How strange: he was a little younger than me (but not much!), so it's sad to learn that the King of Pop has died of a heart attack. He had real talent.
Die young, leave a strange corpse.
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« Guess who else won toys from Eric Hovind? | Main | I get email »
Michael Jackson dead
Category: News
Posted on: June 25, 2009 6:36 PM, by PZ Myers
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Comments
Posted by: Lee Picton | June 25, 2009 6:44 PM
Sad, but not all that surprising.
Posted by: josh | June 25, 2009 6:46 PM
No WBC press release yet. It'll happen soon, though.
Posted by: SteveN | June 25, 2009 6:46 PM
Coming up next... Alien Autopsy: Hollywood edition!
Posted by: Lsuoma | June 25, 2009 6:46 PM
Linky.
Posted by: CiciSteamer | June 25, 2009 6:48 PM
I was floored to have heard this so unexpectedly. He is a legend. He was indeed bizarre there at the end but he was gifted individual. RIP
Posted by: John H | June 25, 2009 6:48 PM
Meh, sad that he's left young children behind, but not sure I really care all that much.
Posted by: SteveN | June 25, 2009 6:48 PM
Coming up next... Alien Autopsy: Hollywood edition!
Posted by: SteveN | June 25, 2009 6:50 PM
Coming up next... Alien Autopsy: Hollywood edition!
Posted by: lose_the_woo
|
June 25, 2009 6:51 PM
Farrah's gone too. She went this morning.
Posted by: Glen Davidson | June 25, 2009 6:51 PM
OMG, I'd sure like to know what went wrong.
Young boys should be somewhat safer, on the plus side.
I don't think music will actually suffer, in fact. Talent he had, but then you have to use it properly. Behe as a case in point.
Glen D
http://tinyurl.com/mxaa3p
Posted by: Crocoduck | June 25, 2009 6:51 PM
so is this evidence against homeopathy and woowoo medicine?
Posted by: mikespeir | June 25, 2009 6:51 PM
If I had a magic wand, I'd bring him back. Not really sure why.
Posted by: Kobra | June 25, 2009 6:52 PM
Hahaha. Leave a strange corpse.
Posted by: black wolf | June 25, 2009 6:52 PM
It's sad. I hoped he'd stabilize in time. But it appears he suffered from skin cancer additionally to his mental problems and financial crisis. Poor guy.
Posted by: Zeno | June 25, 2009 6:55 PM
Poor loony guy. He was messed up in the head (and kept messing with his head, too).
I thought he was going to check out with Diana Ross, not with Farrah Fawcett.
Posted by: me | June 25, 2009 6:55 PM
Sad in so many ways.
Posted by: ForgotMyGingko | June 25, 2009 6:55 PM
I'm tellin' ya... he's angling for a Thriller remake.
Mark.My.Words.
Posted by: Darren Garrison | June 25, 2009 6:55 PM
Well-- he's molesting boys in Heaven, now.
Posted by: Mena | June 25, 2009 6:56 PM
In a general (human) way it's too bad that he's gone but I really don't want to hear his music catalog every time I turn on the radio in the next few days!!!
Posted by: NewEnglandBob
|
June 25, 2009 6:58 PM
A creep and pedophile gone. That negated his music.
Posted by: Sven DiMilo | June 25, 2009 6:58 PM
He named himself the "King of Pop."
Sure was a soulful youngster, though.
Posted by: NitricAcid | June 25, 2009 6:59 PM
John H.: Meh, sad that he's left young children behind...
Now, now, be nice. Focus on his music, not his rumoured preference for the behinds of children.
Posted by: abys | June 25, 2009 7:01 PM
They always go in threes: Ed McMahon, Farah Fawcett and now Michael Jackson.
Sigh.
Posted by: black wolf | June 25, 2009 7:02 PM
Ken Ham live with chat questions tonight, beginning 7:30 PM Eastern
http://live.creationmuseum.org//
They're already anticipating Pharyngula visitors, don't disappoint them! ;)
Posted by: ethin | June 25, 2009 7:02 PM
Though I don't know his more recent beliefs, it should be noted that he left the Jehovah's Witness church in the 1980's when they wouldn't let him talk to his family any more (due to their policy of shunning).
I can't help but think that by having his lifelong beliefs challenged in such a way, he may have taken a more rational approach to the universe. Pity he turned into a walking nightmare in the last couple decades.
Posted by: Sauve | June 25, 2009 7:02 PM
Sucks to see a talented entertainer go. He was amazing to watch.
Posted by: Iason Ouabache | June 25, 2009 7:02 PM
Michael Jackson died for your sins!
Posted by: NitricAcid | June 25, 2009 7:03 PM
To tell the truth, I would have been upset if this had happened in about 1986, when I particularly liked his music. Now, meh.
Posted by: Kate | June 25, 2009 7:03 PM
His poor kids. They're still quite young and this is going to be such a media circus.
Posted by: Addfwyn | June 25, 2009 7:04 PM
Sad to see him go. Regardless of what may have happened later in his life, he had real musical talent. We would have certain music the way we do now without him.
Posted by: John H | June 25, 2009 7:05 PM
NitricAcid @ 22
I was actually referring to his actual children. While I was waiting for the comment to post, I realised what it might look like! Still though...
Posted by: Addfwyn | June 25, 2009 7:05 PM
Sad to see him go. Regardless of what may have happened later in his life, he had real musical talent. We wouldn't have certain music the way we do now without him.
Posted by: Wowbagger, OM | June 25, 2009 7:06 PM
Hmm, not exactly I expected to see a post about.
I'm not a fan now, but Thriller was the first proper album (albeit on cassette) that I ever owned. I shudder to think of how many times I played that thing; probably drove my parents up the wall.
While I can't say it's affected me directly, I do feel bad for his fans - having suffered through the losses of Jeff Buckley (amazing talent) and Elliott Smith (unparalleled genius) I wouldn't wish that sort of pain on anyone, no matter how creepy the musician in question had become in his later years.
Posted by: MAJeff, OM | June 25, 2009 7:07 PM
Dude was a total freak, but I feel like my youth died today.
Posted by: NitricAcid | June 25, 2009 7:07 PM
John H @ 31- I knew what you meant, but I just had to make the obvious comment.
Posted by: Sili
|
June 25, 2009 7:08 PM
Sad that I prolly knew more of him than of Fawcett.
I'll abstain from repeating my bad joke from the neverending thread, so I'll have to come up with a new one.
Obama in the White House. Tiger Woods the best golfer of all time. The Williamses doing grand in tennis (hithertofore at least - can't say that I follow the sport). Neil DeGrasse Tyson the public face of science.
If I were Michael Jackson, I'd have had a heartattack too.
Posted by: James F | June 25, 2009 7:10 PM
Dedicated to the memory of the boy we knew....
Posted by: Olowkow | June 25, 2009 7:12 PM
Ok, Jackson died. Now the networks say this in every conceivable way, even though no further information is given. Oh look, a picture of the hospital parking lot...oh, an ambulance picture...oh, an aerial view of something...looky, a bunch of people doing something... So what about news of the rest of the world? Seems like the news media can only focus on one story at a time. I guess Iran is just old news.
Posted by: Crazyharp81602 | June 25, 2009 7:13 PM
I was at an ice cream place when I first found out that he died and boy was I shocked and surprised about it. It's like Wow. Rest in peace, Michael.
Posted by: svihura
|
June 25, 2009 7:15 PM
Play Michael Jackson off, keyboard cat...
Posted by: Mena | June 25, 2009 7:17 PM
It looks like this is becoming an Anna Nicole Smith style media circus...
Posted by: Evangelatheist
|
June 25, 2009 7:17 PM
QUICK!! Wrap him in a sheet and hide him in a cave for three days and let's see if he comes back.
Posted by: Andrew | June 25, 2009 7:21 PM
Sad. RIP
Posted by: littlejohn | June 25, 2009 7:21 PM
His poor kids? Are you kidding? His sperm had nothing to do with the creation of those lily-white children.
He was talented? No he wasn't.
He was a waste of gravity, oxygen and, apparently, a shitload of interesting drugs.
I dread next week, what with all of those dreary celebrity funerals.
As with Elvis, this was his best career move.
Somebody get me another drink.
Posted by: abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz | June 25, 2009 7:21 PM
He had real talent.
...for buggering little boys, that is. I'm surprised he was never ordained by the Holy Roman Catholic Church.
Posted by: SC, OM | June 25, 2009 7:23 PM
Strange it still hasn't been confirmed.
I can't believe there are people who actually live camped-out in vans outside his house. What the hell is wrong with people?
I'm not usually affected by celebrity deaths. Only two in 'recent years - Payne Stewart and Frank Sinatra. Not that anyone cares, of course. Just sharin'.
Posted by: Roger
|
June 25, 2009 7:25 PM
I quit listening to him after "Bad"(a more appropriate album title could not be found). But "Off the Wall" and "Thriller" are masterpieces.
Posted by: Atheist Chaplain | June 25, 2009 7:26 PM
I was over it about 10 seconds after I heard it on the news this morning. I was listening to the constant droning(that's all there is at the moment, Its like Iran doesn't exist) about it on the TV and one talking head said "everyone has a Michael Jackson album in their collection" I don't! never did and never will.
I feel sorry for Farrah Fawcett's loved ones as her tragic death has now been swept aside by the media like someone trying to flick dog shit off their shoe.
And the Jackson jokes are already coming in over my mobile phone
"If monkeys go to heaven then Michael will now be blowing bubbles" Says it all really.
Posted by: Psycho Atheist | June 25, 2009 7:28 PM
I wonder if it was the Sunshine, Moonlight or the Good Times?
Doctors will only blame it on the Boogie!
OK, so I am a bad man...
Posted by: Chris Davis | June 25, 2009 7:29 PM
Can't help wondering if the poor bloke ever ate any protein.
And this: despite the reams that have been written about him, I wonder if we actually know a thing about him.
Posted by: SC, OM | June 25, 2009 7:29 PM
Now confirmed.
May be preferable for them in some way.
Posted by: jj | June 25, 2009 7:30 PM
Well I guess celebrities can sleep well tonight, as they always go in threes...
Posted by: Stygian Lamprey | June 25, 2009 7:30 PM
Damn...took me all of 10 minutes posting under the moniker "KentHovind" to get booted from Ken Ham's live chat dealy.
Lightweights.
Posted by: Benjamin Geiger | June 25, 2009 7:31 PM
You know, I'd suggest that maybe Michael the Black would come back, Tolkien-style, as Michael the White... but he's already done that.
(Too soon?)
Posted by: Uppity Atheist | June 25, 2009 7:32 PM
I hope you're finally at peace, Michael, your lifelong search for the happy childhood you were denied is finally over.
Posted by: bob loblaw | June 25, 2009 7:34 PM
it's all blatantly a publicity stunt for his upcoming dates in london
...
Posted by: David Utidjian | June 25, 2009 7:35 PM
I was more upset when Stanley Kubrick died (10 years ago now.) Just watched a review of his life and work on TCM that was quite good called "Stan" (almost three hours long!) It had interviews with everyone who worked with him, and his wife and daughters.
I was not a big fan of Michael Jackson. I did like some of his music and performances. Not so much the public figure. He was certainly a very talented performer.
Farrah Fawcett was more easy on the eye though I can't say I was a fan. If a movie or TV-show came on with her in it I would usually just change the channel.
I was reading her obit. on CNN.com and one line in the article struck me as odd:
Who says things like that?
She was a person dammit, not a thing or a symbol that declines. (sheesh)
-DU-
Posted by: Atheist Chaplain | June 25, 2009 7:35 PM
SC @ #51
probably true about Farrah's tragic loss as it wasn't a particularly pleasant form of cancer she had. :-( (BTW none of the cancers are particularly pleasant but anal cancer has a nasty tone to it)
Posted by: Ragutis | June 25, 2009 7:35 PM
Doesn't really affect me. I never got into anything post Jackson 5 (despite growing up through his heyday). Still, he was the Elvis for a generation and millions of fans and clearly friends and family will be devastated. My sympathies to them.
Apparently he'd been working really hard getting into shape and rehearsing for those London gigs. Guess he overdid it. Wouldn't surprise me if they find a bunch of weird stuff in his system, though. If I had to bet that anyone was into woo medicine, it'd be him.
