WOW..loved all the points on here about the sarcasm,,It has given me a whole new prospective on it and what i should not be doing ,Thank you

Too many people (I'll say it seems to lean male) define their worlds by competition.

And a couple of related observations:

1. A lot of people have twisted definitions of competition. For them it's not enough to win, the other side must lose.
2. I think a lot of the behaviour is driven by insecurity. A lot of people so lack confidence that the only way they can build themselves up is by bringing others down.

I'm afraid we live in a society mostly made up of immature (to the point of being stunted) adolescents. It's going to be a long slog working out of our situation (that is assuming we ever do).

Update: It just occurred to me that almost everyone (including me) is interpreting 'sarcasm' as denigrating others. No one even considered self-depreciating humour. We're in bad shape.

I never thought of sarcasm as being necessarily harsh or bitter. To me it means saying the opposite of what you mean and it can be quite hilarious if done well.

For me I would say it has to do with the conversation I'm involved in.

I think it's something they pick up from their fathers, and older male relatives.Also, not all men are sarcastic. That sounds like a stereotype.

By the way, empirical observation supports that sociologically sarcasm and irony are key parts of British cultural humour dating back well over a thousand years.

Interesting, I'm writing a short report on this, so I'll let you know what I find out next week. And in advance, thank you for the extra source material.

I agree with everything in your post.

I abhor sarcasm with ONE exception -- when one is OBVIOUSLY, gleefully, and lovingly playing with another.

Besides that, to me, it is a destroyer of good will, good feelings, and trust.

I think sarcasm is thinly disguised meanness. I've never enjoyed being around people that can only communicate in put-downs.

I’ve read a number of female profiles who admit to same. I figure they’re just being up front with it, hoping to meet a male of similar persuasion (and therefore - mutual appreciation)...

Depends on the sarcasm.

Never about personal appearance or intelligence or the things that you know will cut someone down. (There are exceptions see example)

My entire family is wonderfully sarcastic. It is a holdover from our European heritage (we think).
You have to really know each other well and each other's knowledge base to really send out a great line.

Example -
My sister tells the story of how she fell down some stairs on her rear end while pregnant with my last nephew.

His brother pipes up "Well that explains it!" ( he and his sister are very tall his youngest brother isn't).

A few beats later the youngest brother says "He's not wrong." .

The entire table of family just loses it.

I love sarcasm. It comes to me so naturally. There are women on this site who use sarcasm ( Ursi, Mary, Gator, Pralina ), I am sorry if I missed someone, and I find them funny and insightful. A lot of people thought Bob Hope was funny. I was not one of those people. To each his or her own.

Seems like a rather misandristic post. No doubt not all men do this, and not all women do not do this.

It's because a third of the women's profiles say they are also sarcastic or say they like sarcasm. In fact, I would argue that most men who say that aren't actually sarcastic but say they are because they see it so many times elsewhere, and if they actually are sarcastic then they probably know they can't say anything sarcastic on the internet because it doesn't work without voice inflection.