I’m autistic and sometimes struggle with detecting sarcasm and satire. Occasionally, I miss things others would obviously consider a joke, while at other times I fail to register that something is actually serious.

Neither of them are super frequent, but compounded with difficulties reading subtle cues and the shame of being called out it’s enough to induce some insecurity: How many times have I been wrong and never knew bcause people glossed over it to save me embarrassment or I failed to read their reactions?

Short of explicitly writing that it’s a joke, there’s always some insecurity, and particularly since the embarrassment of “I was serious and you’ve now made a social blunder” is usually worse than the light ribbing of “that was a joke and you’re oblivious”, it often feels safer to err on the side of caution for me and ask.

I’m not saying that’s the case with the other person (given they already blamed it on inebriation), but it’s a possibility that I feel more people should be aware of.

(It also doesn’t help that it’s election season here and the streets are lined with the capitalist party’s adverts explicitly saying “Finally end this red-green government”)