Comedy gold bronze: George Will vs. Colbert
posted at 6:27 pm on June 4, 2008 by Allahpundit
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Most of the humor lies in Will’s stone-faced bemusement at Colby’s shtick, leaving the latter uncharacteristically speechless at certain points from the sheer withering gravitas of it all. But don’t let your attention wander: Some of Will’s one-liners are so sly and dry (”It was his choice”) that you’re apt to miss them otherwise.
It’s odd that he lets Colbert get away with suggesting that state-imposed equality is moral and benevolent while freedom and individualism are essentially a path to social Darwinism (he does challenge him a bit on health care), but why exert oneself in front of this audience? Exit question: George Will is an agnostic? Good, er, lord. That makes me feel so much better after this morning’s … unpleasantness.
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George Will’s version of conservatism is as doped up as Ron Paul’s view of libertarianism.
Nonfactor on June 4, 2008 at 6:31 PM
That was enjoyable and funny and clever and informative.
btw, what do the various colored wristbands that certain men wear mean? Colbert had red. I’ve seen yellow.
JiangxiDad on June 4, 2008 at 6:38 PM
George Will is SMART.
Chudi on June 4, 2008 at 6:39 PM
Outstanding…
Defend the borders, deliver the mail, and get out of the way…
Romeo13 on June 4, 2008 at 6:41 PM
They are wearing them for cancers or awareness. Yellow is for Lance Armstrong and testicular cancer. Red is for HIV awareness (maybe) I say another one with a different meaning.
upinak on June 4, 2008 at 6:41 PM
George Wills is a self professed “heathen” not necessarily agnostic. It’s just as well that his responses were one liners, ’cause whenever Wills attempted a second sentence, Colbert did the louder/righter talk over.
JiangxiDad: yellow is Armstrong’s LIVESTRONG fighting cancer.
Girls wear various colors re: sexual habits. Are you seeing guys wearing girly wrist bands?
maverick muse on June 4, 2008 at 6:43 PM
sexual habits? Never heard that one.
upinak on June 4, 2008 at 6:44 PM
That was great. I never get tired of listening to George Will speak.
Zetterson on June 4, 2008 at 6:45 PM
Such a beautiful thing to hear ain’t it!
If I were running for POTUS that would be my campaign slogan.
Zetterson on June 4, 2008 at 6:46 PM
I’m a George Will study… except I hate bow ties… but on everything else he’s on the money.
Kaptain Amerika on June 4, 2008 at 6:47 PM
upinak
the sex bands are more jelly like in texture than the thick rubberband type LIVESTRONG yellow cancer band. Girls wear them to let everyone know what tricks they are game to do. Some schools banned them last year.
maverick muse on June 4, 2008 at 6:47 PM
George tore him up. When he was ready to go for the pin, Colbert acted like the bad guy in pro wrestling and grabbed to rope with the crazy reverand thing. Intellectual lightweight….
Dirthead on June 4, 2008 at 6:48 PM
George Will is WAY funnier than Colbert.
My collie says:
CyberCipher on June 4, 2008 at 6:48 PM
I once saw a boa constrictor play with a mouse before he killed it.
BobH on June 4, 2008 at 6:48 PM
Yes, please inform us less informed of this new sexual color information system…is it anything like DHS’s color warning system?
Liberty or Death on June 4, 2008 at 6:49 PM
Saw that last night. I like Will, especially when they are arguing around the table on the Curious George show Sun mornings, and he quietly tells all them that they are stupid in such a way that they have to agree with him.
As for Colbert’s wristband, if I’m not mistaken, he somehow injured it a few months ago or so (skiing?) and has turned it into a running gag on Wrist Awareness
JamesLee on June 4, 2008 at 6:49 PM
nah, just yellow and red I think– but maybe black and blue now that I think of it. Not sure. Anyway, tks for the info.
FWIW, can’t stand grown men wearing that stuff.
JiangxiDad on June 4, 2008 at 6:49 PM
oh dang, that is something I would have never known. Must be a teenage thing. I haven’t even seen the type you are talking about, that is why I asked.
I have a couple of the rubberband type. POW.MIA and a Soldier awareness. I am getting my new KIA one here soon I hope. It has one of the HA TC’s nephews on it who was KIA.
upinak on June 4, 2008 at 6:50 PM
When you’ve got game like Will, it is easy to smack around a clown.
dedalus on June 4, 2008 at 6:53 PM
Boy does my wife have some ’splaining to do!
