I’m not acquainted with William Shatner, the actor; and, the only things I know we have in common are our Canadian heritage and our passion for Star Trek; yet, this week I've gained new respect for this multi-talented and generous man, particularly as he faced the deaths of two close friends and a barrage of tactless comments.
Criticism of Mr. Shatner's inability to attend the funeral of his close friend and fellow actor, Leonard Nimoy, due to a previous commitment made me wonder at the insensitivity of so many wholly unrelated yet seemingly entitled people who thought they had a right to judge another person's motivations or choices.
In this case, Shatner's justification for missing the funeral - that he "chose to honor a commitment [he'd] made months ago to appear at a charitable fundraiser" - should have been taken at face value, if only because any explanation to the judgmental and undeserving masses was fundamentally unnecessary. After all, Mr. Shatner is an 83 year-old man who’s earned the right to make his own decisions. He's also shown himself to be a rare man who believes in honouring commitments, something that should be applauded, not condemned.
It's very likely that Nimoy and Shatner had said their personal good-byes prior to Nimoy's death, and that Shatner had spoken privately with Nimoy's family about this unfortunate conflict. It's certain that the pain of losing his dear friend and the distress of not being able to attend the funeral must have weighed heavily on his mind, as his daughters were on hand to represent the Shatner family at the funeral.
Given that Nimoy's Star Trek alter ego, Spock, is famous for the philosophical line, "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few," Shatner's choice to honour the fundraiser commitment would seem to be an eerie Star Trek parallel, of which Nimoy would have approved. Either way, Spock would have called Mr. Shatner’s decision to honour his previous commitment, “Logical.”
