Well That’s An Earth-Shattering Breakthrough

The Israelis have discovered sarcasm.

I guess I need a “Sarcasm” category.

Actually, this part puzzled me a little:

However, she noted that the research threw little light on the popular national stereotypes of the English as highly sarcastic and the Americans as totally lacking in irony.

I recall a survey in the Economist several years ago, when they had a little vignette of a description by a member of the foreign service about a certain African (or some other Third-World) country. He apparently said, with face straight, that the problem with the place was that the people there “lacked a sense of irony.”

But I didn’t know they thought that was the case here, or that such a stereotype exists. I do think that Brits tend to have a more ironic, drier sense of humor (droll, if you will), but that doesn’t mean that we don’t do it in America. If she thinks that Americans aren’t sarcastic, she’s never been to New York. Or Boston.

[An update]

It reminds me of the old joke about the Soviet Russian, the American, the Ethiopian, and an Israeli (don’t ask me why). A reporter runs up to them, and asks, “Excuse me, what ‘s your opinion about the meat shortage?”

The Ethiopian asks “What’s meat”?

The American asks, “What’s a shortage?”

The Russian asks, “What’s an opinion?”

The Israeli asks, “What’s this ‘Excuse me’?”

Well That’s An Earth-Shattering Breakthrough

The Israelis have discovered sarcasm.

I guess I need a “Sarcasm” category.

Actually, this part puzzled me a little:

However, she noted that the research threw little light on the popular national stereotypes of the English as highly sarcastic and the Americans as totally lacking in irony.

I recall a survey in the Economist several years ago, when they had a little vignette of a description by a member of the foreign service about a certain African (or some other Third-World) country. He apparently said, with face straight, that the problem with the place was that the people there “lacked a sense of irony.”

But I didn’t know they thought that was the case here, or that such a stereotype exists. I do think that Brits tend to have a more ironic, drier sense of humor (droll, if you will), but that doesn’t mean that we don’t do it in America. If she thinks that Americans aren’t sarcastic, she’s never been to New York. Or Boston.

[An update]

It reminds me of the old joke about the Soviet Russian, the American, the Ethiopian, and an Israeli (don’t ask me why). A reporter runs up to them, and asks, “Excuse me, what ‘s your opinion about the meat shortage?”

The Ethiopian asks “What’s meat”?

The American asks, “What’s a shortage?”

The Russian asks, “What’s an opinion?”

The Israeli asks, “What’s this ‘Excuse me’?”

Well That’s An Earth-Shattering Breakthrough

The Israelis have discovered sarcasm.

I guess I need a “Sarcasm” category.

Actually, this part puzzled me a little:

However, she noted that the research threw little light on the popular national stereotypes of the English as highly sarcastic and the Americans as totally lacking in irony.

I recall a survey in the Economist several years ago, when they had a little vignette of a description by a member of the foreign service about a certain African (or some other Third-World) country. He apparently said, with face straight, that the problem with the place was that the people there “lacked a sense of irony.”

But I didn’t know they thought that was the case here, or that such a stereotype exists. I do think that Brits tend to have a more ironic, drier sense of humor (droll, if you will), but that doesn’t mean that we don’t do it in America. If she thinks that Americans aren’t sarcastic, she’s never been to New York. Or Boston.

[An update]

It reminds me of the old joke about the Soviet Russian, the American, the Ethiopian, and an Israeli (don’t ask me why). A reporter runs up to them, and asks, “Excuse me, what ‘s your opinion about the meat shortage?”

The Ethiopian asks “What’s meat”?

The American asks, “What’s a shortage?”

The Russian asks, “What’s an opinion?”

The Israeli asks, “What’s this ‘Excuse me’?”

A Human Right To Self Defense?

From a long, but interesting scholarly paper by Kopel et al:

…civilian armament has historically been very effective at preventing genocide. Indeed, genocide scholars have found that genocides are carried out almost exclusively against populations which have first been systematically disarmed. Because genocidal regimes consider prior disarmament the sine qua non for beginning a genocide, it seems indisputable that civilian armament deters genocide in most cases. Part IV considers the practical possibilities of arming the Darfur genocide victims…

…we carefully analyze the international law implications of arming genocide victims. Genocide victims who acquired arms, and persons who supplied arms to genocide victims, would almost certainly be in violation of the gun control laws in the country where the genocide was taking place. In addition, the arms acquisition might violate international treaties against bringing arms into a nation without the consent of the national government. Under international law, could the genocide victims and their arms suppliers claim that their actions were nevertheless legal? We answer

Biting Commentary about Infinity…and Beyond!