Limerick on June 4, 2008 at 6:53 PM
Is Colbert pretending, to preserve the ignorance (and/or pander to the intellectual pretensions) of his lefty audience, to be surprised at the notion of a highly educated, non-religious conservative or is he actually surprised that such a thing is possible?
Infidoll on June 4, 2008 at 6:54 PM
Always nice to see someone kick Colbert’s ass. I could watch that all day.
indythinker on June 4, 2008 at 6:55 PM
Will, imo, is one of those sit-down and shut up types. Yeah he is smart, funny, but I sure get the feeling that his only statement to me would be to bring his car around.
Limerick on June 4, 2008 at 6:56 PM
I think the jelly bracelet/sex thing is a new teen variation on the same old teen theme.
http://www.teenhelp.com/teen-sexuality/jelly-bracelets.html
As for the thicker rubberband bracelets, I believe that Lance Armstrong was the first (at least he was the first that went mainstream) - the bracelets sold for $1 and the money went to cancer research. Other charities followed suit - I’ve seen pink for breast cancer, red for AIDS (though I also saw red from a specific hospital that was raising money), my mom has a yellow Support the Troops band…..they’ve become fairly popular and there are now versions of them that have nothing to do with charity at all (for instance the WWAD “What Would Al Gore Do?” one I saw at a local boutique).
JadeNYU on June 4, 2008 at 6:58 PM
You know one thing I have found odd about Colbert is that I’ve heard him say that he is a he’s church-going Catholic but some of his jokes have been brutal to Christians (or maybe I’m just sensitive). He seems to have hostility to believers even though he one himself. Or perhaps you can’t be a comic with taking jabs at religious folks.
terryannonline on June 4, 2008 at 7:00 PM
It’s not new - I remember hearing about it a couple of years ago and being horrified then. I have no idea if they’re still doing it now that some adults have figured it out. I don’t remember what the colors mean except for black. Basically, if your daughter wears a black jelly bracelet, you probably better just lock her in the closet until she’s 30. It means she’ll do anything without hesitation, I believe.
aero on June 4, 2008 at 7:01 PM
Sorry I meant to write:
Today has not been a good typing day:(
terryannonline on June 4, 2008 at 7:02 PM
The Colbert Report is basically a minstrel show, where liberal Colbert puts on his “conservative face” and then goes out on stage to make fun of conservatives. Minstrel shows aren’t funny to me.
RBMN on June 4, 2008 at 7:06 PM
It is like watching a lion toy with a mouse… A particularly slow and stupid mouse…
gridlock2 on June 4, 2008 at 7:14 PM
It’s not something new…I guess that’s what happens when you’re 45 and your kids are gone, ya can’t keep up with all the new younger generation’s trends.
I wish there were something similar when I was growing up as it would have been easier to determine which girl to hit on and which one would be a waste of time and to ignore…/sarc!
Liberty or Death on June 4, 2008 at 7:15 PM
Pretty funny that some here think Colbert is somehow in competition with Will and credit Will with holding his own against a comedian who is always nice to his guests. If anything, he tends to poke more fun at liberal guests. Colbert fans know what the hand band stands for…
lexhamfox on June 4, 2008 at 7:16 PM
Good showing on Will’s part.
I thought it was hilarious that when Will brought up the fact that it is State legislators like Barack Obama who have driven up the cost of health care insurance, Colbert brought up Rev. Wright. HA! The first (and only) time Rev. Wright will be used to draw attention away from something Barack had a part in that was genuinely damaging to the American people. I wonder if Media Matters will be upset about that mention of old Rev. Hate-fest.
VolMagic on June 4, 2008 at 7:17 PM
No, he reverences baseball. As does Allah?
bnelson44 on June 4, 2008 at 7:17 PM
P.S. I always enjoy Colbert’s humor. He is still the funniest guy (regularly) on T.V. these days.
VolMagic on June 4, 2008 at 7:19 PM
Comedy
goldbronzeplatinum.ScottMcC on June 4, 2008 at 7:21 PM
Politics, as a practice, whatever its professions, has always been the systematic organization of hatreds.
bnelson44 on June 4, 2008 at 7:31 PM
I laughed several times. Maybe I’ll have to give Colbert a chance. I’ve always shunned him, knowing he came from Leibowitz’s (a.k.a. Stewart’s) show…
ynot4tony2 on June 4, 2008 at 7:31 PM
no dude… that was gold.
