In stand-up act, Bill Maher stands for something

From the Charlotte Observer:

As host of HBO's "Real Time," ABC's "Politically Incorrect" (from 1994 to 2002) and writer/producer of 2008's controversial documentary "Religulous," liberal comedian Bill Maher, 54, doesn't shy away from ruffling feathers and asking questions, often putting friends and foes in the hot seat with a smile. Maher takes a break from television Sunday to bring his stand-up act to Knight Theater. We spoke to him from his office this month, where he touched on recent events, his impressions of the South, and forming witty comebacks on the fly.

Q. The first scene in "Religulous" was filmed at a truck stop church, I believe off of Interstate 85 north of here. Did that experience color your opinion of the area?

Actually, I had a great experience there. If you watch that scene, you'll see there's a lot of love in that room. I thanked them for being Christlike instead of just Christian. There is one mean-looking, big old trucker who gets up and balls up his fists - and I thought he was going to attack me, but he just walks out. The guys who stayed were really sweet. I've always got along well in the Southern part of the country. People are just friendly... unless you get into political areas. I just did a stand-up special in Raleigh. I picked that on purpose.

Q. Do you find when you do stand-up it's definitely your crowd?

Absolutely. That's one of the most fun things about playing in the South. You're getting people who are probably not in the majority, politically thinking, but they still are there. All across the country there are liberal-thinking people. They're just hidden away. When I come to town, it's sort of a rallying cry for them to come out of the woodwork.

Q. Do people thank you for doing "Religulous"?

They do. That movie does have a life that goes on and on. It gave people permission who had been thinking it on their own. I'm not the only one (questioning religion). Somebody else has sort of validated it. There's ever more people coming out of the closet, if you will, joining the ranks of the nonbelievers.

Q. There's so much going on politically and socially right now. It seems like you constantly have new material to work with.

That's one reason it's great to do stand-up. The last thing I would ever do is book a stand-up date on the road and do my old act... My gosh, we have the oil spill and the situation in Arizona - the 2010 Say Goodbye to Your Gardener act. (There's) a state full of old people with no one to help them get around... This car bombing in Times Square. To me it asks the question: Why are we in Afghanistan? Obama, for all his hipness, is following the same policy as Bush did - which was we're fighting them over there so we aren't fighting them over here. I hate to tell ya, Mr. President - they're already here.

Q. You've spent your career basically defending your opinions. How are you able to always come back with a witty retort?

I'm not. I have a hard time sleeping on Friday night because that's the night we tape our show... it gets into the wee hours, then the show comes back into my head: I should've said that or I shouldn't have said that.

Q. Is there anyone you can really depend on from the opposite side that keeps you on your toes?

Definitely. A lot of people who are a lot smarter than me. I don't think I'm dumb, but there are people with IQ elements that I can't go near. I'm a comedian, and I think I'm a thinker. I'm not pretending to be like some of these authors we have on, brilliant minds who can lock themselves away for 12 hours a day and write. I could never do that.