Well said.
If you really want to outrage and disgust, Dr Blosser, find a come hither pose of Christiane Amanpour and post it. The caption? "The horror . . . the horror".
Or how about a split screen close-up of John Belushi [as Bluto] and a spluttering Godfried Daneels. Caption: "Twenty Two Years of College Down the Drain!"
I gotta million of 'em.
I agree that context is key to the "humor" of the Crocker piece or your post with the quote from "Apocalypse Now."
The problem with that is the context is so narrow - orthodox Catholics who are joyfully struggling to lead a faithful marriage according to what Christ and His Church expect of them. Crocker's comments can then be funny, since for these Catholics there is a larger picture.
But when taken out context and read, for example, by a person who has come out of an abusive relationship, this can hit way too close to home. I don't just mean that jokes about death, which really are funny, can be distasteful to a person who has just lost a loved one. There are so many people out there who do not understand the Church's teaching on marriage, or who have a tenuous grasp of it and who need all the gentle ancouragement they can get. To these people, Crocker's comments seem to confirm all of the fears they had about the "Catholic" understanding of marriage.
I think this explains some of the negative reactions to Crocker's article. Many came from people who are working hard to instill a concept of marriage that is not crude and cynical, and here comes a piece by a popular Catholic in a prominent orthodox magazine that washes it all away. The article struck me as funny in a way (and I'm sure many of my married friends found it hilarious like you did) but frankly I found it embarrassing thinking of others who are unsure of what Catholics really feel and think about married life. I would be afraid it would turn off many of them. Maybe it shouldn't, but I think it would. I know some Catholics like Crocker's "I-don't-care-what-anybody-else-thinks" brand of Catholicism, but I don't see the virtue in turning people off without reason.
The "Progressives" will hate you no matter what you do or say, so why bother reacting to their sputtering? Just be faithful, loving, listening to anything constructive they have to say, and let them exaust themselves fighting against the Rock of the Church. In that exaustion, the still voice of God may be heard and reconciliation chosen over revolution.
I have a problem with the notion that every joke, opinion, remark or sidelong glance must be deveined and dumbed down to avoid offending anyone with a pulse on the entire planet. Elephantine overconcern with "feelings" is a by-product of the elephantine notions of equality, liberty, and fraternity that have transformed our colleges from robust centers of intellectual expression into PC concentration camps, and our churches into congregationalist playpens of mewing and pattycaking.
Frankly I cannot see what all the fuss is about regarding the election of Benedict XVI. He will bring great clarity to the church and the practice of our faith. After years of empowering and legitimizing evangelicals, who hide under the frocks of our Catholic clergy, especially the more conservative elements, Benedict's articulation of the purity of Catholic doctrine, with an emphasis on spirituality and faith will be most welcome. Left or right leaning Catholics, but especially right, are muddying the waters with evangelical relations, it is time to have an internal family dialogue among Catholics. This means not allowing Catholicism to be used by evangelicals to legitimize political agendas and support one party over the other. This division of left and right is destroying the church and empowering evangelicals to spread their brand of faith on the backs of St. Peter and Catholic legitimacy. While we furiously argue and destroy each other evangelicals are stealing away the flock. We must return to achieving a profound understanding of faith and a greater spirituality from there all things will flow.
Come off it Blosser, you know the only reason you posted that offensive Napalm quote (with accompanying photo) was for pure self-publicity. Looks like you got a little of what you wanted as well, although Agence France Presse is hardly Fox News *S*
Quando podeces te regi eorum fecerunt?
I think you're a hoot. But then, I have a perverse sense of humor that regularly pisses everybody off too. 
Sam Schmitt: point well taken.
Ralph R-D: you speak for my natural inclination, of course.
Lovehandles: Nemo. Sed quando podeces te regina obesa cum manubrium amorum eorum fecerunt?
hello mr. blosser,
i enjoy reading your blog especially the reference of the 'smell of napalm in the morning thing'..upon browsing thru the rest of the site, i saw nietzche in one of you (favorite?) philosophers..i'm just perplexed why a ratzinger fan would patronize? nietzche -him being responsible for the third reich's vision of the 'superman' and other atheistic beliefs.
Benedictus Deus in saecula!
Respect is the key. For the Blossers and Crockers of the world, respect means that they should be joking, and that a normal person should be able to see that they are joking. It is obvious that they do so in their writings. And those who might be offended must respect the rights of the Blossers and Crockers to have a sense of humor. I think it was Chesterton who said angels can fly because they take themselves so lightly.
I've been walking around for the last few days now saying "It smells like . . . Victory" and "andiamo avanti." I can't seem to stop smiling, in part because of the excitement and glee I share with the Blossers of the world. Many thanks.
Victory? Napalm? Is this some sort of cult of war? Can you only express yourself in these terms? How absurd. This is the sort of bizarre High Noon way of thinking that completely misses the point of Ratzinger's teachings. You are the mirror image of the liberals you love to whack. Your parochial cultural references are closer to Rush Limbaugh than they are to Rome.
Qui Latinam magis ignorat grammaticam quam ut casibus possit uti rectis, sese contineant a sermone antiquo, ne obscaeniter obiurgando quisque pro inimico suo sibi inferat opprobrium.
considering the growing number of dissent in the Church (which puts the rest of the Mystical Body of Christ in confusion), it is consoling to know that the new Pope holds the said 'notoriety'. one cannot help but savor the words 'Papapanzer'.
and besides anyone who loves JPII the Great to the bone, will find it hard not to love Benedict XVI as well 
d.: Nietzsche is listed as a recommended favorite, not because I agree with him, but because he's indispensable for anyone who wants to understand how we got where we are.
Anonymous: I love the Chesterton quote. But when you ask "Victory? Napalm? Is this some sort of cult of war?" you put me in a bind. Explaining humor eviscerates it. Suffice it to say you would be hard pressed to find anybody more opposed to the US's ill-conceived involvement in Vietnam or incinerating innocent babies with napalm.
Christopher: Vere. Valeat quantum valere potest. Et salvam fac reginam obesa, Domine.
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