Tom Hanks enjoys putting his foot in his mouth so much he keeps giving repeat performances

Despite being a celebrated actor and respected director, Tom Hanks is not very bright. During recent appearances to promote his HBO miniseries The Pacific, Hanks presented some revisionist history by insisting that American involvement in WWII was just a result of racism against the Japanese. He also insinuates that the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are merely products of US racism, as well. He has thus far refused to acknowledge his errors and has even gone so far as to defend his astonishing ignorance.

Call for Diversity Suspiciously Silent

Manufactured controversy surrounds the upcoming movie "A Mighty Heart", the memoir of Mariane Pearl. Pearl's husband, Daniel, a journalist, was kidnapped by terrorists who later released a tape of his merciless execution.

The pointless outcry here is that Mariane is biracial (Afro-Cuban & Dutch, according to the article) but she has chosen Angelina Jolie to portray her in the film. BET.com reports message board posters are outraged that Pearl will be portrayed by a white woman, which some consider to be the modern blackface in Hollywood.

There are two very distinct issues that arise here. Foremost, Dutch heritage is Caucasian, last I checked. That means that Pearl is just as "white" as she is "of color".

A black actress portraying her would be right but a white actress is racist, according to the posters. How can that be justified? If the woman has both races in her, then an actress of either descent is perfectly appropriate insomuch as accurately representing her genealogical make-up. Common sense tells you that much.

These people apparently can't grasp the notion that Pearl views herself as a human, not a color. Ignorance once again rears its head, as it so commonly does.

The armchair sociologist could make some guesses about her choice: It may indicate that Pearl is an intelligent, educated, self-confident woman who refuses to be bogged down by society's stereotypes. She doesn't categorize herself or allow others to do so.

Isn't that what we are all supposed to do? I thought we were supposed to be colorblind because we're all the same on the inside. We're all equals in every possible capacity. Every race, ethnicity or heritage is just as good as the next and there are no inferiors.

I'll bet that if you asked any one of the outraged posters those questions, they would answer with a resounding "Yes". But if so, they clearly don't practice what they preach or they wouldn't be angered at the thought of a white woman portraying a partially white woman in a movie.

There is such a disgusting double-standard in America today. On one hand, we are all expected to be colorblind & act accordingly. But at the same time, those who preach equality are constantly & relentlessly demanding recognition above & beyond what their neighbor receives.

If you believe that everyone is equal & that skin color is irrelevant, then it is just that - irrelevant. It's not irrelevant when it suits you but an advantage when you want it to be. If it's something that shouldn't be used against you, then it also shouldn't give you an advantage.

The message our society sends seems to be that we want "diversity" but only if it gives undeserving people opportunities that they haven't earned. The diversity mongers demand complete diversity at any cost. No matter what type of affirmative action it requires or how society might suffer because of underqualified peoples in a particular position, it's required.

But those same people rail against diversity when it's used to diversify a movies box office $$$ potential. Interesting double-standard, indeed.

The less weighty but still important second issue here is, who has the right to tell Mariane Pearl who should portray her? Nobody.

There are a myriad of reasons why Pearl might want Jolie. Foremost, Jolie sells tickets. She's one of the hottest actresses in Hollywood & she commands a crowd. Such a name could mean the difference between a so-so movie and a blockbuster.

On a more selfish level, many women would be ecstatic at the prospect of one of Hollywood's most celebrated beauties portraying her on film.

Jolie isn't just a pretty face or lithe body that brings in money, however. She is a celebrated actress that will generate attention in this project.

Since she's telling the tragic story of her brave husband, the father her son will never have the chance to know, she has an important message and hopes to share it with the widest possible audience.

Or perhaps it's Jolie's altruistic spirit and myriad of international goodwill that found it's way into Pearl's heart. In light of her experiences offscreen, Jolie is in a unique position to understand Daniel's life in a way that most people never could: the danger of traveling to unstable foreign lands in an effort to do good in this crazy world of ours.

Maybe Jolie's dedication to helping those in need and giving back to the world allowed her to outshine competitors for the role. Weighing it from a moral standpoint, would you rather be represented by a woman who adopts third-world orphans or by a woman that drives drunk, causes bodily harm to innocent drivers, then flees the scene, such as Halle Berry?

Incidentally, the critics have floated names of black actresses (such as Berry) but apparently their demands for racial representation are self-serving, as usual. The article mentions no outrage whatsoever as to the lack of Cuban representation. How about a fantastic actress such as Salma Hayak or Eva Mendes if you prefer a woman of color? But no, color apparently only means black to these critics.

Of course, Jolie's no innocent, considering how she hooked her man, but she has done more good for the world than most in Hollywood could ever hope to boast.

Maybe in Hollywood it's no big deal to break the law or hurt people. After all, Kate Moss' career has blossomed quite nicely since she was photographed snorting coke. I suppose reputation has a whole different meaning there. But to everyday people like Mariane Pearl, morals might still mean something.

