Stunt by Ali G causes near Riot at US rodeo

[whirlygigspin]

LONDON (Reuters) - British comedian Sasha Baron Cohen escaped a near-riot at an American rodeo while filming his satirical "Da Ali G Show."


According to a report in the Roanoke Times of North Carolina, a man who was introduced as Boraq Sagdiyev from Kazakhstan -- in reality a Cohen character named Borat -- appeared at the rodeo over the weekend after organizers agreed to have him sing the national anthem.


After telling the crowd he supported America's war on terrorism, he said, "I hope you kill every man, woman and child in Iraq, down to the lizards... And may George W. Bush drink the blood of every man, woman and child in Iraq."

He then sang a garbled version of "The Star-Spangled Banner" that ended with the words "your home in the grave."

The Roanoke Times reported that the crowd turned "downright nasty." One observer said "If he had been out there a minute longer, I think somebody would have shot him."

Cohen and his film crew were escorted out of the Salem Civic Center and told to leave the premises.

"Had we not gotten them out of there, there would have been a riot," rodeo producer Bobby Rowe told the paper. "They loaded up the van and they screeched out of there."

It is not the first time Cohen has wooed controversy with his show, which airs on Channel 4 in the UK and on HBO in the United States. In one episode last year, Borat sang an anti-Semitic song called "Throw the Jew Down the Well" at a U.S. country music bar, prompting protests from the U.S-based Anti-Defamation League.

http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke%5C16655.html

[AP]

1. There sure are lots of DU'ers who read the Roanoke Times!

Where's everyone getting this story?

I understand it's very popular at Freerepublic too.

[LDS Jock]

2. is was on MSN home page earlier

thats where I saw it

[whirlygigspin]

3. I got mine from the FRONT PAGE of the Taipei Times today

-maybe they can book Ali G for the inauguration?

[Quetzal]

It was on the front page of Yahoo today

n/t

[Quetzal]

4. It was on the front page of Yahoo today

n/t

[Warren DeMontague]

5. Wow. I thought for sure it would have been "Bruno" who started the

near-riot.

You know, raising that red-state homophobic blood lust.

Da Ali G Show is funny as hell, in small doses. The joke sometimes gets old. The Borat character is usually the funniest one.

I'll say one thing for Mr. Cohen, he sure has guts.

[Fire Bush]

6. Sure wish I could have been there

To see all those dumb fuck rednecks getting all worked up. That had to be quite the sight!

Cheers to Ali G! :toast:

[theresistance]

7. I can't believe he managed to say an intro, then sing the whole anthem!

Did the crowd not mind what he said before the intro (about killing all Iraqis)?