Skip to main content

On the soapbox

Everyone seems to think it's hilarious that Mel Gibson's ranting and cussing and threatening his ex.

I find it sad.

While everyone else is calling Mel an abuser and a racist and an anti-Semite, I'm going to go out on a not-very-long-limb and say he's sick. As in mentally ill. And there's nothing remotely funny about it, Hollywood reporters.

I just read an article in People magazine -- linked here -- about some trendy bar in NYC creating a new drink called the Mel "Bipolar" Gibson. The lede of the story asks "Mood swings got you down?" and suggests drinking is a way to heal. Nice. Classy.

Incredibly irresponsible.

In addition to his rumored bipolar disorder, Mel's also reportedly an alcoholic. It's a sad tale of self-medicating, if you ask me. He's manic, he has an addictive personality, he's incredibly famous and under intense pressure as a public figure, and he's unpredictable. Danger, danger, train wreck ahead.

He's not my favorite person. He's allegedly said some very bad things about numerous groups of people. I know he's ultra conservative and religious (although some of the names he was calling his ex don't sound very holy to me). But he, and the rest of society, don't need ignorant bartenders concocting clever-ish drinks that poke fun at a really serious problem that affects millions of people.

I hope he gets some real help. It seems to me that those pale blue eyes mask a world of pain. And clearly the bar's prescription for the diagnosis hasn't been working for Mel.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Ho, Ho, Ho, How Many Times Can I Use "I'm too busy" as an Excuse?

I haven't had time to write. Work, swim meet volunteering, holiday decorating and shopping. But truthfully, I've not been in much of a mood to write anything anyway. Last night we put up the tree and Santa chachkies, and I drank my first egg nog of the season, so perhaps I'll be in a cheerier mood. Also, I have spent some time writing the annual Schoon holiday newsletter. If you happen to get a copy, treat it like a drinking game. Every time I make you roll your eyes, take a drink. Nog, wassail, Everclear. Whatever gets you through. One sure way to assist with merriment motivation is listening to Christmas carols. I'm not going to get into a debate over what truly constitutes a carol. You can "Jesus is the reason for the season" yourself until you turn blue; I generally lean toward the secular end of the holiday tune spectrum. And if you just gasped at my use of holiday instead of Christmas, go suck on a candy cane. It's my blog and my opinions. Deal. ...

Who knew...

'Tis the season for bridal bliss. 'Tis also the season for the accompanying reception dance. And what's a wedding reception without that most unique of all marriage celebration dance numbers: The Chicken Dance. You know the drill. Polka starts, beak-quacking hand gestures, flapping, butt shimmying, and clapping ensue. A fun time is had by all (especially if there's an open bar). What you may not know is that: 1. This oom-pah song's origins rest with a Swiss according player named Werner Thomas who wrote it, most accounts say, in the 1950s. It originally was called the Duck Dance. 2. It is NOT German or Austrian, despite the images its roll-out-the-barrel-ish feelings it might conjure up. 3. A fellow named Norm Edlebeck, who was a bandleader from Wisconsin, introduced America to the Chicken Dance on TV's PM Magazine in 1982. 4. More than 140 versions of it have been recorded worldwide, including Walt Disney Records, together making more than 40,000,000 records (o...

IHATE IHOP Update

Tim went a few rounds, verbally, with the IHOP manager on Sunday and ended up getting our meal for half price. He still had to pay, though. I do not think that these people understand the severity of their incompetence. Or perhaps they just do not care. Someone commented to us that perhaps we should tell the IHOP folks what happened to the last restaurant that did us wrong. Recall the lactating masses who came out in support of us when we were booted from Hoover House restaurant in West Branch because I refused to breastfeed my baby in the bathroom? Remember the stories that ran in every newspaper and on every TV news show in the state -- and beyond? I'd like to point out that the Hoover House (which interestingly enough doubled as a venue for wet T-shirt contests on weekends) went out of business after our little incident. And for those of you who were befuddled and wondering how the police got involved on Sunday...someone from IHOP took the time to run out and write down our lice...