WHITNEY HOUSTON TARGET YANKS OFFENSIVE GREETING CARD

It's still too soon to make Whitney Houston jokes -- at least according to the people at Target, who have decided to pull a greeting card from their shelves that mocks the late singing legend.

The card -- available long before Whitney died -- pokes fun at the singer's downward spiral in recent years ... "Next time you think of dating the bad boy, consider Whitney Houston."

The card was kinda funny before she died -- but now that Whitney's gone, Target has decided it's a tad too offensive ... at least for now ... and is currently in the process of yanking it from its stores.

A rep for the store tells TMZ, "The card was in our stores prior to Ms. Houston’s death. As soon as this was brought to our attention, we began the process of removing the card from all applicable stores."