Break out the handkerchiefs. If just about anyone else had been arrested for drunk driving, and uttered some nasty ethnic remarks, not a soul would have cared. But then, anyone else would have probably been in cuffs.
There are so many angles on this story, so let’s have at it. But first, understand that nothing I say here should be interpreted as defending him whatsoever. Mel Gibson, plain and simple, is a Hollywood brat, and there are many more like him. One might ask why a married man with seven kids is hanging out in some bar with much younger women, why he is too stupid to even get someone to drive him home, and mostly why he just couldn’t have kept his mouth shut.
Don’t expect good answers to any of those questions. After all, when one’s every whim is satisfied in nanoseconds, why SHOULD he have any personal responsibility, off the movie set?
Celebs getting preferential treatment is nothing new, and it’s virtually a way of life in LA. No surprise there, although it’s never been explained why this goes on, since these folks are usually high maintenance and are hardly ever worth the trouble. Besides, with the very real possibilities of a drunk speeder causing mayhem on Pacific Coast Highway, prudence suggests that kissing up to the glitterati should be way down on the list of priorities.
The sad truth is that the lives of many people are empty enough that they must fill them up with living vicariously through entertainment, sports, or political figures. I’m sure that far more people have heard of Mel Gibson than Nikola Tesla, even though Tesla has had infinitely more to do with improving mankind’s lot. But then, the Beatles were “more popular than Jesus,” according to the late John Lennon.
As to the anti-Semitic remarks, Gibson probably heard all he said, and much worse, from his notorious father. Since he has never distanced himself from Hutton Gibson’s point of view, including buying into the absurd heretical nonsense of there not being a valid pope since Pius XII, starting his own “church,” and remaining silent while dear old dad bloviates about a Jewish population explosion during World War II, one can safely conclude that he really is anti-Semitic.
What will happen is that he will toady up to certain anointed officials, slip some money under the table, visit the Holocaust Museum, take some sensitivity training, blame it on alcoholism, claim to be suicidal, be characterized as a victim, have photo opps with professional Jews such as Dennis Prager, be defended by his friends in the industry, and everything will be all right. It will be a mere speed bump on the superhighway of entertainment fame and fortune.
At the same time, though, few seem to care about real anti-Semites that actually kill Jews, as feckless diplomats try to engage terrorist thugs as a matter of national policy, and even many so-called Jews on the Left denounce Israel’s attempts to defend itself. There is no better word than “travesty” to describe how these clueless louts fawn over the rather obvious theatrical attempts by Hezbollah to sway the media, with obviously staged and amplified “atrocities,” and the same Green Helmet man suspiciously showing up at completely unrelated events.
Some are suggesting that anti-Christian bigots are using this case as an opportunity to trash the guy who made The Passion of the Christ (2004). This is credible, although not in the way it is usually presented. There really are many in Hollywood who were quite infuriated that a film with a religious theme could be so financially successful, and could also put a dent in the virtual non-stop parade of mostly ill-conceived pathetic derivative trash and self-congratulatory “counter culture” hokum. The anti-Christian component is just an added bonus.
Lest we forget, Gibson’s outspoken condemnation of the entire gay rights movement has put him in hot water with all the Hollywood lockstep limousine liberals, presently gushing over with schadenfreude. Based on this issue and factoring in his pro-death penalty and anti-abortion positions, the elite Left has cast him on the Right, even if he agrees with them on the Iraq war and Bush—at least.
From Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle to Mel Gibson: We love building them up, and then tearing them down. And that may be the sickest thing of all.