Pen-Elayne on the Web

More on Jokes that Bomb

In my humor essay last week, I mentioned two cases of clueless Englishwomen (Samantha Marson and Leslie Brennan) being idiots by making bomb jokes in airports during baggage checks. You know, kinda like the one place in which nobody, be they American or English, will find bomb jokes amusing. Now Eric at Wampum reports on another strange bomb-related communication, this one involving one Franck Moulet and an airplane toilet. Apparently Moulet was taking a bit too long in the loo, in a flight attendant's estimation, and when she knocked and asked if he was okay he said something in French that she heard as "I haven't left a bomb in there." As Eric reports, in order to be released from Ryker's Island Moulet had to confess that he made a false statement by making a bomb claim, even though he didn't make a bomb claim at all. (Eric helpfully translates, as my French is admittedly rusty so I couldn't fully read the Le Monde article.) While Moulet's line doesn't actually constitute a tasteless joke in the same sense as the idiotic Englishwomen, given heightened sensitivities and muffled restroom doors and people prepared to poo-pooh (pun intended) Frenchmen anyway, it's probably best in future for sickly passengers to respond to "Why are you taking so long in there, are you okay?" with something a bit more literal, such as "I'm having problems shitting, thanks for asking." No cruder, really, than a farting horse.