It is pathetically amusing to observe how quickly star-struck loons, of the social conservative feather, flock together in Gibson's defense. This phenomena is only matched in its hypocrisy when one witnesses political right-wingers trip all over themselves to "rush" to Limbaugh's drug addicted side when their unscrupulous icon is besmirched by his own bad behavior -- you know, this was the guy who said that all first time drug offenders should be thrown in prison. Yet, predictably, this very same oh-so-forgiving crowd slathers all over themselves with rabid glee at even the slightest misstep of any and all so-called "liberal" public figures. Their sense of fairness could be summed up as the following: if one of our kids deserves a spanking, we will happily single out and beat up one of your kids instead.
Honestly, it is getting much too cliché to read how conservative professional media-bashers consistently express a desire to kill the indifferent messenger for delivering what seems to them a personally unpleasant message. Somehow I do not believe that most media outlets (except for the FOX GOP propaganda network) would be cutting anyone, regardless of their political affiliations or personal views, any slack when it comes to just reporting a news story when it is backed-up by verifiable facts. The Bill Clinton debacle was a prime example of that, although sometimes "verifiable facts" didn't always get in the way of the news media telling the story.
Personally, I believe that if the recent reports concerning Mel Gibbon's drunken verbal dysentery was about Alec Baldwin, I am sure it would be a bigger headline grabber because it would seem more out of character for a liberal to spew imbecilic bigoted remarks against a minority than what is typically true of social conservatives. Liberals are generally held to a higher standard of behavior than social conservatives by the news media. But, to be fair, infrequent as it may be, we've had a few aberrations of our own. Therefore, we social progressives have an obligation to lead by example and we should be brutally honest about our wayward political kin, We must not cowardly circle the wagons as so many hypocritical conservative Republicans do to protect their own from criticism in order to avoid any responsibility for their bad behavior.
Point-in-fact, regarding one of our own going out of bounds, there was Jesse Jackson's insipid remarks about Jewish people when he referred to New York as "Hymie town". And because of that one slip of the tongue, Jesse will never be looked upon with the same degree of respect and admiration as a legitimate public voice for civil rights and for tolerance in regard to minority matters. It is now part of his political karma, and he has to deal with it. But what about Gibson's stupid anti-Semitic diatribe? Will it forever haunt Mel to the depths of his emotionally disturbed little Braveheart, too? How long will he be anathema in the myopic eyes of the celebrity-addicted general public? Not long I imagine. Probably about as long as it takes for another exciting expose' on the front pages about Brittany Spears using her hapless little spawn again as an airbag in her car.
Yet, predictably, when Gibson made some really vile homophobic remarks in the past, the general public pretty much ignored those remarks -- no doubt tacitly agreeing with his prejudices. And the media hardly even winced. Although the press should have known better because bigots usually don't stop their bashing at one minority. But is it the job of the "press" to make an issue too long out of some has-been celebrity's socially irresponsible and boorish behavior? I mean, obviously, you need an angry public in order to give a story legs for any length of time. So, if you're the news media or a political party, you poke the hive a couple more times and see it the killer bees will pursue the subject. If not, then you kill the story or the issue. Cynical, but true.
Now, if Gibson was a so-called "liberal" political figure, like Jackson and Clinton, then there would be lots of red meat on them bones, and (to mix a metaphor) perpetual swarms of pissed-off status quo defending killer bees to make it all interesting (and profitable) for the mainstream corporate media. Yep, lots of angry reaction, and lots of media attentions, equals lots of ad revenue for the so-called, but not so, "liberal" press which is, oddly enough, just another money-machine for corporate America for the most part anyway.
But, in the end, one thing should be abundantly clear, Mel and Jackson (and even B. Clinton) seemed to have forgotten that one's reputation is probably the single most valuable possession you have. You should guard it carefully because once you lose it, you can't get it back. Sadly, too often bigotry and/or impulsive behaviors, without regard to consequence, is really never carefully reasoned out, it is bestial at its core. It is pure passion without reason; fueled by low self-esteem; political exploitation; intoxication with power, or simply barbaric religious tribalism projected into an expression of group-hate or self-gratification. Or, unfortunately, as in the case involving one our own who had the potential to be a great president, it was the lack of will power and pure narcissism.
Yet, regarding Mel, sorry, alcohol is no excuse. I, like many people, especially when I was in college, imbibed a bit of the ale from time to time. Interestingly, one thing that I found to be true was that people, for better or worse, really are themselves when they are under the influence. I say for better or worst, because that is the part of us that we generally keep under control when we are sober. I have observed that with a little too much in the way of spirits, and sometimes with the inhalation of the wacky weed stirred into a social situation, people most often speak candidly about what is on their mind without the protective and inhibiting wall of social propriety filtering out and editing their remarks.
Even modern psychiatry uses drugs, under carefully controlled conditions, to chemically unblock inhibitions so as to make a patient's mind more accessible for therapy. This is commonly done to in order to discover the root of deep-seated emotional problems or mind-sets. In Gibson's case, perhaps we got to see a little too much of the Wizard behind the curtain. Maybe the belligerently vile little winged-monkeys flying out his tequila-soaked butt might have shocked some of his middle-aged adolescent fans, but his devils were always there. Before that, apparently, they were just kept safely locked-up behind the toothy bars of the fake smiles he presented to the general public via his media face.
The bottom line is this though, drunk or sober we are all responsible for our behavior. So, unless Mel or Jesse (or even B. Clinton, who was both our greatest hope and our greatest disappointment) can claim they had a sudden attack of Turret's Syndrome or were possessed by devils, then we can all safely assume, that they, drunk or sober, meant what they said and meant what they did. Now, do I think that everybody who says something insensitive or mean-spirited or does something irresponsible should forever be relegated to the untouchable caste of a social pariah due to an imprudent and hurtful remark or because of an impulsive, immature act? No. But I do think that some therapy or soul-searching might be in order. That and lots of apologies if you want to come back to the world village and be part of the neighborhood again.
Perhaps, I am just a unwavering optimist, but I truly believe people can change. I am not a religious person because I like to think for myself, but I do have faith in the great potential of the human species. I believe all truths are there waiting to be uncovered if you just take a really long hard look in the mirror. In Mel's case though, to paraphrase the Old Bard, wine might be the thief of reason, but twixt the cup and the lips many truths are revealed. So, confront your demons, Mel, Jesse and even Bill, because it is the only way you can defeat them -- that is, unless you are content to forever be defined by those demons. You always have a choice.