During his acceptance speech for Best Actor at the Academy Awards last night, The Joker star Joaquin Phoenix went on a bizarre leftist rant that had to be seen to be believed.

“Whether we’re talking about gender inequality or racism or queer rights or indigenous rights or animal rights, we’re talking about the fight against the belief, one nation, one race, one gender or one species has the right to dominate, control and use and exploit another with impunity,” Phoenix said.

“I think that we’ve become very disconnected from the natural world and many of us, what we’re guilty of is an egocentric world view, the belief that we’re the center of the universe.”

“I think we’ve become very disconnected from the natural world. … We feel entitled to artificially inseminate a cow, and then we take her baby. Then we take her milk and put it in our coffee and our cereal,” Phoenix continued.

Close

“I think we fear the idea of personal change, because we think we have to sacrifice something, to give something up. But human beings at our best are so inventive and creative and ingenious, I think that when we use love and compassion as our guiding principles, we can create, develop and implement systems of change that are beneficial to all sentient beings and to the environment.”

This comes one week after Phoenix accused those voting in the BAFTAs, which is the British equivalent of the Oscars, of perpetuating “systemic racism” and sending a message to minorities that they’re “not welcome here.”

“I feel very honored and privileged to be here tonight. BAFTA has always been very supportive of my career and I’m deeply appreciative. But I have to say I also feel conflicted because so many of my fellow actors that are deserving don’t have that same privilege,” Phoenix said.

“I think we send a very clear message to people of color that you’re not welcome here. I think that’s the message we’re sending to people that have contributed so much to our medium and our industry and in ways that we benefit from.”

This is exactly the kind of behavior that has caused most Americans to stop watching Hollywood awards shows. Why would anyone tune in to see a member of Hollywood’s liberal elite lecture the rest of us about politics?