[mr.khali]

I have no problem with people stating their opinions about the man. This is a public forum and these discussions are interesting. Some can easily separate talent from the individual, some cannot. Mikey J has forced most of his fans to do just that. He thrilled us and embarrassed us. I think the outpour of adoration comes from most of his fans forgiving the strange as soon as we heard about his death. Without forgiving we would all be hated by someone for something. I also think people put too much faith in the legal system, society's biases and how the media spins things. Michael Jackson is a pedophile, Woody Allen is just weird. Chuck Berry serves time for supposedly being with young women, Jerry Lee Lewis marries his barely a teenager cousin and he stays free. Mike Tyson supposedly raped the girl, Kobe Bryant supposedly didn't. Dog fighting is wrong, hunting deer is ok.

 

[bloop]

Quote:

Originally Posted by iriverdude /img/forum/go_quote.gif Just because you wouldn't tell your kids be molested, doesn't mean all parents would stand by, if they knew could get $25 million pay out.

Yes, and I said I'm skeptical. I didn't say it wasn't possible. Payouts are always going to make me wonder if there was anything to the story other than the money.

At any rate, I enjoy a fair amount of his music. That's really all I'm sure about.

 

[kool bubba ice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mr.khali /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have no problem with people stating their opinions about the man. This is a public forum and these discussions are interesting. Some can easily separate talent from the individual, some cannot. Mikey J has forced most of his fans to do just that. He thrilled us and embarrassed us. I think the outpour of adoration comes from most of his fans forgiving the strange as soon as we heard about his death. Without forgiving we would all be hated by someone for something. I also think people put too much faith in the legal system, society's biases and how the media spins things. Michael Jackson is a pedophile, Woody Allen is just weird. Chuck Berry serves time for supposedly being with young women, Jerry Lee Lewis marries his barely a teenager cousin and he stays free. Mike Tyson supposedly raped the girl, Kobe Bryant supposedly didn't. Dog fighting is wrong, hunting deer is ok.

 

[kool bubba ice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by s_nyc /img/forum/go_quote.gif It might sound horrible, but I do not feel that much grieved for the death of artists who were in the twilight of their career, especially knowing that their best stuff will survive them. After all, I will still be able to listen to and enjoy Thriller whenever I want. Different story for the likes of Cobain, Hendrix, etc. who could potentially have brought a lot more to music.

Seriously, for the past 15 yrs he was only a major player in Europe. In the US he was big for being on trial & waving his 2 yr old from a balcony.

 

[DavidMahler]

I guess the thing that makes me feel so sad about the whole thing is that Michael was an entertainer who brought such happiness to so many people, and inspired a legion of followers. He clearly had some private issues, but he was a abused by the media as much, if not more than he was by his own father. I have no proof of whether or not he was a child molester, he was acquitted of all charges, but my sanity tells me that no parent would let a child molester walk free for any $$$ payoff......and if they did, then they are awful parents and have much worse things to worry about than whether or not Michael Jackson molested their child...their value and moral system is disasterous if this is the case and they will pass it down to their children........saying to your child "we let a man molest you but didn't lock him away cause he gave us $$$" is far worse than the act of molestation in my opinion. In the end I feel bad because Michael Jackson brought joy to millions but was almost the laughing disgrace of our entire culture and the man didn't deserve that and will never know just how dear in our hearts he really was. I can still listen to Thriller or Off The Wall or Jackson Five stuff and remember Michael before his mental breakdown, before he destroyed his face and before he became relatively insane. I feel bad for his family, I feel bad for his kids, and I feel most all.....bad for him, he may have had a HUGE life, but I wouldn't call it a good one, and I'd guess he was never truly fulfilled or happy and that's sad.

 

[roadtonowhere08]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidMahler /img/forum/go_quote.gif I guess the thing that makes me feel so sad about the whole thing is that Michael was an entertainer who brought such happiness to so many people, and inspired a legion of followers. He clearly had some private issues, but he was a abused by the media as much, if not more than he was by his own father. I have no proof of whether or not he was a child molester, he was acquitted of all charges, but my sanity tells me that no parent would let a child molester walk free for any $$$ payoff......and if they did, then they are awful parents and have much worse things to worry about than whether or not Michael Jackson molested their child...their value and moral system is disasterous if this is the case and they will pass it down to their children........saying to your child "we let a man molest you but didn't lock him away cause he gave us $$$" is far worse than the act of molestation in my opinion. In the end I feel bad because Michael Jackson brought joy to millions but was almost the laughing disgrace of our entire culture and the man didn't deserve that and will never know just how dear in our hearts he really was. I can still listen to Thriller or Off The Wall or Jackson Five stuff and remember Michael before his mental breakdown, before he destroyed his face and before he became relatively insane. I feel bad for his family, I feel bad for his kids, and I feel most all.....bad for him, he may have had a HUGE life, but I wouldn't call it a good one, and I'd guess he was never truly fulfilled or happy and that's sad.

