Goodbye Elizabeth - you are a true friend...

Even though I’ve already done one posting about Dame Elizabeth’s passing in my other blog, I had not covered all I wanted to. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that I wanted to focus on the devoted friendship she gave to Michael in a separate entry.

Plus, there are even more photos of these two beautiful souls that I wanted to present!

Like many people of my generation, I’ve grown up knowing of this spectacular and legendary actress. I’d seen some of her movies and admired her greatly for her acting and her famed beauty. But it was because of her friendship with Michael Jackson that I came to know more about her personally, rather than merely knowing how many times she had been married.

She was a truly exceptional friend, not only to Michael Jackson, but to many, many others as well. She said to Barbara Walters in a TV interview that she wanted to be remembered as someone ‘who lived’ and boy, did she! She lived and loved passionately and it is that quality which makes her so remarkable.

Like most MJ fans I am extremely grateful that Michael had this wonderful woman in his life, and on his side. The quotes taken from Dame Elizabeth’s acceptance speech at the 1994 Jackson Family Honors surmise perfectly why her friendship means so much to us – her words epitomize unconditional love.


 “Michael, we who know you more intimately than others acknowledge the suffering you have endured because we have suffered with you. But in the midst of our deepest anguish, we have known that you would prevail through this dark hour, that you would emerge stronger but still innocent, childlike, trusting bruised but still magically untouched by the tongues and opinions of the world. Hurt, but still gloriously loving and benevolent despite the slings and arrows of those who know better. 

Enough of tabloid media! Enough of tabloid television! You know only you, the public, can accomplish this simply by not buying their garbage. Only you can put them out of business. Only you, and wouldn’t that be great?

Michael, we know your recent torture isn’t going to alter or change your compassion and love for children. There is beauty and truth in your being. You are the brightest star in the universe. Don’t let anything dim your leading light. Neither crisis nor circumstances can ever take it away from you.”

The ‘conventional wisdom’ of that particular time after the first false allegations surfaced was for Michael to distance himself from his love for children. A prime example of this is when Diane Sawyer questioned whether Michael intended to allow any more kids to sleepover during the June 1995 interview she did with him and Lisa Marie Presley.

“I just want to… Is it over? Are you going to make sure it doesn’t happen again? I think this is really the key thing people want to know.”

Whilst Diane Sawyer’s approach may have reflected the popular consensus at the time it is Elizabeth Taylor’s plea to Michael to refuse to allow the preceding nightmare to change him that resonates with us fans. It shows us that she truly ‘gets’ him; that she knows who Michael really is and doesn’t want him to change a thing about himself. That is what a true friend does.

Myths and Misconceptions - Arms Wide Pose explanation

Nowadays I don’t believe anything I see or read in the media – and not just reports pertaining to Michael Jackson either, but on each and every subject they cover. For example, my reaction to the female reporter who was “brutally” sexually assaulted recently in Egypt was not the instantaneous condemnation I felt the media was demanding. After being exposed, no - awakened to their tactics I can’t help but question the story. Without knowing the specific nature of the assault, I am supposed to accept their characterization of it? I’m sorry but I just can’t do it any more. The media has demonstrated that they like to do more than just champion a victim – they don’t just tell a story, sometimes they create the story.

This is not news to ‘those that know’ - Michael’s fans he refers to in his song ‘Privacy’. But I’m afraid it is a new revelation to me. I used to trust the mainstream media. When I heard Michael say “Don’t read the tabloids – its garbage!” I agreed with him. Since Princess Diana’s death in 1997 I have avoided all tabloid news so I thought I was already complying with Michael’s request. 

What I hadn’t realized is how the mainstream media has deteriorated so much that the line between them and the tabloid media is blurred at best and at worst, it is non-existent.

As a result, there are many myths and misconceptions about Michael Jackson that have been perpetuated by the mainstream media.  One by one since he died these myths and misconceptions have been disproved as I have collected photos, listened to and watched interviews Michael did and read accounts from people who met him.

All these showed Michael being affectionate with loads of different people, of all ages, of both sexes and all races. So off the media’s list of characteristics they had ascribed to Michael you could cross off germ-o-phobe; he clearly was unafraid of close physical contact with people, many who were complete strangers to him.

All displays of affection were entirely appropriate and were not limited to only boys of a certain age, with a certain look, as the media would have us believe.

One other misconception that was totally shattered for me was the implication that Michael had a Messiah complex. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard someone suggest that or read that Michael suffered from this. 

They cited the pose Michael did in many of his performances that inspired the Chinese statue as proof that Michael desired to be perceived as a crucified Christ-like figure.

From my point of view, I knew Michael was religious, that he aspired to be Christ-like so if he was emulating Jesus, then so what? Isn’t that a good thing – wanting to be like Jesus? Plus, in my opinion, Michael was justified in feeling persecuted. I believe this even more strongly now with all that I’ve learnt since he passed. But the pose isn’t about crucifixion…it’s about love.

