Billyburg Has Its Own Borat: "Why People Do Hang Shoes?"

According to the above YouTube file, Miért Lógnak is a wacky Hungarian on a mission to learn why sneakers dangle from so many electric wires in New York. Right now, he's stationed in Williamsburg and keeps approaching Bedford Ave lollygaggers to ask in broken English, "Why people do hang shoes on electric wires?"

It's a stupid Borat trick, but the Q&A nets pretty funny results, with 'Burgers responding in equal parts self-congratulatory lameness ("Because last night they got loose"), annoyance ("I don't know, they got nowhere else to put their shoes"), and ironic smartassery ("It's for Jesus"). But the best answer of all comes from a dude in special-needs glasses and a wide-brimmed hat: "In the real ghetto, it probably means that there's a drug dealer in the neighborhood or somebody died. But in fake Brooklyn — here — it's trying to be [air quotes]hip-hop[/air quotes]." Snap.

The file was posted on YouTube January 20, but we haven't seen this mentioned anywhere except for a dirty flier we picked up off the ground for a screening we'd already missed. Oh well. Give Why Are They Hanging? some love here.