KINSLEY GAFFE: Barbra Streisand makes a mistake and tells the truth.

When Streisand discovered that the general public has yet to attain her level of sophistication about child abuse, she issued a damage limitation article in the Washington Post. We know it was written by her, because her handlers would never have let the bad grammar pass. ‘The single most important role of being a parent is to protect their children.’ But then Streisand restated her original analysis:  ‘It’s clear that the parents of the two young men were also victimized and seduced by fame and fantasy.’  She followed up with a tweet stating she was ‘profoundly sorry’ for ‘not choosing my words more carefully’. She hadn’t meant to ‘dismiss the trauma these boys experienced in any way’ — or at least to get busted for it.

But she did. The damage is already done. She is accused of being ‘complicit’ with pedophilia in the entertainment industry. It’s not clear if complicity still counts as an offense, now Robert Mueller has filed. But people are also threatening to burn her albums, and boycott her concerts.

Streisand’s mistake was to tell us what she really thinks. In her thinking, and the group-think of Hollywood, celebrity culture might recklessly exploit and consume its players, but they’re lucky to get the chance to play at all. She understands fame, but not the sudden change in the media’s mood. The public has always disliked the abuse of power. It’s the media which has suddenly changed from simplicity and cover ups to crusades and #MeToo campaigns. Poor Barbra.

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