The only place I can tolerate puns is on the TV show, CBS Sunday Morning. Until today, I had no idea why. I'm re-reading Luke Sullivan's "Hey Whipple, Squeeze This" and he's just stated a truth that I just couldn't figure out until he wrote it: Puns have no persuasive value.

Of course! Why could I not see it before? You say a pun. You wait anxiously for a positive reaction. And… nothing. Usually a smirk and an eye-roll would be considered a polite reaction. That's not persuasive. At best there's a smile in the mind, a tiny, cloaked connection between two words.

So, that's why I tolerate them on CBS Sunday Morning. They don't need to rely on puns to be persuasive—their reporting is already the best quality and thus: the puns aren't relied upon for anything persuasive, but rather hints of humor. Little bits of mental exercise that bedazzle an otherwise thought-provoking program and remind us, "Hey, even we don't take ourselves too seriously."

So, thank you Luke. Thank you for making it easy to accept puns again.