Actually, Doug, all it usually takes is just not to react immediately, but to read between the lines a bit. When people are writing stuff tongue in cheek it usually becomes evident what they are up to fairly quickly, I think.

And we don't do it to mystify outsiders, we do it because it's funny for those directly involved. The same thing happens in ordinary conversations in real life. Have you not ever kidded around with a buddy about something? And did the people at the next table always know exactly what was going on? Does it really matter? Any club or meeting place forms groups of people who know each other well enough that they have something going that someone else may not fully comprehend. It's not just Mudcat where that happens.

Brucie's constant references to my supposed penchant for goats and blow-up dolls, for instance...how could a newcomer possibly know where that's coming from? Well, it's a joke. I am not going to give up making jokes because there may be someone in the room who doesn't get it.

In the immortal words of Mick Jagger, "F*ck 'em if they can't take a joke."

And I learned it all from Spaw, the beloved elder statesman of this forum, so if you're gonna get upset with someone, get upset with him.

Yes, he is a horrible example. Just horrible. He should probably be clapped in the stocks or keelhauled or something. :-)