Mandy Patinkin. Another in the long line of actors who use their celebrity status to feed us their politics.
As you may be aware, Patinkin is the star of Showtime’s “Homeland” series. Here, from yesterday’s interview on MSNBC, are a few of his more brilliant insights about how this season’s episodes are dealing with his view of the real world:
“We have tried to be part of the cure, not part of the problem. A different story line where we’re helping these people and a story line that shows in this case, in this year, in this season and — that maybe it’s the — and it is white men in the government and the military establishment that are the bad guys, not the Muslim community.
“Yes. Well, this is where Homeland and the real world are one for me because I started to say earlier it’s false information. It’s not the truth in terms of how you get elected and the tools you use. It’s the oldest trick in the book. I find someone to vilify. In movies, it was cowboys and Indians and the Nazis, Communists, you know.”
White men in government? WHICH White men in government, Mandy? Are they all bad people because they are White? What are your stereotypes of non-White people in government? Do you have any trenchant thoughts about Irish people? Italians? Your fellow Jews?
The Muslim community? WHICH Muslim community, Mandy? There are over a billion Muslims and, as a “community” they are neither all good or all bad, even though you seem happy to lump them all together. They are not even homogeneous in being Muslim. Perhaps you’ve heard of Shi’ites and Sunnis, for example.
Forget cowboys and indians for a second: you have a problem vilifying NAZIs? They certainly would have no problem vilifying you, and a lot worse.
You have a problem vilifying communists, who deny their people basic freedoms, including the freedom to speak your mind – something maybe you should reconsider doing in public, where other people can hear this kind of “thinking”?
Mr. Patinkin, I consider you a fine actor and singer. I thought you were terrific in Evita, and excellent in Homeland.
That is what you are good at. Please stick to it.
Please, just shut up and act.
