I don't know about the other regions of the philippines, but here in Bikol theres a silly antic which i find rather annoying. In a conversation usually between friends, classmates, school mates, Theres this frivolous "response" where one person insults another person then apologizes afterwards..about 1 second after the insult. Example: Tagalog: "Ang pangit mo, joke!" Translation: "Your butt ugly, joke!" Tagalog: "Ang tamad mo kasi, joke!" Translation: "It's because your lazy, joke!" Do you find this amusing?. When i first heard it I reflected and said to myself.. (1) WOW! I can insult anyone as long as i say "joke!" after the sentence! thats amazing!. (2) Isn't this degrading?. You take back to play safe and it reduces the value of your words. (3) If an insult is an offense in an emotional level, does the the magical word "joke!" also apply for offense in the physical level?. Considering that physical injury is easier to heal than emotional injury, is "beating someone half-dead and then apologize earnestly afterwards" a forgivable act?...afterall "hey! i said it was just a joke! sorry!"... What do you think?
This thread is ridiculous. Joke. Quote from the Taiwan drama Meteor Garden: "If apologizing is enough, then what need do we have for the police?" Ergo, I agree wholeheartedly. I also feel the same about people saying, "No offense, but" before an insult, in an attempt to pass off a rude insult that would otherwise hurt the target as a joke, apparently believing that the insult would not trigger as strong a reaction, while still inflicting the same emotional impact upon the target.
Seems similar to the whole "NOT!" thing that was popular 15 or so years ago here in the US. "You're real cool! NOT!"
