The Requisite Michael Jackson Post « Don’t Make Me Get the Flying Monkeys!!!!

The Requisite Michael Jackson Post

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I’m probably too old to care much about Michael Jackson – I was well past bubble gum music when the Jackson Five burst onto the scene and the adorable little Michael sang “A-B-C 1-2-3″. I didn’t follow his music and I didn’t much care. His constant exploits would take over news cycles on occasion and I didn’t find much redeeming there.

I learned to see Michael Jackson as the whiny man-boy who could always turn the most normal event into a freak show. I saw a person who engaged in self mutilation as he made himself into the visual monster that he must have envisioned in his mind. I was besieged with the stories of the constant legal problems and bizarre acquisition of children.

Worst of all, I saw a person who was given a great gift by God for music and dance. He succeeded beyond all imagination in his chosen field and had wealth most of us can not comprehend. And, yet, it wasn’t enough for him – ever. He was ever on the path of self-destruction and his friends and family could not or would not get him the psychological help he needed.

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What did he do? He constantly whined about not having a childhood. Too bad for you, Michael – you didn’t get to ride the school bus, be beaten up by bullies, deal with gang violence, wear hand-me-downs, wish for the bicycle that never came. You had it tough. You traveled the world. You met famous and influential people. You had doors opened to you that the rest of us dream of. And, all you did was to feel sorry for yourself.