Joke leaves 'em gasping - Obama quip stuns Citizen of the West banquet crowd

[truthpusher]

Source: Rocky Mountain News

Joke leaves 'em gasping
Obama quip stuns Citizen of the West banquet crowd
John C. Ensslin
Thursday, January 17, 2008

(snip)

A Greeley businessman apologized Wednesday after a joke about Illinois Sen. Barack Obama fell flat during the National Western Stock Show's annual Citizen of the West banquet.

William R. Farr was pretending to read telegrams congratulating this year's award recipient, University of Colorado President Hank Brown, when he pulled out a piece of paper and said, "I have a telegram from the White House."

Then he added, "They're going to have to change the name of that building if Obama's elected."

Witnesses said they could hear people gasp in the ballroom of the Adam's Mark Hotel.

"I gasped," said Gov. Bill Ritter, who was sitting at the table with Farr.
(snip)


"I think it was uncalled for and atrocious," said U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar, who was also in attendance.



Read more: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/jan/17/joke-leaves-em-gasping/

[donsu]

1. racists are such fun people

nt

[calico1]

2. Good Lord.

And there are a lot of them around, unfortunately.

[bemildred]

7. Good Lord indeed.

:wow:

[saigon68]

3. Was this guy from Texas ?

[RedEarth]

34. He's from Greely, Colorado

Afterward, Farr said he regretted making the remark and apologized to anyone offended.

"I apologize for that," Farr told a reporter as soon as the banquet ended.

"I mistook it to be humorous, but it was something I shouldn't have said."

Farr, a member of a pioneering Colorado ranching family, also said he regrets detracting from an evening intended to honor Brown, a longtime friend.

"All that I can say about that is that it was unfortunate and most inappropriate," said Albert Yates, a former president of Colorado State University, who is black. "Even though Bill Farr is a friend, there's just no way to defend what he said.

"I think it was uncalled for and atrocious," said U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar, who was also in attendance.

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/jan/17/joke-leaves-em-gasping/

[lynnertic]

4. yawn

This comes from a suit named Hank Brown.
...who musta been a little tipsy...

[Jamastiene]

5. I don't support Obama, but racism is never funny.

:thumbsdown: on that joke.

[Ian David]

6. I wonder if this is the guy from Borat at The Salem Rodeo?

Who was that man butchering the national anthem?
When asked if it was Ali G, his publicist e-mailed, "The show is not in production right now so other than that, I have no further comment."
By Laurence Hammack

Did the people who came to see bucking broncos at the Salem rodeo get taken for a ride by a British comedian?

Representatives from "Da Ali G Show" would not confirm Monday that it was the show's star who pulled the perfect prank Friday night at the Salem Civic Center. After persuading rodeo producers to let him sing the national anthem, a man posing as a Russian immigrant delivered an anti-American rant and a contorted version of "The Star-Spangled Banner" that galled a crowd of nearly 4,000.

<snip>

It was only later - after the man riled up the audience with comments like "may George W. Bush drink the blood of every man, woman and child in Iraq" - that Rowe figured out he had been duped. The performer also told everyone to be seated before launching into a butchered version of "The Star-Spangled Banner" that ended with the words: "your home in the grave."

"I learned a lesson, that's for sure," Rowe said.

But judging from the crowd's hostile reaction, the performer may have learned something about trying to stir up a rodeo crowd in Southwest Virginia as he made a hasty retreat.



More:
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/xp-16709

[El Supremo]

8. The National western has a long history of racist jokes.

They finally got rid of the rodeo announcer after many complaints. I think the black Uncle Tom rodeo clown is gone too.

[UpInArms]

9. 'Pukes are so not amusing

and so predictably misogynist and racist.

Throw them under the bus.

[librechik]

10. THAT Colorado SUX! and I say that as a native

and a refugee from a family which would have laughed uproariously if they got it at all, used the ne word to quip back, and followed up with a few even more despicable comments.

Edwards is right. There are TWO Colorados.

[proud2BlibKansan]

11. Don't tell me

The guy's a Republican, right?

[Missy M]

12. What a stupid remark....

not even remotely funny. It is disgusting.

