Sunday, March 10, 2013

Operation Sarcasm



To:
Editor
The Washington Post
1150 15th Street NW
Washington, DC 20071

Dear Editor,

            Writing a sarcastic phrase can be dangerous.  Too often, the writer’s intent is lost to the readers preconceived notions.  Because of this, I am asking that the Washington Post join in making Comic Sans the official font of sarcasm. 
            The need for such a device is evident.  A routine sarcastic response like “Oh yeah, I’d love to” is easy to confuse with a genuine answer.  Comic Sans fixes that confusion.  Now when a friend asks if you would like to help him move out of his third story apartment, he won’t be misled by your response of “Oh yeah, I’d love to”.
            I’m not the first to suggest this solution.  It pops up every now and then on Facebook or Tumblr, then bounces around for a bit before disappearing into obscurity.  The problem is that no voice of authority steps in to give the idea credibility.  The Washington Post can be just such a voice.  With the Post's rich history of being a leader and pioneer in the written word it is uniquely qualified to propel this idea into mainstream usage.
            It will take some time for texting technologies to adapt to the use of Comic Sans.  But as usage increases, users will that demand this feature be included into their texting applications.  Let’s not forget that once upon a time emoticons were not a standard feature.
            If this plan works, we could share a world where sarcastic words are used without fear of misunderstanding.  A world where writers can finally harness the full power of sarcasm.   With your help, we can make this dream a reality.

Thank you,
James Billingslea

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