Posted by Neil at term4-064-081-179-078.speakeasy.net on August 01, 2001 at 03:51:18:
In Reply to: Bad news? Sounds like a shake down to me posted by B. Buster on July 31, 2001 at 22:57:20:
: : Anyway, I told Scott all of this during the course of our conversation, and asked what we could do to allay his (and GLAAD's) fears. He said he'd be asking Miramax to make a substantial donation to the Matthew Shepherd Foundation (Matthew Shepherd is the Wyoming student who was beaten to death for being gay in one of the worst hate crimes in recent memory; the Foundation's aim is to educate the public on the dangers of homophobia). I said I'd be happy to make a donation as well, as it's a great cause, and one I believe in strongly. He asked how much I'd like to donate. I queried how much he intended to seek from Miramax. He said two hundred grand. I admitted I don't have pockets as deep as Miramax. He suggested I donate ten grand, and I said "Done."
: Good cause or not, this sounds like extortion to me. Extortion in the name of charity, but extortion nonetheless. Obviously, this guy's job is to troll the mass media swamp looking for anything he can take offense at and then broker some sort of backroom deal to stave off whatever little fuss his organization can kick up in the media. Also note that this is only ONE person. Just because he's given himself a fancy title (shades of Professor Griff?) doesn't mean his opinion counts anymore than the next person's. Hell, he can't even write an effective business letter. You got stung, Kev, plain and simple.
I think it's a pretty clear cut case of extortion. So much so that I think if the story is correct - which I believe it is - then Kevin and Miramax should seriously pursue legal, up to and including criminal, action being taken against them (him).
This is not about whether the movie or Kevin or anything demonstrates any level of homophobia. To deal with it on that level is to play on the field they want it played on. There they can define homophobia however they want and wage a war.
It's also basically true that nothing can vouch for Kevin's character or the character of the movie if the intent wasn't actually to comment on a true belief about Kevin's character, but rather a deliberate effort to extort money from an individual and a large corporation. They're defining their own truth to suit their effort rather than making an effort based on pure beliefs (or ideas, to coin a phrase).
But everyone can write their childish letters if they want, but if you believe they will mean anything, think again.