Posted by: Evangelatheist
|
June 25, 2009 7:38 PM
WTF?!? I'm on an atheist website and people are yammering on about resting in peace and finally at peace?!? You sound like a bunch of fundies. The dude is DEAD. The only thing the R in RIP can stand for is ROT in peace as in leave him the hell alone and don't make a big old shrine to him. He's DEAD.
/rant
Posted by: Wowbagger, OM | June 25, 2009 7:39 PM
Sorry, but you're wrong. Even if you didn't like his music (I didn't after the age of 12 or so), or him as a person (yes, he was a creepy weirdo with serious issues), for a while he had the ability to write catchy pop tunes - a demonstrable talent.
He was also a very good dancer and choreographer - another demonstrable talent.
While it's fair to say that these talents may have faded - or abandoned him completely - but it's ridiculous to say he never had any.
For example, I despise Céline Dion on almost every level - but that doesn't mean I don't think she's talented; it's just it's in a way that means absolutely nothing to me.
Posted by: Randy | June 25, 2009 7:40 PM
He was indeed an odd duck. I would like to think that he just thought of kids as playmates and not 'playthings'.. but I suppose nobody will know for sure now.
Any death, even an otherwise inconsequential celebrity death like this, gives one pause. Life is short, wierd, painful and often beautiful. I am going home to hug my mastiff and kiss my wife and enjoy the sun on my face.
Posted by: Greg Laden
|
June 25, 2009 7:42 PM
My one Michael Jackson story:
http://tinyurl.com/mj-in-zaire
Posted by: Ragutis | June 25, 2009 7:44 PM
2 thoughts just came to mind...
1)Mark Stanford is breathing a hell of a sigh of relief. No one's going to be talking about or covering him in any depth today or anytime soon.
2)Paul McCartney gets back 50% of the rights to the Beatles' catalog.
Posted by: Wowbagger, OM | June 25, 2009 7:47 PM
Ragutis wrote:
He does? It's not something that will become part of Jackson's estate?
Posted by: Dexter M.
|
June 25, 2009 7:50 PM
Wow, bad luck for Farrah Fawcett. She dies and is basically ignored by the media.
Oh well.
Posted by: weaves | June 25, 2009 7:50 PM
still the creepiest looking person i've ever seen
Posted by: landrew | June 25, 2009 7:51 PM
I mean no disrespect to the memory of the man (from the 80s at least), but RIP? really? from people on this site?
cognitive dissonances anyone?
Posted by: Watchman | June 25, 2009 7:51 PM
Not Ryan O'Neal, I assure you.
Yeah.
This is one of the many things that sucks about growing older: bits and pieces of yourself start falling off.
Those pieces have names.
Posted by: Rick R | June 25, 2009 7:52 PM
I was much more affected by the news of Farrah Fawcett's death, probably because I had just recently seen a documentary about her battle with cancer. And battle she did, given that her doctors pretty much gave her a death sentence when she was diagnosed in 2006.
Of course, she had the resources to jet back and forth to Germany where she found doctors willing to treat her supposedly untreatable cancer. She said in the doco "I want people to see what cancer is like", and she meant it. She even captured the remains of that famous hair being shaved off when the chemo started taking its toll.
By the end of it, she looked like a tiny 80-year-old woman, wrapped up in blankets.
While watching it, I had one of those moments where I seriously asked myself "would you go through all that for one more day drawing breath? Really?" My answer was no. I'd drive out to some remote part of the desert and put a gun in my mouth. But I don't have health insurance, or millions in the bank.
So, I was saddened by the news, but not really surprised. She really didn't look like she had much life left in her. Sad.
Posted by: Paul Lundgren | June 25, 2009 7:52 PM
Since I'm lazy, does anyone remember if Jackson's father is still alive? THAT guy is/was the real freak who messed up Michael. MJ was responsible for his actions, but his dad completely screwed him up for life.
Posted by: AdrianT | June 25, 2009 7:53 PM
A great showman - though apart from the Thriller album, his music was rarely my cup of tea. It's sad he was owned by the media and his entourage since the day he was born. Sad to see him go.
Posted by: steve | June 25, 2009 7:54 PM
@#50
Ask some of the boys he molested ...
Posted by: landrew | June 25, 2009 7:54 PM
I mean no disrespect to the memory of the man (from the 80s at least), but RIP? really? from people on this site?
cognitive dissonances anyone?
Posted by: Hockey Bob | June 25, 2009 7:56 PM
According to unnamed sources, the CPR that was attempted on him failed, because his nose kept falling off.
I guess that would tend to make things difficult, no?
(Too soon? Oh well - he's just another dead pedo anyway.)
Posted by: Krystalline Apostate | June 25, 2009 7:59 PM
Wow. I'm the same age as MJ, so when I hear about someone passing away in my age range, I usually think, "Holy shit!"
50's too young for a heart attack. & I thought HE was in better shape than ME.
So what's the acceptable amount of time I'll have to wait before I can tell MJ jokes again? 2 weeks? 2 years? Never?
Posted by: Eric | June 25, 2009 7:59 PM
He's fondling angels now.
Posted by: ethin | June 25, 2009 8:05 PM
He's fondling angels now.
Er, maybe you meant cherubs.
Posted by: Strangel | June 25, 2009 8:05 PM
I miss George...
Posted by: Watchman | June 25, 2009 8:07 PM
Ok, you pedantic Militant (lol) Atheists, when I'm dead, I will REST, dammit. When I'm old and very, very tired, and ready to go, I will look forward to my eternal REST, the sleep that does not end.
I mean, what the fuck? Nobody's talking about afterlife. We can either honor a passing, or not. Farrah's and Michael's battles are over. Now, they rest - in neutral, undemanding eternity of true oblivion. Quibble if you must.
Posted by: King of Zeroes | June 25, 2009 8:10 PM
Can't say I miss him all that much. I never enjoyed his music so the only entertainment I ever derived from him was the drama surrounding RAEP.
Posted by: John H | June 25, 2009 8:13 PM
Paul Lundgren @ 71
According to the BBC news website, he is indeed survived by his father.
Posted by: Random Mutant
|
June 25, 2009 8:13 PM
The King is dead, Long Live The King.
Now, we have to promote the prince, Prince, to King, so he can be The Artist Formerly Known As The Artist Formerly Known As Prince Now Known As King.
Heh.
Posted by: Eidolon
|
June 25, 2009 8:14 PM
Randy @ 62..
Alternatively, you can kiss the sun, hug your mastiff...
Posted by: Dahan | June 25, 2009 8:15 PM
While I find this sad, it's not going to put me off kilter like when Stevie Ray Vaughan died, or even Johnny Cash. I admit to getting teary eyed about them when they died. Peace to MJ's family and friends.
Posted by: landrew | June 25, 2009 8:15 PM
@80
"When I'm old and very, very tired, and ready to go, I will look forward to my eternal REST, the sleep that does not end."
An agnostic deathbed conversion?
Posted by: Deiloh
|
June 25, 2009 8:17 PM
Amazing how many investigators, lawyers, confidants, confessional booth priests, and victims are here on this thread. Nice rational thinking based on media hype rather than any real information.
Hmm, maybe vaccinations do cause autism.... (sarcasm)
Posted by: MadScientist | June 25, 2009 8:17 PM
Certain event organizers have a lot of tickets to refund.
Jackson wasn't much older than me and he didn't appear obese the last time I saw him on TV; I wonder what contributed to his heart attack? Just last week I lost an old high school buddy, but he was bigger than Weird Al Yankovic in "Fat". Come to think of it, a lot of my high school buddies are morbidly obese - I guess there are some good things to being a poor starving scientist.
Posted by: JiminKy | June 25, 2009 8:18 PM
Several of us have expressed sympathy for his kids, saying it was sad they'd face a media circus and grow up without a dad.
Possible, but the TV frenzy will die down in a week or two, and this may allow the kids to have quiet, normal lives. Sad to say, but if they get someone responsible to manage their finances, this may be the best that could've happened to them.
Posted by: Eric | June 25, 2009 8:22 PM
I wonder about the heart attack too. Given his relative young age and good health I wonder if maybe the reason for his freakishly mangled nose AND the heart attack weren't both due to plain old cocaine abuse?
Posted by: ddr
|
June 25, 2009 8:23 PM
How long before the nutters come out and say he faked his death and is living on a private island someplace?
Posted by: Larry | June 25, 2009 8:24 PM
Evolution continues. Ashes to ashes; dust to dust
Deal with it!! Life can be tough.
Posted by: Anonymous | June 25, 2009 8:25 PM
Hey, you have to go to 4chan's /b/ (mature audience only and not safe for work) and see all the jokes being created. Truly epic.
Posted by: Kel | June 25, 2009 8:25 PM
Next I suppose you're going to take "God Damn It!" as atheists really believing in God...Posted by: Bride of Shrek OM | June 25, 2009 8:25 PM
I'm still trying to get my head around the fact he was 50. He always looked about 12.
Even though he was my 80's music era I never got into his music ( too busy swooning over new-romantic musicians wearing pale pink lippy) but I'll admit he was a very talented musician and dancer.
It's sad he degenerated into a weird farce in the last decade or so because that's largely how a great proportion of people will remember him.
Posted by: Eric Hovind | June 25, 2009 8:25 PM
Bullshit.
He faked his death and is living on a private island someplace.
Posted by: Ragutis | June 25, 2009 8:34 PM
I believe there was news a while ago that he was feeling shitty and guilty (finally) about the way the whole thing happened and for fucking up his friendship with Paul and had decided to leave them to him in his will.
Of course, my memory is less than reliable. And I can't blame it on the drugs, it's always sucked.
Posted by: Longtime Lurker | June 25, 2009 8:35 PM
How long before the nutters come out and say he faked his death and is living on a private island someplace?
He's in the same compound as Tupac.
How soon before the righties blame his post-80s descent into madness on Clinton's penis?
Posted by: Sven DiMilo | June 25, 2009 8:38 PM
I think we need to wait three days to see what happens.
Posted by: corydoras | June 25, 2009 8:39 PM
What's with all this RIP stuff? He's dead, gone to the same place you were before you were born. You don't rest when you die, you rot in a hole in the ground or you get vapourised in a big oven. ^D. EOF. Fin.
Posted by: Andyo
|
June 25, 2009 8:41 PM
Ain't we a peculiar species... we have science (and religion), technology, music, movies, and so on...
We have hospitals too, but we also elevate other fucking primates to the level that when they die, a Big Fucking Deal is made out of it and they have to close a one of those hospitals disregarding other primates' (who are alive) needs.
He was born, he invented the moonwalk, he is dead. Big Fucking Deal. Michael Jackson fans are only second to Oprah fans, followed closely by Star Wars fans (talking about the ones that camp outside theaters, lest I offend other sci-fi geeks here)
Posted by: mayhempix | June 25, 2009 8:52 PM
Before the nose and skin jobs, the glove, the animals and the claims of molestation was a singular talent named Michael Jackson.
Michael Jackson - Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough
http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=89837307853&h=dpB6O&u=iULQe&ref=mf
While it is possible he did molest the boy, it was never proven. MJ was a tragic projection of our media driven star machine and a product of a merciless father that robbed him of any real childhood. I don't condone any actions he may have taken and found him to be a bizarre cartoon in his later career. But just like Elvis Presley who had a similarly freaky second act, it does not take away the fact that in his youth, he was a one of a kind talent that brought the richness of black music and R&B to lily-white MTV and was another cultural step towards the acceptance of a black man as President of the US.
Posted by: Sarah | June 25, 2009 8:56 PM
I feel more sad about Farrah. She went through a lot before she died. That documentary about her cancer was heartbreaking. She and her boyfriend were planning on marrying, too. :(
Dammit, couldn't he have waited a couple days? Now that he's gone no one seems to care about her.
Posted by: One Eyed Jack | June 25, 2009 8:59 PM
$10 says drugs were involved. Give it a week.
Posted by: 'Tis Himself
|
June 25, 2009 9:16 PM
But not Elvis. He's running a Burger King in Missoula, Montana.
