Every time you buy a movie ticket you are financing the destruction of freedom in the U.S. The Hollywood crowd supports racism, hates Israel, want YOU to be taxed higher and prefers dumb down racist education for YOUR children.
“Over a decade ago, the top television show was the HBO hit “Game of Thrones,” a fantasy adventure set in a mythical realm. In the tenth episode of this cultural icon’s first season, there was a scene with beheadings and heads on pikes. Prominent among these mythically beheaded kings was the head of President George W. Bush.
But rather than condemn the series or its filmmakers, the world just smiled and let it pass. Conservatives continued to watch the show, which lasted eight seasons and spawned two prequel series. Unlike the protests against the Dixie Chicks that spontaneously popped up when they made their anti-Bush comments, the actual beheading of Bush depicted on film was left unanswered. It was a media test: Would decent people push back against the expression of hate gone too far? But society failed miserably, and progressively uglier expressions of hate were seeded and grew over the last decade. It began first in “entertainment” and then, after seeing the societal reaction (or lack thereof), is being emulated by politicians.”
The good news is that the Dixie chicks totally disappeared—their political rantings were a suicide.
It’s Time to Stand Up Against Hollywood Celebrities Who Destroy Rather Than Build Up
RABBI MICHAEL BARCLAY, PJ Media, 7/15/24 https://pjmedia.com/rabbi-michael-barclay/2024/07/15/life-is-starting-to-imitate-the-ugliest-of-art-n4930693#google_vignette
I’ve spoken to so many people who were shocked at the assassination attempt on President Trump. But as pointed out by Sebastian Gorka, what is shocking is not that the assassination was attempted but that it took this long.
The public discourse has become progressively uglier over the years, especially over the last few months as Trump has risen in the polls. Dr. Gorka pointed out the many calls for violence against Trump and MAGA supporters coming from leftist politicians like Maxine Waters and Nancy Pelosi and, of course, President Biden’s call to put a bullseye on President Trump.
And let’s not forget Democratic mega-donor Reid Hoffman’s statement just a day before the attempt on Trump’s life. After Peter Thiel “thanked” Hoffman for funding lawsuits against Trump that increased Trump’s popularity and turned him into “a martyr,” Hoffman perversely said, “I wish I had made him into an actual martyr.” Again, a major Democratic influencer blatantly calling for Trump’s death. (Hoffman has already been suggesting that the assassination attempt was a false flag planned by Trump.)
But the vitriolic hatred and call for violence from Democratic politicians comes as a result of these same politicians seeing hate constantly being accepted by society. Just as sick as the hatred is that the world has allowed their hatred to exist unchallenged. But this hatred on the left isn’t new, and we all have a responsibility to stop the hate from going unchecked.
We all have a responsibility because we have seen the hate that resulted in assassination attempts for years, not only with politicians but in Hollywood among celebrities, who may be talented in their art but honestly are not particularly intelligent or great thinkers. As “artists,” they are creative and emotional, which can be a great mix to make entertainment. But while being unrestrained emotionally makes for good art, it is a recipe for disaster in personal relationships, business, and politics.
We all remember washed-up comedienne Kathy Griffin holding up a bloody simulation of Trump’s head in 2017. But how did our society not react with such horror that she was prevented from ever working again as a result of her incredibly out-of-bounds action? Celebrity after celebrity, pundits and talk-show hosts have regularly called for the death of President Trump, comparing him to Hitler and worse. Why were there not passionate protests about the repudiation of simple decency by these self-proclaimed gurus who were actually just empty talking heads? But although Trump has been the target since 2016, this habit of leftist entertainers testing how far political hatred would be accepted by society pre-dates President Trump.
Over a decade ago, the top television show was the HBO hit “Game of Thrones,” a fantasy adventure set in a mythical realm. In the tenth episode of this cultural icon’s first season, there was a scene with beheadings and heads on pikes. Prominent among these mythically beheaded kings was the head of President George W. Bush.