[cloudythescribbler]

13. Why should progressives jelly themselves every time some such jackassy remark is made?

This phenomenon (of progressives) is PRECISELY how the race-baiting of the Clinton campaign (which, despite Obama's denial, was in fact the case, at least for a while) -- there is a kneejerk reaction to these things that is easily manipulable to redound to the benefit of manipulative interests (like Bill & Hillary Clinton, Andrew Cuomo (more clumsily) &c).

I understand the tension underlying the problem. It parrallels exactly the kind of deliberate chain-yanking of frats with their 'slave sales', and why the latter keep doing these things after they have created much controversy.

I'm not sure I really like Obama's approach in general, but for a candidate running to win, it makes sense, in the context of unfortunate reality.

[displacedtexan]

23. Qui tacet consentire videtur.

He who is silent is understood to consent.

I'm definitely jellied about this.

[jlake]

14. gross.

[Hawkeye-X]

15. Says here it was a longitme friend of Hank Brown

Who was a ex-Rethug Senator who managed to run CU down to the ground...

So not surprising he didn't get it.

[boricua79]

16. wow...hahahah...

what a dummy

NEW RULE!

If you're white, don't make jokes about blacks...unless you're George Carlin or someone with some type of racial pedigree with blacks and who is also very clever and actually funny.

It can be dangerous to your reputation.

[tyne]

18. Actually

It's fairly clever and Obama will probably chuckle.

[JBoy]

21. I'm curious - why do you find this clever?

[mac56]

24. Me too. What's clever about this?

Besides being insulting, it's blunt and ham-handed.

And whatever could you have observed in Obama that makes you think he'd chuckle at this?

[boricua79]

28. clever?

Change the name of the White House to the "black house" because Obama is there? That's not clever. That's not even good use of irony. That fell flat for a reason...cause it's so obviously wrong.

And anyway, the White House was ALWAYS a black house. It was BUILT by blacks.

[Orsino]

17. "Paint the White House brown" is an old rallying cry...

...but whether we cheer it or gasp almost certainly depends upon who says it. Obama's election would fulfill some very old dreams.

[DinahMoeHum]

19. Moral: If you don't tell jokes for a living, be real careful out there. . .

because even the pros mess up once in a while.

:shrug:

[NavyDavy]

20. some of the remarks were idiotic.....ken blackwell would make a

great president.....where are these people from?

[boricua79]

29. Ken Blackwell would make a great president

if you believe in selling out your people and helping your white overlords steal elections. :sarcasm:

[Historic NY]

22. Well it made the Repuke wires soon enough complete with...

a cartoon of Obama with the same wording...

it was in the Halifax Herald Limited.

[Doctor_J]

25. Yeah, that was an accident

Just a code to the faithful that they realize Barrack will never be "one of them"

[boricua79]

30. exactly...

it's a "wink wink" sign to the racist base of the Republican base.

"look who is coming to dinner...the negro".

Be prepared people. If Obama becomes the full blown nominee, be fully prepared for a barrage of coded "accidental" slip ups involving race. Some in this nation are ready for black presidents (we in DU). others are not.

[Cant trust em]

26. That's a bad headline

When I saw it, my first reaction was "Oh shit, what did Barack Obama say?".

[MissMillie]

27. Given the opportunity

people will eventually show just how much class they have... if any.

[loveangelc]

31. even without the racial element its just not funny

what an embarrassingly stupid joke. So it will be a tan house instead of the white house?lol. Stupid.

[bluestateguy]

32. Apology is NOT accepted

It is not accepted.

[hatrack]

33. Can't wait for Flush Phlegmball to tell us all how it was "taken out of context"

:eyes:

[JBoy]

35. You know what IS funny?

This guy and his wife. Sheesh. Cartoon funny. They look like a western version of George Costanza's parents.

[BreweryYardRat]

36. That's disgusting.

Someone should have slapped him for it.

[hatrack]

37. Nah . . . judging by the photograph just upthread, he's already in his own personal hell . . .

:evilgrin:

[TroglodyteScholar]

38. "They still call it the White House...

...but that's a temporary condition too. Can you dig it?"

-George Clinton