Michael Jackson

[wishfulthinking]

I think he's innocent. I think it is all a ploy, and the claim was perfectly timed to coincide with the release of his latest CD.

I think he's a kid at heart, raised in a superficial world, and has never grown up.

I don't agree with what he has done, he is an oddity, but I don't think he has any sense of what is right and wrong, responsibilities, and that he wouldn't last 2 secs on the street.

Guilty or not guilty?

[and don't give me the 'innocent until proven guilty' - nobody believes that crap]

 

[elsol]

I think he's innocent. I think it is all a ploy, and the claim was perfectly timed to coincide with the release of his latest CD.

I think he's a kid at heart, raised in a superficial world, and has never grown up.

I don't agree with what he has done, he is an oddity, but I don't think he has any sense of what is right and wrong, responsibilities, and that he wouldn't last 2 secs on the street.

Guilty or not guilty?

[and don't give me the 'innocent until proven guilty' - nobody believes that crap]

I think he's innocent --- I don't agree with what he has done...

I'm confused.

Do you believe he did something or not?

Or are you saying... his inability to grow up has left him incapable of knowing right and wrong therefore anything he might have done should be excused because he is a lunatic.

As for myself... the preponderance of accussations is becoming a significant event, much like say the accussations that Barry Bonds is/was juiced.

And actually, I do believe in 'innocent until proven guilty' in a legal sense, he's not going to jail until he's proven guilty.

Do I think he's ACTUALLY guilty?

More than I think Kobe Bryant was guilty of rape... less than I believe OJ was guilty of murder.

Sincerely,

ElSol

 

[Liar]

Guilty or not guilty?

Probably one of those, yes.

 

[wishfulthinking]

I don't think he did it. I think the claim was motivated by greed.

As to his upbringing - the fact that he is an oddity only makes him an easier target. Sleeping in bed with minors, while most realise there may be something wrong with this, perhaps to someone with his lifestyle this idea of right and wrong might not kick in, because the job description of superstar sometimes equates with being a god in the rock world.

Culpability wise - I'm one of those people that don't believe insanity is a valid defence. You do the crime, you do the time. Insanity should only come in when it comes to sentencing.

As to innocent until proven guilty - while in the legal sense he isn't going to jail until the jury's decision in in, the world has mostly [except Liar] made their decision whether to convict him or not, and a legal decision will [again mostly] not change that opinion.

 

[NoJo]

I watched "Cath Me If You Can" the other night. Leonardo DiCaprio's best film.

He was hard to catch because he had an incredible sang froid; he was capable of lying with no sign of guilt -- like he actually believed that he was a real Boeing pilot, etc.

Certain serial killers seemed to possess the same icy coolness , which also made them hard to catch

I think there's a similar thing going on with MJ.

 

[bg23]

i don't know enough facts to judge objectively

so i can only go with intuition. which says he's guilty.

but my opinion doesn't matter, so i can afford to be unobjective, for the moment.

 

[Lisa Denton]

I think he's innocent. I think it is all a ploy, and the claim was perfectly timed to coincide with the release of his latest CD.

I think he's a kid at heart, raised in a superficial world, and has never grown up.

I don't agree with what he has done, he is an oddity, but I don't think he has any sense of what is right and wrong, responsibilities, and that he wouldn't last 2 secs on the street.

Guilty or not guilty?

[and don't give me the 'innocent until proven guilty' - nobody believes that crap]

Not enough facts released for anyone to know his innocence or guilt yet. I don't think the police and DA timed tryin to throw him in prison for years to coincide with the release of his latest C.D.

He was never a kid, although yes he never grew up.

Sleeping in the same bed with minors, drinking with them and looking at child porn with them is, if true, a definite indication that he has no sense of right or wrong.

His victim will go on trial, I don't think his victim is innocent, however if he was molested, I don't think he was guilty of that.

Superstardom doesn't mean freedom from responsibility, only the money can buy that.

