Originally Posted by Undertoad

An anti-semitic plumber doesn't give you a historical narrative to apply to today. He just works on your pipes. Doesn't make millions doing it either. (Only hundreds of thousands.)

And, when you hire an anti-semitic plumber, it doesn't give him a continuing platform to be anti-semitic to the world.

There are too many good films for me to see in a year anyway.

Originally Posted by CaliforniaMama

We got into talking about this the other day, about why stars become our example. Part of it is, I'm sure, because they make so much money their lives become fascinating. We want to know what it is like to be rich and famous.

I think part of it, too, is that the stars themselves are looking to be symbols. They are fame seekers, after all. There are many actors who are artists first and don't put themselves in the limelight, like Jody Foster, but if they are going to put themselves out there, they've gotta be able to take the hits.

It's a relationship.

Does that mean we should boycott certain directors/writers/actors? Sure, if we don't agree with their message or with what they do with their money. That's the beauty of free enterprise. We don't like it - we don't buy it.

I do it with stores, so I can see doing it with movies.

For me, though, in discussing this particular movie, I'd rather discuss the merits of the film itself and not the merits of Mel Gibson. By boycotting Gibson, I am inadvertently boycotting a whole lot of people I have nothing against. By the same token, there are times when I support one idea I like and inadvertently support a whole lot of ideas I don't like.

It's kind of like voting - you just decide where you feel the strongest and vote that way. It's never going to be perfect.