Can "Jews" tell jokes? (video)

Rabbi Leo M. Abrami (myjewishlearning.com); Old Jews (BBC 4 via KillianM2); Sheldon S., Ashley Wells, Crystal Quintero (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Sure, we're laughing but laughing through the tears (myjewishlearning.com)

Oy vey, with this religion's Holy Book from space, laws and history! ("Jews Praying in the Synagogue on Yom Kippur" by Maurycy Gottlieb from Jewish Art by Grace Cohen Grossman).

Treasury of Jewish Humor

A Jewish joke is more than just a funny story, for it often has a message for the listener.

“First you laugh at a Jewish joke or quip. Then, against your will, you suddenly fall silent and thoughtful. And that is because Jews are so frequently jesting philosophers. A hard life has made them re­alists, realists without illusions,” writes editor Nathan Ausubel, in the intro­duction to his Treasury of Jewish Humor.

I don't get it. - I'll explain it to you later.

Many Jewish jokes and anecdotes have made a definite impact on the mind and character of the Jewish people, because they are inspired by a profound wisdom. Though not always anticipated at first, it becomes manifest as soon as we reflect upon them.

A classic Yiddish story makes the following observation:

When you tell an am ho-oretz [peasant] a joke, he laughs three times: once when you tell it, once when you explain it, and once when he understands it.

When you tell a landowner a joke, he laughs twice -- once when you tell it and once when you explain it. He will never understand it.

When you tell a military officer a joke, he laughs only once. He laughs when you tell it, because he won’t let you explain it and, of course, he doesn’t understand it.

When you tell an am ho-oretz (peasant) a joke, he laughs three times: once when you tell it, once when you explain it, and once when he understands it.

Maybe the CIA's Israel is the problem? (JVP)

When you tell a landowner a joke, he laughs twice -- once when you tell it and once when you explain it. He will never understand it.

When you tell a military officer a joke, he laughs only once. He laughs when you tell it, because he won’t let you explain it and, of course, he doesn’t understand it. More

(Today Show) Apparently Jews can tell jokes but not Australians. Karl puts his foot in his mouth in front of the 14th Dalai Lama.