Anybody who needs to have satire explicitly identified to them...especially as obvious as this one....probably shouldn’t be here.
And yet, sure enough, the article has been tagged as satire.
Geezis....
Some other reasons for labeling:
Not everyone wants to read satire, and the label allows faster sorting, especially if a member's settings show titles only. I don't use that setting often, mostly because I like the added context to see if I'm likely to regret opening a thread. Loading the index page with less text, though, can be much faster for me during DOS attacks and other problems.
The label shows that the poster is not unknowingly one of those who forward every questionable "story"--yes, we do see such threads here, but threads based on apparently credulous people inadvertently spreading hoaxes are usually deleted.
The step of adding the label just may dissuade some from posting more and more satire, especially bad satire. I appreciate labeled vanities, and I think sometimes that some pressure to label them prevents members from posting too many, especially bad vanities.