Mel Gibson was arrested for drunk driving yesterday and later issued a statement offering an apology for driving when he shouldn’t have and for acting “out of control” and making statements toward the arresting officers that were “despicable.”
So what does this teach us? It teaches that no man is without sin and that no matter what good deeds he does, he is capable of acting like the broken, fallen man that we all are. Some will use this as an excuse to call him a hypocrite—after all as director of “The Passion of the Christ” he’s supposed to be perfect for the rest of his days, right? Others will use this as a reason to justify their prior criticisms of TPOTC, especially since some unconfirmed reports claim that Gibson’s drunken rants included anti-Semitic slurs.
But in the end, what it teaches me is that God makes straight with crooked paths, that the art can transcend the artist, and that Gibson is a man in need of our prayers.
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Move Star Arrested Drunk & Disorderly
I’m shocked!
Opening Tomorrow:
Madd Maxx Goes to Confession
Bill: I would hope that his bishop would give him a medical leave of absence and send him to Guest House or another residential treatment center for priests with substance abuse problems.
Renee: Or he has a very good publicist who knew just what to do here. Sorry for being a little cynical.
What determines an alcoholic is not whether they drink, or how much they drink. It is, rather, why they drink, what happens when they drink, and what happens when they stop.
Alcoholics in recovery are never “cured” in the sense that they can take a drink again. And the behavior associated with their drinking often persists long after the last drop (known as the “dry drunk” behavior).
Further, a relapse is not unheard of, which is why attending AA meetings two or three times a week, even years later, is not unheard of.
In this particular case, it is entirely possible that the old behavior comes back upon a relapse. This might include the focus of anger that pervaded in early home life. Rage against Jews might be the response of one raised in an anti-Semetic household, regardless of one’s present convictions—sort of like behavior associated with Turrets syndrome. (No, Turrets is not the same as alcoholism; I am referring to similarity in behavior as an example, for want of a better one.)
The above is meant, not to excuse the behavior, so much as explain it. Most of us have enough trouble living up to our own ideals on a given day. Imagine those challenges constantly held to public view at any time.
Jason:
I can see your point, but personally, I wouldn’t give the episode that much credit for rational thought. Two respondents at the hotair combox both said it best:
Mikeyboss: “Drunken rantings do not necessarily reflect what a person ‘really’ thinks, especially if that person is an alcoholic, where there can be a Jekyll/Hyde difference between the drunk and sober person.”
Donnah: “[I]f you’ve ever been on the receiving end of an alcoholic tirade, you’ll know they’re going for maximum damage points, and truth or personal belief has little to do with it.”
You’ve got your happy drunks, your sad drunks, and most often, your mean drunks. In any case, both quotations reflect my own personal experience with alcoholism in my own family.
“Oh, and Baldwin wasn’t drunk when he said this… But he got a pass from the media and from Hollywood, didn’t he?”
You could say he was speaking hypothetically, the operative word being “if,” but it was still a dumb thing to say. Really dumb.
Marion:
I’m not that hung up on letting Alec Baldwin off the hook. It’s just that people say stupid things on TV talk shows, and everybody blows it off. What they do when they’re “caught in the act” out in public, among the hoi-polloi, that’s something else. I’m not saying it’s fair, or honest, or righteous. It’s just the way it is. Remember, this is Hollywood, not real life.
That’s an amazing apology.
I feel pretty irritated at Mel Gibson. Yes, I know we’re all human with foibles, etc, etc, but for those of us who defended the Passion movie (and by extension, Mel Gibson) as NOT being anti-semitic, his comments are really upsetting and make us look like fools, I think. If I were one of the people who had said the movie was anti-semitic, I would feel vindicated.
In spite of what MG allegedly said, I don’t necessarily think he’s is an anti-semite, and I definitely do not believe the movie was borne of anti-semitism, but I can now see why people would. But I heard someone say recently, “A drunk speaks a sober mind.” I’d like to say maybe that wasn’t true in this case, but I think that that is almost always true. Despite my gut feeling that MG is not an anti-semite, his own words seem to contradict my belief! He himself has made a defense on his behalf very difficult for others to undertake.
Obviously only God can judge him as a person – and yes, I get the irony here too, namely that he’ll be “judged” by those who pride themselves on their supposed nonjudgmentalism – but quite honestly, I don’t think his behavior really deserves a strenuous defense. If he’s been quoted accurately, his comments were beyond stupid and boorish. And if he was driving drunk, he could have maimed or killed someone. He needs prayers, obviously, but I’d feel kind of foolish defending him again.
And liberals do get away with alot, yes, that’s maddening, but how does that excuse what Mel Gibson – if he’s been quoted accurately – said?