Friday, September 25, 2009

Why did the health insurance provider cross the road?

A few weeks ago I posted some ideas about what we can do to help people with ME/CFS and other invisible illnesses. In it, I admitted that my only public act of advocacy has been to write a song. So far that song hasn't had much of an impact. This is probably because hardly anyone has heard it.

We're working on getting "Everybody Knows About Me" out there. In the meantime, though, I've had another thought. This popped into my head while doing dishes tonight:

Why is it that we have thousands of lawyer jokes, and no health insurance provider jokes?

There are a couple of possibilities. One, lawyers have been annoying people for centuries while evil health insurance companies are a relatively new phenomenon. Two, lawyers have a much higher profile. When we think of unscrupulous legal practices, we think of an individual who masterminds and profits from said practices. When we think of dicey health insurance, we think of faceless people working for monolithic corporations. They're harder to make fun of.

But that doesn't mean we can't try! I'll go first.
Q: How many health insurance providers does it take to change a lightbulb?

A: Zero. The light has been turned off in the past, so it's clearly a preexisting condition.
There. It took me about 30 seconds to come up with that. Not exactly comic genius, perhaps, but about average for a lightbulb joke.

Now it's your turn. Why did the health insurance provider cross the road? What's the difference between a [fill in the blank] and a health insurance provider? Post your jokes in the comments, then tell them to everyone.

Just wait. Soon everybody will be telling health insurance provider jokes. Then the American public will be CLAMORING for a public option.

4 comments:

DeppityBob said...

Q: What's the difference between a health insurance provider and a date rapist?

A: The rapist will buy you dinner first.


Q: What's the difference between a health insurance provider and a dick in a ripped condom?

A: The health care provider won't come through.


Q: What do a prostitute and a health insurance provider have in common?

A: Neither gives a shit about you, but they'll pretend to until you're stiff.

wyvernfree said...

I think the other reason is because "lawyer" is a common two-syllable word and "health insurance provider" is a 7-syllable 3-word phrase that includes a frequently misspelled word.

Sorry to get all practical in your joke thread and all. I'm not known for my joke-telling prowess. ;-)

wyvernfree said...

...Oh, and to be a little more topical, there's an extended joke about a sleazy insurance company in "The Incredibles" that culminates in the insurance shark being punched through multiple walls by Mr. Incredible. :-D

cinderkeys said...

DeppityBob: Bwah. You're good at this.

Wyvernfree: No need to apologize. You're right. I thought about shortening to "insurance agent," which is punchier, but then there would be no way to distinguish between the health guys and the ones who specialize in the sort of insurance featured in The Incredibles.

Maybe if the jokes make it into the general culture, everyone will shorten to HIP. :)