It was something of a shock to see Will Smith punching Chris Rock at the Oscars Sunday night.  This kind of violence truly should have no place in civilized society.

We sympathize with Chris Rock, who handled the whole affair rather graciously, given the circumstances.

This incident, however, seems to be emblematic of Hollywood's decay.  This is what unhinged leftism does to any social grouping.

Twitter video screen grab.

To quote the unforgettable Donald Trump: "Everything woke turns to s---."

It goes without saying that no comedian should ever receive this kind of treatment.  One can only wonder whether Chris Rock got slapped because he happens to be black.  Perhaps Will Smith harbors some unconscious racism, and this was his way of acting it out.  It remains to be seen whether the media will pay attention to this possibility and what conclusions they will draw from this regrettable event.

Will Smith should be confronted and asked directly whether he is a racist.  You can be sure he would deny it, but we all know how it works: denying being racist means that you are a racist.

Be that as it may, we resolutely condemn the wanton slap of Will Smith and stand in solidarity with Chris Rock.  And we hope no other black comedian suffers the same mistreatment in America, which many claim is systemically racist.

There is actually a real danger that Sunday's event will lead to similar incidents as some people may be encouraged to imitate Will Smith's untoward example.  This must never be allowed happen, because black comedians are at least as worthy of dignified treatment as comedians of all the other skin colors.

Vasko Kohlmayer was born and grew up in former communist Czechoslovakia.  You can follow his writings by subscribing to his Substack "Notes from the Twilight Zone."