I'm not calling for Mel to apologize for what he said. He is free to believe and say whatever the hell he likes. He's obviously expressing his deep belief that Jews are the evil ones and he is certainly not alone there. Had Mel been born 80 years earlier in virtually any European country (maybe even the U.S.), his statements would have gone unnoticed or even met with widespread approval. He has the misfortune of living in a PC society.
Um, What?
My point was that although no apology is socially necessary, as demonstrated by those two examples (that rule may only apply to Democrats), he made one ANYWAY, saying that he was ashamed of himself. I can't recall ever hearing a public figure say he was ashamed before. He also didn't use the passive voice ("Mistakes were made") which always negates an apology.
He messed up bad, he knows it, he's sorry and ashamed. I don't think he's only sorry he got caught. Obviously he does have some anti-Semitic feelings, and he appears to be ashamed to have them, as he should be. From what I've read of his father, that seems to be the source. It's hard to root out feelings instilled by your parents - remember the song "You've Got to be Carefully Taught" from "South Pacific?"
Yeah, if it weren't for that icky PC, the anti-semites would be celebrated instead of condemned. (/sarcasm)
Yeah, outright old-school anti-semitism is the same exact thing as questioning global warming, racial quotas, illegal immigration, etc....
(That was sarcasm, in case you couldn't tell.)