Dear Anthony Mackie,
In Hollywood, it’s not like this is a big deal. But it’s a big deal to me. I always adored you. I always thought you were so sexy and handsome, and I wanted great things for you. But I don’t like the fact that you were just charged with a DWI in New York. Apparently, you were driving around Harlem in a Dodge Challenger very early Saturday morning, and you were pulled over for tinted windows. The police officer spelled alcohol and you refused the blood alcohol test, but you flunked the field sobriety tests. Your license is going to be suspended and I guess that’s some kind of punishment.
First, let me be fair. If you were a white man or woman, this might not have happened. If you were Lindsay Lohan, you probably would have been given a key to the city and a friendly pat on the firecrotch. There is a racial element to this, I’m sure, especially considering you were “driving while black” in Harlem early in the morning. Now, that being said, you were driving drunk around Harlem in the early morning. It’s NYC! You can literally find a taxi on every corner. Why not take a taxi, dude?
Again, this is not the worst thing that an actor has ever done. But you’re 35 years old. You’re a father. This is not some youthful shenanigan. Get it together, dude.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Fame/Flynet.
What you said. That’s pretty much it. Any DWI is *that* bad. These offenses are treated seriously because drunk driving is dangerous to everyone else who is unfortunate to cross the path of the perpetrator. He gets no sympathy from me.
^^^^This.
Driving drunk kills other drivers and pedestrians. Makes me very angry.
Agreed. I am so glad no one got hurt, too.
That’s what surprises me about people who get DWIs. Don’t they plan in advance? Or do you think it’s more arrogance on their part, as they seem to think “I’ve driven home drunk a hundred times before and I’ve never been caught”?
I like him but I don’t have double standards: driving while intoxicated is always a huge deal to me. Disappointed he’d do something like that.
Ditto.
Always terrible, especially in a city where there are plenty of other options rather than driving yourself.
Agreed. It is a big deal. Wasn’t it the same for Reese Witherspoon?
For me it was, but like I said on my post downthread, MANY excused her when her drunk driving incident was posted here on CB.
I was baffled by the people saying it wasn’t a bid deal because nobody was hurt, that she wasn’t at fault because she was not the one driving, or the ones admitting to drunk driving, trying to justify it, telling us to “get over ourselves” (for being outraged).
As I said, I have no double standards: I like Mackie and I can’t stand Reese Witherspoon, but BOTH are wrong in this type of situation. Nobody gets a pass from me, I don’t care who they are.
I agree with you, Eve. I like Anthony, didn’t care for Reese, but there is no excuse for drinking and driving. I’m glad no one got hurt.
Reese Witherspoon didn’t drive drunk. Her husband did. She was a drunk, obnoxious passenger.
@ Paranormalgirl:
We all know that. My point is that the fact she wasn’t the one driving but rather being drunk, while in the company of a drunk driver, isn’t much better. She was partially responsible, in my opinion. And would have been an accomplice had he caused an accident.
yep
EVE – perfectly stated.
Very disappointed. Love(d) him.
I don’t get these celebs-they have tons of dough, why not hire a driver?
Personally, I hate driving. If I had the option to have someone drive my ass around all the time, I would definitely take advantage of it.
+1 This.
Disappointed. Always thought he came across as a sensible guy, driving under the influence can have major consequences for the lives of everyone involved. I nearly lost my mum to an incident with a drunk driver so this is not okay, at all, hope he is smart enough to learn from his mistake and never do this again.
Ugh, no! He’s so hot, but there’s no excuse for drunk driving.
The fact it happened in NYC does make it seem worse, somehow.
I agree. Los angeles is a different story although it doesn’t excuse the offense. But nyc has good public transport. That said lots of actors that live normal lives and aren’t out of control have dui´s in their past such as Ryan Gosling. Hopefully Anthony will get it together, he is a really talented actor.
Why is it even a question. Drunk driving is always a big deal. It shouldn’t depend on him hurting someone in a car. Too many people killed and families broken in the soul because of sh*t like this. it is a Big Deal.. BIG DEAL always.
Why would somebody think that there is a racial element to it? Or that it might not have happened if he was white? I’m a little confused as to why that was included. Seems pretty cut and dry to me.
