Comments on: Big up to you

Big up to you

ludwig_van — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:19:39 -0800

Borat strikes again. Sacha Baron Cohen, star of HBO's Ali G Show, hits another unsuspecting American audience, this time as Borat Sagdiyev, Kazakhstan's sixth most famous man. "And may George W. Bush drink the blood of every man, woman and child in Iraq." Kazahkstanians say the darndest things!

By: mudpuppie

mudpuppie — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:24:48 -0800

Love it, love it, love it.

By: Peter H

Peter H — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:25:09 -0800

(applause!)

By: OpinioNate

OpinioNate — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:34:43 -0800

Throw the Jew Down The Well! /Sacha is Jewish

By: tommasz

tommasz — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:36:23 -0800

At least they didn't sing along with him.

By: ludwig_van

ludwig_van — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:41:43 -0800

At least they didn't sing along with him. Check out OpinioNate's link. I wish I had put that in the FPP.

By: nathanrudy

nathanrudy — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:42:39 -0800

I didn't find this funny. Mocking the national anthem in any country is unacceptable.

By: 2sheets

2sheets — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:47:17 -0800

You already know how this thread is going to turn out. Put me down in the "for" column. Rednecks getting their genocidal bile spewed back at them - priceless.

By: bizwank

bizwank — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:48:33 -0800

This is such fresh news :rolleyes:

By: 327.ca

327.ca — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:49:00 -0800

I didn't find this funny. Mocking the national anthem in any country is unacceptable. I don't think he was mocking the anthem. I think he was mocking the country. [cough, cough...]

By: xmutex

xmutex — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:49:24 -0800

Actually, mocking the national anthem of a country that has shown complete disdain for the rest of the civilized world is quite funny.

By: ludwig_van

ludwig_van — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:52:12 -0800

This is such fresh news :rolleyes: Is this old? The story says Sunday, January 09, 2005 at the top, and I've not seen it before.

By: dougunderscorenelso

dougunderscorenelso — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:52:35 -0800

I'm with xmute. Thanks nate, now you got that Well song stuck in my head.

By: docpops

docpops — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:52:54 -0800

define 'unacceptable'.

By: Floydd

Floydd — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:54:20 -0800

This guy said: "And may George W. Bush drink the blood of every man, woman and child in Iraq." And they booed him? Why don't these rodeo people support our President in this time of war?

By: christy

christy — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:54:36 -0800

does anyone know if/where you can download sacha's interview on the daily show? that's like my two favorite comics talking to each other and i missed it. tragedy. on topic: borat is my favorite cohen character. it's absolutely hilarious to watch people try and respond normally to him. i found ali g very funny at first but he has become a bit predictable these days.

By: naxosaxur

naxosaxur — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:58:31 -0800

We say in Kazakhstan, that a horse is like a man. That if a horse is good, it is like a man is good. And that if a horse is bad, is like a man is bad. And if a horse is hungry, is like a man is hungry. And if a horse is sad, is like if a man is sad. And we say if a horse is happy, is like when a man is happy. We say if a horse is angry, is like if man is angry. We say if a horse walk, is like when a man walk. we say if a horse is old, is like when a man is old. And we say if horse is young, is like when a man is young. And the same we say if a horse is old, is like when a man is old. And if a horse small, is like when a man's small. And if a horse is dead is like if a man dead. Also we say if a horse is sleep, goes to sleep like if a man sleep. And if horse wake, if like if man wake. And if horse ill, is like if a man ill. If horse have foot, is like man have foot. If horse on the grass is like if a man walk on grass. We say, in Kazakhstan if you hit horse, it is like if you hit man. And we say if you kiss horse, is like you kiss man. So we say horse is like man. Do you understand?

By: eas98

eas98 — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 12:59:01 -0800

I get embrassed whenever I watch him, but I just can't stop. Some of his skits are genius.

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 13:15:28 -0800

If you tell someone that you're filming a Russian immigrant who wants to sing the national anthem, and if they consent to his appearance on that basis and consent to being filmed on that basis, then when the person in question is not in fact a Russian immigrant, and in fact has no intention of actually singing the national anthem by any reasonable standard, then that should be actionable fraud. Yeah, sure, it's funny and all. But they're still fucking around with people's consent, doing things to them that they would not have consented to have done to them if anyone had bothered to fucking well ask them, and that's not cool.

By: ludwig_van

ludwig_van — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 13:20:29 -0800

Yeah, sure, it's funny and all. But they're still fucking around with people's consent, doing things to them that they would not have consented to have done to them if anyone had bothered to fucking well ask them, and that's not cool. He didn't exactly endanger anyone's safety (except perhaps his own), rob or cheat people anybody, or run over anyone's dog.

By: Kirth Gerson

Kirth Gerson — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 13:20:33 -0800

Don't you have to be damaged, as in losing money, to claim fraud?

