Like Elvis Presley before him, the demise of Michael Jackson has engaged the entire world, and the parallels are spooky. Both Presley and Jackson lived isolated, somewhat bizarre lives, eventually destroying themselves with drugs administered by doctors on their payrolls. This was a proven fact in Presley's case; there is strong evidence in Jackson's.
But while Presley was mourned primarily as a great entertainer, Jackson is being sold by his supporters as much more. In fact, if you listen to Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, the troubled singer was the second coming of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. At Jackson's memorial service earlier this week, Sharpton put forth that Jackson brought blacks and whites together, teaching us all how to love.
Wow, who knew?
A Pew Research poll shows that African-Americans are far more interested in the Jackson story than are white Americans, and some speakers at the memorial referred to Jackson as a black icon. But how can this be? Jackson bleached his skin to make it lighter and presumably paid white men to donate sperm for his three in-vitro children, at least two of whom were carried to term by a white woman.
Does that sound like a black icon to you? What is really going on here?
My colleague Bernard Goldberg says this is an example of a minority group sticking together, rallying around one of their own. It is true that many African-Americans celebrated the acquittal of O.J. Simpson of murder, as well as a jury finding Jackson not guilty on child molestation charges.
I guess it's natural to root for the home team, especially when history has been brutally unkind. Black Americans well understand the injustice of the past.
But the truth is that Jackson's contribution lies in entertainment and little else. He is not a role model. His admitted conduct with children is simply unacceptable for any adult. His use of cosmetic surgery is troubling to say the least. And the enormous amount of money he spent on prescription drugs speaks for itself.
Of course, the corrupt media are driving the deification of Jackson. Rather than challenge the St. Paul-like portrayal, the media are cynically exploiting it to the fullest.
Remember, these are the same people who covered the molestation trial gavel to gavel. When Jackson was found not guilty, did the press label him a hero? They certainly did not. But now that he's dead (very possibly from an accidental drug overdose), Jackson has become a hero. How does that happen? What kind of media con is this?
I'd like to put that question to every single national anchorperson who sat there doing play-by-play at the memorial service, but I do not believe I'd get a cogent answer.
I have no desire to intrude on anyone grieving for Jackson, especially the people who truly loved him. But the entire planet is watching this play out, and there is such a thing as truth in this world.
We should be telling it.
Veteran TV news anchor Bill O'Reilly is host of the Fox News show "The O'Reilly Factor" and author of the book "Who's Looking Out For You?" To find out more about Bill O'Reilly, and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com. This column originates on the Web site www.billoreilly.com.
COPYRIGHT 2009 BillOReilly.com.
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Sir;...You and Jackson have a lot in common...He never grew up, and you never will unless forced to...You are an entertainer, and so was he; and a few months from now, almost all people will have quietly got on with their lives realizing they don't miss him a bit...The same will be true of your loyal fans... They will find some one else to do their thinking for them, some one else to give voice to their loss, their pain, and frustration...Some one else will turn their fear to hate like some bizzzare catalyst... You do not ask them to grow up, but to stay forever immatuure...You will not tell them to face their pain, and express it, or forget it...Instead you itch them where they cannot scratch...You know, like all people who are Irish, or part Irish; I think Gods treasures a certain affection for the Gallic Races, and makes us whole... Then there are maligned beasts like yourself, forever throwing about yer fists, and hurting all like a drunken blind man... Sure it is that God would strike you silly where you not too far gone...Like so many of your sort, you beat up on idiots, or cartoon characters, or movie representations, and now, on the dead... At least you have an adversary you can whip...What is it with you folks... Can none of you attack anyone on fair and level ground??? So many of you start your comments with a lie, and if the reader buys the lie, they will accept all that follows... Tell the truth, that people like Elvis were warped by poverty... Jackson's whole existence was money and music... Do you suppose he looked to children because he could not trust adults???Elvis was born into poverty...His house, the home of his birth is a testament to want...He was talented, fortunate, and undiciplined, and as he grew older he could not resist the long denied treats of youth...You can never have enough sugar...You can never have enough drugs...You can never have enough, especially if you have grown up with nothing... Want in youth brands people with desires in their soul... What do you do to save people from that fate??? From my experience, you celebrate all the people driven to have wealth...Do you think it is ever enough???.Is it a substitute for love, affection, trust, and understanding???You do not get it...For every rich man this society makes, it makes thousands of essholes who will never be rich, and can never be grateful, who can never say thanks, or never say please, and who spread their misery like a disease...Our economy is a death sentence...It is killing us, one at a time, and in multitudes...How many will die without insurance???How many will die in prison???. How many will die in wars, and how many will die by their own hands seeking some relief from a heartless reality??? Your world is hell...So that some can know an earthly paradise thousands suffer hell on earth, and it warps people, and makes them hate humanity, and hate their lives...Maybe you are a drunk... Does it make sense to fail at your relationships, and to always have a bottle open???We are all hurting... Who cannot hurt seeing so many hurt???We do not all cheer on the misery, the death, and the pointless tears as you... We need a user friendly society...We do not need to encourage cut throat behavior designed only to create bigger and bigger problems that make fewer and fewer rich...Thanks...Sweeney
Comment: #1
Posted by: James A, Sweeney
Mon Jul 13, 2009 8:24 PM
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King Michael - every inch a fake! Fake race, fake face, fake voice, fake marriage, fake kids, fake innocence and fake legacy.
Comment: #2
Posted by: GJ Tryon
Tue Jul 14, 2009 5:10 PM
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