Well, TNC gets high on these showboats a little too easily. Everyone's a genius these days. I can't say I was wild about Jackson's music, and it was hard to feel much warmth for him, because his life became such a hideous freakshow, but given what he went through as a child, and then with the skin-disease, I feel some pity for him. I suspect that death might have come as a relief, when you consider his circumstances. I'd like to think that we could forget the smallminded jokes about boys and children and show some compassion for the death of another person.
An undocumented number of WWII, Korea, Vietnam, and Gulf War/Afghanistan combat veterans died. Some of them were homeless, having never been able to adjust to life back in the USA.
About 100 innocent people died at the hands of a drunk driver.
At cancer institutes all over America children under 10 years old lost their battles.
Priests, rabbis and ministers who had walked the straight and narrow path and kept the Faith passed away.
And literally thousands of moms and dads died, leaving their surviving families - young or adult - devastated.
Sorry if I can't torque up some emotion for a narcissitic pedophile child abuser. I guess I'm just not empathetic enough.
First, MJ most likely wasn't a child molester. My guess is that you have no idea of the facts surrounding either case, and have just absorbed some of the peripherals and have settled on an ill considered, ignorance fueled judgement. Second, who gives a crap about any of the folks you just mentioned? Did they reshape pop-culture or make any lasting contributions to music? Did they donate millions to charities? Those folks are covered where they should be - in the standard obits. MJ was loved by millions, and will be missed by millions - hence the coverage.
The crime here is that people like you will just write the dude off because two shakedown artists accused him of being a predator. Was this the first time that someone has been wrongfully accused of this? No. Is it an egregious case of character assassination, perpetrated with assistance from mouthbreathers who are too busy to look into the details? Yes.
His life was an epic tragedy worthy of Homer. He was a tremendous musical talent, and likely the most popular person on the planet. Then he embarked on a journey of such self-destruction that by the end most people wouldn't let him in their home. There will never be another whose life arc matches the range of his.
He was hugely influential and while I don't mourn him the same way I would mourn a loved one, his passing is a significant event. I grew up with his music and while he wasn't my favorite musician, he was immensely popular and influential.
The man just died. His family, friends, and fans mourn his death. Now's not the time to smugly snark about his failures as a human being. Nor, upon the deaths of Dick Cheney and Jimmy Carter will it be time to cheer just because you disliked them and/or their policies. Now's the time to follow you mother's advice: If you don't have anything nice to say, keep quiet.
Michael Jackson died? Really? I hadn't heard. You'd think at least one of the major news networks might have mentioned it, if only in passing. It's not like there's anything else going on in the world right now.
Why the fixation on pedophilia? What ever happened to presumption of innocence until proven guilty, or taking a court and jury's verdict at face value? This wasn't the OJ case, where there was an overwhelming amount of evidence pointing towards guilt. Race was not involved, and I imagine the jury that acquitted him had more than a few parents on it. The charges would have been hard to verify in any case - he was accused of groping and distributing alcohol to minors, not sodomy. And this is hardly the first time someone would have been untruthfully accused of child molestation. These cases are actually more common than folks think.
The man was strange, that's true. But instead of getting all wrapped up in his strangeness and remembering him as a child molester and sinner, it seems like it would be more judicious to consider the fact that he might have been the victim in this case. Strange guy with lots of money who likes to hang out with kids - it's surprising that he wasn't the target of more predatory suits. And a look at the facts in both the Chandler and Arvizo cases should convince anyone that the guy was wrongfully accused, and the victim of predatory litigants and shakedown artists. But I guess it's easier to just go with your gut and assume that the man was a child molester because he dressed funny and acted strange. Take a look at the details of the case, look at his relationship with his own kids, former spouses, etc before remembering him as a "child molester." That stuff is just mob mentality, group think bullshit.
When Michael Jackson released Off the Wall, I was 13 years old, and it was the second album I ever purchased. I must have played it and, later, Thriller, 50-100 times until I left for college. His talent was immense, and the influence he had on contemporary music is larger than any artist of the last 35 years.
When Elvis Presley died in 1977, I really didn't understand the effect it had on people my parent's age. Jackson is really the first popular culture icon of my generation to have died. I understand it now.
I felt almost no resonance with this man, whether in his music or his lifestyle. Other than a couple of his songs with the Jackson Five, nothing of his appealed to me. I'm not making a moral judgment here -- I'm remaining neutral on his alleged pedophilia -- but an aesthetic one. I'm just amazed at the outpouring of emotion over someone who meant nothing to me. Are there others out there who feel as I do? What do those who prefer country or Latin music feel?
You're not alone. It's funny how everybody says that Off the Wall and Thriller are so much better albums than Bad. They pretty much sound the same to me.
Ward
(...)the influence he had on contemporary music is larger than any artist of the last 35 years.
Oh God, no. No no no no. Nooooo.
