Humor - What Makes You Laugh?

I wrote the following to a friend who asked me to share more of my thoughts about humor. He liked it, so I'll share it with you. It's in his zechus that I wrote this post down finally.

Humor is something I have thought a lot about, and I wouldn't be able to put it all down into a few sentences, but will do my best.

I like humor that uplifts me, or is witty (makes me think about something on a deeper level), or brings up happy nostalgic thoughts. Basically, I like the type of humor that leaves me feeling happy. Making fun of someone doesn't make me feel happy. And I don't believe G-d would ever want me to do it.And the times it has, I've usually felt bad afterward. The focus is negative, not positive. It necessitates putting someone else down for me to feel higher and better. It necessitates hiding ones anger behind duplicitous meanings, which I don't like.

I say if someone is angry, to be straight out about it. I like things that are genuine and straight, not having to guess whether someone meant or didn't what they said, and why they would have said it if not.To me, it is an elemental form of giving another human being respect, that even if I dislike someone, I do not like them to be made fun of.

It's a "common" practice, but to me it shows a lack of moral integrity. I can't say I've never laughed when someone is made fun of, and there are rare occasions when I've enjoyed it (like the person did something very very evil, and it was kind of cathartic to laugh about it.) But just as a sport, I don't like it.

I also don't like when people act silly in that way...I like being silly, please don't get me wrong. Just something about the 'way' it is done sometimes shows a lack of 'valuing' oneself and others.I'm not sure whether you can relate to it, but that's my take on it...

Like, I'm really 'not' into Jim Carrey type of humor...

Thought for the day: Do the halachos of loshon horah apply any differently to humor?

Have a wonderful empowering day. Do something good the noone knows about. Empower your soul by growing closer to G-d.