30 Nov 2004 | Don Schenck said...

I truly believe that the Hollywood crowd literally does not care since van Gogh was a big supporter of President Bush. Probably think "he got what he deserved".

30 Nov 2004 | Mark said...

Sajak is so on the mark with this. What a great article.

30 Nov 2004 | huphtur said...

30 Nov 2004 | Matt Haughey said...

I have to say the news shocked me when I first found out about it, and I was also a bit surprised that it wasn't bigger news here when it happened (I learned about it maybe a week after it took place).

The Van Gogh guy does sound like kind of a dick (I forget the term he used for Muslims but it was close to something like 'towelheads'), but he certainly deserve to die for his film (which you can watch at iFilm -- it's pretty tame and you could make a similar film about baptists, mormons, or catholics).

30 Nov 2004 | Matt Haughey said...

oops, certainly didn't deserve to die for a film.... is what I meant.

30 Nov 2004 | huphtur said...

watch the short film: Submission.
http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2655656

30 Nov 2004 | Anil said...

I think it's been glossed over in the American press because (1) it doesn't involve an American and (2) for the same reason that the attacks on Muslim schools in the Netherlands following Van Gogh's murder weren't given the same attention as the Beslan slayings.

30 Nov 2004 | ML said...

Everyone knows the Muslims run Hollywood.

01 Dec 2004 | One of several Steves said...

Because he's not American. Tough to get much of the popular culture and popular press in the U.S. to pay much attention to anything that doesn't involve Americans.

01 Dec 2004 | Andy said...

Please, Sajak is a dork using Van Gogh's murder for political gain. Where was he when Mohammad Mokhtari was murdered?

01 Dec 2004 | a contestant said...

I would like to buy a vowel...an O please.

Andy g_ fuck yourself.

01 Dec 2004 | JD said...

This is a classic shifting of the substantive terms of the discourse by the Bushies. You are a fool if you believe that Bush and the war in Iraq have anything in anyway to do with defeating the Islamists. Bush is the one who ran and hid after September 11.

By the way, Sajak is simply piling on. Bdridget Johnson wrote a piece in the WSJ last week.

01 Dec 2004 | Chris said...

Julia Roberts just had twins and you people are talking about some dead guy in a country most Americans couldn't find on a well labeled map.

What's wrong with you people?

[sarcasm mode off]

Unfortunately, this is the thought process in way too many places.

01 Dec 2004 | richard said...

Hollywood priorities are screwed up... big surprise....

Check out People's priorities....

http://www.defamer.com/hollywood/gossip/paris-hilton/people-has-its-priorities-in-order-026566.php

01 Dec 2004 | 2/3 lb. monster thickburger said...

Blonde to brunette!? I wonder if the curtains match the carpet...

01 Dec 2004 | tiffany said...

Van Gogh is also a bit of an obscure filmmaker to folks in the States. I mean, who in the U.S. had heard of him before this? Add that to the fact that he wasn't American and it took place over there, it becomes pretty easy to ignore the story.

@ Anil: Do I detect an accusation of anti-Muslim bias in your comment?

01 Dec 2004 | Bill Brown said...

Criticizing the murder of Van Gogh would require Hollywoodies to adopt a stance of condemnation, which they're only comfortable doing with American conservatives.

01 Dec 2004 | Andy said...

As an American on a school exchange to the Netherlands, I have realized how little Americans care about international news at all. This isn't an isolated example. How closely are American news sources following the developments in Ukraine?

Americans in general tend to care little about the rest of the world. If we did, we would care much more about the image of America that is projected by our current leadership.

The unfortunate side effect of this killing is the boost it will give to extremist politicians. Too many will try to push an anti-immigration and anti-muslim agenda simply because of one extreme example, similar to the U.S. agenda after 9/11.

01 Dec 2004 | Darrel said...

Gotta agree with everyone that said that this is simply 'non-american' news and, as such, is completely off the radar.

How many Americans can even name the President of Mexico or the PM of Canada?

01 Dec 2004 | Andy said...

Can Pat Sajak name the president of Mexico or the PM of Canada?

01 Dec 2004 | Darrel said...

Can Pat Sajak name the president of Mexico or the PM of Canada?

Probably, but only because they were answers on WOF. ;o)

01 Dec 2004 | indi said...

I recall hearing a lot about Salman Rushdie and his saga. Why the difference?

01 Dec 2004 | Andy said...

Probably, but only because they were answers on WOF. ;o)

Nah, more likely they'd be answers on Jeopardy.

01 Dec 2004 | Kevin Armstrong said...

"If I were Michael Moore, I would much rather rail against George W.
Bush, who is much less likely to have me killed, than van Gogh's
murderer and the threat to creative freedom he brings."

Bush is less likely to have Sajak killed? Does this mean Pat doesn't intend on enlisting and requesting duty in Iraq?

Could somebody point me to the article Sajak wrote concerning Eric Robert Rudolph, the Christian terrorist who is accused of bombing the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics (1 dead, 111 wounded), the bombing of an Alabama health clinic (1 dead, 1 critically injured), and the bombing of two other clinics, and how one self-professed Christian doing bad things mean all Christians are bad?

No? Anyone?

01 Dec 2004 | Andy said...

Well, I think the main difference is that Salman Rushdie was already a well-known author, and the fatwa (sp?) was endorsed by a government.

01 Dec 2004 | Andy said...

Criticizing the murder of Van Gogh would require Hollywoodies to adopt a stance of condemnation, which they're only comfortable doing with American conservatives.
Many 'Hollywoodies' criticized the treatment of women in Afghanistan long before American conservatives showed any interest in the country.

01 Dec 2004 | One of several Steves said...

How closely are American news sources following the developments in Ukraine?

Oddly enough, this is one that does seem to be getting a lot of coverage. Front page of NYT and LA Times every day for the last couple weeks, frequent stories on NPR. I have no idea if it's getting coverage on TV, because I don't watch TV news.

But, yes, in general international news gets very scant attention in the American press. It's one of many reasons I subscribe to The Economist and read the Guardian.

How many Americans can even name the President of Mexico or the PM of Canada?

Vincente Fox and Paul Martin. No, those aren't the two Americans who can name them.

01 Dec 2004 | A. Merican said...

How many Americans aren't familiar with Van Gogh? Wasn't he the guy who cut off his ear? And I thought he killed himself.

02 Dec 2004 | tomas said...

I'd like to see Pat Sajack condemn Van Gogh's murder himself rather than use it as an opportunity to make thinly veiled accusations of liberal treason and Michael Moore is fat jokes.

02 Dec 2004 | Don Schenck said...

That's it! I got it! Michael Moore and Jerry Falwell should both be contestants on the next season of NBC's 'The Biggest Loser'.

02 Dec 2004 | Darrel said...

The fact that our media is conjested with shows like 'The Biggest Loser' pretty much sums up the issue, doesn't it?

;o)

02 Dec 2004 | Andy said...

Celebrity boxing

09 Dec 2004 | nova silverpill said...

next time please let them kill vincent gallo.

14 Dec 2004 | Lee said...

I am currently in Holland (not a resident) and was when the attack happened. I was appauled by it, don't get me wrong, but from what I've heard, the guy was an asshole, that's why so few people cared. This wasn't his first film to piss off some people, he made it his life's work to make movies that pissed all sorts of people off. Obviously he didn't deserve to die because of it, but you can understand the film world taking a backseat.