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Mark Wahlberg: A Prize Idiot As Well As A Racist Thug

              Mark Wahlberg: A Prize Idiot As Well As A Racist Thug

It is better that Mark Wahlberg sticks to reading someone else’s lines in order to act because when it come to real life, when his lips move in that arena at least, is when we know that not only is he a racist thug but a prize idiot as well.

Mark has already told us recently that he would have sorted the 9/11 terrorists all by himself and that acting was like being in the military as it was so hard to do; I’m afraid that real life has proved much more problematic starting with him being able to separate fact from fiction. If life was only like the movies with the usual happy ending.

We all need a second chance, sometimes even a third or fourth one too, but it seems Mark in his quest for redemption has missed the core values of what that is. Mark is stuck somewhere in the crossroads of his mind. The redemption that he seeks can only come from his victims starting with a sincere apology if he is up for it, and a cheque to one victim that he permanently blinded in one eye with six zero’s after the first digit written all over it; with his celebrity signature that might make it worth one dollar more, and the same for the second victim. Success can encourage narcissism and that is where Mark misses the point and diverges greatly from the facts, even he was 16 years old when he committed his crime. One thing is for sure, it was not the actions or the mindset of the average16 year old male.

Now Mark wants it all, an elevated place on earth while seeking an leveated one in heaven as well, or at least what he thinks that his money can buy. It certainly can’t buy Mark a conscience as I would wager that he has never sought out his victims. How has one victim got through his life since that assault 26 years ago and who was a middle-aged man back then and slight of build? A Vietnamese in a foreign land that had nothing, being attacked by a vicious thug had had everything in comparison. How is his other eye doing, is he still impoverished as he was surely up against the two eyed competition thereafter? Was he teased as a one eyed Vietnamese or just another one eyed ‘Gook’ as described by Mark who now goes to Church everyday these days, which by itself can tell you a lot about his perspective on what real life is actually about.  

Hoa Trinh is that migrant 'Gook' that was attacked by Mark. That assault was just minutes after he had attacked another Vietnamese migrant called Thanh Lam. To even up the odds against the unarmed Thanh, Mark armed himself with a 5 foot weapon to ensure distance between them, and a blow driven so hard that it would remain that way for it rendered the poor and defenseless man unconscious. Mark cries crocodile tears today that what he had done still impacts ‘him’ yet never mentions how it might have impacted Thanh or Hoa for he surely does not know. He tells us that his record “could impact businesses, such as restaurants, that work with him from getting licenses” and yet was Thanh even able to find work as a dishwasher in one? Two eyed dishwashers get the same pay so it would have been an uphill struggle one way or the other.

These are the two men today, Hoa Trinh and Thanh Lam,  whose lives are blighted, and these are men that Walberg needs to seek redemption from first. The only justice that was given to them was that Mark spent 45 days in jail from a charge that was originally attempted murder.

Out of the $200 million fortune that he already has and the potential earnings from those restaurant endorsements, should his reputation be elevated and his past erased, his redemption should start with those two men. But a pardon is a double- edged sword in any case: It forgives the crime but does not erase it, and yet true forgiveness, if it is to mean anything, has to come from the victimized and no one else whether it can be bought or not.  

By Barry Clifford    

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Transparency Ireland 2014 Is Not So Transparent

Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) for 2014 is published today and shows an improvement in Ireland’s score for the second year in a row.

Despite a series of controversies involving the Gardaí, charities and appointments to public bodies, as well as allegations of corruption in planning; Ireland’s position on the index has moved up since 2012.

Ireland’s score has improved from 72 to 74 out of 100, leaving it in 17^th place out of 174 countries. In 2012 it was positioned in 25^th place on in the index, in the wake of the publication of the Moriarty and Mahon Tribunal reports.

TI Ireland’s Chief Executive John Devitt warned against complacency. ‘The improvement may be explained by few ‘big-ticket’ corruption stories over the past couple of years. The tribunals may also be fading from memory but there are still significant corruption risks to be addressed’, Mr Devitt said

‘Local authorities and public procurement across the public sector still appear vulnerable to corruption in large part because of the amounts of money to be gained through government contracts, as well as rising property values. When you factor in the probability that you will not be caught for bending or breaking the law, there is a clear incentive for some people to engage in graft.

‘Few people are also being held to account for white collar crime or corruption-related offences. One out of 10 investigations leads to a prosecution and there have only been a handful of convictions for corruption related offences in the last three years,’ Mr Devitt added.

TI Ireland has also called for tougher rules aimed at cleaning up the relationship between business and government. It has called for a two year ‘cooling off’ period for public servants moving into some positions in the private sector, as well as the introduction of a criminal offences for senior officials and public representatives who fail to truthfully declare their assets and liabilities.

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The above is sourced verbatim from Transparency International. Though Ireland is ranked 17, it is still behind Belgium, Hong Kong and Barbados and just two spots above Chile followed by Uruguay.

Barry Clifford

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