Posted by: djinn | June 25, 2009 9:16 PM
Poor, poor Michael Jackson. He was raised strict Jehovah's Witness. Psycho-father beatings strict. He was obviously sensitive and intelligent. I blame religion. If you all don't know, which all you brilliant Pharyngulites probably do, pedophilia is highly correlated with religiosity. Fuck religion, once again.
Posted by: TRC | June 25, 2009 9:17 PM
I suppose considering his chronic health problems it shouldn't have been suprising.
With all the whitewashing going on though I suspect we'll hear a new rendition of The Chaser's 'Eulogy Song' soon (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLVsIpejFgM).
#98: You are not wrong;
http://www.drmcninja.com/page.php?pageNum=20&issue=11
Posted by: george.w | June 25, 2009 9:17 PM
Yes, RIP, even on this site. His consciousness is gone but so is his pain. He was clearly a tortured individual and now his pain has ended.
Not necessary to like his music to recognize his talent, his creativity, and the contribution he made to the world of entertainment... which is itself a very worthwhile, human thing. If anyone doubts this, think of the prohibitions against music under the Taliban in Afghanistan.
And I did like some of his music.
Posted by: Lurker | June 25, 2009 9:19 PM
I can't say this anywhere else, but I totally don't care. I don't like or dislike Michael Jackson. I hope he wasn't guilty of child molestation but it wouldn't surprise me if he was. I hope that the people that were close to him are okay, of course. But he is a celebrity that I never knew, and I don't care anymore than I care about all the other people I never knew who have died. I am already tired of the media coverage, which I'm sure will last for the next few days.
Posted by: Sven DiMilo | June 25, 2009 9:22 PM
The self-styled "King of Pop" was a talented singer and a well-practiced dancer, but please. He was not a great musician. His music was lowest-common-denominator all the way.
I blame him for Britney Spears.
And I blame her for Miley Cyrus.
Posted by: george.w | June 25, 2009 9:26 PM
Obesity isn't the only thing that can cause a heart attack. Stress is a risk factor. And MJ was very thin and frail, too. He may have fallen to anorexia.
Posted by: TheVirginian | June 25, 2009 9:29 PM
Despite what he'd done or allegedly had done in his later years, Michael Jackson was a talented young man who had a real influence on music, something most of us cannot claim. I blame much of his problems on the fact that he did not have much of a childhood, given his early celebrity and that he came out of a weird religious cult. I'm not sure which had more evil influence.
I'm old enough to remember seeing him when he first started out in the 1960s with his family in the Jackson Five. While I was not one of their fans, he did stand out. "Thriller" was deservedly a Big Album. I never saw him in concert and was not a big fan generally, but I recognize his influence. Now for my one Michael Jackson anecdote (not a personal encounter).
About 20 years ago, I was on a tour in Egypt. One night, my tourist group and some others were in a club. Our group included a couple from Taiwan, attached to a Mideast embassy. I remember that the club was playing some Euro pop song, and the dance floor was empty. People drifted off from the various tour groups, including the husband in the Taiwanese couple. Then the club put on "Beat It." Dozens of people hit the dance floor. And the Taiwanese wife grabbed me by the arm because she just had to dance to Jackson's song, and since her husband had wandered off, I apparently was the only male that caught her attention. (I say that to flatter myself, but as I recall, the only other males were either married, had girlfriends or were way too young to dance. Maybe I just looked like a "safe" partner if her husband returned. I prefer the first explanation.)
The point is, Jackon's best music had THAT much international appeal. His subsequent bizarre and disgusting behavior (I discount some weird stories on principle because I don't trust the Celebrity News-sance rags) doesn't change what he once was.
So I don't forgive him if he molested children nor overlook his weirdness, but I don't forget he did not have a normal life because of superstition and that bizarre celebrity industry that is so damaging to young people. (Britney, Lindsay, etc.)
Besides, anyone who can get the great Vincent Price to rap in a horror pop song has to have SOMETHING good about him!!!
Posted by: Meowcat | June 25, 2009 9:34 PM
Cardiac arrest. Not a heart attack.
Posted by: Sven DiMilo | June 25, 2009 9:37 PM
He played a major role in creating that bizarre industry.
Posted by: Ebo Tebo | June 25, 2009 9:40 PM
I believe it was cardiac arrest rather than a heart attack. But never the less, he is at room temperature.
Posted by: Rey Fox | June 25, 2009 9:48 PM
"You don't rest when you die, you rot in a hole in the ground or you get vapourised in a big oven. "
Seems like the definition of "rest" to me. So let's cut the "athiester-than-thou" stuff, folks.
Posted by: oaksterdam | June 25, 2009 9:49 PM
Sven, I hear you. But I also recall being really shaken by the Ryan White story. The music may not be my thing but since then I've thought of the self styled King of Pop (and Elton) as fucked up, fallible heroes.
Besides, you are a little too into the Grateful Dead to be talking shit. Just sayin'.
Posted by: Geoff | June 25, 2009 9:49 PM
Sad. I understand how MJ fans feel though. John Lennon left a legacy and double length Yoko Ono concerts. Tito and Latoya for 3 freakin' hours? Yikes!
Posted by: SC, OM | June 25, 2009 9:50 PM
Yeah, I doubt Jim Morrison will have anything to do with him.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 25, 2009 9:52 PM
Sheesh,everyone dies of cardiac arrest.
Pump stops-->bloodflow to brain broken-->brain broken-->you broken
Question is,what brings it on.
As to MJ,well,I always thought there was something sad and tragic about him,yes there was his music and dancing,but at the same time he was a creep,he managed to build up 400 million debt while being the most famous pop singer in the world,and he was obviously mentally disturbed and deeply neurotic.
Anyway,to me any death before its biological time is tragic.
Posted by: Alex Deam | June 25, 2009 9:52 PM
Condolences to his family, friends and also his fans.
Trying to treat his coma with diluted more coma was never going to work.
Posted by: John | June 25, 2009 9:54 PM
Darn you evil Atheists!
You just brought down the live chat at http://live.creationmuseum.org... how could you.
oh, at it only had 184 people online at the time.
I was just about to post a witty comment about jesus and his preference for men, and the connection was lost.
Oh well.
Posted by: Not the doctor | June 25, 2009 9:55 PM
Heart Attack =/= Cardiac arrest
A heart attack (aka Myocardial Infarction or MI) is when the blood supply to part of the heart is interrupted which causes some of the heart cells to die. It may or may not result in cardiac arrest (aka death).
Cardiac arrest is when the heart stops beating or is not beating effectively enough to supply blood to the body. Unless immediate treatment (CPR, defibrillation and/or medication, etc) is begun within a few minutes, this condition will result in death. All deaths result in cardiac arrest (breathing ceases and the heart stops beating).
The cause of MJ's cardiac arrest is currently unknown. An autopsy tomorrow will probably discover the cause.
Posted by: Dude | June 25, 2009 9:56 PM
I found out when I was playing an mmorpg online. One of the people said he died, and since the idea of the game is about zombies, I thought they were kidding. It's kind of hard to believe.
Meanwhile, 10 to 1 he'll starting doing the thriller dance. Anyone? Anyone?
Posted by: Buzz Buzz | June 25, 2009 10:03 PM
Can all you douches who are getting your panties in a twist over the use of the phrase "rest in peace" please, please, quiet the hell down? It's a common phrase in English. A figure of fecking speech.
Like, "God damn it," or "Jesus Christ!" and even "Oh, thank God."
It means nothing. It's a colloquialism. And just because one uses it does not mean that they are endorsing the idea of an afterlife or the idea of a personal God.
If you really can't get over it, maybe you should go form some atheistic orthodoxy somewhere to purge our ranks of unacceptable language. Douchebags.
Posted by: John | June 25, 2009 10:04 PM
Oh!
I can't WAIT to see what kind of freeky Will Jacko had...
Oh!
Could you imagine all the strange crap that will turn up at his estate?!
Oh!
And all the families sworn to secrecy about Jackson touching their penises can finally speak out!
What a fun week (or two..gag) we have to look forward to.
We are truly in for a Hollywood Spectacle!!!
Posted by: defective robot | June 25, 2009 10:04 PM
At least he was pre-embalmed.
Posted by: sasqwatch
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June 25, 2009 10:05 PM
NPR keeps repeating that he's only "apparently" dead. So perhaps there's still hope.
Posted by: Alex Deam
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June 25, 2009 10:08 PM
Michael of Many Colours?
Posted by: Rorschach | June 25, 2009 10:08 PM
Dude,
Iif you turn on your TV,he was just rolled into the morgue for autopsy.
Posted by: dWhisper
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June 25, 2009 10:11 PM
A Huge shame. As batshit crazy as he was, his music is beyond legendary, and should be remembered as such. Thriller is among the greatest albums of all time (and I have a lovely 1st-run vinyl of), and he defined, and owned, the 80s.
Posted by: Alex Deam
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June 25, 2009 10:16 PM
I think we all know that PZ owned the 80s:
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/06/another_myth_debunked_with_sci.php
(In case you're wondering, Clinton owned the 90s, and now it looks like Sanford will own this decade, with 6 months to go).
Posted by: John | June 25, 2009 10:16 PM
We really should feel sorry for the poor paramedic that attempted CPR on Jacko. I mean come on, Jacko's whole face actually collapsed and caved-in! They had to pull the medic out by has boots!
At least that what is playing in my head...
I think I'm still in shock.
Or maybe is because I've been playing "Smooth Criminal" on repeat for the last 5 hours.
Annie are you ok?
So, Annie are you ok?
Are you ok Annie?
Annie are you ok?
So, Annie are you ok?
Are you ok Annie?
Annie are you ok?
So, Annie are you ok?
Are you ok Annie?
You've been hit by
You've been hit by-a smooth criminal
So they came into the outway
It was Sunday-what a black day
Mouth to mouth resuscitation
Sounding heartbeats-intimidations.
WOW. The Irony in this song is perfect.
-----------------------------------
Posted by: Uerba | June 25, 2009 10:22 PM
...I still cannot believe it...RIP. You will not be forgotten...
Posted by: Uerba | June 25, 2009 10:25 PM
...I still cannot believe it...RIP. You will not be forgotten...
Posted by: Bert | June 25, 2009 10:28 PM
Sad end to a sad story.
Posted by: mayhempix | June 25, 2009 10:30 PM
Posted by: defective robot | June 25, 2009 10:04 PM
"At least he was pre-embalmed."
LOL!!!
Posted by: John | June 25, 2009 10:31 PM
Smooth Criminal:
"So they came into the outway
It was Sunday-what a black day
Mouth to mouth resuscitation
Sounding heartbeats-intimidations"
http://www.etonline.com/media/photo/2009/06/98268/400_mjackson_ambulance_newgraphic_090625.jpg
-----------------------------------
Posted by: NewEnglandBob
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June 25, 2009 10:45 PM
Right....It wasn't proven.......
AFTER HE PAID $15-$20 MILLION to the boy to shut up!
Posted by: aratina cage
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June 25, 2009 10:52 PM
I'll never forget Michael Jackson as Captain EO, my first 3-D movie experience. Michael was larger than life.
I just wanted to put it out there for the conspiracy theorists that he was not proven guilty of child molestation. In the U.S., that means he is innocent.
Also, how are some people getting religious connotations from "R.I.P."? From the point of view of a sentient being, death is no different from a deep peaceful sleep. R.I.P. seems appropriate, then, for atheists, too.
Posted by: Mena | June 25, 2009 11:05 PM
Alex Deam@132:
Actually this decade doesn't end for another year and a half. There are plenty of governors and senators to admit to cheating on their wives until then, maybe not at taxpayer expense though.
Posted by: Alex Deam
|
June 25, 2009 11:17 PM
I thought the start and end of decades were treated differently to centuries and millennia?
Posted by: msr | June 25, 2009 11:18 PM
i think it sucks that the guy died at 50, and i feel for his kids & family. he was obviously an "icon", but musically (post-jackson 5), michael jackson's output was worthless crap. maybe it's just me. i never have gotten the whole pop thing.
Posted by: Alex Deam
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June 25, 2009 11:19 PM
Well that's new.
Posted by: Paco | June 25, 2009 11:19 PM
"He had real talent."
I must have missed that part.
