Vice President Dick Cheney, left, and actor Sacha Baron Cohen, portraying retired Israeli Colonel Erran Morad in a still from Who Is 'America?' Showtime via AP
Vice President Dick Cheney, left, and actor Sacha Baron Cohen, portraying retired Israeli Colonel Erran Morad in a still from Who Is 'America?' Showtime via AP
Vice President Dick Cheney, left, and actor Sacha Baron Cohen, portraying retired Israeli Colonel Erran Morad in a still from Who Is 'America?' Showtime via AP
Vice President Dick Cheney, left, and actor Sacha Baron Cohen, portraying retired Israeli Colonel Erran Morad in a still from Who Is 'America?' Showtime via AP

Is Sacha Baron Cohen’s ‘Who is America’ really exposing issues?


Rupert Hawksley
  • English
  • Arabic

Unless you've been living under a rock – in fairness, not actually a bad place to be at this time of year – you will be aware of Sacha Baron Cohen's latest series, Who Is America?. The British comedian, who brought us Da Ali G Show and Borat, is back, heavily disguised with prosthetics, and once again eliciting some extraordinarily thick-headed opinions from people who really ought to know better. It has caused quite a stir.

In the opening episode, Philip Van Cleave, president of the Virginia Citizens Defense League and a well-known gun rights activist, agreed to take part in a campaign to allow children as young as three to carry firearms. “Just remember to point Puppy Pistol’s mouth right at the middle of the bad man,” he said, cheerily.

Things got even more bizarre in episode two when Jason Spencer, a member of the Georgia House of Representatives, shouted racist obscenities and dropped his ­trousers during what he thought was a ­counter-terrorism training exercise with Cohen's character, an ex-Mossad agent. Spencer resigned soon after the episode was aired and apologised for the "ridiculously ugly" scene.

“What exactly is the point of this show?”

Taken in isolation, these brief clips are both funny and disturbing. But watching a half-hour episode of Who is America? turns out to be a strangely unsatisfying experience. After each of the first three instalments of this seven-episode series, I kept asking myself, "What exactly is the point of this show?"

Cohen would no doubt claim that he is attempting to expose the stupidity that has infected the very highest echelons of American politics, and which has since cascaded down through society. But we knew about that, anyway – President Trump makes sure of it almost every morning on Twitter.

Who Is America? seems to be less about satire and more about laughing at people Cohen – and the viewers at home – consider to be stupid. That's fine if they hold a position of power, as Spencer did. But too often, Cohen targets the vulnerable.

In one particularly troubling scene, the actor’s character, Dr Nira Cain-N’Degeocello, a liberal lecturer on gender studies who is cycling through “our fractured nation to try to heal the divide”, tells a group of people in Kingman, Arizona, about plans to build a giant mosque in the town centre. In a cruel twist, he ­assures them that it is all part of a plan to “trigger huge economic growth here”. Arizona has one of the highest poverty rates in the country.

The furious responses to this (fake) news are shocking in their hostility and illustrate that something is sick at the heart of American society. “When I hear the word mosque, I think of terrorism,” says one man. “We’ll all be moving out of this state,” another woman adds.

Bussed in to be used as fools

But at no stage is the viewer asked to consider why these people might feel the way they do. Instead, Cohen has simply bussed them in to be used as fools. Mockery only further alienates a group in society that already feels marginalised. No one is expecting much nuance from Cohen (the man who once pretended to drop the ashes of Kim Jong-il on the Oscars’ red carpet), but he can do better than this.

Similarly, it just felt so obvious – so easy – when Cohen persuaded a vapid reality television star to take part in a bogus charity campaign, which would arm child soldiers. Or when he convinced a navel-gazing art gallerist that a series of dreadful paintings, apparently made with human waste, were works of genius. He may as well have taken a sledgehammer to an insect.

Needless to say, Who Is America? is most interesting when the comedian stretches past the low-hanging fruit (and that includes people like Van Cleave, who have a long history of saying idiotic things about guns) and is forced to work a bit harder by the people he is trying to catch out.

When, in episode one, former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders refused to be drawn into Cohen’s web, the comedian had to think on his feet to get the material he wanted. This scene was one of the sparkiest bits of the series so far. “If you believe in equality, why not have 100 per cent of people in the one per cent?” asked Cohen’s character. Sanders’s bemusement was absolute, while the line also neatly put the Democrat’s socialist policies under the microscope.

The golden rule of comedy is always to punch up, rather than down. Make no mistake, there are plenty of people in America who deserve to be laughed at – I’m just not sure Cohen has thought quite hard enough about who those people might be.

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Read more:

Georgia politician to resign after shouting racist slurs on Sacha Baron Cohen show

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Real estate tokenisation project

Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.

The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.

Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.

Electoral College Victory

Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate. 

 

Popular Vote Tally

The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.

The National photo project

Chris Whiteoak, a photographer at The National, spent months taking some of Jacqui Allan's props around the UAE, positioning them perfectly in front of some of the country's most recognisable landmarks. He placed a pirate on Kite Beach, in front of the Burj Al Arab, the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland at the Burj Khalifa, and brought one of Allan's snails (Freddie, which represents her grandfather) to the Dubai Frame. In Abu Dhabi, a dinosaur went to Al Ain's Jebel Hafeet. And a flamingo was taken all the way to the Hatta Mountains. This special project suitably brings to life the quirky nature of Allan's prop shop (and Allan herself!).

Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

Dust and sand storms compared

Sand storm

  • Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
  • Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
  • Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
  • Travel distance: Limited 
  • Source: Open desert areas with strong winds

Dust storm

  • Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
  • Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
  • Duration: Can linger for days
  • Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
  • Source: Can be carried from distant regions
THE%C2%A0SPECS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.4-litre%20four-cylinder%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20210hp%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20320Nm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Starting%20from%20Dh89%2C900%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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%3Cp%3EAverage%20amount%20of%20biofuel%20produced%20at%20DIC%20factory%20every%20month%3A%20%3Cstrong%3EApproximately%20106%2C000%20litres%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EAmount%20of%20biofuel%20produced%20from%201%20litre%20of%20used%20cooking%20oil%3A%20%3Cstrong%3E920ml%20(92%25)%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ETime%20required%20for%20one%20full%20cycle%20of%20production%20from%20used%20cooking%20oil%20to%20biofuel%3A%20%3Cstrong%3EOne%20day%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EEnergy%20requirements%20for%20one%20cycle%20of%20production%20from%201%2C000%20litres%20of%20used%20cooking%20oil%3A%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E%E2%96%AA%20Electricity%20-%201.1904%20units%3Cbr%3E%E2%96%AA%20Water-%2031%20litres%3Cbr%3E%E2%96%AA%20Diesel%20%E2%80%93%2026.275%20litres%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Dates for the diary

To mark Bodytree’s 10th anniversary, the coming season will be filled with celebratory activities:

  • September 21 Anyone interested in becoming a certified yoga instructor can sign up for a 250-hour course in Yoga Teacher Training with Jacquelene Sadek. It begins on September 21 and will take place over the course of six weekends.
  • October 18 to 21 International yoga instructor, Yogi Nora, will be visiting Bodytree and offering classes.
  • October 26 to November 4 International pilates instructor Courtney Miller will be on hand at the studio, offering classes.
  • November 9 Bodytree is hosting a party to celebrate turning 10, and everyone is invited. Expect a day full of free classes on the grounds of the studio.
  • December 11 Yogeswari, an advanced certified Jivamukti teacher, will be visiting the studio.
  • February 2, 2018 Bodytree will host its 4th annual yoga market.