Diogenes of Sinope on June 4, 2008 at 7:32 PM
Is that Fawn Leibowitz?
jaime on June 4, 2008 at 7:37 PM
My neighbor, a democrat, was having some trouble with his wifi so it took me quit a while to watch that video. Eventually I had to reset his modem from my home. What a pain!
Anyway, there is nothing like socialism when it’s not mandated.
The video was awesome and I will be buying GW’s book.
winemkr on June 4, 2008 at 7:50 PM
I can’t for the life of me understand why any serious person would go on either Colbert or Stewart’s shows?
It just makes no sense at all.
Warner Todd Huston on June 4, 2008 at 7:53 PM
Good showing by Will. I wanted him to say, though, that we haven’t had a real free market health care system for some time.
mikeyboss on June 4, 2008 at 8:05 PM
He’s selling a book. Colbert’s audience may not buy it, but now some of us might.
mikeyboss on June 4, 2008 at 8:06 PM
Great segment. I love George Will. Deadpan is the way to play these things.
I know Colbert’s persona is supposed to be some kind of O’Reilly caricature, but he doesn’t stay in character - he mostly does the “please educate me Mr. Conservative, I do not understand your strange positions” thing. But he can be funny, and I think deep down, is probably more openminded than most of his audience.
Missy on June 4, 2008 at 8:11 PM
“Don’t patronize me” says Colbert.
Not hard, Stevey.
MadisonConservative on June 4, 2008 at 8:11 PM
Thanks Allah, great fun.
Buy Danish on June 4, 2008 at 8:21 PM
Will is unbeatable. I love the guy… he knows what’s coming before the other guy even thinks of it. As for Colbert, well… not so much.
Bill Whittle had an excellent post on just this phenomenon. Check it out… it’s a must read.
wccawa on June 4, 2008 at 8:23 PM
I feel the same way a lot of the time. But there’s always the chance that some viewer out there will see a guy like George Will and think “he’s making a lot of sense.” Maybe the person will buy Will’s book, or read his column with new interest. You never know what might transpire.
Missy on June 4, 2008 at 8:27 PM
Conservatives will protect the country from liberals’ naive, futile, and damaging attempts to mandate equality.
blink on June 4, 2008 at 8:40 PM
I didn’t like George Will’s implication that conservatives haven’t primarily embraced many controls on certain freedoms. For example, anti-trust and securities laws. I really think he should have qualified it.
blink on June 4, 2008 at 8:40 PM
It was only a year or so ago, Will said he was an Episcopalian and had been for year. Judging from the state of that denomination, I’m not surprised they make agnostic out of the congregants.
thatcher on June 4, 2008 at 8:46 PM
Great interview. The Colbert persona is most interesting in relief of people like Will.
Dr. Manhattan on June 4, 2008 at 8:48 PM
Dude. It was all smiles and giggles! Some disagreed, but none were … disagreeable, as the saying goes. No blood, no foul, right? Besides, after they purify the environs, we’re all good.
Jaibones on June 4, 2008 at 8:56 PM
That was remarkable. Colbert was so utterly outclassed, his ‘Colbert’ persona cracked in a few places, revealing his contemporary socialistic liberal innards.
George Will earns a mighty tip o’the hat!
LimeyGeek on June 4, 2008 at 9:03 PM
I missed something…..what are you refering to?
LimeyGeek on June 4, 2008 at 9:05 PM
Impossible. I just can’t see George Will sitting on the fence.
MB4 on June 4, 2008 at 9:05 PM
Your collie and I agree. WOOF!
I don’t think that Colbert even knew that he was bested.
onlineanalyst on June 4, 2008 at 9:21 PM
color coded jelly sex bracelets?? Ye Gods! — so glad I home schooled.
An orange bracelet can indicate Autism awareness or Asperger’s Syndrome. Some Aspies wear them to recognize each other.
Bad Penny on June 4, 2008 at 9:38 PM
I think you’re right. His brain is too large for Colbert, he quickly ran Colbert’s train off the rails with a flick of his finger.
He has a book to sell, with big brain ideas in it. He wasn’t about to let a pipsqueak lead him down that path, in front of that audience.