In Seven’s posting about the unveiling of the Chinese statue on New Year’s Day, one of her readers named Blue Lotus made the following observation about the pose:

This "arms outstretched" pose has a deep spiritual meaning: In India, they had a great Saint by the name of Sri Aurbindo. He wrote the following prayer: "O Lord, my arms are outstretched in supplication towards Thee, my heart is wide open before Thee, that Thou mayst make of it a reservoir of Thy infinite love.".  BlueLotus believes this is exactly what Michael Jackson had in mind every time he outstretched his arms...what a pure being!

I love this explanation! And when you look at the faces in this photo; both Michael’s and the children’s you will see the truth of what Blue Lotus wrote. It’s all about opening yourself to love…and joy. I love how these children show they truly get it, even the little cutie in front of Michael! 

From his hotel balcony, high above and out of earshot of his adoring fans gathered below, the arms wide pose allows for some non verbal communication – letting them know how much their support means to him. In sign language terms maybe it could be the equivalent of one of Michael’s catch phrases: ‘I love you more!’

On horseback, in a beautiful wooded area, Michael uses the arms open wide pose to convey his appreciation for his surroundings. It’s so bittersweet to see him relishing the sensation of sunshine on his face, knowing that his vitiligo would have forced to him to wear the hat (which he has briefly removed in the above gif) to protect his skin. The below photo looks like it was taken in the Thriller era, where the vitiligo was still in the initial stages so no hat was used.

In this stunning snowy alp setting an even younger Michael enjoys a winter wonderland.

When Michael was performing, the pose was adapted to suit the mood of the song. In ‘They don’t care about us’ for example the open palms become clenched fists – to denote Michael’s strength in adversity and perhaps his desire to fight back figuratively against those that would try and destroy him? 

In looking at the below photo, you can almost hear the powerful shout Michael does to accompany his guitarist Jennifer Batten’s solo.  And that’s the whole point that those who, because of this pose labeled him as having a Messiah complex missed. As a dancer and musician whose instrument was his body, Michael used every ounce of energy, every muscle and every fiber of his being in his performances to convey the emotion behind the song, the lyric or the music.  

And lastly, one for the fangirls…Hee Hee!

There were so many more wonderful photos of Michael in this pose so I've created an album on Facebook, which I'll add to as I come across more photos.


If you would like to take a look, here is the link:


http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=34225&id=100001581051452&l=0bb6cd7846

So we are supposed to care about the media? Who lie and deceive us?

One of the things I’ve struggled with since Michael’s death is remaining positive in light of the dawning evidence that I had been somewhat brainwashed by the media. I’m a MJ fan, have been since 1991 and yet some of their crap did permeate my perception of Michael. Not all of it, but more than I would have thought possible. 

As a result, now that I know better I am incredibly cynical about the veracity of any news report I see or read. It infuriated me recently when all the various media outlets seemed to be insisting that I fear for the safety of several US journalists covering the unrest in Egypt. Most notably to me were Katie Couric and Anderson Cooper. Firstly, they knew what they were getting themselves into; after all that is why they were there – to cover the newsworthy event.

After the election of President Obama in September 2008, I began watching a lot of CNN to learn more about the charismatic new US leader – and in particular I watched Anderson Cooper 360. I picked his show because he had become known to me as doing exceptionally good work covering Hurricane Katrina. The impression I got was that he was one of the few remaining authentic newsmen; an honorable journalist committed to using his reporting skills to make a positive change in the world.

I distinctly remember they covered the ‘This Is It’ announcement in March 2009. They implied that Michael was a rambling, incoherent mess. Now, they are not members of the tabloid media so I assumed (incorrectly) that it must be true. I felt bad for Michael; I did not want to see him humiliated so I fast-forwarded the rest of the segment featuring the O2 Press Conference. 

Imagine my surprise when a year later, I came across a transcript of his O2 announcement. It was so brief, how could anyone possibly label it as rambling?


2009-03-06jacksonaction.com "I love you so much. Thank you all. (Fans begin chanting ‘This Is It’ and Michael responds to this by chanting along with them) This is it. I just want to say these…these will be my final show performances in London. This is it, this is it and when I say “this is it” it really means this is it because erm…I’ll be, I’ll be performing the songs my fans want to hear. This is it, I mean, this is, this is the final curtain call okay? And, erm…I’ll see you in July and (Fans chat “We love you Michael!”) I love you. I really do. You have to know that, I love you so much, really, from the bottom of my heart. This is it and see you in July!”

To characterize it like that, when it could be so easily verified…it shows you how audacious the media has become. And it also shows how stupid they think we are! I suppose they’re right because I didn’t question them…not enough.

