Whoa! Mel Gibson freaks out

amynicole21 wrote: Mel Gibson received a DUI this weekend and apparently proceeded to spew tons of anti-semetic remarks to the arresting officers and the sargent in the police station WTH? I thought he was supposed to be such a good christian or something?

Here's the apology CNN.com apology

mckayleesmom replied: Well.......at least he apologized. I will give him props for that. Most stars would have had their REPS deny the allegations.

As for the naughty things he said , who hasn't said naughty things drunk or didn't even know what they were saying? Alcohol has its own voice and personality. Not that its an excuse, but explains alot. . I hope that he gets some help with his problem though.

C&K*s Mommie replied: with Brianne.

redchief replied: I tried real hard to be surprised. I just don't have it in me.

luvmykids replied: I know he's supposed to be a very devout Catholic to the point he had a church built on his property or something ...

As for how that relates, I know many good Christians, Catholics, what have yous who struggle with addictions of all kinds and on a day to day basis are not a "better" person than anyone else. IMHO we all have our downfalls, religious or not.

It's a case of pride comes before a fall in my book.

jcc64 replied:

I don't totally agree with this. I don't believe alcohol creates a completely different alter-ego. I think it amplifies dormant impulses that we are better able to control when sober. In other words, alcohol isn't capable of morphing an accepting, open minded person into a seething racist. The thoughts are there all along, but they bubble up to the surface and out of the mouth of an inebreated sloppy out of control drunk. The thin veneer of Mel Gibson's civility cracked and he was revealed for what he truly was all along- an arrogant, anti-Semetic racist. The evidence has been there all along- his movie- "The Passion of the Christ" (which I did not see) has been repeatedly accused of being anti-semetic. His father has been on the record as believing much of the Holocaust was fabricated. That Mel Gibson spewed his vitriole in a drunken rage should really come as no surprise to anyone.

The fact that he made a "Christian" movie reveals a profound hypocrasy, imo. I sincerely hope all of his supporters will re-examine his "piety" and see him for what he is.

Hillbilly Housewife replied: Like I told my mom when her on-again-off-again "bed buddy" told her he loved her, in the heat of the moment, then refused to talk about it later, Alcohol may make you say things you normally wouldn't say out loud... but alcohol usually doesn't make you lie.

C&K*s Mommie replied: I seldom listen to critics, or any hoopla that precedes a movie that I want to see before I actually see it. But I did listen for a time to the critics and the outcrys of Jews when that movie came out. And I did see it. It was IMO, a true account of what occurred (to the best of our knowledge based on what was written in the Bible). Not anti-semetic at all. Jesus was King of the Jews.

No matter anyhow, I am doubtful that he has ever has a position of being holier-than thou. I do not know him, and never truly have followed him thoughout his career to really care. I will say this, we all have our faults- we all have our weaknesses that are amplified when the time is right, through artificial truth tellers like alcohol or through anger when your heart tells the truth that the mind is holding back. I would be truly surprised to know of anyone in this day and age, that has never had a racist thought, or a stereotype that has entered their mind. Racism is prevalent still, not of the order that it may have been 40-50 years back, but it is still a part of our minds.

Jackie012007 replied:
ITA!!! You really find out a lot about people when they are drunk, they tend to spill their guts!

A&A'smommy replied: Props to him for opologizing!! And EVERYONE makes mistakes!!!

amynicole21 replied: Maybe you all aren't aware of the things he actually said...



I don't feel that's something you can just shrug off as a mistake. No apology makes THAT go away.

DansMom replied: He was drunk behind the wheel, and to me that is a crime to begin with. When is drunk driving just an understandable mistake? Never, in my mind. Regardless of what he said and whether it's understandable or not, he could have killed someone driving in that state, and for that he belongs in jail and/or loss of his license (this is what common non-celebrities have to go through). Lots of people are sorry after the fact, but in the cases where a car accident has taken a life, their sorrow and remorse doesn't change the fact that someone has died.