Posted by: Dust | June 25, 2009 11:24 PM
Mena opined: . There are plenty of governors and senators to admit to cheating on their wives until then, maybe not at taxpayer expense though.
If it's not done at the taxpayers expense, their not doin' it rite!
/snark
Posted by: Naked Bunny with a Whip
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June 25, 2009 11:54 PM
That's fine. Millions of other people didn't.
Posted by: catta
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June 26, 2009 12:02 AM
Oh FFS.
Quit yammering about the use of RIP. It does not imply an afterlife or theism or anything. Surprisingly, I'm also a huge proponent of quiet graveyards and and opponent of digging up or defacing graves. For several reasons, none of which involve anything supernatural.
Also, if you think that anybody's art can be "negated" by anything else in their lives, bugger off and never read any books or listen to any music ever again -- or at least very little of either. If you must weigh the unpleasantness of persons in one area of their lives against their achievements in another, you'll have very few humans left whose creative output you can safely enjoy while remaining as sanctimonious as you are.
That said, agree with many here: weird in many ways, legendary for many good reasons as well.
RIP.
Posted by: Naked Bunny with a Whip
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June 26, 2009 12:05 AM
That came across as snark, and I didn't mean it that way. What I meant was that Michael Jackson did have talents, and that, even better, he honed them. His talents may have been in areas that don't interest some people here (including me), but that doesn't mean he didn't possess them.
I just said "talents" way too many times. I'd pull out the thesaurus but my sleeping pills are kicking in, so off to my burrow. Good night, everybody! Bunny hugs all around.
Posted by: Ken | June 26, 2009 12:12 AM
With MJ gone ... it's just Walmart now that has little boy's pants half off.
Posted by: EagleAZ4 | June 26, 2009 12:20 AM
Don't feel too bad about the age thing, Mr. Professor Doctor Sir - I was born in January of '58, Michael in August and my best friend in October. She and I met in 1972. Our entire life has been built around "you're older than Michael Jackson and I'm not."
Not to be too callus or unfeeling about these things, becuase I grew up with him, too, and wish to hell I'd been about to stop husband #2 from throwing out all my 45's...but I really wish he'd at least lasted til November.
Wait.
The more I think of this, the more I realize that should the best friend last til November...she'll be OLDER THAN MICHAEL JACKSON!!!!
Where's the bacon??
Posted by: Mal | June 26, 2009 12:31 AM
Now we have a prime example of media & the masses inflating the ego and image of one "ordinary" person, who is just like you and me - couldn't have lead a life with similar beliefs and interests, without having every moved watched. That's the spooky part - imagine the whole world talking about YOUR death.
Posted by: Blue Fielder | June 26, 2009 12:38 AM
Lots of self-righteous, hateful people here.
I worry that Bubbles the chimp will be a lonely monkey now. That's just sad, a lonely monkey.
Posted by: MadScientist | June 26, 2009 12:41 AM
@Ken #150: Wake up, the catholic church hasn't disbanded yet.
I happen to have my "Elvis is Dead - Get over it!" shirt on today. I wonder if the King of Pop will be resurrected like the King of Rock N'Roll. I can imagine catholic priests coming up with a "miracle" excuse: Michael Jackson made me do it!
Posted by: Simon Scott | June 26, 2009 12:48 AM
I was upset when we lost Eric Carr and Freddie Mercury on the same day....... but a pedophile and a talentless drama queen?
Pulease.
Posted by: Viva | June 26, 2009 1:00 AM
@ #140 "I just wanted to put it out there for the conspiracy theorists that he was not proven guilty of child molestation. In the U.S., that means he is innocent."
No - he was found "not guilty" which is not the same as being found to be innocent.
Posted by: Steven Sullivan | June 26, 2009 1:14 AM
I'm an atheist, and I believe we each only get one life. So anyone dying makes me shudder at least a tiny bit.
As for claiming Jackson was 'talentless', that's just stupid.
Mofo could dance and sing, for sure.
Posted by: Eric | June 26, 2009 1:37 AM
OK, he's dead. Can we get back to the real news, please? Iran is still going on. Gov. Mark Sanford is still going on. Sheesh, it's only Michael Jackson for FSM's sake; it's not like Kennedy was assassinated or nuclear war broke out...
Posted by: Russell Blackford | June 26, 2009 1:47 AM
Yeah, a bit but not much younger than me as well. Always feels a bit creepy when someone like that dies ... though I suppose if it keeps happening over the next 30 or 40 years it will be a good thing in a weird way.
Posted by: Ragutis | June 26, 2009 1:55 AM
MJ ripped off Alien Ant Farm? Weird. I mean, I knew he'd done it to power metal masters "Metal Cover"" and Jam Band extraordinaire Umphrey's McGee, but I never expected that.*
*Dammit! I KNOW Paul Gilbert, Mike Keneally, and Dweezil Zappa all did MJ covers but I can't farking find them when I'm trying to make a silly post!
Posted by: gwen | June 26, 2009 2:28 AM
post #111, It's not always obesity. MJ was anorexic. He weighed in at a total of 125. The same weight as a 13yr old child. Years of a starvation diet takes a toll on your heart. Especially if he was 'getting into shape' for touring again. Strenuously exercising a starvation weakened heart is a recipe for disaster. There were also rumors of prescription drug abuse. The anorexia however is apparent, and I predict it will be a large contributing factor.
I HOPE, but doubt, that he made some sort of arrangements for the care of those children who have no mother and were not even his biologically. I predict that after a Hollywood-lavish funeral, it will be found that he is absolutely broke.
Posted by: Marcie Dietrich
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June 26, 2009 2:38 AM
One less pedophile in the world.
Posted by: Cowcakes | June 26, 2009 2:49 AM
Apparently Uri Geller is devastated.
Wow a washed up fraud is upset about the loss of a washed up pedo freak. Oh well any publicity is good publicity they say.
And just whom are THEY?
Posted by: Cowcakes | June 26, 2009 2:58 AM
Apparently Uri Geller is devastated.
http://www.skynews.com.au/video/?id=41&articleID=632680
Wow a washed up fraud is upset about the loss of a washed up pedo freak. Oh well any publicity is good publicity they say.
And just whom are THEY?
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 3:01 AM
gwen @ 161,
*Sigh*.
Where to begin.
2 wrong statements in one sentence,not bad for a first post,not bad at all!
He obviously wasnt anorexic in the sense that he had anorexia nervosa.Did he have bad appetite(which is what anorexia means)? I dont know.He certainly wasnt underweight.
Definition of BMI and ranges
And please,there is no weight asocciated with certain ages,its weight for height,so to say he weighed as much as a 13yo girl is totally nonsensical.
/rant
Posted by: Gorogh | June 26, 2009 3:03 AM
Never had a real connection to him or his music, but I assume he indeed was talented. Was he influential, by the way?
What I wanted to say regarding the "R.I.P."-debate, for an atheist death boils down to a social event. The dead person is dead, a mere inanimate object: So death is all about the living, and as such, one could argue that we ought to invent some new rituals on how to deal with it. I shall think about this - some burial traditions seem to be highly inappropriate for an atheist, granted that all that matters is how the people surviving the dead cope with the loss.
@djinn (#106), you state that "pedophilia is highly correlated with religiosity", which I was not aware of. Do you have any references for that?
Posted by: Quiet Desperation | June 26, 2009 3:23 AM
I can't believe there are people who actually live camped-out in vans outside his house. What the hell is wrong with people?
They have boring, empty little lives and unexercised brains, so they latch on to celebrities. Why do you think things like People and National Inquirer sell so well? I avoid celebrity news like cats avoid baths. I hid from all news sources this evening because I knew North Korea could hit Maui with a nuke and the networks would still be running Jackson stories.
The only "celebrity" death I ever found sad was Douglas Adams because he was so young and I enjoyed his work so much. I was also very saddened to hear of Terry Pratchett's illness. Bush will probably live to be 110 and healthy until the last minute while Pratchett gets Alzheimer's. Yeah, there's a plan to the world. :-P If there is, then it's concocted by a insane deity.
Like when a kid dies, oh, it's God's will. Yeah. As George Carlin said, "We gotta stop this God guy! That's the third kid this week!"
[Insert molestation joke here]
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 3:24 AM
If your loved ones,family,relatives,when they die,become in your eyes inanimate objects that you attach no feelings of loss,mourning,pain etc to,then I would consider myself glad not to be in any way related to such a monster.
From one atheist to another.
Posted by: Gorogh | June 26, 2009 3:33 AM
@Rorschach, I was definitely not referring to my own feelings, or to feelings I as well deem absolutely appropriate in seeing someone die. By "inanimate object" I wanted to emphasize that as a matter of fact, concepts such as "peace", "rest" etc. are irrelevant to the former-person-now-dead-body, or as relevant as they are to a rock.
I am sorry if I did not express myself clearly.
So again, yes, death is highly relevant psychologically, but not to the dead themselves. It is all about the survivors, and their feelings. If we deem religious behavior as irrational and condemn it (in part) by virtue of this irrationality, we should at least subscribe to that, should we not?
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 3:49 AM
Fair enough.
Posted by: Y. Esme | June 26, 2009 3:59 AM
Gah - sorry to be a real stickler, but cardiac arrest is not the same thing as a heart attack!
Cardiac arrest - sudden failure of heart muscle contraction (ventricles)
Heart attack - heart's blood supply is interrupted
Posted by: Y. Esme | June 26, 2009 4:04 AM
Uh, sorry - I just realized that a few people already have commented on that >.
Posted by: landrew | June 26, 2009 4:07 AM
@Gorogh
I couldn't agree more. No doubt survivors require coping mechanisms.
IMHO RIP does have religious connotations.
"Jesus Christ!", "God Dammit", "For Christ's sake" seem excited utterances, automatic (less controlled) responses to uncomfortable stimuli such as stubbing your toe, losing wallet or maybe seeing a child run into traffic. In some cases, even saying "bless you" after someone sneezes maybe considered a primed automatic response.
But RIP is more likely a deliberative statement, since the events surrounding the use of the phrase is less frequent and specifically chosen to console others. I think the best way to console others is to share your memories of the deceased. But if a 3-letter acronym suits your needs, more power to you.
But I really like Larry's post @ 92
"Evolution continues. Ashes to ashes; dust to dust"
We're all just cosmic dust going through cycles
Posted by: Gorogh | June 26, 2009 4:31 AM
landrew @ 173,
Yes, I do like that perspective, too (much the same as the one that no matter how many species become extinct through human ignorance, eventually new species will arise... life will survive us). It does not necessarily have to do with evolution, but anyway... it is the mindless sort of immortality an atheist might fight solace in, in case it mattered.
As to "if a 3-letter acronym suits your needs, more power to you", this is of course entirely valid on a personal level (just as really any kind of belief is, irrational or not). If we agree that coping is of paramount importance in a situation in which loss occured, more so than intellectual honesty, we might even say something implying an afterlife, future reunion, or whatever. Then again, especially in an emotional context, words might lose meaning, so whatever linguistic surrogate you use, the message counts... so I do understand the position, too, that to argue about whether or not to use "a 3-letter acronym" amounts to no more than entertaining sophistry. I often appreciate sophistry, anyway.
Complex issues.
Posted by: Gorogh | June 26, 2009 4:35 AM
"... find solace in", not "fight". What was I thinking?
Posted by: Chris Challans | June 26, 2009 5:00 AM
Rest in peace, Michael. You set the world on fire, brother.
Posted by: Matty S | June 26, 2009 5:27 AM
Around the world today, thousands of children breathed a sigh of relief.
RIP Michael.
Posted by: Bernard Bumner
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June 26, 2009 5:41 AM
It was food poisoning, apparently. He ate some twelve year old nuts...
Posted by: Drosera
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June 26, 2009 5:49 AM
I hate pop music*. So when I heard the news that the ‘King of Pop’ died, I was almost inclined to say “good riddance.” As when a victim of torture learns of the death of one of his tormentors.
*With some exceptions, such as Jimi Hendrix playing Bleeding Heart.
Posted by: gwen | June 26, 2009 6:07 AM
#165 *sigh* where to begin....
Michael Jackson weighed 125lbs and was 5'10" (I can convert that to kg and cm if you like) making his BMI about 17.5.
