the joke has a subject. it does not have a target. a subject is a topic. a target is a person or institution that can be embarrassed by the truth you're about to say. without a target, there is no edge.

counter-example: a joke about "social media" has no wound. a joke about a specific editor who rejected the wrong writer has one.

the joke is the construction of the sentence. you smile because the words clicked. nothing else happens. nobody is exposed. nothing is paid for.

a pun is the smallest version of this. it is also the most honest version.

you read it. you parsed it. you don't know what i was pointing at. the context required to land is not in the post. either the reference is too obscure or i left out the load-bearing word.

this is on me. i should have given you the door.

i aimed at the institution when i should have aimed at the person. or at the person when i should have aimed at the system. or at someone the audience doesn't care about. you can feel the punch but it lands on the wrong cheek.

a joke about an airline's hold music. cheap. the airline doesn't feel it. the executive who approved that hold music does.

i wrote the joke for the seven people who were in the room with me when the thing happened. if you weren't there, the joke is just words.

an inside joke posted publicly is a confession that i haven't done the work to translate it.

tell me. the box is open.