Boo&BugsMom replied: First, just because someone is a Christian, doesn't mean they claim to be perfect. Everyone falls, Christian or not. Is it common sense that he should not have done what he did? YES. Him being Christian has nothing to do with it and I am a little miffed that some of you think it does. I'm pretty sure if we opened up everyone's closet on here, your skeltons would come out too! The only reason this is being blown up like this is because it's Mel Gibson. You don't see the man down the street getting nation wide coverage for something like this.

Nicole, I totally agree with your post!

amynicole21 replied:
I just find it odd that part of the Christian tennet as I understand it is to "love thy neighbor" yet so many horrific things are done by those who claim to be righteous and religious.

na81 replied: I just heard about this and I couldn't believe some of the stuff he said....... SHAME ON HIM!!!! I do have to give him some credit for his appology.

Boo&BugsMom replied:
Do you think that this would have been so 'off the wall' if someone who didn't claim to be a Christian did this? No way! That is the point. Everyone has their sins and everyone falls. I bet if it was someone who wasn't Christian and the person who didn't make "The Passion" or another religious movie, this thread wouldn't even exist.

Added: When people who claim to be Christian do something like this, they are usually automatically judged in a different light by others, that is why it seems to odd, like because we are Christian we shouldn't sin or have faults...come on! What he did was wrong, but him being a Christian has nothing to do with what he did. I think it was mature of him to apologize, even though his acts were immensely immature. Would just anyone else have apologized in this situation?

kit_kats_mom replied:
just jumping in here to defend my girl Amy.

I don't think it would be such a big deal if he didn't use his religion for gain. He has gone waaay out of his way to "prove" how devout he is and IMO it's all just a farce to gain him more support in the religious community...much like many of our political leaders who pander to the religious zealots yet live lives that the devil would be proud to call his own.

eta: not every religous person is a zealot. I think that may have come out wrong. Sorry. I'm just home from trip to the inlaws who are zealots and crazier than loons in their definitions of what is right and what is wrong.

Boo&BugsMom replied:
Did you know that he didn't pocket a single dime from "The Passion"? Don't assume. He gave his portion to charities and churches. Actually, he was very afraid of making the film because of it's heavy religious content. I would encourage anyone to rent the second disc to the movie and watch all the extra footage, interviews, and such before making any assumptions about his reasonings behind making the movie.

kit_kats_mom replied: um, ok

Mommy2Isabella replied: I am impressed at his appology. Though it doesn't make it ok! Still impressive that he appologized!

Crystalina replied: I'm going to jump on this boat.
As for him apologizing...please. He's apologizing because he got caught. I guarentee if he would have made it home and went to sleep he would have woken the next morning without feeling the least bit sorry for driving while drunk the night before. He would have gotten up and done it again. Maybe not that night but I'm sure it would happen again. Where was his cab? if a cab was unavailable I'm sure he has a friend or two. I give or take no excuses to those who drive drunk whether they are famouse or not. If he gets behind the wheel and kills my kids I wouldn't look at his face, I would look at his actions which would be totally unexcusable. Yes, he's famouse so his actions are going to be under a microscope but that is the price you pay to be famouse. He chose his life now he has to live with it.
I happen to love Mel Gibson. He's still a great actor, he just has to realize that acting sober doesn't make him sober.

I don't want to get into all of the religion of it because I honestly don't follow his religious life but I do have to say that some of the best Catholics I know are drinkers. As a matter of fact most of them are. I was raised Catholic and spent many unfun years in St. Joesephs school and I know what the Father is up there drinking and it ain't cool-aid.

A&A'smommy replied: wow thats crazy but it was still a STUPID mistake falling from stress, and anger. He is probably like everyone else in this world that is tired of the war... but I can't figure out why he would blame it on the jews.. I think it must have taken a LOT of guts to opologize thats a difficult thing to do!!! But anyway I don't think EVERYONE that claims to be a christian truly is.

luvmykids replied:
I agree with you, that maybe his religious intentions are not entirely sincere. I think what I was meaning in my post and what got TannerBugsMom in defense of him was not that his actions are in any way excusable, just that "religious" people of any sort seem to get the "AHA!" finger pointing reaction and harsher judgement for things that many people do day in and out. I think he did come across as a zealot of sorts which is why it's extra disturbing that he did and said these things but I hate the assumption that anyone religious is exempt from the regular day to day struggles and shortcomings that we all deal with.

