Hamas War

Sunday, November 12, 2006

Are we allowed to laugh?

One of the big differences between Jews and Arabs is our sense of humor. Jews rank very highly and totally disproportional to population as top comics and joke-writers. We specialize in laughing about ourselves.

Moslems are different. They take offense at things that wouldn't bother anyone else but have no trouble mocking others.

Regardless, I can't resist this piece of news:



Arafat memorial: 14 hurt as wooden stage collapses
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip
A wooden stage collapsed during a memorial for Yasser Arafat on Sunday, lightly wounding 14 people, including the sister of the late Palestinian leader.

Thousands of people attended Sunday's memorial in a Gaza City field to remember Arafat, who died on Nov. 11, 2004, after a sudden, rapid decline in his health. The crowd waved yellow flags of the Fatah Party, which Arafat founded and led for four decades, singing folk songs and firing guns in the air.

In the middle of one song, the makeshift wooden stage created for the event collapsed, silencing the crowd for nearly a minute before the singing continued. The head of the Presidential Guard, an elite security unit, and Arafat's sister, Khadija, were among those hurt in the collapse, officials said.

Didn't something even crazier happen at the funeral, with mourners getting injured while jumping on the body or something like that?

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

"One of the big differences between Jews and Arabs is our sense of humor. Jews rank very highly and totally disproportional to population as top comics and joke-writers. We specialize in laughing about ourselves.

Moslems are different. They take offense at things that wouldn't bother anyone else but have no trouble mocking others."

One of the big differences between Judaism and Islam is the attitude towards joy. Judaism encourages you to enjoy and sanctify every moment of your stay here on Earth, while Islam simply kills all joy in life.

Anonymous said...

May we all live to hear one day that Jewish hands were involved in the 'death' of Arafat - yamach shmo. It would certainly return some of our self-pride.

lilfeathers2000 said...

Nothing better for the soul than laughter.

Batya said...

josh, death's from G-d
We have other ways of showing pride.

lil', yes, our strength comes from the fact that we can laugh

YMedad said...

As for Arafat's funeral:
Amid chaotic and highly emotional mourners, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was buried Friday at the Ramallah compound where Israel confined him for years...Ambulances arrived to treat the injured, who numbered as many as 120, the Palestine Red Crescent said. Most were suffering from suffocation and fainting, and four of the injured had been wounded by bullets or shrapnel, the group said.

Batya said...

thanks