Anorexia is a description, much like Hepatitis. Anorexia Nervosa is a psychological condition. I am not saying it is psychological, I don't know him, but his weight to height ratio certainly fits a diagnosis of Anorexia.
Modeling agencies in at least one European country are trying to outlaw models with BMIs of less than 19, after several deaths due to self imposed Anorexia, by models trying to remain unrealistically thin at the request of the designers.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 6:17 AM
gwen @ 180,
I even linked to a BMI chart in my post,and you still get it wrong.
As to your assertion about MJ's weight,you were in the morgue today when they weighed him,or have some insider info?
Not that that would make your TV or similarly derived diagnosis of him being underweight right.
For the love of dog,this is the internet,please look those terms up at least briefly before you embarrass yourself.These words hold well-defined meanings,there is nothing descriptive about them.
Posted by: Julie Stahlhut | June 26, 2009 6:21 AM
Count me in as suspicious that eating disorders played a part in this. Karen Carpenter died in much the same way.
I also suspect MJ was a serial child cuddler/fondler rather than a rapist. Still weird and sad, and the parents who sent their kids to the notorious sleepovers had to be either nucking futs or blinded by dollar signs. But MJ also never had any real personal experience of childhood, and seemed unable to connect romantically with adults of either sex. Add a lot of money and a lot of hangers-on, and the mess was made. (See "Elvis." Different style of mess; same outcome.)
MJ was a colossally talented performer. His messed-up life and his early death are twin damned shames.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 6:47 AM
Fine,but we have no way of knowing this,or his exact weight for that matter.And we do can look up big sciencey words we dont understand like anorexia before we use them.
Another theory seems favoured for now anyway
Posted by: Lotharloo | June 26, 2009 7:18 AM
MJ has been dead for years.
Posted by: Lotharloo | June 26, 2009 7:20 AM
@Rorschach:
I apologize for nitpicking but there should always be a space after commas.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 7:24 AM
Says who?
Are you SC?
:-)
Posted by: John Morales | June 26, 2009 7:26 AM
Lotharloo, skipping some whitespace is just Rorschach's style, makes no real difference to the substance and hardly any to legibility.It's a needless convention,commas function as an adequate separator.
Posted by: Aquaria | June 26, 2009 7:29 AM
If this had been Stevie Wonder, I would have been upset. Instead, it's just Michael Jackson, talented enough, I suppose, but I can't think of more than a handful of songs of his that I liked. Maybe "Smooth Criminal" and most of Off the Wall. I still think of "Don't Stop Till You Get Enough," as "Don't Stop Till You Get It Up."
I'm just a few years younger than he, so I basically grew up with his music as the background noise of my life. But I don't feel anything about his death, other than a vague sorrow that he turned out so weird and creepy. I don't think he was 1/10 as talented as his fans think he is. He was a good vocalist, I'll give him that, but he was also a mediocre dancer and a pedestrian composer.
Anybody ever see that list that went around showing how you can tell if a person was born before or after 1985? One of the lines in it was that people born after 1985 think that Michael Jackson has always been some creepy white guy.
Posted by: Lotharloo | June 26, 2009 7:31 AM
@John Morales
Well if you ask me, it is a silly style.
p Erh a ps I c a N adD rando M spAcEs AnD wIerd cApitAliZatIOn tOO al l th e w ords;aFteraLL it d o e s n o t m a ke a ny dif fer ence i n the s ub s ta NcE.
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 7:35 AM
Two famous white women who were popular die on the same day.
Coincidence?
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 7:36 AM
Lotharloo does seem to have issues.
With commas.
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 7:37 AM
popular decades ago
/joke ruin
sigh
Posted by: John Morales | June 26, 2009 7:39 AM
Aquaria, I didn't care for his music at any point and have no tracks featuring him in my collection; I don't particularly care he's died; but I firmly disagree that "he was also a mediocre dancer". Maybe not Fred Astaire, but hardly mediocre.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 7:40 AM
And a good morning to you Rev !
Dont worry about the joke ruin,at least you have your commas right !
Oh,there werent any in your post,ok....
/joke ruin
Posted by: John Morales | June 26, 2009 7:43 AM
Lotharloo, no-one asked you, and your mixed-case arbitrarily-spaced post is still quite legible.
Thanks for your concern, your opinion is noted.
Posted by: Lotharloo | June 26, 2009 7:44 AM
@Rorschach
Punctuation rules make the writing much easier to read. True, they are mere conventions but I and most people are used to them; it is pointless rebellion to try and invent a new foreign style. This is specially the case with space after commas, full stops, and etc. which can be added effortlessly.
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 7:46 AM
I hear his last words when they were loading him in the ambulance were "Take me to the Children's Hospital"
Posted by: Naked Bunny with a Whip
|
June 26, 2009 7:50 AM
@189: Right, because not putting a space after commas and what you did is exactly equivalent. Moron.
If you don't like Rorschach's punctuation, then ignore his posts like I will be ignoring yours.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 7:56 AM
Say what??
You actually mean that,right?
*Shakes head,has a sip and puts on some non-MJ music*
Dead as a dodo on ambulance arrival mate,if he was in Queensland,he would have never made it to Hospital in the first place,coz they give up and throw a blanket over anyone they cant get a rhythm back at the scene,because the walk-out-of-Hospital-at-30-days-after rate is pretty much 0 %..
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 8:02 AM
/joke ruin
Posted by: fizzyb | June 26, 2009 8:04 AM
They always go in threes? Utter nonsense. Are we forgetting about David Carradine?
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 8:07 AM
Thank you. I've been saying that all morning.
Posted by: John Morales | June 26, 2009 8:16 AM
Naked Bunny, in my vague recollection Lotharloo usually makes pretty good comments.
PS I too asked the same some time back (but admittedly didn't persevere). I received a somewhat curt response and got the point.
--
Rorschach, you sure that someone rich and famous wouldn't get special* treatment, even in Qld? (e.g. Say Greg Norman was visiting (he's basically an American now, but nevermind that), and was found the same way in his hotel.))
--
* even if pointless, after all it only costs money.
Posted by: jim wright | June 26, 2009 8:17 AM
Germane finally gets his chance to shine.
Posted by: Lotharloo | June 26, 2009 8:22 AM
I did not claim they are equivalent, moron. I was objecting to the implied fallacy that if the content of the argument is sound then there can be no objections to the quality of the writing.
Thank you. You will be saving me the temptation of answering to your silly posts.
Finally, that was a friendly suggestion to Rorschach.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 8:24 AM
Fair enough,I didnt take the fame factor into consideration,those ambos probably had no choice then to take him to Hospital,and those docs on in that ED at the time didnt have a choice other then to jump on his chest for another hour,even if he was already dead.
Yeah,fair point.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 8:28 AM
Lotharloo and everyone else,
ok to talk about issues again and let the commas rest?
I find the whole discussion rather obscure.
Posted by: Tim Danaher | June 26, 2009 8:36 AM
And so it begins...
Apparently, the reports about Michael Jackson having died of a heart attack are false: he was just found in the children's ward having a stroke!
As a tribute to his great friend Michael Jackson, Australian entertainer Rolf Harris will be doing two little boys at the funeral. (You probably have to be from the UK to understand that one).
That's the stiffest he's been since Macauley Culkin's last visit.
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 8:42 AM
very nice
Posted by: SC, OM | June 26, 2009 8:47 AM
You're suggesting that I'm the only one whose say counts?
Aw. That's sweet. :)
Posted by: DuckPhup | June 26, 2009 8:50 AM
I expect that for MJ... very much like Elvis... dying will turn out to be a very smart career move.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 8:54 AM
No,you're the only one who has ever commented on my not doing the whitespace thingy after commas thing before.
Posted by: SC, OM | June 26, 2009 9:06 AM
WTF?
A) Several others have commented on it. You've even replied to them. (See John Morales @ #203.)
B) I don't recall ever having commented on it (except maybe once long ago asking why you did it), except in the context of a comment that you denied was yours though it had your distinctive style, which I teased you about.
C) I'm curious about why you write like that, but it doesn't bother me. It's just who you are, and you're letting your freak flag fly. Cool with me.
Why the hell are you bringing me into this?
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 9:16 AM
Im not.Answered your question.
Good nite all.
Posted by: SC, OM | June 26, 2009 9:24 AM
Actually, you did, and you did it when you didn't know I would be around to see it or respond. I really don't appreciate what you were trying to imply about me in that comment, and your later claim was factually untrue.
Whatever. Fuck off and good night. :)
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 9:32 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 9:34 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 9:35 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 9:37 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 9:39 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: Southern Comfort | June 26, 2009 9:41 AM
Ray Comfort used the death of Michael Jackson as a platform for his "turn or burn" theology rant.
Read my response to Ray on my blog:
http://thechristiancentral.blogspot.com/
(yes I am shamefully plugging my brand new blog)
C'mon over and see my Ray Comfort parody blog.
Well its sort of the flip side of Ray.
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 9:43 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 9:50 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: Hunnet | June 26, 2009 10:00 AM
He wiggled on stage, squeaked out soulless pop tunes and dressed like across between Liberace and Willy Wonka. The adoration he has garnered over the years makes the poor state of human judgment all the more obvious. Let's show emotion for people who really make a difference in the world, not shallow pop stars.
Posted by: LinzeeBinzee | June 26, 2009 10:05 AM
Wow, pez...learn to read error messages.
@23...These things happen in threes? What the hell? Think that one through a little. Can you use it to make predictions? How do you know Ed McMahon was part of this three? Can all other celebrities relax now because three celebrities have died? It's ridiculous.
I have to say I was saddened by this news but not surprised. He had a fucked up life but he was extremely talented. This morning on Canada AM they were showing footage of the first time he did the moonwalk. Iconic. His life was tragic but he did leave behind quite a legacy...and the Beatles catalogue!!! It's free from his grasp! (I think)...that would be wicked if he willed it to Paul McCartney.
Posted by: John Morales | June 26, 2009 10:05 AM
SC, he meant 'never' when he wrote 'ever'.
Just a little typo, he was complimenting you there, even if he did mention you earlier.
I didn't particularly note malice, just an implication that you're sometimes pernickety and often disputatious (and also of course you are prominent here).
I'm pretty sure if R wants to diss you, he won't do it by implication or in a mealy-mouthed way, based on history.
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 10:07 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: sansom | June 26, 2009 10:07 AM
Rorschach, your insistence on not using spaces after punctuation makes you look like an idiot. I skip over everything you say, because I know everything that comes from your fingers is worthless, and you can’t read it besides. Learn how to use punctuation correctly. I promise it’s not difficult.
Posted by: samsom | June 26, 2009 10:12 AM
Pez, STOP RESUBMITTING YOUR COMMENTS.
Posted by: Bill Dauphin, OM | June 26, 2009 10:15 AM
Watchman (@80):
Thanks for the sanity! You were already going to be on my June Molly ballot, right behind Jadehawk... but this post makes it official.
Posted by: ??? | June 26, 2009 10:21 AM
I just wanted to put it out there for the conspiracy theorists that he was not proven guilty of child molestation. In the U.S., that means he is innocent.
Logic fail. False dichotomy.
Posted by: Watchman | June 26, 2009 10:24 AM
For all you "Rot in peace" assholes and other assorted rites-of-passage literalists:
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/metaphor
Posted by: SC, OM | June 26, 2009 10:24 AM
Maybe, but I don't think I'm buying it. Doesn't make sense to me. But it is before noon, so I'm not that sharp...
I didn't say anything about malice. I didn't appreciate the persnickety implication. Disputatious, yeah, but not persnickety; and the fact is I haven't criticized his writing style.
? But I think he just did it by implication.
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 10:25 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: samson | June 26, 2009 10:26 AM
I'm not sure if it was here or elsewhere, but someone said that they suspect he wasn't a molester, but rather a serial child cuddler and clearly did not have appropriate boundaries when it came to children. But I never got the feeling that it was anything sexual, per se. If you listen/watch to some of his past interviews, you’ll see pretty clearly that he was very child-like himself.
Posted by: LinzeeBinzee | June 26, 2009 10:29 AM
@231...I don't think so. Innocent until proven guilty, he wasn't proven guilty, so, technically, he's innocent. I don't see how it could be a false dichotomy. Either he molested the kids or he didn't. There are only 2 options.
