Posted on 04/20/2007 5:06:55 PM PDT by advance_copy
Alec Baldwin issued an apology on Friday for unleashing a volcanic tirade at his 11-year-old daughter and blamed "certain people" for leaking the rant to US media.
The Oscar-nominated star of "The Departed" branded daughter Ireland a "rude, thoughtless, little pig" in a fiery voicemail message that emerged on celebrity websites on Thursday.
It is the latest twist to the bitter legal wrangling between Baldwin and ex-wife Kim Basinger over custody and visitation rights relating to Ireland. The couple split in 2001.
Baldwin's tirade was apparently triggered by Ireland's failure to switch her mobile phone on for a scheduled call with her father.
"Once again I've made an ass out of myself trying to get to a phone at a specific time," Baldwin says in the message. "I'm tired of playing this game with you. You have insulted me for the last time.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
There was a hearing on this matter on Wednesday. A judge has forbidden Baldwin from having ANY contact with his daughter. There will be a hearing on May 4th.
Do you have children?
I just watched the Letterman clip on www.tmz.com. I am shocked. He was MOCKING his little girl's doing her dance moves in a store while they waited in line! I am sorry, but that stuff is so charming and sweet and part of who they are. My son is constantly in handstands everywhere and I love it. I treasure my son practicing what he loves. Baldwin finds it somehow offensive. I can only shake my head. Mocking her over this on NATIONAL TV. The poor girl.
Obviously, alot of people around here don't get how horrifying this is to a child to begin with, but to have it all over the news, repeated again and again. This is right up there with NBC releasing the VT Killer's publicity pictures and screeds.
People screaming child abuse and then compounding the error 10,000 fold.
I think having an out of control, self-centered father is pretty horrifying. You seem to think that it was Bassinger who released the voicemail. Watch the Levin interview in post 384.
Keep in mind that this is the same violent man that advocated dragging Hyde and his family out of his house during the Clinton impeachment.
And it doesn't matter WHEN this proceeding started. The judge thought it was serious enough to halt all contact.
And again, now his treatment of his daughter is out in the open. There is a certain amount of protection in that. This man is known for his out of control temper.
Sure. Blame the daughter for her father’s humiliation. It is his fault, and ONLY his fault. And how do you think she feels hearing him ridiculing her on national TV, more than once?
Baldwin is a piece of whale dreck, but, this isn't my business.
Listening to this conversation is just prurient voyeurism, its gossip and you are all sanctimonious about how this is doing anything for these people. I am sick of hearing about it. But, as these peoples rights are bled away, so are all of ours.
He left that dreck on his daughters cellphone. Once he did that, he had no legal rights over it.
you are all sanctimonious about how this is doing anything for these people. Listening to this conversation is just prurient voyeurism,
Then what are you doing here and why are you defending him?
“Just think what it would be like to have your father publicly humiliated because you were irresponsible.”
How do you know she was irresponsible? Maybe her phone batter died. You blamed the CHILD. Maybe she is sick of listening to her creepy father talk like that to her.
Now, the guy is a whack job, there can be no doubt, but lots of people in this country are. If he wasn't a celebrity, this wouldn't have gotten on a page of smallest local paper. For a whole number of reasons, not the least that the material was already under seal.
Earlier in this tread, someone claiming to have familiarity with family court said that such a call wouldn't result in loss of visitation, but this has become inflamed so that political pressure has come into it.
This is already a torn up mess. The Family court has the obligation to see this through the lens of the child's needs. The court of public opinion has no such obligation.
But never forget, the PC crowd can use this sort of reasoning to tap your phone, to introduce camera's into your house, to pick out any embarrassing thing they can expose to make you go away. Just like they did Don Imus.
Imus is and has been vile for a long time, but he just didn't suit their needs so .. bye bye.
Assumption on your part. She may actually be afraid of him. We have no way of knowing.
But never forget, the PC crowd can use this sort of reasoning to tap your phone,
No. They can't. This was a VOICEMAIL. It is MUCH different under the law. Voicemail is legal to be heard in court.
Again, if this upsets you so, why are you on this thread? And I'll point out that this is a discussion forum. Baldwin has weighed in on politics and has mentioned running for office. HIS behaviour is discussion worthy.
I am not blaming the child at all. You are not looking at this from the child's perspective.
I am saying, the release of this stuff to the public is impossible to take back and the child can and will internalize the trauma in a much more devastating way.
This is not blaming, its just understanding, that is why the Court seals this sort of stuff, so the child isn't haunted by this. If getting this stuff out in public was generally in the child's interest, the courts would be pouring this stuff all over the public airwaves. But, they don't.
