We seem to have forgotten something important in our public life. The world is serious, but it is also absurd. We are surrounded by real problems, real responsibilities, and real consequences. Yet somewhere along the way we convinced ourselves that the only respectable way to face them is with a furrowed brow and a lecture. It is not working. Humor reaches people in a way moral sermons never will. Laughter disarms. It opens the door to honest conversation. It creates the kind of human connection that facts alone cannot achieve.
We live in a culture that is too earnest for its own good. Everything becomes a crisis, a battlefield, or a reason to scold. It is no wonder people tune out. The human mind can only take so much proclamation before it shuts down. George Carlin understood this better than anyone. Give people a moment of levity and the whole room relaxes. Suddenly they listen. They might even think!
Life is serious. It demands effort and responsibility. That is exactly why joy matters. Joy is not the opposite of seriousness. It is the proof that life is still worth caring about. Emma Goldman captured this perfectly when she proclaimed that “if I can’t dance, I don’t want to be part of your revolution.” She understood something basic. A movement that forgets how to laugh is a movement that forgets why it exists.
So let us keep perspective. Let us argue hard when it matters and refuse to take ourselves too seriously in the process. Let us remember that humor is not trivial. It is a tool for clarity, humility, and human connection. If we want to reach people, we should meet them where they live. And people live in the space between struggle and laughter.
Ian Journey
Pismo Beach
This article appears in Dec 11 – Dec 18, 2025.