I’d appreciate some input on this. Occasionally, I see people jokingly insulting one another to bond, I even used to do it a bit when I was in middle school and more social, and the connections feel stronger. Sometimes it’s based on certain categories they fit into, and sometimes it’s just general (e.g. ‘Hey douchebag, how’s it hanging’?). In certain situations, the idea appeals to me myself- for instance, I think getting some light-faith teasing about my asperger’s or tendency to overthink things would further a connection- but I also don’t want to tease someone in a way that’s supposed to be friendly, only for it to hurt them.
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Stay away from body observations (“Hey fattie” is not good), family, relationships, religion and politics and for the most part you are OK if you know the person well. If they get angry, be quick to apologize sincerely “Shit, sorry, I think I missed the mark on that one. I just meant to tease a bit in a friendly way, but I can see I’ve upset you, which isn’t what I wanted at all. That’s totally my fault.”
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In general, try to stick to “light” subjects, like competitive ribbing. It sometimes helps to temper it with self-denegrating humor (that is also light. Not “Oh yeah, I’m so fat”, more like “Hey, are you gonna go easy on me or are you going to kill me at Catan again tonight?”)
Keep it light, stay away from personal issues or anything involving faith or actual allegiances.