April Fool's Day

has come and gone. Some of the usual foolish jokes have been played on the unsuspecting...and there have been some more serious attempts to convince us that black is white, white is black, two and two make twenty-two as well as four and any other number of foolish pranks.

Yes, April Fool's Day can be fun but only up to a certain point. Beyond that it can cause a lot of stress. It should not be used as a means of "getting back" at people - but it is. It should not be used to "tease" people about issues which have strong emotional connotations for them - but it is. 

It is fine for me to go into the post office to pick up an important item, one that had to be signed for after showing ID, and have the staff pretend they could not find it while they are actually holding it in full view. The post office staff know me by name and they know how far they can go. That bit of mild teasing was followed by concern about whether I was overloaded with work because of earthquakes and tidal waves. We did not even consider it to be part of the April Fool pranks.

It is not fine to "fool" someone about pregnancy when they have lost a child themselves. That left the young woman in distress. Being told to "get over it" and "take a joke" just made matters worse. Someone talking to me took over and told her, "I need some advice about that risotto. Mine did not turn out nearly as well as yours." They were chatting as I left but it was not a happy situation.

I remember the occasion on which the state to the west of us decided it was going to implement "metric" time. That fooled a lot of people. Telling someone that "daylight saving" ended this past weekend is only funny if they do not have an urgent medical appointment or some other engagement. ("Daylight saving" ends this coming weekend.)  

There were once plans to build a canal from the harbour to the main square of the state's capital. Convincing people we might send special water buses along a to be built canal could fool people who do not know the state's  history but it can also be amusing for those who do know it.

A good April Fool joke will be genuinely funny. It won't harm anyone. There were a few around yesterday which did not fit into that category, indeed were not jokes at all. The Reserve Bank really has left interest rates on hold. I suspect they are regretting the last cut, particularly in light of the increasing problems with the United States. The Chinese really are mapping that undersea cable. It is a much more serious act than most people are aware of so you do not joke about it. You do not joke about these things because they are too serious, they affect too many people or they affect our national security. You do not joke about nuclear power or the floods interstate. I heard all of those things today. It was not funny.

I really don't have much time for April Fool's Day, especially at election time.