this man, in my opinion, is a scumbag.
i could go thru the whole story, but think progress already has. this is what john gibson did on his nationally syndicated radio talk show about an hour after the news of heath ledger's death:opening his radio show with funeral music yesterday, fox news host john gibson callously mocked the death of actor heath ledger, calling him a “weirdo” with a “serious drug problem.”heath ledger was 28 years old when he died.
playing an audio clip of the iconic quote, “i wish i knew how to quit you” from ledger’s gay romance movie brokeback mountain, gibson disdainfully quipped, “well, he found out how to quit you.” laughing, gibson then played another clip from brokeback mountain in which ledger said, “we’re dead,” followed by his own, mocking “we’re dead” before playing the clip again.
i didn't know him.
i didn't even know people who knew him.
he might have been a complete asshole.
i do know that i was struggling with a serious substance abuse problem at 27. with the support of good friends and community, i came through it. typically, people go thru some major shift in their lives around age 27 - 28. jim morrison, janis joplin, jimi hendrix, brian jones, kurt cobain...all committed suicide at 27.
that anyone could find humor in such a tragic death so soon after it occurred is sad at best.
wait a day. wait a week.
wait two hours.
UPDATE 8:30 pm -- gibson continued to joke about ledger's death this afternoon on his radio show --
JOHN GIBSON: There is a war on Gibson. And, eventhough Gibson’s always right, there is a war.
ANNOUNCER: The war against Gibson continues.
GIBSON: Thought we were gonna do that next hour, but just to give you a heads up about it, I did this, an hour yesterday on Heath Ledger on my TV show because he was like, still warm. I got an e-mail Angry Rich just moments ago…
ANGRY RICH: Yeah.
GIBSON: From somebody who said that I was just a horrible lowlife, awful person for mocking the death..da da da da da da…News!
ANGRY RICH: John, the start of yesterday’s show is now prominently featured on ThinkProgress, the George Soros operation, yes.
GIBSON: What did…
ANGRY RICH: It says, “John Gibson Mocks ‘Weirdo’ Heath Ledger’s Death.”
GIBSON: Did I mock him?
ANGRY RICH: “He Found Out How To Quit You.” Quote-unquote.
GIBSON: Oh, that. Ha ha ha, well…
ANGRY RICH: A little satire.
GIBSON: Yeah, it’s a little Brokeback Mountain joke.
UPDATE 8:40 pm -- gibson began his fox television show this evening with an apology. listen, i'm all for forgiveness, but read what he said today, then listen to what he said tonight, and tell me what you think.
Mr Gibson
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to understand you were able to turn your life around. I truly commend you. It's an insult to each family who has lost a loved one to drugs, when you joke about Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and others whom died during the 1960's drug culture. They should have refrained from the drugs that killed them. I have for years asked myself why my generation didn't do so. My generation lost so much talent. It's very sad. That which is even sadder can be summed up in one sentence. Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, and others are dead because a certain person invented LSD and thrust death upon society, fully understanding society would leap and dare to test such death. You may wish to know the heroin that killed Janis Joplin was 50% pure. 8 to 9 times stronger than the normal. Janis Joplin was actually murdered.