Posted by: ??? | June 26, 2009 10:29 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Concern troll is concerned.
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 10:32 AM
Michael Jackson died because his heart couldn't beat it.
ycinas
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 10:35 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 10:35 AM
Does that count as pez's three comments?
Posted by: Watchman | June 26, 2009 10:36 AM
Ok, I'm way behind. Regarding this thoughtful objection:
True. I don't particularly want a religious service when I go. I'd rather people mourn or celebrate (or both) as they see fit, and remember me as they will. The wake/party thing works for me. And yes, I will then either rot in a box or blow away on the wind. Preferably the latter. I admit that "RIP", when taken literally, is archaic and superstitious, but I think it still serves as a respectful acknowledgment that, for better or for worse, the works, pleasures, sorrows and joys of the deceased have come to an end.
Posted by: ??? | June 26, 2009 10:38 AM
Michael Jackson died because his heart couldn't beat it.
You know what Michael said after being acquitted? "I feel like a new boy!"
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 10:39 AM
there going to melt michael jackson down and make a childrens plastic slide so the kids can still go down on him
hayyyyooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 10:40 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 10:41 AM
Note to self. Check use of there vs. they're when copy and pasting a tasteless joke.
Posted by: John Morales | June 26, 2009 10:41 AM
SC,
That's the obvious conclusion from that one post — I can't dispute that — and if calling you pernickety and disputatious by implication is dissing you, then I guess so.
Anyway, I'm not trying to defend him (I doubt he'd appreciate that any), just trying to be fair to all parties.
PS doesn't his latter post make heaps more sense if he'd meant 'never' rather than 'ever'? It does to me.
Anyway, I'm to bed too. 'Tis after midnight here and it's been a long day. G'night.
--
Poor Michael Jackson, for all his talent, fame and so forth, I pity him. But what an interesting life.
Posted by: Tigerwolf | June 26, 2009 10:42 AM
Like some others here I’m no MJ fan (more classical and jazz myself), but even if you didn’t like him, he may have helped bands you like in a certain way. Back in the 80s I was working in a record store (“Hey! Do we have any more shelves where we can put these new thingies called ‘compact discs’?”) and I was kvetching to our A&R guy from CBS about a new crossover album from Placido Domingo and John Denver. He gave me a friendly lecture reminding me how that crossover album would make enough money to help finance the more serious classical albums I liked, much as he – no MJ fan – had to admit that the sales of albums like Thriller and Bad helped finance some of the albums from the smaller rock bands that he preferred, bands that might not always see an album’s sales move into the black. Of course, the whole music industry has changed since then, not among the least of which, for classical fans, that the megacorp takeovers of record labels have forced the classical sections of the companies, once sustained unprofitably as a matter of prestige, now have to balance their books like the rest of the company does.
Anyway, don’t feel too sad. It won’t be long before MJ is spotted eating a Whopper at a Burger King in Michigan.
^..^
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 10:45 AM
Oh don't get me wrong. I think for a while MJ put out some pretty good music and was obviously very influential in a number of areas.
That's not going to stop me from making cheap, tasteless and arguably childish jokes.
Nothing has before, why stop now.
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 10:46 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 10:49 AM
Someone please hit pez with a bat. He/she is skipping.
Posted by: LinzeeBinzee | June 26, 2009 10:50 AM
Pez has submitted the same comment 12 times now...seriously brutal that has to be a record. He says he's been reading this blog for a long time, obviously he's never read the comments.
This morning I was wondering how long it would be after I arrived at work before someone would mention Michael Jackson...I didn't even have to wait to get here. A homeless guy at the bus stop talked to me about his death for 10 minutes!
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 10:53 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: SC, OM | June 26, 2009 10:53 AM
OK. (I was unhappy that he did it when I had showed no signs of being around.)
Not really. It's a possibility, but as I said that reading doesn't make more sense to me at all.
'night!
Posted by: ??? | June 26, 2009 10:55 AM
I thought (or at least recall PZ saying sometime in the past) the Science Blogs software rejected everything after the first five identical posts from the same user on the same thread. Is that no longer the case?
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 10:55 AM
13 now.
Definitely a record.
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 10:59 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: MAJeff, OM | June 26, 2009 11:00 AM
Pez...FOAD!
Posted by: PZ Myers
|
June 26, 2009 11:03 AM
One advantage to the stupid stuttering of the server (we're supposed to get a newer faster machine in a week or so! Huzzah!) is that it does get the truly annoying posters rapidly past the 3 strikes mark.
It is amusing to have somebody complaining about everyone else's stupidity and still reposting the same thing 14 times in a row.
Anyway, if he hits 15, he's getting banned.
Posted by: Feynmaniac | June 26, 2009 11:05 AM
PEZ STOP POSTING YOUR COMMENT!!!
Damn, I didn't think someone would break Markus' record so quickly.
Posted by: Pez | June 26, 2009 11:05 AM
I've been following this blog for a long time, never commented. Pretty much subscribe to the same thoughts...however, reading most of these posts, it disheartens me how nasty and insensitive most people are here after the death of Michael Jackson. I don't believe in the after life and try to build my moral compass on my own humanity and the golden rule. Quite appalling including the main comment from the post...leave a strange corpse. So much for kindness and good virtues. Why don't people keep some thoughts to themselves when they have nothing good to say? I thought the writer and the other posters in this blog were somewhat above this stupidity.
Posted by: samson | June 26, 2009 11:05 AM
So when is Pez going to get axed?
Posted by: samson | June 26, 2009 11:09 AM
Aaaand, there is 15!
Posted by: b00ger | June 26, 2009 11:09 AM
Jackson is not dead. I just read it on the Weekly World News. He is with the King, 2-Pac and Biggy. They will be releasing a 5-disc compilation early next year.
Posted by: Tim Danaher | June 26, 2009 11:12 AM
Do you think he'll get buried in a white coffin? Or maybe a brown one that turns white halfway through the ceremony?
Posted by: BAllanJ | June 26, 2009 11:17 AM
My chief argument against astrology was always how much MJ and I are alike (NOT) since I was born less than a day after him.
BTW, how many candies does the average pez dispenser dispense anyway?
Posted by: Bernard Bumner
|
June 26, 2009 11:20 AM
Honestly, the main reason I'm enjoying the jokes is because I'm not sure I can cope with the wankings of hysterical strangers as they contemplate the death of another strange, hypocritical, deluded, and remote celebrity who they presume to know utterly (a la, Princess Diana).
Michael Jackson contributed greatly to popular music, but his last work of any note or merit was twenty years ago, and prior to the very public exposure of his rather disturbed and disturbing private life. Still, we're now being told by various self-righteous arseholes to ignore the private man, and focus on his music. Even there, the pious, smug, self aggrandizing, messianic stylings of his recent output have been ignored or excused.
As much as anything, the jokes are aimed at those who are idolizing, elegizing, and eulogizing; they are aimed at the public figure Michael Jackson, rather than the tragic man. I simply refuse to partake in international mourning for one privileged person who died on a day when the needless deaths of thousands of others went unheeded.
Posted by: PZ Myers
|
June 26, 2009 11:21 AM
Pez has been banned.
But he's still posting the same comment! It's just getting picked up by the filters now. I wonder when he'll figure it out?
Posted by: Sili
|
June 26, 2009 11:24 AM
The Rev @ 243: I laughed.
Posted by: samson | June 26, 2009 11:25 AM
Aaah, I always love the, "But, but, but there are so many more IMPORTANT things to worry and talk about!!!!!" comments.
I guess when someone's parent dies, they should not mourn ... for there are countless other deaths!
Posted by: SC, OM | June 26, 2009 11:27 AM
Well, I'm off to the Big City for several days of fun. Have a great weekend, all!
Posted by: LinzeeBinzee | June 26, 2009 11:29 AM
@266
Who's the smug one?
I think that part of the reason that there's such an outpouring of emotions when someone like Michael Jackson dies is that it makes people aware of their own mortality. If someone with so much money and influence can just drop dead without warning, it makes you realize that you could be next.
I don't see what's wrong with mourning someone who you're a fan of. I won't be mourning his death because I'm not a fan, but if my favourite artist (Gord Downie) died today you can bet I would be devastated. Same as if one of my family members died. If someone is a part of your life, it's normal to want to mourn their death. Perhaps you had some of the emotions as the MJ fans have today when you heard about Carl Sagan's death?
Posted by: stogoe | June 26, 2009 11:35 AM
I don't think anyone's made fun of this lovely bit of confirmation bias yet, so allow me to:
Isn't it funny how the 'always goes in threes' trope is only pulled out after two celebrities die? And that you'll stretch any configuration of deaths to fit? And how come it's only celebrities that count? People are dying all the time, and nearly all of them only count to their families and friends. We don't group them into trios.
Posted by: samson | June 26, 2009 11:36 AM
Exactly, LinzeeBinzee. Besides, MJ had a lot of influence and MILLIONS UPON MILLIONS of fans, AND he was supposed to go on tour ... this was a very sudden, shocking death.
One of my favorite comedians, Bernie Mac, died on my birthday--it was a complete shock when he died. No one expected it. It was a hard day for me, Bernard Bumner, because I had always hoped to see him live, and he was finally starting to make some really successful movies.
I still get sad whenever I watch Bad Santa or any of the Ocean's 12 movies. :(
Posted by: LinzeeBinzee | June 26, 2009 11:43 AM
@272 stogoe
I think you were quoting me there, but I just want to clarify that I was making fun of the first person who posted the "these things happen in threes" #23. Ignore this if you weren't referring to my comment :)
Posted by: Bernard Bumner
|
June 26, 2009 12:02 PM
Smug - Michael Jackson's claim to heal the world was the smug bit.
And because public grief has become de rigueur, ever since the death of Diana.
I already knew this.
People can do what they want; they just shouldn't expect me to take seriously their grief for someone they didn't know in any real sense.
No. It is always slightly galling when one of your heros dies, but I have a sense of perspective. I certainly wouldn't presume to claim real grief.
Michael Jackson, the man, is as well known to you as the thousands you've not noticed. What, you're more upset just because he was fortunate enough to have a better singing voice and access to clean water?
No, you're upset for selfish reasons - a person whose talent you enjoy has died, and you're grieving for the the things you won't get to enjoy. Why should I really respect that grief in the same way that I would if your loved relative had died? (I'm not denying it, just questioning it.)
How the fuck does that make sense? We (generally) mourn our parents because we know and love them, and because they are very real presences in our lives.
The point is that when someone's parent dies, it isn't going to be turned into an international new story about how bloody great and amazing they were (especially if that happens to be untrue, or at least a hopeless oversimplification that neglects various important, negative aspects of that personality). Nobody expects me to mourn for the death of someone else's parent, unless I personally know them or they happen to be a celebrity.
Michael Jackson's family, friends, and fans will mourn, as is their right. I don't expect anybody not to. Just don't expect me to be sympathetic to the one-sided outpourings of fans and commentators.
Feel free to be upset, and I will feel free to make jokes about him.
Posted by: samson | June 26, 2009 12:04 PM
Really? What about when Elvis died? Or one of the Beatles? Or Kennedy?
It's never been uncommon for lots of people to react to a public figure's death.
Posted by: Kraid | June 26, 2009 12:13 PM
Dear Pez:
1) Die in a fire
2) Leave a strange corpse
3) Profit!
Posted by: samson | June 26, 2009 12:14 PM
You must live a sad, sad life, Bernard Bumner. I am not crying my eyes out, but I do feel a little sad today. Michael Jackson was a huge insperation for many, and he had a MAJOR impact on music, just as Elvis did.
Posted by: samson | June 26, 2009 12:17 PM
And there we go again! "Why are you worrying about this when there is SO MUCH MORE to worry about?!" Concerned troll is concerned.
Also, he had far more than just a nice voice. He had a HUGE impact on music, which yes, had a huge impact on society. The fact that you can't see that importance makes me believe you're as selfish and self-centered as you claim those who are mourning MJ's death to be. “He was just a singer!” No, he wasn’t, and you must know that or you must be very dumb. He had a lot of influence on the music we hear today, and he had a lot of MAJOR influence on some of the most prolific artists of our time.
