By John W. Lillpop
Dr. Martin Luther King must be turning over in his grave at the latest news from Hollywood and its take on the war-mongering of Barack Obama!
MLK’s famous line about wanting to be judged by “Character, rather than the color of my skin” is a message apparently lost on some of Hollywood’s better known peaceniks and elitist movie stars.
As reported at the reference:
In 2003, ahead of a U.S. attack on Iraq, a robust anti-war movement in Hollywood included a TV commercial starring Martin Sheen and Sean Penn visiting Baghdad. There were online petitions signed by Ed Asner; letters to President George W. Bush pleading for peace were signed by Matt Damon, Tim Robbins, Barbra Streisand and Alec Baldwin; former M*A*S*H star Mike Farrell fronted multiple press conferences where celebrities denounced war. In interviews, Janeane Garofalo stopped identifying herself as an actor -- she preferred to be called a member of the U.S. anti-war movement.
The good news for President Barack Obama as he considers a military response against Syria for using chemical weapons against rebels is that he probably won't have to deal with a similar anti-war movement from Hollywood. But that's not because there isn't opposition. It's just not organized, and, as Asner and Farrell – two of the industry's most vocal progressive activists -- told The Hollywood Reporter Friday, perhaps it never will be.
While some conservatives see hypocrisy, Farrell says that an all-out war in Iraq under Bush, a Republican who was very unpopular in Hollywood, was a much bigger deal than potential missile strikes against Syria under the direction of Obama, a Democrat who drew millions for his campaigns from showbiz industry donors.
Even if Obama presents irrefutable evidence that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad used poison gas against civilians, military action is still unwarranted, the two activists say.
"This administration ought to insist that the international community charge [Assad] with a war crime and prosecute him, and in so doing Obama would be following the law instead of flaunting the law," Farrell said.
"It's incredibly improper for the president to call for a strike. I have said it everywhere I can and I suspect a lot of others will do the same, but whether there will be an organized effort, I don't know," Farrell continued. "We're talking about the difference between an invasion in Iraq and a limited action in response to the use of chemical weapons in Syria."
Asner said the lack of an organized effort against war in Syria is a matter of timing. Bush took months to make the case for war in Iraq, giving the antiwar left plenty of time to prepare a response.
"It will be a done deal before Hollywood is mobilized," Asner said. "This country will either bomb the hell out of Syria or not before Hollywood gets off its ass.
Another reason some Hollywood progressives have been reticent to speak out against war in Syria, according to Asner, is fear of being called racist.
"A lot of people don't want to feel anti-black by being opposed to Obama," he said.
Asner said Hollywood activists should read a Huffington Post blog item by Dennis Kucinich, where the former congressman lists the "Top 10 unproven claims for war against Syria."
"Whether it's a Republican or Democrat president, or Republican or Democrat Congress -- and it doesn't make a God-damned difference -- it behooves us to get off our ass and ask these questions," Asner said.
Farrell and Asner both say that beating the war drums on Syria is one of many mistakes Obama has made.”
There you go: Progressives in Congress are unwilling to vote against Obama for fear of humiliating The One, and Progressive dimwits in Hollywood are afraid to speak out for fear of being called racist!’
Are there NO progressives in America with neither Guts or Nuts?
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/syria-why-hollywoods-anti-war-623326