By: OpinioNate

OpinioNate — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 13:26:34 -0800

Schadenfreude, anyone? I have to agree it's not very nice, but where's the harm in it? Andy Kaufman made a career out of this sort of hoodwinking, and many folks would consider him a comedic genius. Chill out, squares. And oh yeah, he makes me feel embarassed for people too. Also, Ali G addresses Harvard U.

By: bluesky43

bluesky43 — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 13:28:12 -0800

Ludwig - great post! I think Andy Rooney is still recovering after throwing Ali G out of his office. And ROU - Ali G is hilarious. Totally irreverent but hilarious all the same.

By: punkbitch

punkbitch — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 13:28:39 -0800

Whoa. Chiggity check yo'self before you wreck yourself. I found this funny. Pissing on the founding principles of any country is unacceptable. Mocking the rest of the world is unacceptable.

By: 31d1

31d1 — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 13:31:59 -0800

Ali G - lone modern proponent of the Socratic dialogue. Lets remember this so we dont make him drink poison before we recognize him as one of the centuries great philosophers.

By: simcd

simcd — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 13:49:47 -0800

This is comedy gold for half of America and 95% of the rest of the world. But where does Sacha Baron Cohen go from here? He relies on no one knowing who his characters are, and now Borat's met the simpler half of the US, Baron Cohen's going to struggle to do anything more with him. Given that Borat & Ali G are a good few years old now he's going to have to get some new disguises/characters soon.

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 14:02:47 -0800

He didn't exactly endanger anyone's safety (except perhaps his own), rob or cheat people anybody, or run over anyone's dog. Sure he cheated people. He claimed to be a Russian immigrant wandering the country singing the national anthem, when in fact his intent was to mock or provoke the audience, making them unfriendly to the real acts. That's cheating the hosts or promoters, and for his own long-term financial gain to boot. Don't you have to be damaged, as in losing money, to claim fraud? Probably. Maybe they could claim damage to their reputation as a result or something. I don't know that it is actionable, but in my world lying to people in order to trick them into doing or allowing things that they wouldn't otherwise do or allow would be actionable or punishable. where's the harm in it? Tricking or fooling people into doing things they wouldn't consent to if told the truth is its own harm, in my book. But then I like the idea that random people can only do things to me that I consent to.

By: bluesky43

bluesky43 — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 14:05:11 -0800

It's a good thing that Candid Camera never came calling....

By: Stunt

Stunt — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 14:07:02 -0800

Well, other than hearing the name mentioned, I hadn't had the opportunity to experience any of this before. I'm still laughing over OpinioNate's link. This stuff is great, even if I do get a tad uncomfortable watching some if it. Hilarious.

By: RockCorpse

RockCorpse — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 14:12:50 -0800

But they're still fucking around with people's consent, doing things to them that they would not have consented to have done to them if anyone had bothered to fucking well ask them, and that's not cool. Whatever. It's not like he invaded the country and started launching cruise missles or anything.

By: joedan

joedan — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 14:15:09 -0800

This is comedy gold for half of America and 95% of the rest of the world. But where does Sacha Baron Cohen go from here? i guess he could go to another country. why do you think he came here in the first place?

By: cosmonik

cosmonik — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 14:30:05 -0800

He claimed to be a Russian immigrant Kazakhstani, please.

By: fizz-ed

fizz-ed — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 14:32:11 -0800

i guess he could go to another country. why do you think he came here in the first place? Money.

By: xmutex

xmutex — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 14:36:58 -0800

ROU_Xenophobe: Damn, you are kind of discounting like a huge and timeless institution of comedy there. Did you get humiliated by some hidden camera show or something?

By: The God Complex

The God Complex — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 14:43:25 -0800

I loved it.

By: blender

blender — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 14:43:47 -0800

nathanrudy: Mocking the national anthem in any country is unacceptable. Well our national anthem contains the word "girt". If that doesn't make it a suitable target for mockery, I don't know what does. To make matters worse, the popular candidate for a replacement anthem celebrates stealing sheep. Important to remember that cultural heritage.

By: joshshmenge

joshshmenge — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 15:02:43 -0800

Tricking or fooling people into doing things they wouldn't consent to if told the truth is its own harm, in my book. If that's the case, I owe an apology to a few of the girls I knew in undergrad.

By: Secret Life of Gravy

Secret Life of Gravy — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 15:19:05 -0800

Every time my husband and I watch the Ali G show, we sit their with our mouths agape in incredulity-- how does he get away with it? The Daily Show does this (joke interviews with people not in on the joke) to a lesser extent, but Cohen is the King. Long may he reign!

By: ascullion

ascullion — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 15:25:03 -0800

Are Americans still interested in this guy? Jeez, he ran out of jokes about 8 years ago. / european superiority

By: fungible

fungible — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 15:31:44 -0800

Funny or not, that took serious balls. Maybe for his next trick, he could wear a "FUCK ISLAM" shirt and walk the Gaza strip.

