Reason Magazine: Zach Weissmueller Interviewing Gavin Polone on Hollywood Hypocrites, Bad Films & The Future of The Industry

Source:Real Life Journal

Hollywood is stereotyped as very far to the left compared with the rest of the country. And I’m not going to describe them as liberal, because they are not. Liberal on social issues, but not liberal in the classical sense. Which is where my politics is, but more progressive in the FDR or Teddy Roosevelt, or even socialist in the Bernie Sanders sense. And as Gavin Polone put it, always calling for more big government. But always looking for ways to avoid paying the taxes to finance the big government that they want.

But not all of Hollywood is on the Left, which is a good thing, just like not all Christians who are gun rights supporters are on the right. Which is another good thing, Ronald Reagan is an excellent example of that, so is the late actor/filmmaker Ron Silver who was on the last season of NBC West Wing. Who was also a big and public supporter of President George W. Bush, its good to have political diversity in these industries so the whole country can be represented.

Especially in a liberal democracy of 320M people who is what the United States is. Hollywood is big enough where you can have filmmakers who are as far to the left as Michael Moore, a Social Democrat lets say. To Libertarians like Adam Corrola a comedian/actor as well as other Libertarians in the humor industry lets say. I would say that the large majority of people in Hollywood are on the Left and pretty far to the Left. And someone like a Michael Moore would be considered mainstream there, as well as people like Jeanne Garofalo.

But Clint Eastwood whose not only one of my favorite actors, but as far as I know has been a Republican as long as he’s been an adult and is an example of the Right being represented in Hollywood politics. As well as actor Brian Dennehy and others, as well as Libertarians now coming up in Hollywood or have always been there. Like comedian/actor Drew Carey is a perfect example of that. There will always be leftists in Hollywood, Progressives and leftists who aren’t as far to the Left, as Liberals who think like me, and I’m not in Hollywood. But people in Hollywood who have similar politics as myself. I mean it is called Liberal Arts and we’ll always be there.

I don’t have a problem with entertainers using their fame to make a point, to bring attention to whatever issue or issues they care about. It’s the hypocrisy that I don’t like. Like saying that the rich and corporations are the problem in the country, even though they are rich themselves. And either work for or run a corporation themselves that I have a problem with, that makes them out of touch with the rest of the country.