I'm not directing this at you, just trying to help explain what Jennie meant maybe?

luvmykids replied:
ITA but it's sad that the people who truly are lose credibility because of those folks.

Boo&BugsMom replied:
Yep! Definitly!

Do I think what he did was ok? Not at all! It was stupid, childish, immature, and senseless. But it's because he is human and lacked good judgement at the time. He did admit to being an alcoholic. I hope he gets help. I think it's more disturbing to think that there are people in this world who act like this when they are sober.

jcc64 replied: I feel no pity whatsoever for the fishbowl life of celebrities, or that they are held to a "higher standard". I believe in this case he is being held to the exact same standard as everyone else- he got caught driving drunk, which is much more than an honest mistake, imo- it is a conscious decision to do something that has the potential to endanger the lives of others. Initially, there was a concerted effort to cover up his less than admirable behavior during the arrest- how many of us "little people" ever have that courtesy extended to us? And while I am generally a very forgiving person, I am certain his apology has as much to do with self preservation as it has to do with sincere remorse. If his heart was truly pure, I do believe those words would never have tumbled out of his mouth in the first place.
As far as the persecution of Christians- I do think most people revel in the disclosure of blatant hypocrasy, regardless of one's religious persuasion- i know I do. He has been canonized by many as a figure of moral strength and worthy of great admiration. I think his admiring public has a right to know the truth about him. I could care less if he was a Christian, Muslim, Jew, or Hare Krishna.

C&K*s Mommie replied: No one knows his true intentions behind apologizing.

We can strive to have a pure heart, but no one walking on this earth has such a pure heart, no one.

A&A'smommy replied:
me too!!

My2Beauties replied: I think his apology is absolutely and positively absurd and like someone else said, if he hadn't got caught he wouldn't have had a care in this world. Sure things come out of your mouth when you're drunk, believe me, been there done that, but like someone else they are always underlying and something that you believe to be true and they bubble to the surface with some good ol' fashioned liquid courage. He is a racist. Point blank, those thoughts wouldn't have come blubbering out had they not been on his mind to begin with. WTH did he come up talking about Jews because he was being arrested, he had no indication the officer was Jewish. I mean, come on, had to be on his mind. If you claim to be a Christian, then by golly act like one. Sorry, I don't care who he is. Oh and as far as his earnings from "Passion" going to charity - hoo-hah! I guarantee that he made a nice little chunk of change from it. I don't believe every dime was given away!

jcc64 replied:

I fully cop to being a cynic- probably from living in NY for too long.
I think it's great that you can take his mea culpa at face value- but me- I have my doubts....

Boo&BugsMom replied:
Just HOW should a Christian act?

kit_kats_mom replied:
well, just as a starter, I'd say a Christian should probably take the whole "thou shall not kill" pretty seriously and refrain from getting drunk then taking a weapon for a spin. That's just begging for trouble

Personally, I think that God should have given him the sense to not do such a stupid thing.

Maddie&EthansMom replied: Yeah, I think regardless of religion or race we should all act dignified at all times and what he did was uncalled for. Frankly I don't care who you are or what you are, you should never speak of anyone in that manner. That's just wrong. Drunk or not drunk, celebrity or a regular 'ol Joe...that's just being judgemental and racist. Period.

And I do think it was a foolish mistake on his part after all of his interviews and such over The Passion. I mean, way to give christianity a bad name. Thanks.

Boo&BugsMom replied:
That's not being Christian, that is just having common sense. God doesn't instill common sense in people, they do those things out of their own free will. "Should" a person who is Christian act a certain way? If so, then what is the excuse for others who are not that don't act that way either? It's a double standard that is unfair.

Boo&BugsMom replied:
EXACTLY my point!

The question on how Christian's should act was a trick question and I asked it to jolt some thinking. Regardless of faith, the way he acted was inexcusable. It's common sense to act in a decent and mature manner. However, like I said, being Christian doesn't mean someone claims or CAN be perfect...it's unrealistic. As far as loving your nieghbor...there is not a single soul on here who can tell me they have never said anything hurtful to someone else...that is also part of loving your neighbor! So what's your excuse then? It's no different.