Saltysam on June 4, 2008 at 9:47 PM
Colbert is too self-aware and arch for me. It’s like he’s onstage, winking at himself in a mirror, saying, “Gosh, I’m clever! I’m so clever!” And then he turns to the audience and asks, “Aren’t I clever?” over and over.
George Will ran him over and turned onto another street before Colbert even saw the headlights coming his way.
Lurking Vet on June 4, 2008 at 9:48 PM
Will played “catch and release”, when he saw it was like shooting fish in a barrel.
Saltysam on June 4, 2008 at 9:55 PM
Oh don’t worry MB4, I imagine he has plenty of good anecdotes you can quote in random discussions loosely related to religious figures/events.
BKennedy on June 4, 2008 at 9:56 PM
Will did very well here, but he did miss correcting Colbert on one occasion. Colbert said that liberals want a fair playing field. A fair playing field, i.e. equality of opportunity, is a conservative position. The liberal position is that the playing field can’t be fair, so the government needs to step in and even out the results.
A fair playing field lets one team stomp the other 45 to 0, if that team is good enough. The liberal version is to handicap the team that’s winning by awarding points to the losers until they catch up.
To be fair, it’s extremely difficult to catch and correct all this on a show like Colbert’s, which frankly is about entertainment above enlightenment. (Being on the Comedy Channel is one clue…) George Will still did a very impressive job.
theregoestheneighborhood on June 4, 2008 at 10:12 PM
Liberals do not want people who are now poor to one day be rich.
In other words, Liberals are against the American Dream.
Republicans dig it when poor people become rich especially when it is through their own hard work or ingenuity.
EJDolbow on June 4, 2008 at 10:24 PM
You know, it was only a couple of weeks ago that I heard Will explain how the Dem Primary got to where it was–they want everything to be fair. So they get the Superdelagates, and oh, let’s split the delegates on voting lines, cos’ that would be fair, and now they had gotten to a point where they “evened everything out” in the sake of “fairness” they faired themselves right into a tie with few options to get out of it.
I’m sure there is a lesson in there somewhere….
JamesLee on June 4, 2008 at 10:50 PM
That was outstanding. I’m buying that book.
techno_barbarian on June 4, 2008 at 11:30 PM
George Will is 70% as eloquent as Reagan. Which classifies him as a God among men.
Kevin M on June 4, 2008 at 11:49 PM
“You, sir, are a formidable opponent,” said Colbert, near the end of the segment. I have to give credit to Colbert for realizing he’d been outclassed. Will had a great showing.
JimRich on June 5, 2008 at 1:09 AM
George Will thinks there are two kinds of people: liberals and conservatives.
I think there are two kinds of conservatives:
> Optimists like RWR who know deep down that most people are good, God is love, and America is the greatest realization of idealism that the world has yet witnessed.
> Pessimists like George who think that people are “crooked timber” and conservatism is the lesser evil, because liberalism is so stupid. “Deliver the mail, protect the border…” sounds good at first. But it is a soulless, simplistic summation of conservatism. The whole terrarium analogy was pointless and too simple; should’ve been dispensed with.
I wish there were more of the former and fewer of the latter. George is smart. However, his gifts are scholarly knowledge, history and analysis, but not perspective and wisdom. RWR and Will are two very different conservatives. Will promotes himself and sells his books. RWR won converts.
silverfox on June 5, 2008 at 1:23 AM
George on Colbert: Because God knows Stewart doesn’t have the stones to face him.
SuperCool on June 5, 2008 at 4:35 AM
George made Colbert look like what he is…an idiot. But Will’s a Cub fan, so he sucks.
LtE126 on June 5, 2008 at 7:23 AM
Paraphrasing GW: Political parties exist to organize our animosities. Good stuff.
captivated_dem on June 5, 2008 at 8:49 AM
When it comes to formiable opponents, Bill Buckley was the true power hitter, although George Will is definitely a major leaguer. For Will just to get that kind of compliment at the end from Colbert speaks volumes.
RickZ on June 5, 2008 at 8:51 AM
That’s his schtick.
Redhead Infidel on June 5, 2008 at 9:20 AM
George Will once wrote a column that sounded like a page out of Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra. It was a sort of meditation on the empty sky.
Kralizec on June 5, 2008 at 11:28 AM
I got the impression that he isn’t sitting on the fence, and instead, he’s firmly decided he doesn’t know.
Esthier on June 5, 2008 at 12:25 PM