Its a circus trial, with the victim the clown and the defense lawyer the ringleader.

Call it idealistic, but I think there may be one or two people involved in the prosecutions vast team, who actually believe that child molestation is a crime, but I doubt whether that issue will ever come up.

If the accused is guilty, and if any good comes from this, it will be that a child will not be robbed of precious innocence, and know evil and sickness instead of love and tenderness, in the future.

 

[cheerful_deviant]

The Michael Jackson court fiasco will be an absolute media circus, just as Lisa said.

It will be an epic legal battle and a fascinating demonstration of manipulation of the law by the rich. It will have very little to do with right and wrong and nothing at all to do with what actually happened at the Neverland Ranch.

 

[Colleen Thomas]

Anyone ever really take a look at MJ's lifestyle? I would suggest giving a 12 year old kid unlimited or practically unlimited resources. What might he do? Build his own amusement park? Buy a chimp? Spend wildly, the embodiment of instant gratification?

I think MJ is 12, both mentally and emotionally. Psycologically, I don't think he had a childhood as such and he has regressed to that level of development and stayed there.

I don't believe that makes him any less guilty and I do believe he is guilty. I do think however, in his case, there is a lot of evidence that he isn't able to tell right from wrong. I feel pretty confident that an independant and unbaised psycological profile on him would land him in an institution, or at the very least, with a restraining order to keep him away from kids.

my 2 cents worth.

 

[Lisa Denton]

Anyone ever really take a look at MJ's lifestyle? I would suggest giving a 12 year old kid unlimited or practically unlimited resources. What might he do? Build his own amusement park? Buy a chimp? Spend wildly, the embodiment of instant gratification?

I think MJ is 12, both mentally and emotionally. Psycologically, I don't think he had a childhood as such and he has regressed to that level of development and stayed there.

I don't believe that makes him any less guilty and I do believe he is guilty. I do think however, in his case, there is a lot of evidence that he isn't able to tell right from wrong. I feel pretty confident that an independant and unbaised psycological profile on him would land him in an institution, or at the very least, with a restraining order to keep him away from kids.

my 2 cents worth.

You are sooooo right Colly, I don't think a persons mental state or whether they were ever victimized should have anything to do with guilt or innocence, and everything to do with sentencing.

Giving a jury the option of finding him guilty and keeping him away from children in the future would protect society, and be an easy decision if evidence exists proving his guilt.

Punishing him for what occured however will probably eclipse guilt or innocence and go off into never-never land, so to speak.

It may be important in this trial but I hate to see the precedent set even higher for victims of sexual assault and molestation to prove their innocence.

It seems to be becoming:

"Protect the accused at all costs, re-rape the victim in front of the accused and public for the hell of it."

 

[doormouse]

so is he black or is he white?

 

[Lisa Denton]

so is he black or is he white?

Your butt is gonna be bright pink.

 

[doormouse]

Your butt is gonna be bright pink.

Mmmmm bring it on baby

 

[Couture]

Why couldn't he have done us all a favor and OD'd during the 80's?

 

[Guest]

Why couldn't he have done us all a favor and OD'd during the 80's?

Ditto that statement above.

Just like O.J. The S.O.B. has money, and will get out of anything. Guilty!!!!

 

[Quiet_Cool]

There's no question as to whether or not the guy is normal, but is he guilty? Honestly, I don't know the facts, but judging from the outside, I'd honestly say no.

More importantly than that, how many of these kids have been spending time with him (sharing beds with him) since the initial accusations were made in the mid-90s? You have to wonder what the parents were thinking in allowing this to happen. I was never one to think he'd done anything wrong, not when the first accusations were made, at all. I didn't doubt his innocence for a single moment. If I had kids, he wouldn't have been alone with them, simply because believing in his innocence isn't knowing it.

You really have to question the motives of the parents here. ANd moreover, I think we all need to accept that in trials like this (which will most likely involve even more smoke and mirrors than the OJ trial did) we'll never know what actually happened, just what parts each side want to sell to us. It's kind of like another election, actually...