No Justice, Not One Piece

Since it's been almost a week, I checked in with the victim of last week's race-related beating in Polish Hill.

Surely, I thought, with a license plate number from the suspects' vehicle & the telephone number of one of the 6 suspects, there had been an arrest by now.

Not so. The young man was informed that there was no record of an incident report for that day, time or location. Even though he was tended by Pittsburgh police officers & rushed to Mercy Hospital by city ambulance service, no police report has yet been filed.

Where is the outrage, Pittsburgh?

If this was a young black man beaten in the streets by white strangers, there would be marches & candlelight vigils & community groups would be demanding an audience with every politician.

There would be complaints to the Citizens Police Review Board & the federal DOJ, questioning the conduct of the responding officers & charges of racism & favoritism by police.

Every paper & local news station would be jockeying to tell you the facts over & over, beating a dead horse into the ground until you had memorized every insignificant detail to the point that you could recite it in your sleep.

But I guess a violent beating at the hands of racists with black skin is nothing compared to some white kid driving around with a flag.

What a sad, horrible world this has become for all of us.

Hate Crimes Don't Count

Apparently the local news in Pittsburgh only cares about hate crimes when a minority is allegedly victimized. Even a perceived slight garners spotlight if there's so much as a remote possibility that a caucasian may have done something that might possibly be construed as discriminatory.

But when white people are targeted, the media doesn't even mention it. Think of a quiet neighborhood that’s about 100% residential & offers no attractions of any kind. There are 3 neighborhood bars but one of them is frequented by senior citizens & usually closes in the early evening. The neighborhood doesn’t have any stores at all, not even a convenience store. There are no restaurants, laundromats or any other businesses at all anymore except a funeral home.

The neighborhood is more than half white but is racially mixed & everyone gets along. It’s quiet, safe & residents venture outside of it for necessities & entertainment in all forms.

Now think about youths from other neighborhoods venturing in just to cause trouble. They vandalize the homes & vehicles. They throw bricks through the windows of these sad little bars & rob them on a regular basis. They go into these quiet neighborhood bars where everyone knows each other & start fights with strangers for no reason. They beat up people walking down the street. They steal cars, bikes, break into homes & equipment sheds, mug residents & more.

If white kids were regularly going into non-white residential neighborhoods to destroy property, vandalize, steal, rob & beat up people walking down the street, it would garner media attention. But if they were only targeting property owned by non-whites, it would be all over the news.

And if those white youths were singling out minority men & violently beating them six to one, the local media would be overwhelmed with public outrage.

But when 6 black men cause trouble in a white-owned bar in a neighborhood where they don't live, then go outside & beat up an innocent white resident, then vandalize the bar, that's not even newsworthy. Where is the outrage about the racial motivation of the attack?

Yesterday a young man in Polish Hill was walking down the street just blocks from his own home & was brutally beaten for no reason by 6 men. After the vicious attack, the cowards capped their performance by breaking windows of the quaint neighborhood bar they had just exited.

Sidebar: If they were trying to show how "tough" they are, they did a piss poor job by beating him 6 to 1.

The victim spent the night in the ER & went home after sunrise with about 20 stitches, only to be rushed back late this morning. As his face continues to swell, the stitches in his mouth tore his wounds & spewed a fountain of blood.

The owner of the bar has had so much trouble lately with minority patrons instigating violence in his establishment that he's giving up & trying to sell the place. The former owner of the bar had the same problems. Every few Saturdays, a group of gangbangers from the nearby Hill would come in with shotguns & hold up the bar. It stopped for a while but all of the old problems are starting up again.

There's a van that drives around the neighborhood periodically. It stops, non-resident blacks get out & they grab everything they can carry from nearby homes. Planters, windowboxes, flags, mailboxes & anything else that residents might have outside of their home. Then they all get back in the van & take off with everyone else's belongings.

Residents are seeing an increase in stolen & vandalized cars, lawnmowers, sports equipment, bicycles, locks cut off of equipment sheds, trespassering & vandalism of all kinds.

Black youths are traveling to neighborhoods where they don't live or know anyone specifically to commit violent & criminal acts. If it's not racially motivated, why aren't they beating up random black people? The area is racially mixed but they are specifically targeting whites only.

Case-in-point: How many times did we have to hear the saga of white Baldwin students driving through Brashear's campus flying rebel flags? It was seen as offensive, insensitive & by some, even criminal. The students were threatened with being banned from their own high school graduation for something they did outside of school.

No matter how offensive you find their actions, the truth of the matter is that this is America & everyone is entitled to free speech. Their actions had nothing to do with the fact that they had successfully completed high school, thus making them eligble to be at the ceremony.

Yet somehow that right can be taken from them by an entity that doesn't have any authority over them outside of school?

As a nation, we bend over backwards to right imagined "wrongs" yet regularly turn a blind eye to true injustice.

In today's culture of political correctness, we manage to punish white offenders above & beyond the actual scope of our authority. When will we implement the same standards for everyone else? Shouldn't equality span all aspects of our society?