http://lineout.thestranger.com/lineout/archives/2009/06/29/wanna-be-mournin-something Comments On: Wanna Be Mournin' Something by David Schmader en-us Copyright 2009 The Stranger. All rights reserved. This RSS file is offered to individuals, The Stranger readers, and non-commercial organizations only. Any commercial websites wishing to use this RSS file, please contact The Stranger. webmaster@thestranger.com (The Stranger Webmaster) Sun, 22 Nov 2009 00:00:01 -0800 Sun, 22 Nov 2009 21:15:00 -0800 Foundation http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss it seems to me as if people have forgotten the last 20 years of bat-shit crazy we endured at his hands

You personally endured MJ's crazy from his own hands? Because if you weren't personally subjected to his actions, you're some kind of crazy masochistic yourself. If you didn't like the man, you could have ignored him, instead of feeling tortured to have shared this earth with him.
Posted by boyd main]]> Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:03:34 -0700 The Stranger Posted by kerri harrop]]> Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:10:28 -0700 The Stranger http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=…
Michael Vs Obama Vs Ash soon to follow.
Posted by Ben Weldon]]> Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:04:26 -0700 The Stranger
"he was your elvis, and when your elvis dies, so does the private lie that someday you will be young once again, and feel at capricious intervals the weightlessness of a joy that is unchecked by the injuries of experience and failure."

i'm still perplexed by the public reaction to michael jackson's death; it seems to me as if people have forgotten the last 20 years of bat-shit crazy we endured at his hands, but the quote above provides some context i guess. maybe i thought kurt cobain was "our elvis" (though certainly not my elvis*) and that we had already experienced our generation's shared grieving experience vis-a-vis dead "heroes". at least kurt cobain didn't permanently disfigure his face through self-mutilation go crazy and then fingerbang a bunch of preteen cancer patients. off the wall is a still great disco record, don't get me wrong - but my appreciation for it today is tempered by the experience of having watched michael jackson exist on earth.

birth of a nation and the triumph of the will are both pretty amazing films, and burzum is transcendent music, but you have to be able to separate the art from the artist. michael jackson's music from 30 years ago was incredible, but he was a horrible nightmare of a thing in real life. he was likely the closest thing to a monster that a human being can physically become while still remaining technically human.

you can love the music and it's special place in your life or whatever, but let's not get carried away with the reverence and worship here - michael jackson was a seriously sick and twisted fuck, and i am glad he is dead. i think it's the best thing for him, since he was obviously a seriously disturbed individual, and i think it was like the best thing for his "children". hopefully they have been spared whatever torments he had planned for them and some sliver of normalcy can be salvaged from the ruins.

* the role of MY elvis has been and always will be occupied by alan charles wilder.
Posted by wittyreference]]> Mon, 29 Jun 2009 11:40:07 -0700 The Stranger Posted by vooodooo84]]> Mon, 29 Jun 2009 11:31:51 -0700 The Stranger Posted by PTrig]]> Mon, 29 Jun 2009 11:17:34 -0700 The Stranger