Liam Neeson: Rape, Revenge, and Race Relations

[Athene]

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Neeson disagrees.  He doesn't know wtf you're talking about, why anyone would link his comments to -silent word-, or why anyone would think he was a -silent word-.  If you want to talk about "monsters inside of us" then that's a different discussion.

IDK, I've known people who didn't seem to have any such monsters at all.  Most people I know, really.  The idea that we're all monstrous or terrible in some vague way is popular, and fun to play with...plenty of good jokes to be had.  I don't think it's an accurate appraisal of what we are, personally. I'd lay most human misery on apathy and opportunity, rather any monstrous sub-current.  Even -silent word- largely expresses itself as apathy rather than antipathy.  All the shittiness, none of the effort, lol.

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If we took any. . . and I mean ANY other thought crime-- and that's what we're talking about, a confession of a thought crime-- and replaced it for racism, how would it play out?

"When I was a young man, I was confused and I thought seriously about raping a girl.  Thank god, I never did it, and I was ashamed by those feelings, and that was a dark time in my life."  I don't think this would have gotten the same hysterical response.

LOL...I'd say "Wow. I'm really glad for you", and then politely decline to go on that nice walk through woods he offered later. 
I'm unconvinced that people simply "outgrow" the urge to rape. 

When I was a young man, my brother was raped by a priest, and I didn't even see who it was.  I was so filled with rage that all I could think about was finding a goddamned priest-- any priest-- and ending his life.  I never did it, and I was terrified by how dark my thoughts had become."  Is this man going to be condemned all his life as a murderer?

Er, no...Not if he didn't commit murder. Don't think I'd be too out of line to surmise that guy probably harbored a pretty healthy mistrust and resentment for priests though. 
I'd probably wonder if he was one of the angrier anti-theists here at AF...

FYI: No one's condemning Neeson as a murderer.

"When I was a young man, my brother was killed by a cop for carrying a squirt gun.  I was so filled with rage that all I could think about was finding a goddamned cop-- any cop-- and killing that pig bastard.  I never did it, and I was horrified by those dark feelings."  This guy's going to get a total pass for his thoughts and feelings, especially if he's black.

Pass or not, I would think "Man....I bet that dude fuckin' HATES cops!"

The state isn't punishing Neeson for thought crime and no one is calling him a murderer. Ordinary citizens are simply making determinations about his character based on his vocalization of his thoughts, feelings, and actions, both past and present. And yes, some of them are determining that Neeson probably didn't POWER-WALK his racial predjudice away, that he is likely still racist, and that they no longer wish to see his crap movies. 

What has made the race issue so radioactive that walking within 10 miles of it will poison someone for life?  I think it was Yonadav who pointed it out, and I've never said it before-- but is it possible that almost all white "Me racist!?  Nonono, you're racist.  Don't look at me!" are just racist enough that they are overcompensating?  Is it possible that the loudest and squeakiest of the dissenters are the ones who are most in conflict with their own very real racism?  I'm starting to wonder if that might actually be it.

Could be.
But now I'M started to wonder if you're just pissed and flummoxed and want to put not-racist's on the defensive just for tit-for-tat and kicks.

Gae, tell me straight up-- you're a southern boy, and in your entire life, you've never said anything violent or seriously derogatory about black people, right?  Even when you were younger?

People can and do change....if they put in work as far as self-examination goes. Thing of it is, most people are simply not in the habit of challenging their precepts to any meaningful degree, because they really don't who they are or what the fuck they stand for outside of whatever boxes they check off. Overcoming deep-seated bigotry requires extremely sharp intellect, brutal self-examination, and a notable capacity for empathy. Few people possess all three of those things in spades. In my unbiased observation,  Khem, Gae or whatever he goes by certainly SEEMS like one of those types of people. I'm not even a particular fan of the guy, but it's quite obvious that he's not afraid of asking hard questions of himself and is quite capable of putting himself in other's people shoes.

Not speaking for Khem of course, but I would expect that his views on race are probably drastically different then what they were coming up, because despite whether I agree with some of the stuff he posts or not, he HAS demonstrated a clear capacity for evolved thinking.

IF he was racist at one point, I doubt he is today. Seems highly unlikely to me.

In contrast, all Neeson's essentially said is that he doesn't wanna kill black bastards anymore because it sucks FOR HIM to be that angry...Despite multiple opportunities to expound on his personal growth and how racist broadbrushing and the concept of "collective guilt" FUCKS UP people's lives in so many ways AND to have likely gained the respect of a hell of a lot more folks (including plenty of black people) in the process.

But he won't.

So fuck him.