They're Philipping out
From the Can't-Take-a-Joke Department: It seems that the government of the Philippines is in full outrage mode because of a joking comment made by actor Alec Baldwin. In a recent appearance on David Letterman's talk show, Baldwin, whose unpleasant dealings with ex-wife Kim Basinger are well-documented, joked that he was "thinking about getting a Filipina mail-order bride ... or a Russian." And Letterman joked back, "Get one for me, for later." Well, it wasn't long, of course, before the video of the exchange was making the rounds on YouTube, and officials of the Philippines started demanding apologies. "Incidents of mockery against our race happen again and again. Again and again we must not fail in our strong condemnation and resounding assertion of our dignity," said Philippines Sen. Loren Legarda. "Let us make it clear to the world: Filipina women are not for sale. Not even for sale to Hollywood actors," she added. Another lawmaker went so far as to threaten to give Baldwin a knuckle sandwich if he dares show his face in the country. And the officials noted that the mail-order bride business is outlawed there. Really? A quick Yahoo! search for "Philippines mail order brides" turns up hundreds of thousands of responses. The main sponsor on the first page of the search results offers to hook you up with "Philippine ladies seeking love, dating and marriage." I'm guessing somebody has to be making a buck on this. After all the uproar, Baldwin might be leaning more toward a Russian woman. But he should be forewarned: Russian women seem to age about as well as unrefrigerated macaroni salad. Some of those 20-year-old Russian hotties gracing the Internet might very well end up looking like Janet Reno a few years down the road. And, you know, based on Baldwin's track record, maybe he'd just be better off with porn.
Labels: Entertainment, Government, Sex
posted by Brant at
2:25 PM
7 Comments:
Oh boy, it's another celebrity that's crossed the powers that be in the Philippines. If you know your Beatles history, the Fabs ended up getting on the wrong side of the Marcos family in July 1966 when they didn't show up for a dinner at the presidential palace. They had a tough time getting out of the country, and their earnings from their two Manila concerts were, um, confiscated at the airport.
Even though it's been 43 years, I seriously doubt you'll ever see Paul McCartney or Ringo Starr play live there again.
--Brad Hundt
I'll bet that money bought a lot of shoes.
I don't know how I could drag myself out of bed each day knowing I wasn't welcome in the Phillipines...
Oh well, there's always Burkina Faso
I found the remarks about the mail order bride business not existing in the Philipines comical too. I've heard about mail-order brides from that country since I was in junior high. Several years ago I worked with a guy who actually looked into it, and you're correct Brant...there is a LOT of money to be made on it.
In any case, Alec Baldwin is an a**hole no matter how you cut it. He said something on the show about wanting to have another child. I guess he's done verbally insulting his daughter by Ms. Basinger and he needs a new one to trash. And if he has a half-breed Filipino child, it opens the door to lots and lots more insults.
sorry, if my child was being a spoiled lil brat, using mom and dad against each other to get what he wanted, i'd probably set him straight and say the same damn thing he said to his daughter on that call. he just made the mistake of doing on the recorded level. least he had the balls to say what he said instead of being like so many parents are these days and turning a blind eye and deaf ear to their spoiled kids.
as far as the comment about the mail order bride... just print out that search and turn up in court with it. if ya can't take a joke, kept your yap shut.
I agree about Baldwin's comments. When kids act like little sh!ts, they need to be taken to task.
I was in the Philippines for a week 10 years ago and in that time I saw enough of the culture to make me not want to return, ever. As for their women, I saw many apparently married couples on the street, the majority of which consisted of a man, or perhaps two men, and a woman, or perhaps two women, who trailed the men by a good 10 feet. The women were chattering at the men like Fox Terriers and the men, without exception, ignored them. 95 percent of the wealth in the Philippines is in the hands of 5 percent of the people. Air pollution is rampant. A mile from the modern city of Manila, I saw naked kids playing in the cement dust from collapsed buildings and one-room shacks made of corrugated metal where entire families lived. I talked to many, many college esducated men and women who were stuck with waitress and bellhop jobs because they couldn't find work in their fields and couldn't afford to leave the country. But I guess Filipinos take offense like everyone else.
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