allows us to step back from an event over which we have no control and deal with it and then move on with our lives. It helps distinguish us from animals. No matter what hyenas sound like, they are not actually laughing. It also helps define our sanity. The schizophrenic has no sense of humor. His world is a constantly daunting, unfriendly place. The rational man is able to find humor in his.
These days at times it seems we have all lost a sense of humor. Our problems have multiplied and the solutions have become points of contention and anger more than opportunities for repair and renewal. Even our nation’s charter is under attack by people who seek more controlling forms of government and civility. Our citizens are being manipulated and pulled away from the morality that grounded us in tolerance and ensured our freedom. We must stand together to restore the values of our founding or the only freedom we will have left will be in our minds, in whispered exchanges, and of course, in moments of release when we take comfort in wry, stinging wit.
Activists from the LGBT community recently displayed their intolerance for others by pressuring Bob Newhart to back out of a speaking engagement he had agreed to with a Catholic organization. I don’t blame Bob Newhart for the decision. I do believe this kind of bullying and intolerance is ugly. Mr. Newhart will survive this unwarranted targeting of his business but will we, can we, when those among us profess and seek tolerance from others are so miserable at it themselves? On this Christmas Eve in 2013 it’s something to think about.
Hi Tina,
I agree with you. Laughter is not good for health but also help us closer together 🙂
Thanks Harry. I agree it helps to bring us close together.
The use of humor was one of the ways that black comedians like Bill Cosby were able to show us our shared humanity and values after the civil rights movement in the sixties.
unfortunately, sometime in the late eighties to early nineties the seeds of bitterness were sewn and the movement to divide begun. That some would do this for personal power and gain is unfortunate.
It reminds me that freedom is a state of mind as much as a condition of place…a treasure (a gift) to be closely cherished and guarded. Bitterness pushes out the light of truth that allows this experience of freedom.
And the use of humor is a much better and more effective way to get a point across than name-calling.
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to EVERYONE out there, including bloviators!
Here’s your laugh for today. From Harvard Institute of Politics 18-29 year old young Democrats approve:
Affordable Care Act – 81%
ObamaCare – 68%
Peggy…is that true? lol Oh brother, we’re in serious trouble aren’t we?
Afraid so Jack. In fact I had a typo and the ObamaCare number is 58%, making it even worse.
http://www.startribune.com/politics/237796351.html?page=1&c=y
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