Q_C

 

[LadyJeanne]

Anyone ever really take a look at MJ's lifestyle? I would suggest giving a 12 year old kid unlimited or practically unlimited resources. What might he do? Build his own amusement park? Buy a chimp? Spend wildly, the embodiment of instant gratification?

I think MJ is 12, both mentally and emotionally. Psycologically, I don't think he had a childhood as such and he has regressed to that level of development and stayed there.

I don't believe that makes him any less guilty and I do believe he is guilty. I do think however, in his case, there is a lot of evidence that he isn't able to tell right from wrong. I feel pretty confident that an independant and unbaised psycological profile on him would land him in an institution, or at the very least, with a restraining order to keep him away from kids.

my 2 cents worth.

If anyone could afford the best in therapy, it's Jackson. Whatever residual issues he is dealing with from his bizarre childhood and even more bizarre and abusive family, he's had plenty of time and money as an adult to seek help. I wish he had.

 

[Couture]

I feel pretty confident that an independant and unbaised psycological profile on him would land him in an institution, or at the very least, with a restraining order to keep him away from kids.

my 2 cents worth.

His fashion sense alone is enough to land him in an institution.

 

[brightlyiburn]

I'm inclined to think he's guilty.

Regardless of all else, his comment about how sleeping in bed with little boys is a beautiful thing reminds me way too much of child molesters on Law and Order. And despite that show's disclaimer, often it's very easy to see what stories they took from the headlines and modified.

There's just something about him that completely creeps me out. And you know, his family has been really poor help in improving his image. Janet baring her boob in front of millions of viewers, many of which were children, just makes one kinda think the whole lot of them are crazy.

Of course, since the O.J. trial people keep the evidence well wrapped up. So it would be hard to say, because no one knows what the evidence they have is. However, they obviously feel they have a case against him. And I doubt they'd go after him a second time if they didn't have a good reason to.

While it's true that people can and do try to take advantage of celebrities, it's not always easy to get children to go along with it. Either they're young enough to get their story messed up, or old enough to see that it's wrong.

 

[davidwatts]

I'm still trying to figure out what kind of parent sends their kid off to spend the night with this character.

 

[cheerful_deviant]

I'm still trying to figure out what kind of parent sends their kid off to spend the night with this character.

Parents who are either incrediblly stupid, or parents who see $$$.

 

[Couture]

There's fucked up parents everywhere. The home alone kid used to stay there.

Are you going to blame the parents for boys getting raped by Mike? Should we blame the girl for asking for it by wearing tight clothes?

 

[davidwatts]

yes to the first part

There's fucked up parents everywhere. The home alone kid used to stay there.

Are you going to blame the parents for boys getting raped by Mike? Should we blame the girl for asking for it by wearing tight clothes?

Obviously if he did something to the kid(s), it's his fault and should pay dearly (not $ but real time, and not in a country club either). He won't, of course, but it's a nice thought.

Still, you just can't put your kid in harm's way like that and not take some of the blame. Whether they were looking for money or fame is irrelevant. Jackson couldn't have done anything without the parents enabling it.

 

[wishfulthinking]

I can't really remember, but I think when the allegations first hit the headlines it was on the eve of him releasing a new CD, or just released it.

As to kids being too young to lie, or should know better, the word is "coaching". You see it a lot in family law/custody matters.

I think he is strange and weird and an oddity, but that doesn't automatically mean he did it. But yes, he should be restrained from being alone with children.

Parents are responsible for making the decision of who their children interact with. In this day and age, I would have thought many parents would have alarm bells ringing about letting a child stay with a 40+ unattached male who dangles kids off balconies and offers to buy them anything they want without seeming to want anything in return. But then again, hindsight is 20/20.

 

[NoJo]

If he is found guilty, they should make him give all his money to a charity for helping the child prostitute herion addicts in Thailand.

I mean ALL his money.