Alec Baldwin apologizes after fiery rant at daughter, 11 [breaks silence]

AFP via Yahoo ^ | 4/20/07

[Albion Wilde]

It’s so tempting...

[GovernmentShrinker]

Gee, I can’t imagine why she didn’t want to talk to him < /s>

And it’s hard to imagine what sort of “lengths” he’s accusing other people of going to in order to embarrass him and disrupt his relationship with his daughter, that could be more effective than the lengths he’s going to.

[hleewilder]

I’m sorry, but this is a case where we’ve had two different experiences; maybe we come from two different socioeconmic groups, whatever, but several of my friends while growing up had their parents beat the hell of them physically with belts, fists, and with one of my friends, the shaft of a garden hoe. This stuff happens, okay, and I am addressing you as somebody who may find that an alien concept. I, in no way, am trying to belittle your childhood. My own father never got physical with me, for which I am grateful. Words? I’m sorry, but words don’t mean anything compared to getting you ass beat up like a man when you’re only 13, becoming deathly afraid of your own father, or being a girl and having your father fondle and rape you on a regular basis from the time your eleven years old until you get married when you’re sixteen. I personally know of people who have gone through that. “You’re an ungrateful little pig” doesn’t seem to have the impact that “Kiss Daddy right here” does, now does it? Why don’t you forget Baldwin’s politics for a minute and try to imagine this other stuff going on, because I can assure you that it does. Thanks.

[najida]

Lucky you.

[CremeSaver]

Hmm...that’s an interesting angle to this whole thing. I have to agree with you, a pox on Kim and Alec with a generous dose of pity for Ireland. Poor kid, both parents are jerks.

[PeterFinn]

Alec Baldwin is the rude, thoughtless, little pig.

[CAWats]

Per KABC, Baldwin is now threatening to sue TMZ’ Harvey Levin because of the audio recording’s public release.

I'm sure TMZ is cringing in fear. S**ew Baldwin.

[California74]

GASP! How abusive of you! /sarc

[hardworking]

With all due respect, my parents used language ‘on’ me like that and then had the audacity to insist they ‘loved’ me, particularly when someone outside the family just happened to be around. Guess what? I grew up hating their guts for the way they made me think about myself because of their words. I buried them happily and wished they had passed on sooner.

You see, when, as a parent you have the philosophy you have described you forget about one thing: your kid(s) go ahead and make a life for themselves and over time you are not part of that life, to your very great loss.

Take it from me, I don’t care how upset you are, if you don’t have the mental capacity to think about the impact of your words on your kid, they are better off with you out of their lives.

[GovernmentShrinker]

I really wish this guy would make good on his promise to move to France.....

I'm sure his little girl shares your wish.

[Antonello]

I’m sorry, and I am not a big Alex Baldwin fan, but if he didn’t care about his daughter, then he wouldn’t even bother...Kate Hudson, daughter of Goldie Hawn and one of the old Hudson Brothers pop rock act, said she seldom talked with her father. Same goes for Liv Tyler, Steven Tyler’s (Aerosmith) daughter. She thought her father was Todd Rundgren...her mother, Bebe, was a Playmate in the 70’s and had a thing for those Famous Rock Stars. Anyway, from what I’ve read, Kim Basinger is rather bizarre and to have her record this sort of conversation, and not the apology that Baldwin called in later after he had cooled off is wrong, and it is going to cost her in the long run. Hey, if one of my sons pulled that sort of thing on me and wouldn’t take my call, which was a routine between us, I would be using choice words on him, believe me, and I would have some to give to his mother. Hey, nobody is saying that Baldwin molested his daughter, are they? Losing your temper and saying stuff that you might regret later (and have to apologize) just shows that Baldwin is human, fallable and loves his children, but demands their respect as the bottomline. I may not like his politics, and even though I crack a gut everytime I watch, America, World Police, I’m non Alex Baldwin’s side on this one. If my daughter is supposed to call me every such and such a day at such and such a time, then she better make damned sure she’s on that phone, and I don’t care if she’s six or sixty. That’s her Dad: show some respect.

The content of Baldwin's rant, coupled with his 'apology', indicate that he cannot help but misdirect his anger. He claims that the outburst was the result of the lengthy ordeal he has been through with the custody battle, and I suspect he was also feeling the demands of a hectic work schedule at the time of the call, too. However, the girl didn't do those things.

In fact, the more I think about it, I don't see where you are even a little bit right to blame the child for this. Even if she was acting out by avoiding the phone call, I'd say she's been through at least as much as an ordeal as her poor, abused father. Wouldn't you?

[Albion Wilde]

This is probably a minority opinion, but the press fire storm her mother created by leaking this voice mail probably was more devastating to her then what her dad did, even though he was a complete ass.

This was very unlikely to have been the first time he has done something this abusive. She wouldn't be fighting him so hard over the custody if there weren't some fears for the child's well-being, in view that he is in a position to "buy" custody with generous alimony if there were no real problems.

[Nevadan]

re: “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.”

Poor man. Let’s all chip in to buy him a cellphone so that it is not such a struggle for Alec to try “to get to the phone at a specific time.”

[isom35]

maybe I missed something, but he doesnt have a cell phone? :

“trying to get to a phone at a specific time”

[evad]

1..Rehab
2..Forgiveness
3..Move on

[CAWats]

f my daughter is supposed to call me every such and such a day at such and such a time, then she better make damned sure she’s on that phone, and I don’t care if she’s six or sixty.

Or what?????

[svcw]

Ok ok wait, he calls his daughter a pig and its wife’s fault. He curses at his daughter and its his wife’s fault....what an ass.

[PeterFinn]

Per KABC, Baldwin is now threatening to sue TMZ’ Harvey Levin because of the audio recording’s public release.

Not much of a lawsuit, really. Implied consent is the principle when you record an answering machine message - you knew it was being recorded and it is effectively public domain because you never know who will access the recording.

[PeterFinn]

You’re right. I was wrong to say “little”.

[Antonello]

admit it, no matter what he did, you’d criticise him for it.

Wrong.