And thou shalt not kill, even though it's part of the 10 commandments, it's also just common sense. I don't know where that came from, but people of all faiths, races, creed's, have killed someone. So we should excuse the people who don't have a faith? Absurd!!!

When someone takes a faith, like a Christian for example, they aren't just 'given these traits' as an act of God or anything. They still have their "nature" and it doesn't just all of a sudden make them a better person on Earth. They are still what they were born with.

kimberley replied: we are all fallable.. why bring religion into that?

Mel Gibson made a bonehead mistake that could have ended tragically but luckily the only thing hurt was his reputation. let's hope the incident will impact him enough to keep him from doing it again.

mysweetpeasWil&Wes replied: Oh please, why are we debating religion here? It's truly not the issue IMO. I see everyone's point of view, but the man was driving drunk for god's sake! There is no forgiveness for that. I don't care if he apologizes a million times. It disgusts me what he said, as I am a Jew, and I will not agree that we all have BTDT, but I just don't have it in me to argue about a man I do not know. It's the fact he could have killed someone that I can not accept.

I didn't see his movie and could careless what his intentions were behind it, if any.

Crystalina replied: Well, I've just heard that he is in rehab so hopefully he will get the help it is obviouse he needs.

Crystalina replied:

Yes, I agree with that. Bottom line is he got picked up for DUI not for his racial slurs. That is obviousely just who he is.

jcc64 replied: It became about religion when HE made it about religion. It became about religion when it was asserted that he is being persecuted unjustly for being a Christian. His actions speak louder than words- and his words speak louder than his p.r. spin machine. End of story.

Boo&BugsMom replied:
Where was this? I didn't know about that part, if it's true. When did he say this?

jcc64 replied:

When he went on his anti-semitic tirade. Prior to that, it was a simply dwi, which was bad enough. But then he dragged religion into it by asserting that "Jews are responsible for all of the wars of the world." We wouldn't be having this conversation had it been a simple drunk driving thing. At least I wouldn't.
I have no patience for racists or their apologists- and that's why I won't let this go.

punkeemunkee'smom replied: First of all I just want to say that- Mel Gibson or Jim Bob Smith- the real issue here is that he was driving drunk...and to make a personal judgement call- VERY DRUNK in order to say the stupid things he did. He could have been on my street and he could have hurt or killed my family so with just that in mind I hope he gets punished!

As far as his faith or lack there of, everyone makes mistakes, that is 100% correct but when you place yourself in the public's mind as a beacon of Christianity then I think you have a responsibility to show yourself a worthy example of what you are pedaling! Is it unfair that he is being judged harsher because he put himself out there as the shining example of Faith in action? I don't think so...You have to realize, as a Christian, in this day and age especially, we are held to a higher standard I believe we ask to be when/if we profess our faith in public....I think we should be more accountable. And if we can't be or don't want to be then I say stay off 20/20 professing what we believe but not quite practicing what we preach

jcc64 replied: Well said, Abbie.

luvmykids replied:
ITA, I in no way make light of that.

C&K*s Mommie replied: Indeed I did. However, when a Christian sins they have to own up to their sins, and ask for forgiveness. Not in front of man, but before God to recieve that forgiveness. He had no responsibility to publically apologize, he owned up to his mistakes in front of others.

BAC'sMom replied: Isn't it funny how stars always apologize AFTER they get caught? You never hear of one saying you know what I was speeding last week and I am really sorry I did that. Oh by the way that is why Mel got pulled over in the first place because he was speeding from what I understand. Thank goodness that he did not wreck and kill some innocent family, in his drunk blubbering state. I guess he did have someone watching over him after all.

Sorry I was never a Mel fan anyway.

Nina J replied: Personally, I have no respect left for him. He drove while under the influence of alcohol, and spewed his anti-semitic garbage at police officers just trying to do there job. He wasn't that drunk that he couldn't get in a car and drive, so I don't understand why he would say the things he did. It wasn't the alcohol talking. It's what made him say the words out loud, but it was his own mind that thought them, the alcohol didn't make him think the words.


