Crime and Punishment

If the titles for these blog posts haven’t been evidence enough, I’m a big fan of puns. Since my late high school/early college days, these are the jokes I’m most notorious for. I have spoken at length on this topic before in one of the Round Two Gaming vlogs. Watch it here at RoundTwo-sday VLOG #5 - Puns: We Got 'Em before we continue on with this discussion.

Now, all jokes aside, there was actually a bit from that old video that was left on the cutting room floor.

Towards the midpoint of the video, I started talking about why I liked making puns. I mentioned something about it being a fun way to exercise your vocabulary and knowledge of common phrases. However, in the original recording, I shared two reasons. My assumption is that, to keep with the more humorous side of the content, the second reason was left out. Understandable, since it touched on a not-so-joking matter.

The omitted reason was simple: Words Have Power.

No, I’m not referring to how people can get literal headaches from hearing a pun. Sure, scientifically speaking, this happens because puns make us use both the creative and logical sides of our brains, but I’m talking about a greater power than that.

If you look at the jokes we tell nowadays, most of them are made at someone else’s expense. Jokes about a person’s race, appearance, hobbies, the list goes on. It’s like that insecurity that bullies deal with: put others down to make yourself feel bigger. I’ve been guilty of that. I used to think that a sign of a good friendship was the fact we could insult each other, laugh, and keep going.

There’s a phrase I’m sure many people have heard growing up: “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” We were taught that as a way of reminding ourselves that we were bigger than the words people throw at us. While I understand the intent behind it, I’ve got some bad news, folks:

That phrase is one of the BIGGEST LIES we teach children.

Words hurt. They cut deep. Someone could be laughing at the joke you made about them on the outside, but on the inside, they’re crying. One wrong comment, and someone could, figuratively and literally, be “murdered by words.” There’s a reason why the Bible calls the tongue a Double-Edged Sword. You can use it to help people, encourage and protect them, or to harm them, cut them down at the knees and stab them in the back.

I know, puns can still be used for evil (see almost every “Yo Mamma” joke in existence), but the intention lies solely on you. It becomes a conscious choice you have to make. It’s taken me a few years to get to that point myself, and I still have to catch myself before I join in on the “friendly” insult wars.

Why do I make puns? They’re a positive form of humor that requires wit and creativity. The goal of puns is not to poke fun at someone, but to draw attention to words, phrases, and their meanings. They’re a celebration of language, if you will.

We need more positive humor out there, so I charge you to join me in changing the current flow of jokes. Let’s shock the world, one pun at a time.