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James L · Oct 23, 2005, 11:39 AM

THE BALLOONIST

A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered
altitude and spotted a man in a boat below. She shouted to him, "Excuse
me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago,
but I don't know where I am."

The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, "You're in a hot air
balloon approximately 30 feet above a ground elevation of 2346 feet
above sea level. You are 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and
100 degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude."

She rolled her eyes and said, "You must be a Republican."

"I am," replied the man. "How did you know?"

"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is
technically correct, but I have no idea what to make of your
information, and I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help to
me."

The man smiled and responded, "You must be a Democrat."

"I am," replied the balloonist. "How did you know?"

"Well," said the man, " you don't know where you are or where you're
going. You've risen to where you are due to a huge quantity of hot air.
You made a promise that you have no idea how to keep, and you expect ME
to solve your problem. You're in EXACTLY the same position you were in
before we met, but somehow, now it's MY fault."

Now, I am neither Republican nor Democrat, but I found this joke funny!

black bear theory · Oct 23, 2005, 01:02 PM

hmm, i read that email the other day, that looks pretty much verbatim, though it was a petroleum company manager in the balloon and a geologist on the ground.

i never could figure out what the manager was doing in the balloon to begin with. don't know if it makes more sense now that it's a republican. still funny.

analogika · Oct 23, 2005, 01:17 PM

The original version is a manager in the balloon, asking an engineer on the ground.

A man in a hot air balloon realized he was lost. He reduced altitude and spotted a woman below. He descended a bit more and shouted, "Excuse me. Can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."

The woman below said, "You're in a hot air balloon hovering approximately 30 feet above the ground. You're between 40 and 41 degrees north latitude and between 59 and 60 degrees west longitude."

"You must be an engineer," said the balloonist.
"I am," said the woman. "How did you know?"

"Well," said the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically correct, but I've no idea what to make of your information, and the fact is I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help at all. If anything, you've delayed my trip."

The woman below said, "You must be a manger."
"I am," replied the balloonist, "but how did you know?"

"Well," said the woman, "you don't know where you are or where you're going. You have risen to where you are due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise which you've no idea how to keep, and you expect people beneath you to solve your problems. The fact is you are in exactly the same position you were in before we met, but now, somehow, it's my fault."

It actually makes sense when you remove the stupid attempts at making it "political", which just turn it into lame non-sequitur name-calling.

Note that the phrasing was also changed in the "political" version, which also made the description less specific, and thus completely unrelated to whatever the HA!-HA! person decided it would be OMGSOOOFUNNY to "poke fun" at.

See?

Pendergast · Oct 23, 2005, 01:45 PM

Originally Posted by black bear theory

hmm, i read that email the other day, that looks pretty much verbatim, though it was a petroleum company manager in the balloon and a geologist on the ground.

i never could figure out what the manager was doing in the balloon to begin with. don't know if it makes more sense now that it's a republican. still funny.

Actually, it is a Democrat in the balloon.

You must be undecided on the issues, right?

Pendergast · Oct 23, 2005, 01:47 PM

Originally Posted by analogika

The original version is a manager in the balloon, asking an engineer on the ground.

It actually makes sense when you remove the stupid attempts at making it "political", which just turn it into lame non-sequitur name-calling.

Note that the phrasing was also changed in the "political" version, which also made the description less specific, and thus completely unrelated to whatever the HA!-HA! person decided it would be OMGSOOOFUNNY to "poke fun" at.

See?

Than version is politically incorrect. Since when do men ask for directions?

James L · Oct 23, 2005, 02:20 PM

Originally Posted by Pendergast

Than version is politically incorrect. Since when do men ask for directions?

Randman · Oct 23, 2005, 02:39 PM

[wdlove] I hope she is able to meet her friend after all. [/wdlove]

Pendergast · Oct 23, 2005, 02:50 PM

Originally Posted by Randman

[wdlove] I hope she is able to meet her friend after all. [/wdlove]

LOL

loki74 · Oct 23, 2005, 04:45 PM

Originally Posted by Randman

[wdlove] I hope she is able to meet her friend after all. [/wdlove]

-------

That's a pretty funny joke. I never would have guessed that it was originally non-political, because the sterotypes of each party are pretty much spot-on. Great joke! I'm going to remember this one--the political version, that is.

analogika · Oct 23, 2005, 07:54 PM

Originally Posted by loki74

-------

That's a pretty funny joke. I never would have guessed that it was originally non-political, because the sterotypes of each party are pretty much spot-on.

What do technical details without the broader context have to do with any existing stereotype of Republicans?

NYCFarmboy · Oct 24, 2005, 12:26 AM

Originally Posted by James L

Now, I am neither Republican nor Democrat, but I found this joke funny!