While there is no defending the fact that he punched a producer over something stupid, if in the span of a year I was attacked by an angry mob while filming, getting divorced from my second wife while my first wife was getting involved over it in the media, and just found out a few days earlier that I may or may not have cancer, I would probably not act like a rational person over something that might seem trivial to a normal person.
What should have been done by the BBC instead of comparing him to a pedophile, firing him, and then not telling him so he finds out about it in the newspaper, they should have suspended him for at least an entire series/year, make him go to counseling, give him time to get his personal issues sorted out and THEN talk about coming back.
I got banned for saying the same exact thing. I never argued he shouldn't be punished, I just questioned the punishment.
Anyway, I completely agree with you there. I thought the punishment hurt everybody, in the end, not just Clarkson, so it still is highly questionable.
That's exactly the kind of segment I hope never to see again.
These comments... Who forced you to watch this?
I don't think many are defending what Clarkson did or outraged that he got fired for it. At the end of the day yes he did something wrong and he paid for it. What some are questioning is how over the top some people were against him, it literally was like he had done something to them. Just because he acted like a idiot in the media spotlight doesn't mean he doesn't deserve a chance to move on.
This, so much. People were in fucking hysterics. Sure, people who wanted him to get away without punishment are equally bad, but you really got the impression this guy had just taken a huge dump into their soup - most of them even stated they hate the show. Well, then why even care? Do you watch Teletubbies to complain about the absence of dialogue too?
On topic, I love how so many people in this thread have less of an empathic ability than the fucking mars robot. Sure, fracassing the guy shouldn't happen, but as anyone knows with the least bit of psychological knowledge, it can happen because either one of those events is enough to make a full grown man spiral out of his own control.
But then you have people write stuff along the lines of "He should have followed Emotional Charge Emergency Protocol 132! Serves him right, divorce & cancer scare shouldn't keep you from proper working procedure at any time!"
(Yeah I'm still hung up on the robot thing)