“Does anybody still take Jospeh seriously?”
I don’t think that’s such a nice thing to say. He means what he says seriously just as much as you do. Even if others might disagree with him, it doesn’t mean that he doesn’t mean it. Just like people disagree with you, but that doesn’t mean that you don’t mean the things you say.
And it’s not like what he’s saying is so crazy. It is based on the Gemara. I just think he is misunderstanding the intent of the Gemara.