This 8.4 Associated Press article is the first significant “soft” piece about Mel Gibson. It has quotes from some Giibson friends, some of them Jewish, giving him a pass. Okay, fine. But a guy I know who worked with Gibson over a decade ago, and he’s has written and told me he “believe[s] all this shit.” He calls Gibson a “bigoted man, now and forever” and “a bigoted son of a bitch.” But life is fluid and moving and people grow. Look at how Bobby Kennedy evolved from ’62 to ’67. And the impulse to stand by a guy you like or respect during his hour of need is a noble one. We all need understanding, forgiveness, a second chance. Let’s just leave it at that.
