Joke – Thoughts From The Middle of Nowhere

Found at <a href="http://www.guru-international.com/gday_mate/archives/2004/10/03/politicians-and-hell">G'day Mate!</a> n nThis politician died and, upon entering heaven, met St. Peter. St. Peter said, "In the interest of fairness, we want to give you the option to stay here in heaven, or to go to hell. You can look around here for a few minutes, then go visit hell for a while before you decide. The catch is that your decision is final-no changing your mind." n n So, the fellow started walking around heaven; what he saw, he thought to be a bit boring. People were playing horseshoes, bridge, drinking tea. It wasn't bad, but it did look kind of slow. He mentioned this to St. Peter, and asked for his visit to hell before his decision. n n Immediately, he found himself standing in front of two huge doors imprinted with "HELL." Expecting the handle to be hot, he reached gingerly for it. Surprisingly, the handle was cool to the touch. Proceeding through the doors, he found a flurry of activity. People were standing around eating, drinking, dancing and playing golf – in general having a great time. The politician thought that this looked like much more fun than heaven, so he promptly returned to St. Peter and told him that he had chosen hell. n n Once again, he found himself in front of the huge doors. Reaching to open the door, he scorched his hand on the blisteringly hot handle. After entering, he was faced with a wall of flame, and he could hear horrendous screaming and moaning. He stood there, incredulous. The devil walked up and asked if there was some problem. "Yes," the fellow replied, "I was just down here ten minutes ago, and it wasn't hot, and people were partying and having a great time! What happened?" n n "Well," the devil replied, "that was when we were campaigning – now you have voted!!" n nWhy is it that when something is so bitingly true it is funny? n nA sense of humor is the ability to understand a joke-and that the joke is oneself. Clifton Paul Fadiman