Because he was pulled over initially for having tinted windows. Which is generally something that Black people tend to be pulled over for as probable cause for the police to search your car etc. Been there…..that being said, I don’t agree with drunk driving, so if being black got you caught up while being wrong….so be it
I am not African American and I got pulled over for tinted windows and ticketed.
Obviously people get ticketed for tinted windows, but anytime someone Black, including myself, has been pulled over for tinted windows its resulted in a drawn out ordeal of searching the car, running warrants, having backup, etc…I’ve spent a couple night standing on the side of the road just for tinted windows, because they’d love to catch my Black behind up for something else, whereas my white friends just got a ticket, or maybe even a warning,and were sent about their business. That’s why there is correlation. But in Mackie, dummy that he is, fell right into it. There is never any reason to being driving drunk. so I give a crap about any racial correlation when you are putting people in harms way
@Eliza of course non Blacks get pulled over for stuff like that.The difference is the frequency .Im sure you have been followed in a store by employees but does it occur rarely, occasionally or regularly? How ofen do you get questioned by police while walking in your neighborhood, how ofen are you searched? Just curious?
I think she meant that he might not have been pulled over at all if he had been white, which is entirely possible. Except he was pulled over for having tinted windows, so I’m not sure how anyone knew whether or not he was black. So I was confused by that as well.
One of those DWB stories that stuck with me: years and years ago Denzel Washington was pulled over on a freeway somewhere near LA in broad daylight while he was driving his own Ferrari. He was initially treated like a thug until someone recognized him and everyone wanted autographs.
Is there a racial element to it?
Of course not… Far from it!
That said, DUI is never a good idea, ever.
It’s common for Blacks to be pulled over for tinted windows, license plate light bulb out and other minor things .The police use that as a way to have probable cause to question folks.That is another version of stop and frisk.My male cousins get stopped several times a week.Yet they are never arrested because they are only guilty of DWB or WWB walking while Black.
As for Anthony driviing after drinking is unacceptable, he owns a bar and knows better
In NY drivers are only allowed to have their Windows slightly tinted. Even though any race can have tints on their windows in NY it is mostly Black and Hispanic men who do so. NY cops are aware of this. Most likely the cop just assumed he was Black, another reason to suspect he was Black was that he got pulled over in Harlem. Though there is a lot of regentrification happening, Harlem is still primarily populated with African Americans.
That being said Mackie driving under the influence is inexcusable. Too many people make the mistake of thinking they are ok to drive after tossing back a few. A lot of people, including celebs do it. How many times have you seen people walking out of bars and night clubs heading straight to their cars. I doubt most of them were drinking club soda.
Drunk driving is a HUGE deal. The day, in society, when we say it isn’t a big deal will be a very sad day indeed.
Too many innocent people die every day at the hands of drunk drivers.
“Drunk driving is a HUGE deal. The day, in society, when we say it isn’t a big deal will be a very sad day indeed.”
You wouldn’t believe the amount of posters who not only excused Reese Witherspoon and her husband for that drunk driving incident, but said they liked her more after that episode as she seemed more “relatable” for them because of said behaviour (driving while drunk, berating a police officer and being sassy while doing so, etc).
Glad I missed those comments. Bloody ridiculous to laude someone for being drunk and behind the wheel or two drunks in one car. I guess until those people lose someone to a drunk driving ass hat, it is o.k with them and they probably are people who have done it time and time again themselves.
It is 2013. Even the dumbest of morons are aware that drunk driving is not only against the law but that it kills innocent people. There is no excuse to drive drunk. None. Period. End of story. White, African American, Hispanic, Asian etc. no one should get behind the wheel after getting a snoot full.
Ugh seriously? I missed those comments too. Gross.
Those comments were sickening. And then there were people saying everyone does it… no. Everyone does not willfully endanger others’ lives.
Eve is right. Those comments left me seriously scratching my head. Driving drunk is never okay. I don’t care who the eff you are. So I’m very disappointed in Mackie.
@Kitten re: your comment up thread. Girl I wish I had a chauffeur to drive me everywhere.
Idiot. So you would’ve had to pick your car the next day – bfd.
Take a damn cab, it’s not as though he’d struggle to come up with the fare.
