Prospect: Hammer & Tickle

We found some terrific jokes that we thought you might like. Its about Communists and life under them, so its quite surreal sometimes. Originally published at the Prospect the piece is about jokes which were not just a safety valve but also a way of resistance. And then, apparently even Communist leaders told jokes. Stalin, too. A fine piece for an evening read. Do give it a few minutes.

Meanwhile here are the jokes as promised:

Communist Hell – Capitalist Hell

He goes over to communist hell, where he discovers a huge queue of people waiting to get in. He waits in line. Eventually he gets to the front and there at the door to communist hell is a little old man who looks a bit like Karl Marx. “I’m still in the free world, Karl,” he says, “and before I come in, I want to know what it’s like in there.”

“In communist hell,” says Marx impatiently, “they flay you alive, then they boil you in oil, and then they cut you up into small pieces with sharp knives.”

 “But… but that’s the same as capitalist hell!” protests the visitor, “Why such a long queue?”

“Well,” sighs Marx, “Sometimes we’re out of oil, sometimes we don’t have knives, sometimes no hot water…”