One nice thing about egotists: they don't talk about other people.

Carlin’s line is a compact paradox: egotists are typically criticized for self-absorption, yet that very trait can be framed as a perverse “virtue” because it keeps them from gossiping or meddling in others’ lives. The joke pivots on redefining “nice” in a narrow, ironic way—suggesting that a flaw may incidentally produce a social benefit. It also satirizes how we sometimes tolerate unpleasant personalities when their behavior happens to spare us a different annoyance. The humor depends on Carlin’s characteristic skepticism about social norms and his knack for turning moral judgments into linguistic and logical twists.