Maybe it's not entirely his fault. After all, when you watch television for a living, you're bound to have your brains deep fried in the fat of a decadent culture.Tom Shales once had talent. And he once had an independent, useful thought every once in awhile.
But, in recent years, the sheer idiocy of the Tube, his sophomoric desire to fit in with the celebrities hovering above him, and the constant imbibing of cocktails has got to him. Shales has degenerated into a hapless, star-struck, knee-jerk liberal.
Case in point? Shales went on record a couple of days ago in defending Roman Polanski's drugging and raping a 13-year old girl. Argued Shales, "There is, apparently, more to this crime than it would seem, and it may sound like a hollow defense, but in Hollywood I am not sure a 13-year-old is really a 13-year-old."
Well, there most definitely is "more to this crime" than Hollywood is noting (drugs, manipulation, sodomy, repeated sexual assault of a minor, boasting of it afterward, fleeing prosecution, etc. See these previous posts: 1 and 2) but it is all being carefully ignored. Meanwhile, just because Polanski is a star in Tom Shales' funky firmament, the TV critic is willing to condone the most despicable of actions.
And Hollywood still wonders why it is becoming anathema to a large chunk of America?