Posted by: Bernard Bumner
|
June 26, 2009 12:18 PM
True. But it was never such a fashion; there was no expectation for everyone to partake; there wasn't such emotional media saturation. The reaction was much more measured, and interesting.
Posted by: samson | June 26, 2009 12:22 PM
"The reaction was much more measured, and interesting."
Oh, come on. Now you're just spewing bullshit. It wasn't more measured. Plenty of people still freaked out over the Beatles because they were the Beatles. Same with Elvis. Same with Kennedy. It was no different, and you know it.
Posted by: samson | June 26, 2009 12:28 PM
Also, you need to realize that his popularity transcended generations. My friends 13-year-old daughter was devastated--Michael Jackson is her favorite artist and she knows every one of his songs by heart. NO ONE--not even Elvis--was as popular, or loved, or well known. No one.
http://www.azcentral.com/ent/celeb/articles/2009/06/25/20090625jackson-worldreaction25-ON.html
Read that article. The world over, all ages, all sexes, all classes are mourning him. This is different than even when Diana died.
Music has a VERY big impact on people I'm sure even you, Bernard, have an artist or song or album that you hold very close to your heart. Music is a very personal thing for many people. Music transcends everything -- controversy, wackiness, everything.
Posted by: Bernard Bumner
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June 26, 2009 12:43 PM
Fuck off, you pathetic wanker.
You expect me to be concerned about some freakish warbler, but you don't want to acknowledge that there may be some lack of perspective when the world can weep for one dead man whilst ignoring thousands of others? It was a comparison, rather than a call to action.
You're the one being pissy about the fact that I might be hurting the fans' feelings, and you're calling me a concern troll?
So fucking what? I'm meant to feel heartbroken that he's dead?
Your staggering lack of logic leaves me cold.
Big wow. I'm still not going to mourn his passing.
He was talented, he is now dead. He made some pretty music, then he went away. I feel sorry for his family, insofar as I feel sorry for any family that is grieving, but I'm not going to write nice things on websites.
My original point stands; if this is just going to be another ridiculous display of public masturbation, as with Princess Di, then I'm going to reserve the right to point and laugh at the worst excesses of the unduly emotional.
Yes, it was. People felt grief, and some - many - "freaked out". But the media provided suitably dignified commentary, and there was much less pressure to join in.
13 year olds lack perspective. Hopefully, they've not been forced to deal with the real grief of losing someone close to them.
If that is true, then it is exactly the same.
A lot of people who didn't know someone, all talking about how well they knew them, and just how great they were. All ignoring the fact that the person was damaged and damaging, and all unable to understand why somebody else feels no need to grieve for a stranger.
Posted by: Kaddath | June 26, 2009 12:45 PM
Any human dying is sad, but he was a con man.. he might been a great dance but his music sucks big time... conned lots of brainless teens to think he was the king of pop (whatever that means).. the sad affairs of the so-called pop music nowdays it as result of his crappy music... sorry but that's the truth.
He conned Eddie Van Halen in to his Thriller video and after that Eddies carries went pretty much downhill... and oddly only sort of revived when Sammy Haggar go on board... then he conned Paul McCartney and lot's of the stuff Paul did also sucked big time after that...
Now, if only I could turn on the TV and not see his freakish face....
Posted by: LinzeeBinzee | June 26, 2009 12:47 PM
fork...for the first time I got the error message and it actually did kick out my comment
Don't feel like typing it all up again but to sum it up, @Bernard Bummer... isn't grieving for someone selfish no matter who it is? You mourn over your loved ones because you won't get to have the pleasure of their company anymore. You mourn over a celebrity who has died because you won't get to watch them perform anymore.
Posted by: samson | June 26, 2009 12:47 PM
"You expect me to be concerned about some freakish warbler, but you don't want to acknowledge that there may be some lack of perspective when the world can weep for one dead man whilst ignoring thousands of others? "
So how much time do you give to those thousands of others, eh? Tell me. Something tells me you give none. Yet you expect everyone else to? And you call me illogical.
Why does how someone else reacts to someone's death concern you, anyway? You seem to care an awful lot about a man you claim to not care about.
Posted by: LinzeeBinzee | June 26, 2009 12:53 PM
@Bernard again...nobody is saying that you personally should feel sad about his passing...just trying to make you understand that peoples' grief at his death is real and valid. You have a right to make fun of those fans and to make jokes about his death, but we have a right to point out that you're being an insensitive ass.
Posted by: Bernard Bumner
|
June 26, 2009 1:00 PM
Er, what? Five minutes... Ten years... Fifty-eight seconds... Six thousand years... One hour... Nah, I'm shitting ya; twelve days.
...Twenty-five years.
Er, what? I'll say it again, if you like, just in case you missed it the first time; it was a comparison. It was meant to illustrate the rather odd priorities of the international media and people who expect others to grieve for celebrities they don't know.
Yes. Now give some money to WaterAid as punishment for your stupidity.
It doesn't. Right up until the point where the media is saturated with gushing liars.
Indeed. And you seem to spend a lot of time denying that you're a pig-fucker, for someone who claims not to fuck pigs.
Posted by: Bernard Bumner
|
June 26, 2009 1:04 PM
Very true.
Now. Enjoy your weekend.
Posted by: LinzeeBinzee | June 26, 2009 1:08 PM
"It was meant to illustrate the rather odd priorities of the international media and people who expect others to grieve for celebrities they don't know."
The international media is a business, so they give the people what they want to hear. It's not the case to you, but a lot of people relate more to MJ's death than to the situation in Iran. It's pathetic but it's the reality. That's why I prefer to read blogs than to watch CNN.
And I don't think anyone expects someone who's not an MJ fan to grieve for him.
Posted by: Quentin | June 26, 2009 1:22 PM
It's a bummer. Sure, depending on whether you buy the molestation charges or not, it's bittersweet. But, the dude could sing and dance like no other.
Posted by: Bill Dauphin, OM | June 26, 2009 1:29 PM
Well, maybe this has been well covered, but I always seem to ba able to convince myself that my $0.02 is uniquely worthwhile coinage. ;^)
I don't think whether it's deliberative or an excited utterance is really material to the point, nor do I think the (undeniable) fact that bereaved survivors need social comfort bears on the original point, either. The thing is, the word rest (or sleep) is, within the reasonable boundaries of poetic license, a perfectly acceptable term to express the absence of consciousness, and peace perfectly reasonably means lack of activity and lack of troubles, both of which coincide with absence of consciousness!
IOW, unless you go blatting on about waking up in paradise and spending eternity playing canasta with Jebus and the other 71 virgins, there's nothing inherently superstitious or religious or un-atheist about saying that the dead rest in peace... regardless of whether you do it calmly and deliberately or in the heat of the moment.
LinzeeBinzee (@236):
IANAL, but I think you've got a couple things wrong: First "innocent until proven guilty" is not (AFAIK) a formal legal principle, but rather a popular way of expressing the fact that the prosecution has the burden of proof: that guilt cannot be presumed in advance of proof. Next, there really is a disctinction between innocent, which means "didn't do it," and not guilty, which means "didn't prove I did it." In the U.S. courts at least, it's the latter that's a formal verdict, not the former.
As a case in point, OJ Simpson was found not guilty because the jury found that the prosecution had not proven his guilt "beyond a reasonable doubt"... but a second jury easily found, based on exactly the same facts, that the "preponderance of the evidence" (the civil court standard) indicated he had in fact done the killings. Not guilty, but not innocent, either.
Of course, MJ was never found liable for child abuse in civil court, either, but he did make at least one multimillion dollar settlement that I'm aware of (and that accuser subsequently stopped cooperating with an ongoing police investigation). The larger point, though, is that while all the legal concepts discussed above put appropriate limits on what the courts, as agencies of the state, can declare, they do not constrain the ability of ordinary people to draw conclusions and form opinions based on what they know. And my opinion is that MJ probably had relationships with children that were, if not strictly sexually abusive, at very least inappropriate and unhealthy. IOW, not guilty, but probably not entirely innocent, either.
And his having died doesn't supernaturally immunize him from criticism for that. Out of simply human decency, I wouldn't bring this stuff up at his wake... but we're not at his wake, are we?
Finally, Rorschach:
I don't really care how you punctuate (though as someone whose job involves, among other things, editing text for correct punctuation, I find it a bit distracting), but I am curious why you do it that way (and, despite your comment to SC, I have asked this before): Is it an artistic statement, a la e.e. cummings? Or a quixotic attempt to reform usage, a la G.B. Shaw with apostrophes? Or are you, as SC put it, just letting "your freak flag fly"?
It is, of course, your right to represent yourself however you please... but my guess is that, in a context like blog commenting that's not explicitly artistic (i.e., not poetry), it just ends up looking like1 an error to those not used to seeing your work, and like an inexplicable oddity to those who've seen it often enough to know it's not accidental. Purely as a matter of professional and academic interest, I'm curious to know if you have something other than that in mind? (As an aside to you and others: Whitespace or no whitespace, a comma by itself is not sufficient to join two independent clauses. The comma splice is a syntactical flaw, not merely a schoolmarmish nicety of usage; except when employed in a carefully artistic manner by highly skilled writers, comma splices damage the logic and communicative effectiveness of writing. Semicolons, dude; jus' sayin'....)
1 Another part of my job, aside from copyediting, is trying to help my authors understand how their work will be perceived by the eventual readers... which is not always as obvious a thing as it might seem!
Posted by: Watchman | June 26, 2009 1:35 PM
The truth, you say? No. It's a poorly-supported minority opinion.
Nonsense. What next? Blaming Jackson for the failure of Jean Sibelius to produce anything of lasting worth after "Finlandia"?
Van Halen played on "Beat It" because he wanted to. He waived his fee, because he wanted to. He did it as "a favor". Anyway, it was producer Quincy Jones, not MJ, who contacted Eddie.
Thriller was released on November 30, 1982. Van Halen's next album, 1984, was the band's most successful record. It was their last album with David Lee Roth, however, as the band was starting to spin out of control and personal frictions increased - none of which has anything whatsoever to do with Michael Jackson. If anyone has any information to suggest otherwise, I'd be interested in hearing it.
As for McCartney, his best solo album of the '80s - Tug of War - was recorded around the time he was collaborating with Jackson. One could just as well argue that McCartney's decline was the result of his NOT working with Jackson.
Posted by: LinzeeBinzee | June 26, 2009 1:35 PM
@Bill Dauphin, thanks! :)
Posted by: Omar | June 26, 2009 1:47 PM
He was a psychiatric case of study.
Posted by: Bill Dauphin, OM | June 26, 2009 2:16 PM
OT, but in other breaking news... <garrettmorris>Michelle Bachmann is still crazy!</garrettmorris>
Posted by: Sven DiMilo | June 26, 2009 2:26 PM
I'm of the opinion that Jackson's MAJOR influence on popular music was a negative one. The spectacle-shows in which tunes are recreated exactly as on the recordings (to the extent of recorded backing tracks and lip-synching), the elevation of dance-moves to equal importance to the music, the lowest-common-denominator simplicity of the music itself...
Again, I blame Jackson for Madonna, Madonna for Spears, and Spears for M. Cyrus. All of their music, qua music, is crap.
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 26, 2009 2:31 PM
This is the best Michael Jackson video ever
Posted by: WRMartin | June 26, 2009 3:21 PM
Hey, everyone. Did you know that Pez has been following this blog for a long time and never commented. Except once those 16 times.
;)
Posted by: RockitQueen | June 26, 2009 4:01 PM
Not that anyone cares what I think, and frankly I'm sadder about Farrah. Like just about everyone, I loved and adored Michael Jackson when Thriller came out. And like everyone else, I found him creepy and weird years later. (By the way, for an excellent example of his special brand of kook, read the story Howard Stern wrote about his meeting with Jacko in his book "Miss America".)
But come on..."Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"? That song is all kinds of awesome.
Anyway, given that he lived in a complete fantasy world, I am going to put money on this death being caused by some kind of holistic medical claptrap. Mark my words.