By: Arch Stanton

Arch Stanton — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 15:54:15 -0800

It's a good thing he didn't pull this trick 20 miles down the road in Lynchburg.

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 16:09:38 -0800

Did you get humiliated by some hidden camera show or something? No, but I do sympathize with the dupes, just like my sympathies are with the people being made fun of in high school and not the jerks making fun of them, which is basically how I see it. He's the guy who pantses you in the cafeteria line or otherwise humiliates you, and then gets huffy when you complain because it was totally just a joke, man. There you are, a show promoter thinking you're giving some poor schlub a break, and he's actually this rich jerk who's bent on humiliating you for fun and profiting by it.

By: skallas

skallas — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 16:53:13 -0800

> Are Americans still interested in this guy? Jeez, he ran out of jokes about 8 years ago. His show hit critical mass here in the states last year on HBO. So to a lot of people this is his "second season" when he's being doing this for ages in England. Gotta hand it to Andy Rooney, he's one of the few people (they aired) who wouldnt put up with Ali G. Its pretty pathetic to see how so many people put up with his crap for the sake on being on TV. Although, I think his "fashion reporter" character is by far the best and produces the best comedy. The people in the fashion industry are actually much stupider and much more pretentious than I thought, and I thought pretty lowly of them to begin with. The throw the jew down the well singalong was a startling and exposing piece that showed that side of America we all is there, but deny it exists. That wasn't comedy, that was social commentary, and how easily he got them to sing it was pretty disturbing. Red State people are the best, aren't they?

By: soi-disant

soi-disant — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 16:58:24 -0800

This is comedy gold for half of America and 95% of the rest of the world. But where does Sacha Baron Cohen go from here? somewhere gorgeous, most likely.

By: Civil_Disobedient

Civil_Disobedient — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 18:19:56 -0800

but in my world lying to people in order to trick them into doing or allowing things that they wouldn't otherwise do or allow would be actionable or punishable I couldn't agree with you more.

By: sour cream

sour cream — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 18:31:08 -0800

Some of what I've seen by Ali G was genuinely funny, but this reads like it was a complete miscalculation and failure. I mean, he said something very offensive to a large crowd, the crowd realized that it was offensive and booed him out, instead of cheering him on or being indifferent as he was apparently expecting them to be. If one of those cowboys had actually roped him up, now that would have been funny.

By: esquire

esquire — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 18:41:28 -0800

Actionable fraud? Are you out of your gourd? These are people in a public forum with no reasonable expectation of avoiding the public view. Do we need a disclaimer that there might be a podunk local reporter there seeking color shots, or a jumbotron?

By: cosmonik

cosmonik — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 18:45:10 -0800

I also used to watch him years ago, pre-HBO, but America has given him a new canvas for his material. As skallas said, he's revealing things about American society that generally doesn't get exposure. Just as he did with English society. He's good at it. sour cream: his antics and interviews generally end in uncomfortable silences and walkings-out, rather than any cheering or kudos. It's part of what makes it so amusing.

By: e40

e40 — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 19:05:07 -0800

Borat stuff.

By: MLIS

MLIS — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 19:40:11 -0800

. . .he's revealing things about American society that generally doesn't get exposure. Sometimes. When Borat was a guest at a dinner party in South Carolina? it was all bathroom humor. I thought that dinner party was a perfect opportunity to explore topics like money & religon that would of have normally been taboo. That would have been interesting to see. . . .and how easily he got them to sing it was pretty disturbing. Red State people are the best, aren't they? Don't want to rehash that whole thing (seem to remember it was the topic of an earlier thread) but a viewing of that episode would show several white males wearing cowboy hats who were not singing along or stomping their feet.

By: destro

destro — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 20:41:18 -0800

He doesn't forcibly pants anybody. They do it to themselves. They pull down their own pants. It's the sign of good pranksterism.

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 21:08:33 -0800

Meh. I think it still boils down to the lame old "asphinctersezwhuh?" gag, and that this bit only happened because he lied his way into the show, but I'll shut up about it.

By: pemdasi

pemdasi — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 22:12:44 -0800

I live in Roanke, right next to Salem. Believe me when I say that the hicks in Salem would certainly have had no problem if someone had got up and shot him. He's lucky to have gotten out of their alive. To give some background, I was in a bar one night in Salem, when the guy sitting next to me asked me if I believed in Jesus. Keep in mind, I wasn't talking to him, I was having a conversation with a friend of mine. I told him no, and this guy starts yelling about how I'm going to hell and he doesn't want "people like [me]" sitting next to him.

By: petebest

petebest — Fri, 14 Jan 2005 07:31:20 -0800

it's all about context obviously but in general, I agree with ROU_Xenophobe. Maybe you had to be there. At a rodeo. In Salem.