Tony Norman: Ladies and gentlemen, word from Hollywood this morning (from Mel Gibson himself) is that Mel is asking the very folks he's offended to forgive him and to help him through his alcoholism. He's admitted to making anti-Semitic statements and he's asking the Jewish community to help him go forward. Do we believe this? Is it an example of true repentance or is it an elaborate dodge on Mel's part? I'm inclined to think he's been doing some soul searching, but I dunno....

pittstudent: Re the Mel Gibson incident: Do you think that alcohol, when consumed to excess, functions as a truth-serum, i.e., that the drunk Gibson would say what he truly believes, whereas the sober Gibson would self-censor?

Tony Norman: As a teetotaler from way back, I'm the last person in the world to ask about the effects of alcohol and whether it operates as a truth serum. But on a gut level, I believe alcohol works as a way of breaking down inhibitions as opposed to creating thoughts that weren't already there. Yeah, I suppose I believe a sober Mel would've self-censored rather than destroy his career (or potentially destroy his career). Just my opinion, informed or not.

Unknown Questioner: You are one of the few columnists to note the "soft anti-Arab" prejudice of the Bush administration and many in Congress. Don't you feel we're enacting a bloody catastrophic misunderstanding that isolates us, endangers Israel, and tarnishes us historically for generations. Why is our public discourse so superficial and inadequate in the face of these complexities? Have we gone to sleep, like the America of the 50's?

Tony Norman: Clearly, our current policies in the Middle East are a disaster. I firmly believe Hezbollah is a terrorist organization, but the means of uprooting it are disproportionate and counter productive to peace and security in that region. It is a debacle of monumental proportions. Our discourse is superficial because we don't demand more of our media or our politicians.

Pittstudent: Re "true repentance or... an elaborate dodge" on Gibson's part: I think only time -- and his actions, not just words -- will tell. Maybe it's time for him to make a stronger renunciation of his father's Holocaust-denier stance, in both his words and deeds.

Tony Norman: Absolutely. Hutton Gibson is the elephant in the room. He's an old school Holocaust denier. I can understand Mel's reluctance to "disown" his father, but if he's smart (and I think he's pretty smart), he'll disown his father's views at the very least. Good grief, most kids disown their parents at some point in their lives :)

MovieMama: Hi, sorry I'm late...do we believe Mel's latest mea culpa and effort to connect with the Jewish community, or is it too little, too late, and timed in a way that makes his motivation questionable?

Tony Norman: But is it ever too late to turn over a new leaf, even when it comes to the most repugnant attitudes and opinions? Maybe Mel needed this incident to do some much-needed soul searching. He clearly has issues with Jews. I'm inclined to think they're mostly inspired by being raised by Hutton Gibson. Sure, it seems opportunistic, but when you're in the bottom of a well, there's no better time to grab a rope and pull oneself out. Are his motivations questionable? Sure they are, but...

Taffurs888: Rumor has it that Hutton Gibson is now blaming the invention of alcohol on the Jewish People.

Tony Norman: LOL! Maneschevitz (sp?) is the curse of the Chosen People, isn't it? Yeah, I suppose if they gave us the good stuff like the 10 Commandments, it's not unreasonable to believe they gave us Ripple, too! (Redd Foxx is turning in his grave)

_-daj_: Hey, Tony ... In answer to your original question about Mel's soul-searching, I'm more inclined to think that he's been doing some pocketbook searching, and has come up with a button, three pennies and a couple of clumps of lint ... now, clean and sober, he's in full panic mode ...

Tony Norman: this scandal will definitely cost Braveheart some money. Then again, he may get richer than ever if folks believe he's truly turned the corner and no longer harbors obnoxious opinions.

Shane: Why do we care what Mel Gibson thinks about anything?

Tony Norman: Hmmmm. Well, if we didn't, us parasites in the media would have very little to write about. We have to care! We care so that you don't have to care. Think of it that way, Shane. Then again, we're in a philosophical feedback loop here: Why do you care that we care? Huh? LOL! Or, why do you care that I care? I'm glad you care, don't get me wrong! Thanks for caring.

MovieMama: Is there ANY way Mel GIbson can recover from this?

Tony Norman: Well, I think bowing and scraping goes a long way in Hollywood. If his projects after "Apocalypto" speak to the universality of the human condition (and aren't subtitled), people may be inclined to forget Mel Gibson ever blamed all the wars in the world on the Jews. If he makes an old-fashioned movie with plenty of nudity and bad words and violence just like in the old days, all is forgiven. His morality will be at an even keel with the world again. But the more he does these religious dramas that feature Jesus in snuff-film like conditions, I think his shelf life (except at the corner Baptist Revival store front) is limited. Can he recover? Look at PeeWee Herman, he recovered...um, maybe he can't. I dunno....

gymhatt: I am under the opinion that he should never work again. I feel these comments are worse than the comments Jimmy the Greek had made in the past that cost him his career. Do you believe that since Mel was once voted sexiest man alive he gets a free pass?

Tony Norman: Well, Mel has never been my type so the "Sexiest Man Alive" sobriquet is neither here nor there as far as I'm concerned! LOL! I see where you're going with the Jimmy the Greek analogy. I'm in the minority of black opinion that believes Jimmy, though clearly an idiot, wasn't beyond redemption. Jimmy clearly expressed a generational view of black Americans as workhorses in sports. It's wrongheaded and offensive, but I chalked it up to the fact that he was an old man with very little experience with blacks socially. As for Mel Gibson, I think he's in a position to do some good in Hollywood. Believe me, he'll be donating to Jewish causes for decades after this. I wouldn't be surprised if he built a synagogue in Hollywood and named it after himself. Sure, it would be an abomination, but a step in the right direction.