*pick up* your car.
Excuse my shocking English today.
Damn. I liked him too. It is a big deal.
(also just wanted to say hello. Haven’t said hi to you in a while. Are you well?)
Ah, hello Jane! I’m doing alright thanks very much, I hope you’re well too. Been a bit off lately, turns out that it’s due to a form of MS which explains quite a few things!
Apart from that my Masters is keeping me quite busy at the moment, lots of fun, though.
I trust Thornfield is being kept in good condition; I might just have to pay a visit when I cull my freebie ten list to five.
I’m trying the whole ‘discerning’ thing, now. S’not going too well . . .
Bah! Im bummed that he could be this stupid
how this this even a question? Of course it’s a big deal. Drunk drivers are scum. And refusing a breathalyzer is pretty much admitting you’re guilty in big flashing neon.
Not to mention, a Dodge Challenger with tinted windows (which will get you pulled over no matter what race you are)? Vomit.
it gets a big deal when he kills someone you love. just because nothing happened doesnt make it cool.
im all for way harsher punishments for this kind of thing. its still seen as a minor offence.
Reese got pulled over and arrested. Why make this a race issue. Driving drunk is stupid for everyone.
That’s what I think, Beth. It *IS* stupid for everyone.
My point was not intended as racially related. I only mentioned Witherspoon’s incident in my reply to Eliza because she (Eliza) said it’s ALWAYS a huge deal and even though I agree with her, unfortunately many don’t seem to think like that: I saw many posters excusing Witherspoon’s behaviour back when it was posted here.
I’m glad there aren’t people excusing Mackie here, but I’m certain there are people who still think drunk driving is “not a big deal” when the outcome isn’t tragic.
Probably the biggest difference is that Reese wasn’t driving, her husband was. They were definitely both drunk though. Reese was being drunk and disorderly; her husband, the actual driver, was being cooperative, though still drunk.
Yes. Reese wasn’t driving. She was a giant asshole though, and impeded the police from doing their duty.
Cosigning everything here except this:
“It’s NYC! You can literally find a taxi on every corner. Why not take a taxi, dude?”
Just as black men are often pulled over and detained unfairly for driving while black, taxi drivers often discriminate against black men who are trying to pick up cabs. He still shouldn’t have driven under any circumstances, obviously – he could have called a car service, too – but he might not have been able to get one of those taxis on every corner.
Yep. But there are also subway stops — not quite on every corner, but close enough. There are also very good, clean buses with stops every couple of blocks. They’re cheaper, safer, and more reliable than taxis.
It’s actually a lot tougher to find a taxi in most of Manhattan than people seem to think, especially in the Upper West Side/Harlem area. Even my mom and I, a couple white women, often had serious problems doing so. But you can call taxis and they’ll be there within half an hour.
Huge deal…black, white, whatever. Very disappointing. On the professional front I imagine Marvel is pissed.
I saw him at a restaurant in Los Angeles a few months ago. He was sitting with one of the most “plastic looking” girls i’ve ever seen. (and I live in Los Angeles! ) Seriously, she was young, but her plastic surgery was so visible it was unnerving.
There were two other things that upset me and changed my perspective of him, (probably in an unfair way) but here it goes:
I was with my seven-month old baby at the time and she kept making funny faces their way. Most people will at least acknowledge that once, you know, smile back at the baby, say the polite, “oh, so cute” thing to the mom, even if they don’t mean it. Seriously, I understand not everyone is into babies, but my daughter is a cutie, and she has no idea who is famous and who’s not. For some reason she was very interested on him and kept trying to get a smile from him. He just seemed annoyed at her. (I swear she wasn’t been a creep, just sweet a few times. I then passed her to her dad to the other side of table because i was left feeling uncomfortable by it)
The other thing, his date order a salad, he didn’t order anything and made the waiter get him a can of cottage cheese from the super market. They seemed to be on a date. if you don’t want to eat, or you are in a special project diet or something, take her to a bar, not to a trendy brunch place on a sunday morning.
I don’t know, maybe I was reading too much in to it. But living in LA you run into a lot of celebrities, and they are usually so pleasant. (nicest was Dustin Huffman!)