Robert De Niro has always been one of my favorite actors.
But it’s becoming hard to take even his acting seriously any more because of his abusive, immature, self-indulging, vitriolic, hateful, incendiary, uninformed, petty – and increasingly obscene – attacks on President Trump.
The latest one came on live television at the Tony Awards.
Besides attacking Trump in March as “an idiot” and in April as a “madman” without offering any meaningful explanation or evidence, here’s what he said at the Tony Awards: “I’m gonna say one thing: F— Trump! It’s no longer down with Trump, it’s f— Trump!”
This remark was widely characterized by the press as a display of profanity. One of my pet peeves is that people don’t know the difference between profanity, obscenity and vulgarity. Look it up! While I’m quite certain De Niro is equally adept at resorting to all three, words still mean things. The f-word is an example of obscenity, not profanity – unless the insult is directed at God. One wonders if De Niro uses that kind of language around his 7-year-old daughter? If not, why not? And, if not, why would he use obscenity in on an internationally broadcast awards show? Isn’t that the height of reckless irresponsibility?
Hasn’t the language of our culture grown sufficiently coarse and hateful for De Niro? He has every right to engage in political discourse, but is this the best example of his capability? This is a guy who could call a press conference any day of the week and spew his warped political ideas endlessly. And what are they? Who knows, other than failed knee-jerk Democratic Party rhetoric and sophistry?
There’s no price to pay for De Niro for such outbursts. In fact, he got a standing ovation at the Tony Awards for his obscene behavior. That’s all you have to do as an entertainer in 2018 to warrant a standing ovation: Get up on national television, pump your fists in the air like an “idiot” and “madman” and shout “F— Trump!”
Pathetic.
But it gets worse.
He went on to introduce another entertainer, Bruce Springsteen, with a lickspittle inclination toward the Democratic Party and its warped values: “Bruce, you can rock the house like nobody else. Even more important in these perilous times, you rock the vote. Always fighting for, in your own words, truth, transparency, integrity in government. Boy, do we need that now.”
Truth, transparency and integrity in government? Is that what these people see in the Democratic Party?
What does the Democratic Party stand for?
First and foremost, abortion on demand – which translates into the wanton killing of unborn children.
Second, gender-confusion.
Third, bigger and less accountable government.
Fourth, total disregard of the Constitution.
I could go on, but do I have that about right? Did we have truth, transparency and integrity in the White House in the right years preceding Donald Trump’s presidency? Did we have prosperity, openness, the rule of law?
De Niro’s verbal barrage was not only an insult and threat against the president of the United States, it’s the kind of “hate speech” that represents a verbal assault against all those who support him.
Are there no “safe spaces” anymore? I thought that’s what Democratic Party values were all about? I thought they like “speech codes.” Why do liberals applaud obscenities hurled at those with whom they disagree, yet demand not to be offended when others simply express opposing ideas, opinions and views?
Is this Robert De Niro’s idea of what a civil society should be like?
I really wonder.
De Niro has one talent. He’s a gifted actor. But I must say, he’s acting so badly offscreen now that it’s getting hard to appreciate what he does onscreen. And it’s true of so many others in the entertainment business.