This stuff is being distributed for profit by folks who don't give one rats butt about this child, only their advertising dollars and mulled over by folks who just love to tut tut about the misfortunes of others..but we all pay a price for this sort of sick entertainment.
Verbal and emotional abuse certainly is criteria for curtailing visitation.
I am sure this child is afraid of him, at least any rational child would be afraid of his promised visit. But, just understand this is complex stuff. My objection is that this stuff was pushed into the public forum when it was and should be handled by the family court.
This was done for revenge or money on the part of unknown actors who will probably soon be exposed. But, none of this was done for the child's benefit. And, this is just a fact.
You are looking at this in a small way. Folks are equating this voice message to a publicly uttered broadcast, because it is being broadcast on the public airwaves. But, this is an intensely private, and sealed conversation we find out, the courts have already stepped in and said this was not to be released, so laws may have been broken to release this material.
But, I can see Pelosi, Hillary and crowd taking this sort of attack to a whole new level. Folks around here are willing and eager to give up their sense of privacy and impute all sorts of boorish behavior as justification for this, but in the end, what rights you are willing to give up are gone forever.
This release of this tape does nothing to protect this child. It is about ratings and National Enquirer style journalism of the most despicable sort.
I agree that it is a topic of discussion. But, I felt that the big point was being missed. That we are being manipulated into shaking our heads as we are being led into a world like Canada where saying "Islamic Terrorist" is hate speech. This is where this sort of game leads.
Its fun when its Baldwin's ox being gored, but when its our own, it is a bit less fun.
It is not a fact. To know WHY you'd have to know WHO.
You are looking at this in a small way. Folks are equating this voice message to a publicly uttered broadcast, because it is being broadcast on the public airwaves. But, this is an intensely private,
It was VOICEMAIL. The same laws govern it that would pertain to a written letter.
and sealed conversation we find out, the courts have already stepped in and said this was not to be released, so laws may have been broken to release this material.
Didn't listen to Harvey Levin, did you. Apparently, you're still assuming that it was Bassinger.
But, I can see Pelosi, Hillary and crowd taking this sort of attack to a whole new level. Folks around here are willing and eager to give up their sense of privacy and impute all sorts of boorish behavior as justification for this, but in the end, what rights you are willing to give up are gone forever.
Check your emotion and fear at the door and try finding what the law says. You REALLY need to get a grip. It sounds as if you are also assuming that this is the first time he's let loose with a verbal assault on his daughter. I wouldn't bet on that.
This has NOTHING to do with privacy law. He left a voicemail. After it left his mouth it was no longer his property. Please, check laws before you start seeing dangers behind every tree. Or phone.
Goodnight.
This was their interpretation, not mine.
Find the posting and ask them why they said it. Though I have my theories. Folks around here breath rarefied air sometimes.
My bet is that in comparison to the truly wretched things said and done by folks, this tirade is actually mild, even though it shocks the sensibilities of the general public as it is broadcast.
This is the reasoning to release this at all by parties to the suits being fought here, because, the judge is more than likely without public pressure to just warn the Father. At most, to insist on counseling, because the goal is to maintain two involved parents, this is what is normally in the child's best interest despite the friction it causes.
One party here intends to use this to "win." the battle. Que Sara. But, this is not about the child's interest.
That's another assumption. How do you know what's happened before this? Anyway of knowing that this was the last straw, so to speak? None. I will tell you that this man is verbally abusive and threatening. And no, I will not tell you how I know that. Or the circumstances.
Have a good night.
I used the words, laws may have been broken, this remains to be seen. A third party, not Bassinger releasing this probably would have broken several laws to release it, other than the daughter herself. But, Kim still would have to consent to the release even if her daughter had contacted Levin herself.
Any employee of the household or other party is not a party to the conversation and thus cannot legally transfer or sell the rights to this material. This would be a theft, plain and simple.
Baldwin's lawyers are certainly assuming Bassinger and occam's razor certainly points that way. Levin isn't saying. He is saying he obtained it legally. But, even if he didn't, is he nuts enough to say he obtained it illegally? No.
I keep going back to the point that this material doesn't belong in a public forum. Passed that, I really don't care.
I do have concerns that this whole thing can morph into things you aren't considering. Just like the Libs are pushing 20 different ideas to advance Gun control in the wake of the VT Slayings.
There is blood in the water, and Conservatives are acting like liberals wanting the state to step in and keep Alec Baldwin from calling his daughter a pig and this can get knee jerk badly thought through legislation passed.
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