I hope he gets help, and never says the disgusting things he did again.

Boo&BugsMom replied:
I knew he said that, but I was thinking he said more than that. The way you worded it sounded like he literally said "I am being arrested for being a Christian". That is how I took it anyway. Thank you for clarifying.

my2monkeyboys replied: Interesting topic....
to begin with, let me quote a line from a song I know... "Whiskey... it don't make you do the thing, it just lets you..."

As for the driving drunk, it's easy to tell yourself that you're ok to drive, even when you really shouldn't be. My aunt was killed by a drunk driver, and I despise the act, however I have been in the situation where those around thought they were ok to drive, when clearly (to me, anyway) they were not. I think he has a problem and needs help.

While he may have said some hateful things, I think he can very well be a Christian. In Hollywood that isn't a glorious thing, so I couldn't imagine why he would have ever claimed to be if he wasn't. Christianity is a relationship between a person and God, the acceptance of Jesus Christ as your Savior. That's it. It doesn't make you change into a whole different person, because, as someone said earlier, we all still have our free will. As for what he said, I think he must feel at least partly that way or it wouldn't have come out of his mouth. It may something he is dealing with on his own terms, since obviously he was raised to think that way. The way a child is raised affects him forever.
I do not know the man personally and can not sit here and decide a judgement on him. Only he and God knows what is in his heart and mind.
I do know, though, that he should be treated as every other drunk driver in America, famous or not. In that, another human (a judge) can rightly sit in judgement of him.
I just pray this doesn't make Christianity look any worse to those who do not believe.

A&A'smommy replied:
that is what I wanted to say I just couldn't get it out!!! Well said Abbie!!

luvmykids replied:
Very well said.

Boo&BugsMom replied:
I love how you worded your post!!! Right on, you worded it how I would have liked to!

coasterqueen replied:
After reading that you are so right Jeanne. I've always tried to believe that alcohol brings out someone 'else' in people, but it doesn't. It just brings out the part of the person that is just a bit deep in them. Not explaining myself right, but i totally get what you are saying.

coasterqueen replied:
I don't know, I think my pastor would tell me I should act a lot better than those who don't claim to be christian or who don't have faith in God. I bet my buttons he would say this. Christians are supposed to know better and go to God when they feel the devil is at their door trying to persuade them to do the bad things.

(I'm so thinking of exactly what my pastor would say to me if we were having this conversation )

coasterqueen replied:
You are exactly right. We wouldn't be having this conversation if he had JUST gotten a dwi. It's the fact that he starting slurring racist words that brings religion in this and why most are even talking about this. You know there are a heck of a lot of people out there having this VERY SAME conversation as we are and it's not because he got the dwi, it's because of the words he said.

luvmykids replied:
ITA, doesn't mean we don't all fail at times though. Pastors included. Some failures are "worse" than others but we're all guilty. And in God's eyes, there truly is no "worse" sin than another so I find it hard to say "If you avoid X,Y, and Z, you can still be considered a Christian but if you commit A,B, or C you're not."

Someone else said Christianity is not instant transformation, it's a day to day process. Some days are better than others.

I'm not making light of drunk driving or his racist comments, just that Christians have their short comings just like anyone else. Yes, they should be held to a higher standard, but it should be God's not ours.

coasterqueen replied:
Ok, may be true, not arguing that, and I don't know a lot about the Catholic religion, but don't they get 'kicked' out of the church for certain sins. I know a few people around here who say they were kicked out for divorce, cheating, etc.....Mel Gibson is Catholic isn't he?

luvmykids replied:

If not for the question posed there, I wouldn't have had much to say about religion with regard to this topic.

