Pathology of the Humor Virus (or) “Officer? I Would Like to Report a Joke”

Here's an excerpt from my 8-30-20 SALON article entitled "Making Sense of QAnon: What Lies Behind the Conspiracy Theory That's Eating America?":

"In 2017, a year after Trump’s election, I published a novel entitled UNTIL THE LAST DOG DIES, which was about a young stand-up comedian who must adapt as best he can to an apocalyptic virus that destroys only the humor centers of the brain. After wading through hours of this humorless QAnon material, in which even the most innocuous Disney cartoons are flensed of fun and replaced with dark speculations about the demonic symbols hovering like unholy specters over Uncle Walt’s films, I’m beginning to think that my novel was far more prescient that I could have imagined."

Further proof of the existence of the "Humor Virus" can be found in Emily Crane's 4-7-22 NEW YORK POST article entitled "Marjorie Taylor Greene Reports Jimmy Kimmel to Cops Over Will Smith Joke": 

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said late Wednesday that she had reported Jimmy Kimmel to Capitol Police after the late-night host joked on air that Will Smith should slap her.

Greene (R-Ga.) tweeted that Kimmel’s wisecrack — which referenced Smith slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars — amounted to a “threat of violence.”

“ABC, this threat of violence against me by @jimmykimmel has been filed with the @CapitolPolice,” she tweeted.

In response to Greene’s outrage and subsequent police report, Kimmel fired back on Twitter Wednesday night, writing: “Officer? I would like to report a joke.”

To read the entire article, click HERE. 

Would you like to see more "Humor Virus" Proofs? If so, you can find them in this CRYPTOPOST and this CRYPTOPOST!

 

PRAISE FOR

UNTIL THE LAST DOG DIES

“By turns mystical and ashcan-real, insanely funny and grimly ghastly, Guffey’s novel cuts a zigzag trail through conventionality as it follows Elliot Greeley in his half-serious, half jesting quest for some deeper meaning to existence. If you build your life on laughs, what happens when the laughs disappear? Kissing cousin to Max Barry’s novel Lexicon, about killer language, and to Ben Marcus’s The Flame Alphabet, about language killed, Guffey’s standup debut is standout speculative fiction.”

--Paul DiFilippo, Locus 

“Taps into the cultural zeitgeist…. A nihilistic satire that takes the idea that death is easy and comedy is hard to a whole new level.”

--Kirkus Reviews 

“Guffey’s debut takes full advantage of an absurd, unexpected premise, delivering one of the strangest dystopian novels in a year filled with them.”

--B&N Sci-Fi & Fantasy Blog 

“Guffey’s sardonic, cleverly written comedic debut relies heavily on absurd synchronicity, bold characterization, and heavy irony to make its points about the apocalyptic nature of American humorlessness.”

--Publishers Weekly 

“Not only a novel unique to this [political] moment, but one that is to comedy what Catch-22 was to war. One of the great books of the year.”

--Adam-Troy Castro, Sci Fi Magazine 

“A playful amalgam of Andy Kaufman and Philip K. Dick by way of Shaun of the Dead.”

--Damien Lincoln Ober, author of Doctor Benjamin Franklin's Dream America 

“This satirical tale explores the role of comedy in maintaining a healthy democracy…. A clever concept.”

--Kirkus Reviews