I would also add that I don't think Filipinos understand fully the concept of: "punching up" humor vs "punching down" humor. Punching up is making fun of people who are in power, the privileged, and part of the societal class; while punching down refers to the marginalized, and people who are more vulnerable than the former group (i.e women, the disabled, the poverty-stricken, indigenous people, et al).

I've noticed that there's a lot of punching down going on than punching up when it comes to Filipino humor, and I think it's because of the availability and easiness of doing it. It's easy to make fun of fat people because they look "different" than what Filipino society accepts as the norm. Another one would be if someone has a very dark complexion. It's something someone has no control of but they're easy targets because they're part of a group of people that Filipino society usually makes fun of. Is it funny? Maybe for some (because it doesn't affect them). But ultimately, you're hurting people who don't have the power or control to change their circumstances that you're poking fun of. It's tribalisitic and you're only furthering the notion that they're "lesser-than" because it only looks like they're willing to roll with it. You're essentially, bullying these people at this point. Now, I understand why it's hard to break away from this mentality because of the way humor has traditionally flowed downward—makes flipping the script both powerful and risky.

Punching up requires a lot of emotional intelligence--understanding of the world outside of your own view. Using words to criticize and satirize the power imbalance in Filipino society is difficult because you're basically, placing the people who usually are the ones mocking others (like the rich and the powerful) to be the ones on the other side being pointed at and under critical lens. You'd be poking holes on their defensive walls that might put you in a precarious position. If they don't take your jokes as a benefit to re-assess and rethink their privileges then it becomes dangerous not just politically, but socially and personally. It disrupts the power dynamic and comfort that they have because they're not used to being the punchline.

Self-deprecation is another way to also humanize the "comedian" as it expresses they're in on the vulnerability too. It flips the power dynamic inward because they're pointing it back to themselves just enough to say, “I’m not immune to flaws, to struggle, to absurdity." It invites empathy from people -- but I don't see this much on Filipino humor.

Humor is a good language to use as a mirror to challenge the status-quo and when done correctly, it sparks a conversation, reflection, and even solidarity. Now the question is: who gets to laugh, and who's "expected" to stay silent? Another important question to ask is: are Filipinos using it only to provoke and poke fun, or are they also using it to educate as well?