Very well said.

He may have done what was alleged, and if true, it was a heinous act that no amount of talent can wash away. On the other hand, I do not think he had a malicious bone in his body, and even though his actions with children were insane, I truly believe he was not a predator like others. That is where the media failed him; they could not tell the difference. We will never know the extent of his actions with children, but the fact that no parent saw to it that he rotted in jail, I have serious doubts.

Having said all that, Michael Jackson was one of the most talented artists in any genre of music EVER, and I am not even a big fan of his music anymore (I was when I was a child). What he gave to his fans was unlike any other musician or group, including the Beatles or Elvis. He was beyond cult-like; he was a religion to many.

Through all the very strange events surrounding him, I am sad to see him go, because he was the real deal. There will never be anyone like him again due to the current state of affairs in the music industry.

I will greatly miss him.

 

[komi]

Yes, i am a father too !

But - in all this "molester" label about Jackson i was sceptical ...

First of all - if he IS molester why he never finish in jail ...
I can understand there was a some "deals" but - i was thinking local sheriff have some obligations to public to "protect and serve" and put pedofiles behind bars! How this never happen?

Another thing - IF some parent know he is potential pedofile, why you let your kid go on that ranch alone and stay there for days and nights? And then all the sudden you find out your keedo is molested? I bet lawyers was waiting on the ranch gate already...

Now .. he is maybe pedofile - but i am talking about molesting a kids ...
We can all agree - there is ONLY one place for molesters - but do MJ molest really anyone - thats my doubt ...




There is no price list on MY kid, but - come out these "molested" kids are well overpriced!


There is no money someone can pay to me to protect molester to dont go in jail and never touch another child - IF i am sure he is a molester ...

 

[saintalfonzo]

I agree with the last few posts, none of us will really ever know what happened. It seemed as though all of the parents involved were more than happy to accept a settlement rather than prison time, which seems strange to me. If I had a child and I was sure he/she were molested I would be out for blood before any sort of monetary settlement. I think he was an easy target because of his obvious strange lifestyle and behavior.

 

[ronnielee54]

The sad thing is there are many parents that do put a price on their children. Just look at the entertainment industry. There are many parents that push their children into the buisness and don't allow them to just be a child. Probably explains why there are so many eff'd up adults that grew up in the buisness. They never got to just be a kid. They had to go to work.

 

[jsaliga]

Why do you guys insist on making this about the more controversial aspects of Jackson's legacy? Please heed the very simple request of the moderators at the begining of this thread.

[size=small]It would be nice if people could pay their respects and leave out the rest, but maybe that's too much to ask. [/size]

No one is saying that you can't have a field day digging into all of the unsavory baggage in Jackson's personal life if that is really what you are all about. But why not start a thread for that purpose and leave this one for people who simply want to remember his music and art?

--Jerome

 

[HipHopScribe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by saintalfonzo /img/forum/go_quote.gif I agree with the last few posts, none of us will really ever know what happened. It seemed as though all of the parents involved were more than happy to accept a settlement rather than prison time, which seems strange to me. If I had a child and I was sure he/she were molested I would be out for blood before any sort of monetary settlement. I think he was an easy target because of his obvious strange lifestyle and behavior.

There are parents who sell their little kids out as sex slaves for a few thousand dollars. Unfortunately, it's not far-fetched to think some might be willing to do it for millions.

 

[phangtonpower]

Thriller scared the crap out of me when I was a kid, but I still had to watch it every time covering my eyes

RIP

 

[DC2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by phangtonpower /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thriller scared the crap out of me when I was a kid, but I still had to watch it every time covering my eyes RIP

I was a camp counsellor at a Christian summer camp in the early 80s when this video came out and it was very controversial (at least among us). Some of the staff had trouble with its content but one young woman I worked with pointed out that MJ had issued a strongly worded disclaimer and besides "it was just a fun flick". Fun yeah, but a little creepy all the same

I know that Jackson has released dvds of his videos from time to time and was under the impression that one of the Thriller reissues included a dvd disc with the video included but can't seem to find it.

 

[mr.khali]

Quote:

Originally Posted by phangtonpower /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thriller scared the crap out of me when I was a kid, but I still had to watch it every time covering my eyes RIP

LOL! Me too! I would always tell my cousin to call me when the werewolf part was over so i could watch the dancing zombies. Zombies aren't scary when they are dancing like that!

 

[roadtonowhere08]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsaliga /img/forum/go_quote.gif Why do you guys insist on making this about the more controversial aspects of Jackson's legacy? Please heed the very simple request of the moderators at the begining of this thread. [size=small]It would be nice if people could pay their respects and leave out the rest, but maybe that's too much to ask. [/size] No one is saying that you can't have a field day digging into all of the unsavory baggage in Jackson's personal life if that is really what you are all about. But why not start a thread for that purpose and leave this one for people who simply want to remember his music and art? --Jerome

Perhaps you could qualify "you guys", because I do not think it gets any more respectful than my post...