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    The anti-Semitic rant which accompanied Mel Gibson's drunk driving arrest in Malibu raised the incident from the level of tawdry tabloid embarrassment to an act of image-shattering self-destruction, while providing abundant fodder to celebrity gossips, late night comedians, and the actor-director's innumerable enemies. Those of us who defended and praised Gibson for his outspoken Catholic commitment, and for his refreshing efforts to use the movie medium to advance his faith, now feel betrayed and, yes, a bit humiliated. In that context, six pertinent points may help keep the pathetic incident in proper perspective.

1. There is no defense and no excuse for Gibson's comments about "the f---ing Jews." The fact that his blood alcohol level only slightly exceeded the legal limit suggests that his assertion that "the Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world" expressed deep-seated, long-standing bigotry rather than some bizarre, booze-induced break-down.

2. When a long-married, 50-year-old father of seven gets arrested for drunk driving at nearly twice the speed limit at 2.30 in the morning, then it's safe to assume that he faces even more serious problems than exposing his anti-Semitic attitudes.

3. Gibson's comments about the "f---ng Jews" remain particularly perplexing in the light of a previous record free of personal, anti-Semitic incident. At the time of the world-wide controversy surrounding "The Passion of the Christ," the press would have jumped enthusiastically on any available story of a rude remark, of personal discrimination, or general religious intolerance. Instead, the media focused on Mel's Holocaust-denying father, and villified the filmmaker for insufficiently condemning the fringe ideas of the crusty codger. The public focus on a then 84-year-old nut case, rather than the world famous son who repeatedly denied that he shared his father's ideas, reflected an unmistakable lack of evidence of previous Jew-baiting comments or episodes involving Mel himself. This context makes Gibson's current unprovoked explosion of crude and appalling anti-Semitic sentiments all the more shocking.

4. At a time of surging Jew-hatred around the world, Gibson's drunken, after-midnight remarks to arresting officers on a lonely stretch of Malibu highway represent a less serious threat to the Jewish people than the very public anti-Semitic and anti-Israel comments by numerous celebrities, academics, UN officials and politicians. In April of 1996, for instance, the Oscar-winning actor Marlon Brando declared on Larry King Live: "Hollywood is run by Jews, owned by Jews, and they should have greater sensitivity about the issue of people who are suffering. Because they have exploited....We've seen everything but we never saw the Kike." The Anti-Defamation League criticized Brando, of course, but never suggested that he should be ostracized and boycotted, as they recently demanded in Gibson's case. Meanwhile, Gibson had already attempted a public apology for his loathesome private remarks, declaring that "I acted like a person who was completely out of control when I was arrested and said things that I do not believe to be true and which are despicable.I am deeply ashamed of everything I said." Compare this contrition to the unapologetic, and ceaselessly repeated attacks on Israel by another controversial Hollywood director, Michael Moore, who declared in Liverpool (quoted in the New York Times, June 26, 2004) that the embattled Jewish state represented one of the modern world's centers of evil: "It's all part of the same ball of wax, right? The oil companies, Israel, Halliburton." Ironically, Michael Moore's agent, Ari Emanuel (brother of a Democratic Congressman from Illinois), is one of the entertainment industry figures leading the charge to demand that the show biz establishment blacklist Gibson.

5. The "Mad Mel" Moment in Malibu may change the way we perceive the dark hatred that lurks within Gibson's heart but it alters nothing about the images and messages he put on screen in "The Passion of the Christ." It's still the same movie, frame for frame, line for Aramaic-and-Latin line, that it was before his tirade and arrest. The tens of millions of people who felt overpowered and inspired and uplifted by a remarkable piece of cinema need not now apologize because they responded in good faith to the work of a deeply flawed, bigoted filmmaker. Mel Gibson's personal disgrace makes me feel pity for his family but it does nothing to force my reconsideration of my critical admiration of his movie. At the time of its release, I argued vehemently against hysterical charges (many of them emanating from people who hadn't even seen the film) that "The Passion" represented some vicious, anti-Semitic screed, and I also decried dire predictions ("He'll have blood on his hands," thundered one commentator in The New Republic) that the movie would inspire anti-Jewish incidents around the world. I tell the story of my high profile involvement in this dispute in my recent book RIGHT TURNS (everyone should read it!), and in the aftermath of Mel's meltdown and arrest I wouldn't change a word of it. The fact remains that all the predictions of pogroms in Pittsburgh proved preposterous: while earning some 1 billion dollars in movie theatres and on DVD, "The Passion" inspired no anti-Semitic incidents anywhere in the world. In fact, several surveys of audience attitudes showed that anti-Jewish sentiments actually decreased when movie-goers saw the film. The worst part of this latest controversy is that Gibson's revolting statements give people like Abe Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League a juicy, retroactive excuse to say "I told you so" --- long after the benign and warm-hearted worldwide reaction to the movie had utterly undermined all the smug denunciations claiming that this wildly popular entertainment would foment implacable hate.

