Anaedo's Periscope
Call Me
Of Inebriation and Shameful Effusions
posted Wednesday, 2 August 2006
The media is currently buzzing with activity over the shockingly racist statements made by Mel Gibson—statements which were made in a moment of drunken stupor. Apparently, after Mel Gibson left a Thai restaurant, he began to drive home inebriated from consuming cheap Tequila. He was stopped by a policeman and he resisted arrest. He was then physically chased down and subdued. This represents a very serious offense on Gibson’s part and that alone merits the outrage and harsh criticisms that have greeted this drunk driving incident. He could have killed other drivers, pedestrians or even himself while driving drunk. Secondly, the mere fact that he resisted arrest and had to be physically constrained by the police officer offends the greater public—which was stunned by Gibson’s elitist disregard of the law but also the by the shocking impudence with which he threatened the police officer as he was carrying out his duty. This is certainly no way that a public figure should behave and for that he deserved the harsh chastisement he's gotten from everyone who has so far deigned to comment on the issue.
However, the straw that broke the camel’s back was Mel Gibson racist tirade against Jews during this particular incident. The word out there was that he said something to this effect: “ [Expletive] Jews, the Jews are responsible for all the wars in this world.” He then asked the cop: “Are you a Jew?” It so happens that the cop is. This was a grave and utterly reprehensible statement which should annoy any decent person especially Jews, who for some time are battling a worldwide negative propaganda because of the tension in the Middle East. For a man of Mel Gibson’s stature to give vent to such hateful piece, one has to realize that a lot of external factors must have gone into nurturing such resentment.
Indeed you do not even have to probe far to see what could have helped to cultivate the seeds of resentment in Mel Gibson. Hollywood is very liberal in its views, and there is no gainsaying the fact that with the help of the liberal press, Hollywood types will undoubtedly oppose Bush’s intransigence or willful pussyfooting on the current Israeli-Hezbollah clash. With the naked and brobdinagian display of Israeli military might resulting in the deaths of hundreds of innocent Lebanese civilians, the outrage with which the world greeted Hezbollah’s offensive action has now predictably turned into a backlash against Israel and the United States. The result is that after watching, in graphic detail, the massacres at Qana, moderate and liberal voices in the US have begun to speak up against Israel. However you want to slice it, these voices have been less than restrained in their impassioned response to the carnage in the Middle East. Against this backdrop, one can see how people [Mel Gibson] can unwittingly cross the line in their [his] effusive reactions to state opinions which are unapologetically anti-Semitic. This broad mischaracterization of Jews—born out of deep resentment, ignorance or hatred—is unmistakably revolting and should therefore not be tolerated or excused. It is for this reason that I understand the harsh criticisms that have followed even as I do condemn it.
Furthermore, you also have to remember the artificial impediments that dogged Mel Gibson’s “Passion of the Christ”. Without question, the Jewish controlled media and movie industry had sufficient reason to believe the work had anti-Semitic undertones, and as a result they withheld vital support which a movie producer would have found invaluable. There cannot be any gainsaying the fact that Mel Gibson’s recent outburst must have been colored by the deep and residual resentment he harbors regarding this friction-packed encounter with the Jewish-controlled entertainment and media houses, or of the attempts made by fanatical pro-Jewish institutions to sabotage this movie.
Last but not the least, one has to consider how much of Mel Gibson’s views were shaped by a father who has called The Holocaust a fiction. To what extent is Mel Gibson’s personal opinion colored by such remarkably ignorant or anti-Semitic views? Could they have had a role in teleguiding his portrayal of the Jews of Christ’s day? All these and more are vital questions that one must consider as one criticizes his callous hate-filled utterances.
The reactions coming from Jewish-Americans are understandable. They have every right to be incensed by such statements, and they have every right to steer clear of people harboring hateful anti-Semitic views. I wouldn’t be surprised if influential Jews in Hollywood and the mass media paralyzed Mel Gibson's career by collectively using the tools at their disposal to isolate and ostracize him. However, they will not be doing themselves a favor. Unlike Hezbollah or other indoctrinated and fanatical haters of Jews, Mel Gibson is to the best of my knowledge not a rabid anti-Semite. This has been proven by the unreservedly humbling and contrite apologies he tendered to Jews everywhere. Therefore, one will do well to temper justice with mercy. To err is human but to forgive is divine. If anything, reaching out to Mel Gibson by officially forgiving his errant rave, in these emotional times when he is being lambasted by many, Jews will have succeeded in heaping a coal of fire on his head. It will soften many hearts that otherwise may have cause to believe that Mel Gibson has been disproportionately attacked and persecuted for a statement made in a moment of impaired judgment. That measure will win over many Americans who for one reason or the other may have begun to entertain thoughts of an all-powerful Zionist cabal bestriding American realpolitik and exacting vengeance against critical or opposing persons or institutions.
Conclusively, Mel Gibson’s career rests with the people. If he commits himself to true rehabilitation and in the future turns out good movies, I think he will be forgiven. He is not the first neither will be the last Hollywood figure who has fallen from the public’s good graces because of their mortal incapacitations. If some of these Hollywood personalities bounced back after they literally fell from grace to grass, I don’t see why Mel should be an exception if he atones for his sins genuinely and goes on to produce good movies. His re-emergence into the public’s good graces will depend on his personal conduct henceforth and his directorial acumen. So far, it seems that he is on the right track; for that i have forgiven him. More importantly however, I hope that as a Christian, Mel Gibson has learnt the biblical lesson contained in Proverbs 20:1—“Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler; and whoever is intoxicated by it is not wise.”
Leave your comments here (1)
1. Kristina left...
Monday, 7 August 2006 3:34 am
Isn't it this same Mel Gibson that has refuted prior claims that he's not
anti-semitic,i guess like father like son,b4 his highly successful Passion
of the Christ was released there were claims that quoted his dad to saying
there's nothing like the holocaust and other bunch of boloney.I bet he'll
be in a hot soup with the big Jewish execs and producers in Hollywood,i
hear one of his shows in the works has been scrapped off from ABC,hmmmm!
Whether anyone admits it or not alot of Jews are movers and shakers in this
country be it in the entertainment industry or in Govt.But hold on a sec!
thot Mel was a christian or so he professed,then why the alchohol problem?