h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

" moonwalk in the blanket of snow "

you'll not catch mre doing that.

I went out for a walk (regular, not moon) in the snow the other day, slipped on a patch of ice, nnow I've got a bruised hip, twisted ankle, sore knee, grazed arm and stiff elbow.

Moral of the story: if it's cold, stay in bed.

nnow ?

Still shivering ?

there isn't a smiley is there?

*ontopic*

I just fel extremely sorry for MJ. He didn't have a choice to be who he was...he was subject to extreme conditions at a very young age. If you put a kid through that, they will obviously grow up to be something not quite *normal*...all MJ is, is trying to capture and crystallise what he never had. You shouldn't punish a person because of that. I don't think he means any harm to anyone whatsoever. ESPECIALLY his own children.

He quite possibly might not *mean* them harm, and hopefully the balcony incident was a one-off, but if he really does have serious mental problemsd which would endanger his children, I just hope he has appropriate care around to protect them.

I was just about to say that, Egon. Just because someone doesn't *mean* to hurt someone doesn't mean they won't. He is a dangerous guy with a lot of problems. Though I'm not fond of any of his music, I do think he also has a lot of creativity, which probably stems from his mental imbalances.

And Sat- listen to Tabitca. She's a psychologist. She knows what she's talking about.

I'm inclined *not* to believe/listen to Tabitca because of the opinion she is showing. Which to me, seems very ignorant. Not one of an educated person. But that is my opinion. Any moron can pass exams (no offence intended)...

I think *dangerous* (aaargh! Such a pun!) is the wrong word to use. He hasn't hurt anyone. He doesn't beat his children (AFAIK). He seems to be doing the best for them. Being that none of us live around him, and that our opinions can only be based on what the media shows us, a word such as "dangerous" is a little on the extreme side. Especially if you don't justify it. Just because you have a mental disorder, it doesn't make you less of a capable person.

I think that generally everything that we say here will be pure conjecture. I merely suggested that *if* Michael Jackson's behaviour on the balcony was *not* an isolated incident (which I accept it may well have been), and *if* his mental disorder impairs his judgement with regard to his children, that I hope he has some form of calming influence/nanny etc who can prevent him from causing any kind of harm to his children.

Not a suggestion that he does pose a threat, merely a hypothetical scenario.

It seems like he has plenty of people around him. Uri Gellar is a close close friend - and you couldn't get a nicer bloke to keep stuff in check if you tried. Well. In my opinion anyway.

fair point. Have you heard that gellar is chairman of Exeter Football Club and has JAckson on the board, as well as the dude who played Darth Vader?

Yep. He's a regular on talkSPORT radio (my station of choice)...so I'm up to date with a lot of this random stuff. Hence why I like Uri so much. He had his own show on the Sunday after Xmas, and he was talking about everything from spoon bending to telepathy in twins to MJ. Great stuff. The man is a legend.

Saturnine, you're very cute and lovely, but don't go round calling people ignorant.

You wanted to hear what people think of Michael Jackson, and you have your answers. Given that there probably aren't many of us here who are close personal friends of the guy and given the image he projects of himself (it's ok what you look like, but don't breathe on me because you've obviously all got horrible germs) it's not surprising that several people have no time for him.

I'm sure he'd have no time for me either, I'm not losing any sleep over it.

As to his skin, wether he changed it or not (and I feel terribly bad for him anyway, he's painfully thin and always looks in need of a hug. Given the biz he's in and has been in since he was small, it's not surprising he possibly has mental health issues) the simple fact is that some people do believe all that they read in the papers, and are influenced by his apparent actions. Young black men have enough rubbish to deal with them without the papers writing that a very prominent black guy apparently thinks it's better to be white. And I don't notice MJs publicity machine doing much to quash the stories. I'm sure that a brilliant PR could get a much better (and possibly accurate) image of him over to the public.

Regarding the comment about the baby dangling up there, I take serious objection. Throwing a baby in the air and catching it is an important part of a child's development, have you ever wondered why so many parents do it? It's almost automatic, from a certain age, and mostly it's the fathers with the mother hanging on the sidelines waiting to catch the baby. I know that's how it was with me.

I never ever drive my kids unless they are in the correct seating for their age, and constantly complain about others who do so. Same for the bikes (they wear elbow pads, helmets and have the lights on, one battery and one dynamo). etc etc. I'm not the only parent who does this (you can probably guess that there is no smacking, no smoking, sensible bedtimes..... like the majority of parents I would imagine)

Speaking of parents, haven't several of MJs siblings complained that they were abused children?

Michael Jackson's popularity is definately waning. His albums aren't doing the business, and look at his dance routine. impressive, but it hasn't changed in 20 years, no wonder his own fans are deserting him. Come up wih something new, Michael, and you MIGHT reclaim your crown. It looks unlikely though.

The mans messed up. Which is nothing to abuse him for. However, it is a reason to believe that he might be a threat to his own kids (in a psychological, rather than abusive, way).

He has named them all after himself with the word 'Prince' in there (I saw the 'word' prince, as it is obviously not a real title.)

So Prince Michael Jackson, Prince Michael Jackson the Second, and (I dont know this one exactly) Princess...

It's interesting how his first in-depth interview comes at a time when his record sales are at an all-time low. I doubt if it was his decision to do the interview. I wouldnt' be surprised if parts were carefully scripted or rehearsed to show him in the best light.

I think his daughter might be called Paris but I'm not ceretain.

I felt sorry for him - his life has screwed him up, and it's probably almost impossible for him to escape from the obviously very sad and lonely , obsessive life he now leads.

But - I found the whole business with his kids very disquieting - not necessarily the baby-dangling, but, for instance, the mask-wearing thing - I know he says he wants to protect them from the media, but they\'re not going to grow up much more normal than him. He implied that he wanted to hide his face when young, and over-imposition of one's wishes on ones children is *very* dangerous. I didn't like the way the children were so used to wearing masks. These children have never appeared in poublic without masks or veils, so how will they feel when at some point in the future they do try and face the world without them? People *far* more famous or sensitive than MJ find better ways to raise famous children, so that's no excuse.

Did you notice that his six year old son's hair was clearly dyed blond? Who does that to a child of that age? They really are going to grow screwed up.

But what really gave me the willies were his stories about the children's births. It very much gave the picture of someone who felt they *owned* the babies, and that's scary. even if they are his children (and I wouldn't bet a huge sum on the paternity) you do not *own* them...

And his taste in furnishings is appalling! Did you seethe stuff he was buying?

His daughter is indeed called Paris, which isn't great but it's no reason to demonise the man. After all Bob 'save the world' Geldof called his kid Fifi-Trixiebelle, which was a cruel b*gg*rs trick if ever there was one.

As for Prince, well, the Artist Formely Known as an Illegible Sqiggle seems to have managed pretty well with it as a first name (and yes, it *is* what's on the Purple Pain's birth certificate...)

As to the rest of it, I'm reserving judgement until I've seen the programme, though if it's only half as scary as 'Michael Jackson's Face' from a couple of months ago, then i expect to be squirming in my seat long before the end...

Speaking of, it's on TV over here in Ausland right now. Though I'm not watching it, admittedly.


I still stick with my assertation that Michael and Jack Skellington are the same person, though.

When I logged off last night, I did realise I had been asking for opinions and may have quashed that a little. But I'm entitled to react to something...

The thing that everyone seems to be picking up on this morning, is the children-sleeping-in-bed thing...which, in itself isn't an awful thing. Surely that's the perception of other people that's doing the damage there?