6. Once again, the most visible leaders of the Jewish community are in the process of horribly mishandling this latest incident with their indignant denunciations of Gibson's initial attempts to apologize, and their profoundly ill-considered calls for ostracism and banishment of one of today's most influential and successful filmmakers. After Gibson's comments on the incident (which included the abject line "I disgraced myself and my family with my behavior and for that I am truly sorry")  Abe Foxman of the ADL officiallly categorized this apology as "unremorseful and insufficient." Aside from obvious questions about who appointed Foxman as the ultimate judge of Gibson's damnation and possible redemption, doesn't it seem patently unfair to describe a statement that includes the words "I disgraced myself" as "unremorseful."?  Even worse, Foxman concludes the official ADL statement with the words: "We would hope that Hollywood now would realize the bigot in their midst and that they will distance themselves from the anti-Semite." Super-agent Ari Emanuel calls even more unequivocally for a new industry blacklist that focuses, for now, on Mel Gibson alone: "People in the entertainment community, whether Jew or gentile, need to demonstrate that they understand how much is at stake in this by professionally shunning Mel Gibson and refusing to work with him, even if it means a sacrifice to their bottom line." The most ill-considered aspect of such calls for "distancing" and "shunning" is that they stand no chance of eliminating Gibson's ability to make movies (he has enough money to pay for his projects himself for the rest of his life, just as he did with "The Passion of the Christ") or destroying his influence on popular culture. Like it or not, Mel Gibson will not simply disappear (though he might well take some time off for rehab) and the Jewish community will hardly benefit by isolating him as a permanent enemy and encouraging him in the far more open expression of anti-Semitic attitudes. Does Ari Emanuel believe it would somehow help the Jewish cause if his client, Michael Moore, could now welcome a new colleague --Mel Gibson -- as a participant in the poisonously anti-Israel rallies, conferences and demonstrations that Mr. Moore regularly addresses? Those who believe that Gibson's anti-Semitism couldn't get any worse simply lack imagination. Public amplification of the bigotry that Mel revealed privately in Malibu might well spoil his popularity in the United States, but imagine how it could boost his already considerable following in Europe, Latin America, and the former Soviet Union-- not to mention the Islamic world!

   Rather than driving this tormented, self-destructive, deeply disturbed but vastly talented artist into the arms of active Jew-haters (like his father), wouldn't it make more sense to try to reach out to him at a moment of vulnerability and disgrace? The Jewish community need not approach the tarnished star with a message of "poor baby, all is forgiven" but it makes sense to offer at least some ladder to help him crawl out of the dank pit he has dug for himself. At a time when Israel finds herself isolated as never before, imagine the impact of Gibson announcing a supportive trip to Jerusalem in the company of selected Jewish leaders--- with a reverent, remorseful stop at Auschwitz on the way. Yes, cynics will decry any attempt by Mel to rehabilitate his reputation as a cheap publicity stunt, but wouldn't such an an effort serve the interests of Jews and Israel more than a frozen state of permanent animosity? Even if you assume that Gibson's anti-Semitic demons never can be excorcised, isn't it preferable that he try to control or hide them? My own limited acquaintance with Mel Gibson suggests that at this dark and tortured moment in his life, after the worst, most corruscating embarrassment of his long career, he might welcome a sincere effort to enrich his obviously pathetic understanding of Jewish identity and history. In any event, an attempted reconciliation -- no matter how tentative, no matter how limited -- can only be good for Gibson, and good for the Jews.