President Barack Obama interrupted Sunday night’s Patriots-49ers game to tell the country we must change in the wake of Friday’s mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Conn. Obama warned that no single law can prevent more atrocities like the one the nation endured last week.
Should Obama start that national change by whispering in the ear of one of his biggest bundlers, Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, to tone down the violence in the filmmaker’s movie canon?
Surely, the president could get Weinstein on the line and ask him to directly address concerns about the impact fictional violence has on society, especially given the upcoming release of Weinstein’s latest orgy of violence, “Django Unchained.” The film’s star, unabashed Obama supporter Jamie Foxx who recently called the President “our Lord and Savior,” said on-screen violence can inspire off-screen brutality. And Weinstein called for a filmmaker summit on violence following the summer’s theater shooting in Aurora, Colo.
Can Obama close the loop on the discussion, or at least share his concern about “Django” opening on Dec. 25 of all days while the nation is still mourning the death and devastation in Connecticut? Or is Obama more afraid of alienating a major financial backer than starting the “change” he demands?
Roughly 20 minutes after the return of the highly rated “Sunday Night Football,” a telecast where host Bob Costas let loose with his anti-gun tirade just two weeks earlier, a commercial for “Django Unchained” aired.