stupid people strike again

There are stupid people all over the Mel Gibson thing, starting with Mel but not ending with whoever it is on T.V. saying he needs to pay for his anti-Semitism, and accusing "somebody" of "covering it up". For those of you who have been off-planet the last week or so, Mel got pulled over for doing 85+ mph through Malibu, drunk and had a few choice anit-Semitic remarks for the arresting officer. I don't know if Mel has a thing against Jewish people. My opinion is he does, because stuff you say when you're drunk doesn't come from a black hole. It's not like some spin-off of touretts syndrome where stuff just pops out of your mouth. Something spawned it. That's just my opinion and for the record, I've been wrong once or twice before. My point is that the bottom line is Mel did other stupid things that night, starting with flying his Lexus through Malibu, drunk. That's the stupid thing he did that is against the law and that he will pay for. Calling one of the arresting officers "Sugar Tits" probably didn't get him any brownie points either. He may pay for his other views in the court of public opinion (a la the Dixie Chicks), but you can't charge him for not liking somebody, or for thinking their tits are sweet, whether he does or not. Having something against Jewish people is stupid, but last time I checked, stupidity, in and of itself, isn't a crime. If it was, we probably all be serving a little time. I don't know how someone gets up and says, "Oh, and he's an anti-Semite. Tack on a few years of prision time." Shades of the thought police in 1984. (doing my best Ty Webb...) Ahh, Danny, this isn't 1984. Is this 1984? This isn't 1984, is it? Anyway, maybe less people idolize the guy, but in the end, that's not such a bad thing. Too much of that goes on in Hollywood anyway. Maybe less people go see his movies, and that's neither good or bad in my opinion. It just is, or may be, or whatever. I think his apologies are sincere. I think he's sorry for what he said. I don't know what he actually believes, but does it really matter? Should we really care? What is there to cover up? The jury's already back on the stupidity thing. Drunk driving took care of that.

I don't know if Mel Gibson is a bigot or not, but I know this. Being a bigot is stupid, shows ignorance, and is a just plain ugly trait in a human being, but it isn't punishable by law. Debating whether he is or not, or if there is a "coverup" is a waste of time. If you're doing it, your mind is already made up. If people want to boycott him, or whatever, because of what they think he thinks, that's their prerogative.

Then on a smaller stage, there's Rhett Bomar, now ex-quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners. I have one tip for you, Rhett. When taking money in violation of NCAA rules as a college athlete, don't tell anybody, and get it in cash. Don't take checks and definitely don't send invoices for it. Don't report the income to the IRS. Keep the paper trail to a minimum. Your career will go a lot smoother. The rest of the Big 12 has to be snickering.