[Hildy]

Yes, we all do it...but very few of us have the ability and influence to reach and affect a global audience...and that's the difference in this case.

[what's up]

And that is why it is so important for public figures to make public apologies. And that is what has happened.

One can be cynical and say that the apology is only a ruse. But the fact that Gibson has acknowledged that he is totally to blame and finds his own behavior "despicable" is certainly the approapriate step to take if he is truly repentant.