Taffurs888: Anyone have any credence to that rumor that Paul Harvey started about Mel Gibson being the true life story behind "The Man Without A Face"?

Tony Norman: I never saw the movie and I didn't hear Paul Harvey's commentary about it, but I would doubt it simply because, well, Paul Harvey loves to pass along an urban legend or two. Actually, I should be more charitable. Since I don't know the story, I really shouldn't comment about it. I'll do some research. If you e-mail me later, I'll let you know what I came up with.

Pittstudent: MovieMama makes a good point: Quick apologies can seem expeditious. But not apologizing, or waiting too long, can be (or at least appear) even worse. I think that Gibson needs to follow up his words with deeds that back them up. Hey, didn't some Klan dude convert to Judaism when he was dying of cancer & a Jewish guy (a rabbi, as I recall) sort of adopted him?

Tony Norman: I was thinking of that very example, MovieMama. That's an excellent point. I think Mel is going to be spreading some big dollars aimed at tolerance education, etc. He'll be taking a guided tour of the Holocaust Museum in D.C., soon, and he'll be having cookouts (kosher) with the folks at the Anti-Defamation League if he has any sense. If I were him, I'm grovel because Hollywood isn't anything if it isn't full of people he's deeply offended with his drunken tirade. Yeah, he'd better back his apology up with deeds.

Shane: OK, my point is why does it matter. It's obvious that it only matters, because it makes for trash news.

Tony Norman: Yeah. That's kinda' hard to argue with, ain't it?

MovieMama: re: Shane..I care because this is a person who swore a couple of years back that he WASN'T anti-Semitic, when trying to promote a movie; I care anytime someone with celebrity shows us an example that should or shouldn't be followed; I care because religious tension in the world is at an all-time high and if humanity is to survive, it can ONLY be through compassion and tolerance.

Tony Norman: You said it far better than I ever could, MovieMama. We're all connected in this great web of being as the philosopher Paul Tillich once said (well, it was either him or Eddie Murphy, take your pick). In any case, we're each our brother and sister's keeper. We have this capacity to communicate, so we might as well care. It gives us something to do as the Earth heads for extinction.

_-daj_: I'm not sure what the standards of decency are in these on-line chats, but since what I'm about to say is in the public record, perhaps I can be granted some leeway? Anyway, in one of the accounts of this story, while Mel was being processed by the police, he apparently blurted out to one of the officers, "What are you looking at, sugar (female body part)??." There was no indication as to what, if anything, the officer said in reply, or whether or not the officer was even a woman. My theory is that the officer was a man, since, as we all know, alcohol relaxes one's inhibitions, and since in addition to being a well-known anti-Semite, Mel is also a well-known homophobe. Just about any study you read on homophobia will tell you that most of them overcompensate in order to disguise their own proclivities, so we can therefore deduce that Mel, influenced by drink, was flirting with a male officer. Any thoughts ? Tony Norman: Well, I actually referred to the comment he made about the sergeant's breasts in my column, but it was edited out. Yes, Mel is terribly sexist. He's definitely homophobic. Remember an interview he gave to Playboy roughly 10 years ago or so in which he went on and on about being mistaken for "gay" simply because he's an actor? What hogwash! He went out of his way to say "Hey, I don't walk like them. I don't have a limp wrist like those guys and I'm macho." When told he was hurting the feelings of his gay fans, he responded with a profanity or two or three. It was pure Mel. I don't know if he was overcompensating, but he was definitely expressing some less than charitable feelings for a whole segment of movie ticket buyers.

pittstudent: For Taffurs888, re Gibson and "Man Without A Face": It's a bogus rumor. See Snopes website, specifically http://www.snopes.com/glurge/noface.htm

Tony Norman: Thanks for looking that up, Taffurs888. It didn't sound quite right to me, either.

pittstudent: Re "true repentance or... an elaborate dodge" on Gibson's part: I think only time -- and his actions, not just words -- will tell. Maybe it's time for him to make a stronger renunciation of his father's Holocaust-denier stance, in both his words and deeds.

Tony Norman: I thought I answered this question. Sorry. I agree wholeheartedly. Thanks.

pittstudent: Re "the philosopher Paul Tillich once said (well, it was either him or Eddie Murphy, take your pick)": Face it, Shane, more of us know about show biz celebrities' views than philosophers'. Not that that means that's how that ought to be (sorry 'bout all those that's--LOL!), but that's today's reality!

Tony Norman: It certainly is, Pittstudent. Say, why aren't you off somewhere studying for summer exams? In any case, thanks for taking time from your busy university life to be here. I appreciate it. I appreciate all of you who took time to ask questions. You've saved me a lot of embarrassment and ribbing by colleagues who are too terrified to do this because they don't think anyone would check in. I salute y'all.

MovieMama: To _-daj_: Because of the excess of spin and number of people involved, we may never truly know what actually happened (unless the video goes public...); however...I completely agree that alcohol makes us lose inhibitions and become more honest, RATHER THAN makes us say things we don't think are true.

Tony Norman: See, I'm with you MovieMama. If I get drunk I'm not going to go around slurring about how nice it would be if slavery were to make a comeback. See, I don't believe that. I don't think I could say anything I didn't believe on some level because my brain would be too fried to invent something outrageous under the circumstances. Now, I have no idea whether science backs this intuition up, but my brief experience with being drunk (one or two times) sure backs it up. I've never been high, though. Maybe getting high is different. Maybe I'm the type to see pink elephants when I get high:)

pittstudent: Uh, I'm not enrolled in classes during the summer.

Tony Norman: Well, who's fault is that? Did you flunk out? We don't allow shirkers on this site :) Thanks for writing folks. We have to go now. Bye bye until the next controversy. I've appreciated it. Tah-tah.