But rather than condemn the series or its filmmakers, the world just smiled and let it pass. Conservatives continued to watch the show, which lasted eight seasons and spawned two prequel series. Unlike the protests against the Dixie Chicks that spontaneously popped up when they made their anti-Bush comments, the actual beheading of Bush depicted on film was left unanswered. It was a media test: Would decent people push back against the expression of hate gone too far? But society failed miserably, and progressively uglier expressions of hate were seeded and grew over the last decade. It began first in “entertainment” and then, after seeing the societal reaction (or lack thereof), is being emulated by politicians.
We saw it over and over again with celebrities and media pushing their expressions of hate, whether it was Kathy Griffin’s attempt to revive her career with the bloody head of Trump or Madonna expressing her desire to blow up the White House during Trump’s presidency. Celebrities who are ignorant about life aggressively tell everyone else what to do/think (something that is destroying Hollywood) and seem to believe they have carte blanche to call for any craziness their emotion-based egos desire. Only two weeks ago, Lea DeLaria of “Orange is the New Black,” publicly begged Joe Biden to “blow up” and assassinate Donald Trump, a sentiment echoed by Bette Midler, although she seemingly supports other ways of eliminating not just Trump but all conservative leaders.
The hosts of “The View,” led by Whoopi Goldberg, have made careers out of Trump-bashing, despite the reality that, as creative and passionate as they are, intellect is not their strong suit. In fact, Whoopi is a high school dropout.
A brief look at some of the celebrities who endorsed killing President Trump includes “The Nightly Show” host Larry Wilmore (“Get me the pillow they used to kill Scalia and I’ll do it”); George Lopez (who held up a decapitated Trump head); Rosie O’Donnell (who created a game called “Push Trump Off a Cliff”); Snoop Dogg (who created a video “Lavender” that ends with the rapper pointing a gun and shooting Trump); rapper Big Sean (whose lyrics on his “I Decided” album include hoping to kill Trump with an ice pick); and countless others who have expressed their desire to personally injure or kill the president.
What do all of these artists have in common? They expressed their virulent hatred and were not publicly castigated and condemned for it. They used their platforms as celebrities, expressed their emotions of hate without boundaries, and sensible people were silent about their vitriol.
This is not a question of “free speech.” Of course, these artists have a right to express their hate. But every person of reason must not only call out their foolishnesh but work passionately to take away their platforms. We all have the responsibility to “vote with our feet” and refuse to support their art until/if/when they return to being only artists and stop attempting to influence public policy. Reasonable people have been too silent for too long about the hate coming from celebrities.
The one exception, and the example to model, is what happened to the Dixie Chicks in 2003. One of the most popular country music acts in the world, these musicians were loved for their talent. But when they said that they were “ashamed” that they were from the same state as President Bush, their fans not only abandoned them but went on a mission to destroy their careers. In two weeks, their single, “Landslide,” which had been #10 on Billboard, was entirely off the charts. Dozens, if not hundreds, of country stations refused to play their music, and 76% of their polled fans said they would return their CDs if they could. The drink company Lipton canceled its promotional contract with the Dixie Chicks. Although they repeatedly tried to apologize for making political comments, their careers have never fully recovered.
Country music fans made it clear that artists should stay in their lanes and perform music and not force their politics on the public. But the rest of the entertainment celebrities have not been forced to learn that lesson… and it resulted first in politicians losing any sense of boundaries and, ultimately, with hateful rhetoric that may have precipitated the attempt on President Trump’s life.
Oscar Wilde famously said, “life imitates art far more than art imitates life.” Yes, artists should feel free to express themselves. But every person must also shun their artistic work when they cross over into hate-filled propaganda.
May the time not be distant when artists remain artists and make the world more beautiful with their art rather than uglier with their opinions. May they lose their platforms until they realize that those platforms are based on their talents, not their thoughts. May life then imitate art in a way that stops the vitriolic hatred and replaces it with dialogue, both in the public and political arenas.
