Colbert: Iceland Is A "Frigid Rock" That Has "Gone Bankrupt And Gone Gay" (VIDEO)

Iceland's fame keeps growing. It was the first nation to have its government collapse due to the financial crisis. Then it became the first modern nation to have an openly gay prime minister. And last night it reached another milestone -- it was the subject of a Stephen Colbert routine.

Colbert took the opportunity to poke fun at everything from Iceland's food to its "whimsical" currency, to the pronunciation of its new prime minister's name, Johanna Sigurdardottir. According to Colbert, Iceland is "a frigid rock in the middle of nowhere that has gone bankrupt and gone gay."

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HuffPost contributor Iris Erlingsdottir has been following the developments in Iceland. Check out her posts here.

Comments

[schicklett3]

Tuesday nights "The Word" segment was incredible. Make sure you watch the repeat showing if you missed last night.

[KOisGod]

What's happening to Iceland should be a sober reminder to conservative govt's everywhere. You've had your run, and all your ideology leads to is theft, death and the people holding an empty bag stuffed with IOUs.

Socialism is the future, because capitalism, like Marx foretold, will hang itself with the rope that they wiil sell themselves.

[OrganOfThought]

the capitalist oligarchy isn't going to give up easily

they don't have a problem with this economy. they are doing fine with all the money and property they are sitting on. they just take an extended vacation whenever there is a downturn and wait it out. who wouldn't want to spend a year living on a island in the pacific or the bahamas.

[PSM42]

Gratuitous sl. ur of the week - les. bian Prime Ministers - Stephen Harper of Canada.

One down. One to go. McIn. sa. ne down. Harper to go.

THANK YOU Stephen Colbert.

[IncredulousGeezer]

Always first on the scene with a cheap joke.

Serious matters in Iceland. Perhaps portending our own economic doom.

Make political jokes, Stephen, when you can identify villains worthy of our contempt.

[eternalkerri]

Dude, you really dont watch Colbert do you? You're a little behind the power curve....

[IncredulousGeezer]

Yeah, I watch him on and off.
Being behind the power curve is where I want to be, I think, particularly at my age.
I once laughed at all sorts of foolishness, even at the expense of others, but I don't do that anymore. It's too easy to be contemptuous of everything when your own future lies bright before you.

[Foreground]

Dude, do yourself a favor and Google "Stephen Colbert" and "White House Dinner." The guy basically roasted George W. Bush about the massive corruption of his administration, his incompetence as a leader, and the damage his policies are doing to the environment from less than ten feet away (it was years before the full damage he did to the economy also revealed itself).

The jokes sometimes fell flat, especially since the audience was hardly receptive, but there is no way on Earth you can honestly claim that he won't identify the real problems and deal with America's own failings (albeit in his own powerfully satirical manner). Say what you will about him, but you cannot deny his balls. I'm slightly still surprised that Obama didn't need to sign an executive order to have him released from Gitmo or something.

[Mannock]

Favourite line - the one about Stephen Harper.

[wilray]

Iceland has one of the highest minimum legal drinking ages (20) in the world. It is only surpassed by the United States (21). Of course that's only half the story. Possession is not an offense, however the alcohol may be confiscated. So for all practical purposes there is no minimum drinking age. What a wonderful country for a kid. And the kids do get drunk a lot. They drink this home made hooch called landabrugg. But drunk driving shouldn't be a problem - I mean where are you gonna drive to. Actually. under age drinking is a problem. But in all fairness being isolated at the top of the world has to take a toll. Because of deforestation there are are practically no trees. Some days there are as few as 4 hours of daylight. Can you imagine a school kid having to spend his day at school in darkness. I can certainly understand why some choose to drink.

[rooks]

Wow, nice tangent.

[timmmahhhh]

I've been to Iceland, 1988. I can attest to the limited winter daylight as I was there in March. Would drive a lot of us to drink.

Was there really deforestation in Iceland? The terrain is so rocky I don't think very many trees could survive without serious human intervention and bringing in some decent soil. I saw one example of intervention - a large greenhouse with a banana farm to show the wonders of geothermal heat.

[wilray]

Here's your answer

http://landbunadur.is/landbunadur/wgrala.nsf/key2/hhjn7etf6x.html

[orangepetal]

A year ago they were all saying we should be more like Iceland, guess we will not hear that again for awhile.

[OrganOfThought]

yea, i had some "smart" friends that were trying to get me to open savings accounts with banks there. they had such great interest rates !! LOL

[wilray]

I think we should be more like Iceland. When I say that I talking more about. Social attitude. Years back I worked with a fellow from Iceland a very easy going person. The truth is I got along better with him than most of my American co-workers. Somethings are just simply going to be harder for Iceland like they say location is everything. Another way to look at it, just recently half of Europe was freezing their butts off because the natural gas from Russia had been stopped. Russia and the Ukraine had dispute that left the rest of Europe in the cold. Had the peoples of all the other countries affected done anything wrong. No. They were simply the victims of two disputing nations and their own geography / geology. They can't get from the ground something that isn't.

[wilray]

What grabbed my attention was that their money had a church lady hat on it.

[climatebabes]

Yet.

[Jeffreygeez]

How can you believe what a commie said, and so long ago ?

[protagonia]

Colbert is a genius and a hero to America.

[OrganOfThought]

true

[LITU]

After reading "I am America" I have a lowered opinion of Colbert. The book was hilarious, but his ideology kept butting heads with the humor.

[youpeoplearefunny]

IT'S A JOKE

[LITU]

98.5% was a joke.

[SColbert]

that book is amazing!

[In A World]

I hope you realize Colbert is actually a liberal and that his TV persona is an obvious parody of the typical Fox News commentator. I really shouldn't have to explain that it's all satire, but your comment makes me wonder just what you think his "ideology" is.

[normanx]

Time to call in the puppet government!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iw23N9xXM60

[JScott]

Hey Steve watch what you say bout Iceland if you're around Bjork she'll belt ya one good one.

[c1ee]

lol you mean scratch his eyes out

[Ramirez]

Funny stuff. It's good that we can find humor in the financial collapse of another democracy.

[MountPanic]

There's plenty to go around.

[protagonia]

Ramirez.

Of course you REALY care what happens to another nation.

Yeah, sure you do.

[NoblesseOblige]

Yep. We all know he couldn't care less.

[Foreground]

Yeah, I mean its not like he makes fun of America's financial and moral "death spirals" or anything.

I think its fair to say that whatever the heck happens, Colbert and Stewart will make fun of it. It just happens that they do it in ways that are generally beneficial to the subject at hand, at least from my viewpoint.