With Katie Couric, I have been a fan of hers for years. I would even tape ‘NBC Today’ everyday (it is on at 4am in Australia) because I loved her and Matt Lauer. I still watched it even after she left for CBS – until Congressman…the former Congressman (hee hee!)…Peter King appeared on it. One day, I came across a YouTube video of Katie on ‘The Late Show with David Letterman’ discussing Michael Jackson. 

Now, my situation is a bit different, I do not have the internet at home (ironic isn’t it? I cancel my home internet and then a week later I start a blog!) So after I finish work I use www.keepvid.com at my office to save any videos. I don’t watch them at work – instead I use a USB device to transfer files between my home and the office. Anyway, the point is: when I got the Katie Couric ‘Late Show’ appearance home it wouldn’t open.  I didn’t give it another thought other than perhaps I was better off if the story Katie told was mean spirited. 


So I wasn’t inclined to feel instantaneous concern for either Anderson Cooper or Katie Couric. Even that angered me, because I would have prior to Michael’s death. It is the loss of trust I have in the media, my increasing levels of scepticism that I struggle with daily. I’ve found that most of us are Michael Jackson fans not because of his undeniable and unquestionable talent, but because of his heart. He was a genuinely good person. He was an angel on earth, here to make the world a better place.

I want to be like him not like them…I want to see the world through his eyes not theirs.

Months passed, I became more adept at using the new system I’d implemented for YouTube videos so I re-tried and finally got to see the Katie Couric MJ discussion for myself a few days ago. Here it is:

I was so relieved that she wasn’t nasty about him! The video also served to inspire me to group the following items together, with Michael, as he always should, getting the last word. 

“My friends, with 2 children of my own, I know what it means to have to balance the demand of family and career -- let's not even talk about finding a date for myself, even though... Even though Rabbi Shmuley keeps telling me he's going to find me the perfect woman, my response is: As long as it's not a journalist!”

Michael Jackson, Heal the Kids, Carnegie Hall Address

February 14^th, 2001

Why do zoo animals get better treatment than what Michael received?

I imagine that question has crossed the minds of other MJ fans besides me. I love watching animal documentaries and whenever there are scenes where the animals are being treated and an anesthesia is administered, I’m always struck by how many people are present to ensure all goes well. I can’t help but think of Michael Jackson- a human being – left alone by that irresponsible man who calls himself a doctor.

Today, when I was working on another posting, I was watching an episode of ‘The Zoo’ and a silverback gorilla named Rigo (he is pictured above) had to have surgery to remove a damaged tooth. Attending to him were two vets and a human doctor – and on top of that there was the zoo staff as well. Please don’t get me wrong – I am glad this many people were monitoring Rigo. That is the way it should be, our wildlife is precious and humans should take this much care with all animals, especially those we have put on the endangered list.

Michael loved gorilla's - as seen here firsthand by a very lucky fan indeed!

But at the same time, it reminds me that our beloved Michael was left alone, after he had been given that fatal dose. Why? Not just why did that incompetent fool leave him alone, but why was there not a nurse present to assist the doctor to monitor his patient? It seems to me that if Michael had regularly used that drug to combat insomnia – I don’t necessarily believe this is true but it is what the defense are claiming – then wouldn’t they have to have taken into consideration the length of time Michael would be under? If it were a regular occurrence like they claim, surely they would have anticipated the need for someone to relieve the doctor from time to time?

Even if you can get past: 1. That drug being administered outside of a hospital setting and 2. the lack of another medical professional present, why wasn’t one of Michael’s staff called to sit with their boss whilst the doctor was absent from Michael’s bedside? Michael had his household staff there in that Holmby Hills mansion, his chef Kai Chase and the children’s nannies not to mention the security personnel. Why wasn’t one of these people called to sit with Michael when the doctor realized he had to leave his patient?

I’m not just asking from the doctor’s point of view either. I mean, if I was Michael and I wanted a doctor to administer a drug like Propofol to me because I wanted to sleep for X amount of hours; I would expect the doctor might need to leave my side to use the restroom, for example. I wonder what Michael thought would happen in this instance, who did Michael think was looking after him?

For all the multitude of people who constantly surrounded Michael Jackson throughout his life, he finally got some privacy – but at the worst possible time! It’s unbelievable to me that such a remarkable, irreplaceable individual like Michael could be left alone like that.  

Rigo had at least half a dozen people present whilst he was under anesthesia. Michael Jackson had only one? Why?

Perhaps the upcoming involuntary manslaughter trial will answer these questions…

When it comes to this subject, one of the best sources I've found is Nikki Alligators blog "From the branches of the giving tree". I am grateful at least, like during the preliminary hearing, I could turn to my fellow MJ bloggers for the news. The details were horrendous, and sent me spinning away in distress, but I imagine it would have been far worse if delivered from the traditional media.