Posted by: Watchman | June 26, 2009 4:33 PM
Sven:
Good point, that, but MJ was only one player in a media revolution playing out on MTV. Madonna's first album was released only 8 months after Thriller. MJ was important, yeah, but the revolution would have happened without him, if a little later. And if music on cable TV had exploded in 1963 or 1973, instead of 1983, we might be blaming the likes of the Temptations, the O'Jays, and the Pips for the superimposition of dance moves on pop tunes. No?
That said, I don't really disagree. It's a matter of degree. It is true that "Billy Jean" not only helped push Thriller over the top, its inclusion in the MTV playlist helped push MTV over the top, too, which helped opened the door for Madonna and Cyndi Lauper only a few months later.
So maybe it IS all his fault. ;-)
I hear that. A tiny but poignant hole in my heart will open up when Kate Jackson goes. Silly, huh? (Though there's a reasonable chance that she'll outlive me, so I'm not too worried about it.)
Posted by: Anonymous | June 26, 2009 5:18 PM
@231...I don't think so. Innocent until proven guilty, he wasn't proven guilty, so, technically, he's innocent. I don't see how it could be a false dichotomy. Either he molested the kids or he didn't. There are only 2 options.
Stupidest comment in thread -- and that's saying something. Here are some options:
1) He's guilty and was found guilty (didn't happen)
2) He's innocent and was found guilty (didn't happen)
3) He's guilty and wasn't found guilty (maybe)
4) He's innocent and wasn't found guilty (maybe)
As for samson and the rest of the hangers on ... you're pathetic, although not as pathetic as Michael Jackson, whose unhappy life was imposed upon him.
Posted by: Anonymous | June 26, 2009 5:54 PM
Rest in peace, Michael.
He can't read, hear, or in any other way perceive you ... he's dead; as a mind or personality, he no longer exists -- there is no referent for the "Michael" to whom you're addressing this. No amount of sophistry about death = sleep or rest changes the fact that RIP implies a continuity of self that is factually erroneous.
Posted by: Happy Tentacles
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June 26, 2009 6:41 PM
A sad damaged child, with no chance of becoming an adult. Partly brilliant, partly tragic. He had gifts and he had flaws, but his early life was so gruesome and distorted that it would be cruel to blame him for what he became.
As Philip Larkin said - "They fuck you up, your Mum and Dad. . ."
Posted by: Knockgoats | June 26, 2009 6:54 PM
Michael who?
Posted by: Crudely Wrott | June 26, 2009 9:15 PM
For what it's worth.
Back in the 80's I was a juror in a murder trial. A doctor was accused of killing his wife. We, the jury, found for involuntary manslaughter. The prosecution asked for first degree murder.
The doctor's wife died as a result of an injection of narcotics administered by the doctor. The history of the case turned out to be that the doctor had been shooting up his wife for years with potent opiates and various painkillers because she was a constant and incurable (apparently) hypochondriac. She always hurt, or didn't feel good, or couldn't sleep. And there was her loving husband with a cabinet full of feel-good. In his care and his concern he gave her thousands of injections over time, the evidence of which were his meticulous records of them stacked inches high on the table in the jury room.
Long story short, the doctor killed his wife with kindness. Not the healthy, spontaneous breed of kindness that is so often a surprise and a delight to both parties. Rather a drawn out, grimly scripted regime of bandaging symptoms while ignoring any underlying cause. Elevating mood and reciting placatory assurances instead of applying sound medical science and even (shudder) strict admonitions based on evidence.
(This is one of the reasons that it is generally not a good idea for a physician to minister to family members. Of course there are exceptions.)
Anyway, the sad thought occurs to me that the story of Jackson's life and death is so shabbily similar to that of the doctor's wife. Carried along for a while in softly gloved hands and then quietly put to sleep. Never in the whole time being refused a panacea.
Posted by: Longtime Lurker | June 26, 2009 9:57 PM
How long before the nutters come out and say he faked his death and is living on a private island someplace?
He's in the same compound as Tupac.
But not Elvis. He's running a Burger King in Missoula, Montana.
I envision a sequel to Bubba Ho-Tep
**SPOILER ALERT**
in which a faked-his-own-death Michael Jackson fights a mummy in a nursing home. The hitch is, the other residents are unable to tell MJ from the mummy.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 26, 2009 10:15 PM
Bill D @ 292,
As you can tell from what I said above,I am a bit surprised there is an issue here at all.
This is how I have written/typed all my life,not trying to make some artistic statement,I have never even thought about it.
But clearly to some people,form comes before content.
Learned something !
Posted by: cicely
|
June 26, 2009 10:51 PM
He was a focus of public attention (and, I think, identification), and now I think he's acting as a focus of public catharsis. After all, it's not as if there's a lot going on in the world to be tense about.
I always thought it was a pity he messed with his face so much. Before he went crazy with the cosmetic surgery, I thought he was quite handsome.
As for the Resting thing---well, since he will no longer be an object in motion, he will be an object at rest. Unless he does rise as a zombie.
Posted by: John Morales | June 27, 2009 1:04 AM
Frank Zappa: “I don't give a fuck if they remember me at all." July 1, 1983.
(h/t Canterbury atheistsCanterbury atheists)
Posted by: DebinOz | June 27, 2009 4:38 AM
Personally, I was much more affected when Kurt Cobain died.
Whilst I didn't mind MJ's music, his lyrics weren't particularly profound. And I'm always reticent to subscribe great musicianship to someone who had great videos. I'm old-school enough to attribute music with sound rather than visual effects.
My favourite version of 'Thriller' was this one, by the Filippino prisoners:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMnk7lh9M3o
Posted by: Bezoar | June 27, 2009 8:07 AM
Michael, who?
Posted by: Hypatia's Daughter | June 27, 2009 12:51 PM
Is there anything more pathetic than people who think MJ was a talentless waste of space reading & POSTING on a thread labeled "Michael Jackson Dead"? If he wasn't worth your time when he was alive, why are you wasting your time on him now that he is dead?
I liked much of his music. And Celine Dione's. And Pre-Baroque music. I can like both. Just like I can enjoy both brocolli and cotton candy.
Thanks for the links to the prisoner videos. They were great fun.
Posted by: D. Anderson | June 27, 2009 1:59 PM
Michael Jackson was bigger than Elvis... RIP
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | June 27, 2009 2:11 PM
Shit, Elvis was a gigantic fat ass when he died.
MJ was a frail little wisp of a man.
You need to check your facts.
Posted by: sıcak video | June 28, 2009 4:43 AM
I was actually referring to his actual children. While I was waiting for the comment to post, I realised what it might look like! Still though...
Posted by: John Morales | June 28, 2009 6:19 AM
Hypatia's Daughter:
That was rhetorical, right? It's all over the news, and the hagiographic nature of some of the sentiment is rather sickly to some of us. I can't wait for the next Chaser.
Posted by: balagan
|
June 28, 2009 4:00 PM
What a coincidence that Farah Fawcett and Michael Jackson died the same day, one played with majors the other with minors.
When Farrah Fawcett arrived at heaven, God granted her one wish. She wished for all the children to be safe.
So God killed Michael Jackson.
Posted by: gwen | June 29, 2009 3:14 AM
gosh darn #181, Since I've only worked in an ICU as an RN for the past 30 years, I know NOTHING about medicine. Hepatitis describes disease in the liver, without giving indication of its cause. The cause can be viral, such as Hep A,B,C,D (and I think there is an E that has been identified), it can be idiopathic, or caused by toxicity from a variety of drugs and on and on and on.... Anorexia, can be a result of diseases of malabsorbtion,psychological disorders, drug abuse etc etc. There have been commentary about MJs weight for a while before he died, and I understand he'd lost weight since then. His usual weight was around 125.His height is easy enough to find out through google.
Posted by: madamess | June 29, 2009 3:50 AM
fuck you michael jackson haters.you are the ones who are fucked up.what the fuck did you do to make the world a better place!he was the best ever entertainer of all times,so put that in your pipe and smoke it!name any other star for that matter who ever ,ever caused such a stir after their demise...your elvis? you wish.
rest in peace michael the majority loves you dearly.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 29, 2009 3:58 AM
Oh,hello gwen !
I was remarking that we did not know his weight when he died,and should refrain from
making shit upspeculating until we know the facts.I've just read there is something from a leaked report from the autopsy that apparently puts him at 178cm/51kg,which would indeed make him underweight.
I didnt say you couldn't be right,I said we didnt know all the facts yet.
It seems it will be much more interesting to learn more about the role his personal cardiologist played,who resuscitated him alone,after injecting him with painkillers.
As to hepatitis etc,you said they were descrpitive terms which they are not,unless what you refer to is their latin origin which was indeed descriptive,but today they're not.
As to medicine,yes I work in that field as well,and have for 10 years.
Posted by: Rorschach | June 29, 2009 4:01 AM
@ 320,
Not fondle young boys?
Posted by: Feynmaniac | June 29, 2009 4:40 AM
LMAO!
Posted by: Bernard Bumner
|
June 29, 2009 5:35 AM
Elvis isn't dead, idiot...
Posted by: Drosera
|
June 29, 2009 5:39 AM
madamess @320,
I hate Elvis too.
Posted by: landrew | June 29, 2009 6:28 AM
To the RIP is a figure of speech / colloquialism folk (assuming you still follow this thread),
Thanks madamess @320 for illustrating a common usage of rest in peace.
When you said "rest in peace michael," you were clearly addressing someone who cannot hear you nor read your text. Also, by stating "the majority loves you dearly," you ensured that everyone knew you were addressing Michael Jackson specifically.
Posted by: Drosera
|
June 29, 2009 8:24 AM
Evidence that vultures can smell money over a distance of at least 2462 miles (3962 km):
Sharpton was on an aeroplane to Los Angeles to consult the Jackson family about plans for simultaneous worldwide commemorations for the superstar, and the hugely profitable television rights that are likely to be sold with it.
Posted by: Knockgoats | June 29, 2009 8:33 AM
Elvis isn't dead, idiot... - Bernard Bumner
and in fact, he killed Michael Jackson! Just like he did John Lennon. Envy can be a terrible thing.
Posted by: Bernard Bumner
|
June 29, 2009 8:57 AM
He strikes like a fat, musical ninja - the swish of a polyester jumpsuit, the twinkle of rhinestones, and a burger-scented breeze...
Some say it was the anal probe that finally broke him, and that when They finally returned him from his galactic odyssey, he was more killing machine than eating machine.
Posted by: Bill Dauphin, OM | June 29, 2009 1:19 PM
Rorschach:
Well, that being the case, I'm sorry to say that it's just an error, and you should fix it.
Language is nothing but a set of symbols and a set of rules for assembling the symbols into meaningful utterances. There's a certain degree of flexibility in the rules, but proper functioning of language depends on most language users following most of the rules most of the time.
Thoughtful, deliberate stretching (or even outright violation) of the rules for specific artistic or communicative purpose can be useful, but violating a rule just because you learned it wrong and can't be bothered to correct an habitual error has very little to recommend it. True enough, most of the time your habit of omitting the space after a comma doesn't make your writing unintelligible... but it does distract your readers' attention from what you're actually trying to communicate, and forces you to answer all sorts of (perfectly innocent, BTW) questions about why you do something conspicuously nonstandard.
It's more a matter that incorrect, unexpected form obscures content... and that's your fault, not your readers'.
Of course, you have just as much right to be wrong as to be artistic, but I wish you'd stop pretending that your error is a virtue, and acting like the people who ask you about it are somehow small-minded jerks.
Posted by: WILLIAM BERNSTEIN | June 29, 2009 9:07 PM
GOOD BYE FARRAH AND R.I.P THE BERNSTEINS WILL MISS YOU..............................
Posted by: WILLIAM BERNSTEIN | June 29, 2009 9:12 PM
GOOD BYE AND R.I.P.FARRAH THE BERNSTEINS WILL MISS YOU.SAME WITH YOU MICHAEL..............
Posted by: Rorschach | June 29, 2009 10:56 PM
Bill D,
thanks for the reply.
That is true,although to be honest I find my posts just as readable or not as anyone else's.
As I said, I wasnt doing it deliberately, I guess now that it has been pointed out to me I technically am...:-)
Dont think Im doing that.
Again, Im not, but I am making fun of them, because it seems just too irrelevant a thing to be getting excited about.To me anyway.
But I promise I will try to follow correct punctuatuation in the future, if I can remember...:-)