Repeat to myself 20 times: I will not be baited by this. These discussions are pointless. I will refrain from advancing the name of the dozens of artists who I think have had a greater influence than Jackson. People have different tastes. Disagreeing with somebody is a really bad reason to gratuitously insult the work of the recently deceased.
I suspect his death may have much relevance, if the stories are true, in drawing attention to the emerging problem of dependence on or abuse of prescription drugs. We shall have to wait to know. Yet everyone knew who he was, and we watched him age backwards.
It's not a problem if you feel no resonance. We each have our own personal tastes, and MJ certainly was no role model. He squandered a lot of his gifts and opportunities. That said, he still was quite gifted which is why so many people are expressing their appreciation.
As a child he was one of the first musicians I was aware of. We used to play outside with our friends in the parking lot of the 20 story buildings at Lefrak City in Queens NY. At a certain time of the day, the Jackson 5 cartoons came on, and everyone, some ten to fifteen kids, rushed inside to watch them.
We rushed inside too, but our mom always made us turn them off during the musical interlude. We were not permitted to listen to secular music.
There are a ton of people who kind of grew up with that. Today, I don't often listen to him, and prefer his slower or darker tunes. But his talent cannot be denied, dismissed or belittled.
Lately, due to a coworker's influence, I've taken up listening to a lot of George Strait. Many of his tunes I have heard before and never realized. I have a bunch of his stuff now, even though, in the past, his existence had actually zero relevance for me (though I did like some country artists).
Because George was not relevant to me for many years does not deny his great talent or songwriting ability. And when he dies it will be meaningful to many,even though there will be a host of non-country fans who have never really listened to him who will state, "Well, ya know, he has no meaning to me."
All I continue to hear is negatively around him, jealousy and speculation. why can't we just accept that he was an icon quirks and all and let it be. So much of the world was more interested in taking advantage of him and now we want to try to find out who he was..... the irony in life and death. Hair Styles
pedophile dies, world mourns.
Damn you for putting a (child's) human face on this. I was enjoying making "Jesus Juice" and Bubbles jokes until now...
To keep this relevant to the same site that uses "second derivative" to start a posting:
Anyone have any ideas how the market is going to respond to this news at the opening bell?
I heard they rushed a young boy to his bedside, but it was too late to save him.
Quite a juxtaposition between the snark here and the reverence on the Michael Jackson thread on Ta-Nehisi's blog.
Well, TNC gets high on these showboats a little too easily. Everyone's a genius these days. I can't say I was wild about Jackson's music, and it was hard to feel much warmth for him, because his life became such a hideous freakshow, but given what he went through as a child, and then with the skin-disease, I feel some pity for him. I suspect that death might have come as a relief, when you consider his circumstances. I'd like to think that we could forget the smallminded jokes about boys and children and show some compassion for the death of another person.
Yesterday:
An undocumented number of WWII, Korea, Vietnam, and Gulf War/Afghanistan combat veterans died. Some of them were homeless, having never been able to adjust to life back in the USA.
About 100 innocent people died at the hands of a drunk driver.
At cancer institutes all over America children under 10 years old lost their battles.
Priests, rabbis and ministers who had walked the straight and narrow path and kept the Faith passed away.
And literally thousands of moms and dads died, leaving their surviving families - young or adult - devastated.
Sorry if I can't torque up some emotion for a narcissitic pedophile child abuser. I guess I'm just not empathetic enough.
First, MJ most likely wasn't a child molester. My guess is that you have no idea of the facts surrounding either case, and have just absorbed some of the peripherals and have settled on an ill considered, ignorance fueled judgement. Second, who gives a crap about any of the folks you just mentioned? Did they reshape pop-culture or make any lasting contributions to music? Did they donate millions to charities? Those folks are covered where they should be - in the standard obits. MJ was loved by millions, and will be missed by millions - hence the coverage.
The crime here is that people like you will just write the dude off because two shakedown artists accused him of being a predator. Was this the first time that someone has been wrongfully accused of this? No. Is it an egregious case of character assassination, perpetrated with assistance from mouthbreathers who are too busy to look into the details? Yes.
Did Jacko grow a teat that dispenses Kool-Aid or something?
His life was an epic tragedy worthy of Homer. He was a tremendous musical talent, and likely the most popular person on the planet. Then he embarked on a journey of such self-destruction that by the end most people wouldn't let him in their home. There will never be another whose life arc matches the range of his.
He was hugely influential and while I don't mourn him the same way I would mourn a loved one, his passing is a significant event. I grew up with his music and while he wasn't my favorite musician, he was immensely popular and influential.
What a story, what a family, what bands, and what a loss. RIP.
The man just died. His family, friends, and fans mourn his death. Now's not the time to smugly snark about his failures as a human being. Nor, upon the deaths of Dick Cheney and Jimmy Carter will it be time to cheer just because you disliked them and/or their policies. Now's the time to follow you mother's advice: If you don't have anything nice to say, keep quiet.