Jackie012007 replied: not only did he make slurs about Jewish people, he also called a female officer "Sugar **ts" (rhymes with pits, meaning boobs) and was making sexual comments, saying "I'm going to F*** you!!"... that part also really disgusted me, not sure how you guys feel about that aspect as well.

another thing... wasn't Jesus a Jew? Isn't it kinda weird for someone who is a christian to make nasty comments about Jews when Jesus was one? Maybe I am wrong about this... I'm not the most knowledgeable person on christianity!

luvmykids replied:
I think it's sick for anyone of any race or religion to make comments like that.

jcc64 replied: I really don't think Christians are held to a higher standard or judged more harshly than any other group. I just think that b/c we are all somewhat familiar with the teachings of Christ in this country, we are more aware when a "believer" acts in a very un-Christian manner. That is, we are all familiar with the concept of loving thy neighbor as oneself. We've all heard it over and over throughout our lives, and most people do a decent job of doing just that. But when an individual of Mel Gibson's magnitude makes his Christianity the cornerstone of his career, it is not illogical to expect him to fully understand and practice its teachings.

And Ed, or anyone else- I am ashamed to say that although I went to Catholic school for a few years back in the paleolithic era, I never did get the Jesus is a Jew thing either. Can you give us a little lesson, if you don't mind?

my2monkeyboys replied: Yes, Jesus was a Jew. Doesn't make sense to hate the group of people that your Saviour belongs to, does it?

Jackie012007 replied:
yeah, that was what I was thinking. Okay good, I'm not as dumb as I thought!

amynicole21 replied: The original post I made said that I thought he was supposed to be a "good Christian." Good being the operative word. How can you claim to be a good Christian if you don't follow the teachings of Christ? Isn't that what being a Christian is? I find it incredibly hypocritical to shrug off "sins" because everybody does it

Boo&BugsMom replied:
I too have always been confussed about it. I may have some light to shed. I'm not sure how well I can explain it though. I'll try my best. Before Jesus came there was no such a thing as Christianity really. In a way, but not really. Jesus was a very observant Jew and followed all the teachings of the Jews. The big difference is that the Jews didn't believe that Christ was their savior. That is what seperates the Jewish religion and Christianity still to this day. Christian's believe that Christ is our savior, the Jewish religion is still waiting for theirs (unless you are a part of Jews for Jesus, but that gets into a whole other thread). Someone please correct me if I am wrong anytime... Anyways, Jesus came and observed all the Jewish traditions and was a very mindful Jew. If the Jews had believed that Christ was their savior then perhaps there wouldn't be a seperation from the Jewish religion and Christianity? I'm not sure if that made sense at all, or if all my words were accurate. If anyone can add to this, please do.

The way I see it is this...there are two ways to consider being Jewish. For one, I am Jewish, but not in the "religious" sense. I came from Jewish heritage/lineage, but I am a Christian because I believe Christ to be our savior. Then, there is the Jewish 'religion'. Jesus is more Jewish in the heritage sense in the 'modern day' sense, but he still observed all the traditions of Jews back then, other than not believing that he wasn't our savior. I mean, what is he going to do, not believe in himself? I think it's confussing because we look at the modern day Jewish religion as being the same back then, which is was, but when Jesus came it made it all different.

Does that make sense? I might be babbling...I tend to do that...

my2monkeyboys replied: As far as I've been taught, you are exactly right. Being a Jew by blood doesn't make you a Jew by religion, and vice-versa.

luvmykids replied:
I'm not shrugging it off in the least, and I wasn't saying that shouldn't have been brought into it. Several people have asked why religion is even mentioned in this thread and that's why I said that, I felt like it was a key phrase in the op.

eta: What struck me about that is I don't believe there are "good" Christians and "bad" Christians, if someone claims to be, I'm not the one to decide if they are or not. Even if their life appears questionable to me or they are a hypocrite, that just means to me they have some work to do, not that they are a fraud.

coasterqueen replied:
Good point Amy!

Boo&BugsMom replied:
I don't think anyone is saying he shouldn't own up to his mistakes. I think the point others are trying to make is that sin happens with everyone no matter what their religious pratices. It's not used as an "excuse", it's just "the truth". It would be a sin for a Christian to even say they don't sin because it would be a lie. I can understand the confussion that if he tried to make himself seem "holier than thou" then goes and leads a completely un-godly life. I think it's those instances that make people think twice about the Christian values and religion in general. However, I think it was willsmama that stated it best when she pointed out that it's the relationship between the person and Christ that is the center of the Christian religion. Some people's relationship's are stronger than others which is all. Perhaps he needs to work on his personal relationship a little more? I can't be the judge of that though.