Comments on: Michael Jackson.

By: Anna at D16

Anna at D16 — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 03:01:42 +0000

And with that, I think it’s time to close the comments on this post.

Thank you to everyone who contributed, whether it was to share memories of growing up with Michael or to express concerns over my beliefs.

By: Anna at D16

Anna at D16 — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 02:54:39 +0000

belinda: I appreciate that you have chosen to only acknowledge Jackson as a musician and for reasons of personal nostalgia, but for me, it’s far more emotional than that. This should not come down to some kind of “competition” between people to see who has more personal experience with child abuse — this is about acknowledging the life of a person that was horribly taken advantage of and has been used as a punch line for endless numbers of hideous jokes about very, very serious subjects. I challenge your argument that it’s empathetic to simply sweep that aspect of Jackson’s life under the rug for the sake of those who have been abused. The salacious (and even humorous) manner in which allegations of sexual abuse are treated by the mainstream media and society as a whole is incredibly damaging and belittling to the very real effect of abuse on those who truly ARE victims — surely as legal counsel for these types of cases you must be aware of that.

You and I are in no position to judge whether “anonymous” was ever a victim of abuse, just as neither you nor s/he is capable of making that same assumption about me. I am, however, fully within my rights to defend my choice to recognize Jackson’s contributions without making any excuses or disclaimers. I will not stand by and be told that I am turning a blind eye to something just because I don’t want to address it. Nothing could be further from the truth.

By: belinda

belinda — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 02:18:21 +0000

I have to comment. What a response to the commentary left by Anonymous (see above). I believe he/she raised a valid point regarding Michael’s life. The charges against him for child molestation are a fact and although he was not convicted, those accusations shall not be go away for some. You can certainly say I choose to disregard (if not deny completely as so many people choose to do) those ill accusations and honor Michael for who he was as an artistic prodigy, but to attack anon about his/her supposed lack of knowledge of trial details & records and his/her question of authenticity. Come on. He/she just expressed their opinion. Why cross that line & invest so much personal energy? Simply show some courtesy, tolerance and respect and say I appreciate where you are coming from, but I choose not to acknowledge those deeply disturbing parts of Michael’s life and instead praise him soley for his musical artistry & childhood nostalgia. I studied Michael’s case in law school so I do have extensive knowledge of the charges against him, by the way. I will not state my opinion but I will say there is a remarkablly high percentage of people who do believe those accusations because they have been victims of child abuse. Incredible isn’t it? I am legal counsel for child abuse cases here in British Bolumbia. And I suggest Anna, you have empathy for those who have been traumatized in childhood abuse. I do not know if Anon is a survivor of abuse, but the signs are telltale possible. And so I understand his/her comment and accept it as such. I am hoping you and your readers will too.
And about the email, yes we don’t know you, Anna, other than Door Sixteen blogger. And you don’t know me other than a reader responding to a comment (I am real or I wouldn’t be writing this, right?) And whether you choose to post this is up to you (although I see no reason why you wouldn’t). Email addresses are very personal. But know that this isn’t.
Keep up the otherwise inspiring posts. Now back to my kitchen renovation.
Sincerely, Belinda

By: Vanessa

Vanessa — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 20:58:42 +0000

Anna, I really applaud your response to Anonymous. I’ve never believed the accusations either, and I think that the real tragedy in all of this isn’t Michael’s death, but more so his life. That people assumed so much based on his oddness. He was an easy target and easy to take advantage of. Thank you for putting it so well. I can’t believe all of this, either and feel so very, very sad about it.

By: Tamstyles

Tamstyles — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 06:57:53 +0000

GO ANNA! I loved your response. Girl you could hang with me anyday! I love how you stand up for what you feel strong in. Keep it going girl! The world and its people can be so cruel and hurtful. So to the fact that he felt the need to cover his kids faces…or to move to a home that totally kept him apart from the world because it judged him so. Wonder why he didnt like his nose?? As a child when people are telling you over and over, or you over comments and read comments about how big it is, or ugly it is…you grow to dislike it. Again…cruel people. I wish people would do like he said and look at the (wo)MAN IN THE MIRROR…

By: AMY

AMY — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 02:58:19 +0000

I spent the better part of Sunday morning watching MJ videos on VH1 – so many good ones that seem like a lifetime ago! I couldn’t get over his moves in Smooth Criminal – we had to rewind our DVR a few times to check it out.

By: Anna at D16

Anna at D16 — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 00:49:09 +0000

Thank you to everyone for sharing your memories — the comments really made me feel happy. :)

By: JuliaL

JuliaL — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 19:13:23 +0000

Thank you Anna! I thought it was just me.

By: Kathleen

Kathleen — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 19:13:21 +0000

amen.

By: Angela

Angela — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 18:37:32 +0000

Anna, I agree with you 100%. You’ve written a lovely, heartfelt tribute to Michael, and I don’t want to turn this into a debate about what he did or didn’t do, but Anonymous’s comments really struck a nerve with me.

Anonymous – I’m not ‘turning a blind eye’, like Anna, I simply never believed the allegations against MJ. I am a mother of two and if someone had molested my child I would fight to no end to make sure that person was held responsible & put in jail – where they could never harm another innocent child again. However, instead of trying to put MJ in jail, the boy’s father was more interested in how much money he could get. How could any amount of money justify sexual abuse to a truly concerned parent?

What I do believe is that Michael Jackson was an easy target – a wealthy & eccentric celebrity, who fell prey to bad people.

Is it really so bad to celebrate the things we loved about him?

Anna – I came across your blog by accident when I googled ‘painted white hardwood floors’ & have been addicted ever since! Your house is gorgeous & your ideas have inspired me to make bolder design choices.