Michelle Dubert: Celebrities and politics not a good mixture

For a few moments last week, I considered not attending a film screening for my writing class because of what we'd be viewing. I had legitimate incentives not to go, being that it was pouring and I was scrambling to finish an exhausting workload before Fling. More than anything, frankly, I just didn't want to watch a Michael Moore movie.

But it wasn't the time to become self-righteous; the DVD was already there, and I wasn't lining Moore's pockets by watching it in the graduate student lounge of Bennett Hall. And it was in fact for class, where my TA's intent was to teach us about film documentary, not the left-wing propaganda mill.

But you won't drag me into a theater to watch his work. Same goes for anything affiliated with many other Hollywood types, like Sean Penn, Susan Sarandon, Tim Robbins and several others. And now I have to think long and hard about Dustin Hoffman and even, sadly, Ben Affleck. I try to keep my choices in pop culture separate from politics; it's like mixing cheese and chocolate milk -- the two just don't complement each other. Now the two have become intertwined, and the synergy reduces entertainment value for me.

I used to be captivated by Hollywood's glitz and the magnitude of its stars. But as of late, I've grown increasingly disenchanted with celebrities offering their political prescience without provocation, particularly on the war in Iraq.

As Americans, these people have the right to make any film, take any action and preach anything in public with whatever political bent they choose. Yet with those same rights, I can also choose not to support it. If I want to be enlightened in the realm of politics, I'll pick up The Wall Street Journal or watch Meet the Press. I really don't want a celebrity educating me about international relations. I pay for a movie because I want entertainment, not fodder for the next column; every time I see one of these outspoken celebrities on screen, my viewing experience is tainted by the actor's remarks I may have read a week earlier.

So to any celebrity, however unlikely, that is at this moment doing me the honor of reading my column, a word to the wise, or simply a polite request:

Shut up. Please. Just act, sing, script and do whatever you are paid to do. You are profoundly out of touch with mainstream Americans, those that aren't fortunate enough to live along either coast. Unless you actually intend to run for office or commit to something with a valuable impact, quit while you're ahead.

Don't get me wrong: Like I said, in a healthy democracy we can all express our views. And some have used their celebrity to accomplish great good for society, like this year's Commencement speaker Bono, who has worked tirelessly against AIDS, or those who work with the USO, who bring stars to entertain and support our troops. I'm all in favor of being critical of the government and unafraid to disagree with the administration, but I still wonder how some celebrities grow so vitriolic, particularly at a time when American lives are at risk.

Last year, for example, Moore told Bob Costas on HBO that he believed the United States knew Osama bin Laden's location. "I think our government knows where he is, and I don't think we're going to be capturing him or killing him anytime soon." Lest we forget, Moore also called the president a "deserter" while promoting Gen. Wesley Clark in his failed White House bid.

It's not just Moore. There's "The warmongers who stole the White House ... have hijacked a nation's grief and turned it into a perpetual war against any nonwhite country they choose to describe as a terrorist" from Woody Harrelson. How about "This war is about ... hegemony, money, power and oil" from Dustin Hoffman, or if you're not satisfied, "If there is a war or continued sanctions against Iraq, the blood of Americans and Iraqis alike will be on [American] hands" from none other than Sean Penn. Forgive me, we're the ruthless savages, Saddam was the beneficent dictator.

Sean Penn also toured Iraq, escorted by then Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz, on the brink of war in December 2002 to see how great things were going and why we shouldn't interfere. Last May, Penn took out a full-page ad in the front section of The New York Times where he published a 4,000-word diatribe against the U.S.; according to a Times spokesman, an ad like that costs $135,000.

Last October, Ben Affleck condemned the president's "dangerous right-wing agenda," while Janeane Garafalo has called Republicans "the party of the dumb and the mean." The list is pretty much endless.

Every time a celebrity criticizes the war or speaks ill of the Bush foreign policy agenda, I can't help but wonder how many more Iraqi civilians would be dead from Saddam Hussein's whim by now. Regardless, people will disagree and that's a positive force. But unless the outspoken Hollywood types start doing something more constructive than complaining or threatening to leave the country, they'll only continue to isolate people closer to the center and right; they buy movie tickets, too. I'd suggest they stick to their day jobs.

Michelle Dubert is a College freshman from Closter, N.J. Department of Strategery appears on Mondays.

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