Auditioning for the role of resident blog schoolmarm? Spare us your sanctimony.
Michael Jackson died? Really? I hadn't heard. You'd think at least one of the major news networks might have mentioned it, if only in passing. It's not like there's anything else going on in the world right now.
Why the fixation on pedophilia? What ever happened to presumption of innocence until proven guilty, or taking a court and jury's verdict at face value? This wasn't the OJ case, where there was an overwhelming amount of evidence pointing towards guilt. Race was not involved, and I imagine the jury that acquitted him had more than a few parents on it. The charges would have been hard to verify in any case - he was accused of groping and distributing alcohol to minors, not sodomy. And this is hardly the first time someone would have been untruthfully accused of child molestation. These cases are actually more common than folks think.
The man was strange, that's true. But instead of getting all wrapped up in his strangeness and remembering him as a child molester and sinner, it seems like it would be more judicious to consider the fact that he might have been the victim in this case. Strange guy with lots of money who likes to hang out with kids - it's surprising that he wasn't the target of more predatory suits. And a look at the facts in both the Chandler and Arvizo cases should convince anyone that the guy was wrongfully accused, and the victim of predatory litigants and shakedown artists. But I guess it's easier to just go with your gut and assume that the man was a child molester because he dressed funny and acted strange. Take a look at the details of the case, look at his relationship with his own kids, former spouses, etc before remembering him as a "child molester." That stuff is just mob mentality, group think bullshit.
Long live the King of Pop!
My thoughts a day later.
Interesting that the two industries that made 'Michael Jackson' possible are in the process of self destruction.
Maybe a facelift will help. Isn't that what Newsweek is trying?
Derek
When Michael Jackson released Off the Wall, I was 13 years old, and it was the second album I ever purchased. I must have played it and, later, Thriller, 50-100 times until I left for college. His talent was immense, and the influence he had on contemporary music is larger than any artist of the last 35 years.
When Elvis Presley died in 1977, I really didn't understand the effect it had on people my parent's age. Jackson is really the first popular culture icon of my generation to have died. I understand it now.
Hey dude it was a mindblowing video of Michael, you know i am a big fan of Michael Jackson..
Compare Laptop
I felt almost no resonance with this man, whether in his music or his lifestyle. Other than a couple of his songs with the Jackson Five, nothing of his appealed to me. I'm not making a moral judgment here -- I'm remaining neutral on his alleged pedophilia -- but an aesthetic one. I'm just amazed at the outpouring of emotion over someone who meant nothing to me. Are there others out there who feel as I do? What do those who prefer country or Latin music feel?
You're not alone. It's funny how everybody says that Off the Wall and Thriller are so much better albums than Bad. They pretty much sound the same to me.
Ward
Oh God, no. No no no no. Nooooo.
Repeat to myself 20 times:
I will not be baited by this. These discussions are pointless. I will refrain from advancing the name of the dozens of artists who I think have had a greater influence than Jackson. People have different tastes. Disagreeing with somebody is a really bad reason to gratuitously insult the work of the recently deceased.
I suspect his death may have much relevance, if the stories are true, in drawing attention to the emerging problem of dependence on or abuse of prescription drugs. We shall have to wait to know. Yet everyone knew who he was, and we watched him age backwards.
JFP@927
It's not a problem if you feel no resonance. We each have our own personal tastes, and MJ certainly was no role model. He squandered a lot of his gifts and opportunities. That said, he still was quite gifted which is why so many people are expressing their appreciation.
As a child he was one of the first musicians I was aware of. We used to play outside with our friends in the parking lot of the 20 story buildings at Lefrak City in Queens NY. At a certain time of the day, the Jackson 5 cartoons came on, and everyone, some ten to fifteen kids, rushed inside to watch them.
We rushed inside too, but our mom always made us turn them off during the musical interlude. We were not permitted to listen to secular music.
There are a ton of people who kind of grew up with that. Today, I don't often listen to him, and prefer his slower or darker tunes. But his talent cannot be denied, dismissed or belittled.
Lately, due to a coworker's influence, I've taken up listening to a lot of George Strait. Many of his tunes I have heard before and never realized. I have a bunch of his stuff now, even though, in the past, his existence had actually zero relevance for me (though I did like some country artists).
Because George was not relevant to me for many years does not deny his great talent or songwriting ability. And when he dies it will be meaningful to many,even though there will be a host of non-country fans who have never really listened to him who will state, "Well, ya know, he has no meaning to me."
All I continue to hear is negatively around him, jealousy and speculation. why can't we just accept that he was an icon quirks and all and let it be. So much of the world was more interested in taking advantage of him and now we want to try to find out who he was..... the irony in life and death. Hair Styles