>> Alex Murphy thinks it's funny to paste satire as if it were fact, as sort of a DAILY April Fool's joke. <<
I did mean to complain about the practice, and I did not mean to talk about others behind their backs, so I pinged Alex Murphy. But I don't see where the personal attack is. I don't mean to be argurmentative; I just mean to ask, "what'd I do wrong?"
Am I wrong to presume Alex Murphy does this because he thinks it's funny? Am i wrong to characterize it as an April Fools Joke?
Frankly, I DO resent the fact that Alex Murphy has refused repeated requests to simply flag the fact that the statements within the article he posts are satire. I don't LIKE wasting my time reading through an article until I come across something which is too preposterous to be real, especially because one reason people post articles is to point out how preposterous true life is! So now I have to look at every article before I read it to make sure it isn't an Alex Murphy joke.
Every post Alex Murphy makes ends up making FReepers look publicly stupid, and I write this as someone who has NOT been tricked into commenting on his fiction as if it were fact. And I'd dare say that if I were an editor or forum moderator, I would certainly NOT want my readers to be wondering whether something they had just read was real or satire.
The articles? You bet I think they're funny. Most send me into bursts of laughter, even upon re-reading them. In fact, "Amish Radio" is at the top of my list, for a variety of self-indulgent and personal reasons.
Am i wrong to characterize it as an April Fools Joke?
You bet you are. But did you bother to ask me what my reason for posting them was? Even after I FReepmailed you on 7/25 and told you that "fully half of the articles I post are spoofs - check those URLs", you have never engaged me privately to check on your assumptions, or to let me assuage your anger. Why is that?
I can't help you with your ongoing nursing of resentments, dangus (there's a punchline that follows that joke, but someone would find it offensive, I'm sure). And I can't help you, if you can't be bothered to approach a brother privately about said resentments. Americans are IMO horrible, in that they require the humorist to telegraph every joke in advance - and those that know me well know my fondness for bone-dry, delivered-with-a-straight-face satire. And I make no apologizes for finding aspects of God's creation, and God's people, uproariously funny.
Albert Brooks, the semifamous comedian-turned-actor, produced a short film in the 70s about America's humor-deficient population, advertising the Albert Brooks' Famous School for Comedians as a way to overcome it. I am that school. If you need a funny bone transplant, I'm willing to be a live donor, but (here comes some surgeon humor for you now) you'll probably just reject it anyway.
So now I have to look at every article before I read it to make sure it isn't an Alex Murphy joke.
Well, at least I can say I've achieved one of my goals for posting these articles - I've managed to get someone to be a little more discerning, at least concerning the contents of their daily news.
Every post Alex Murphy makes ends up making FReepers look publicly stupid.
Never was my intention. Thread responses from those who didn't see the humor aspect are always earnest and sincere, often making thoughtful and conscious attempts to judge the issue at hand (even if the events in the article are faked). Getting people to discuss current (and oncoming) issues has always been my intent, and like most pastors, I usually lead off any sermon with a joke. Does your priest makes jokes during Mass? If so, do you believe he's trying to make parishioners look stupid?
If "making FReepers look publicly stupid" were my intent, why don't I call attention to their supposedly stupid posts?