Tuesday, May 29, 2012

sticks & stones

You know, for a long time I said nothing. I just watched, as the cruelty, the judgement and the "hate" began unfolding - again. (For a fanbase of a man so about "love", there's sure a LOT of hate...). But, see, then I got into that annoying position again. You know the one... where people are being so incredibly nasty and rude, not telling the truth, throwing so much negativity and hate out there and other people just letting it all happen or mindlessly agreeing or in some cases just yelling back... not productive. So, being who I am which is unable to stay out of things like this because they simply aren't right.... I got to this point again. The one where I have to point some things out. If you haven't yet figured it out, I am, of course, talking about Lisa Marie Presley.

In the past little while especially (basically since she started promoting Storm & Grace and got a little bit more accessible on Twitter.), the hate has been overflowing. You all don't need me to tell you what I'm talking about, you know what I'm talking about. And if you don't, then good. Lucky you and kudos for having no crazy in your life. ;) I originally had no intention of making this long, but apparently it got that way anyway. I know it will take some time, but please, read it if you are one of the people I am referring to. I know that there are going to be some people that aren't happy with me after this and that's unfortunate but the way I work is I need to stand up for what I believe in...that's not new....and that's what I did here. You all take your own paths. But please, give what I say a chance. I'm no more an "expert" on anything than you are. I'm in the same place you are.

STORM & GRACE

The album sucks
Well, actually, no it doesn't suck. I, for one, absolutely love it. Nor do I believe that the majority of YOU think it sucks. It seems an awfully big coincidence that all the people who have a "problem" with Lisa also don't like her music. From past experience, I would say it's a safe bet that half of you downloaded the album from SOMEHWERE and actually like it a lot, but heaven forbid you should say that. And maybe some of you really don't like it, that's fine, there's not one person or album that is universally liked... but before you insult someones art, someones music that they put their heart into, perhaps you should think about how that makes YOU look. You are not decreasing the quality of her album by talking shit, you are simply telling your like minded friends how much you hate it so you can be accepted by them. Tell the truth... what would happen if you said you liked it? But who are you helping by lying? And, again, if you have listened and you really don't like it, who are you helping by saying you hate it THEN?

The whole album is about Michael
Oh, okay. Again, listen to it then let's talk again. No, it is not. I'm not saying he doesn't show up anywhere, but really, the whole album is certainly not about him and you know what? Even if it was (which again, it isn't)....in what way does that affect you? In what way would it hurt him? In what way would it be your business? Alright then.

"THE NOTE"

Lisa gave it to Juliens herself to keep herself in the news
Oh, dear. When I first heard this, I legitimately thought people were joking. It makes THAT little sense. First of all, the "news" does not cover Julien's auctions. If she wanted to, er, "keep herself in the news" by giving a completely benign letter to someone, she'd give it TO the media. Second of all, again, "benign note". You don't think if she decided to somehow use Michael to get herself media attention, she'd have a better way of doing it then a note that innocent? That's a little silly, people. IF she was resorting to that, which by the way I promise you she isn't, she has more at her disposal than that note. Really now. And this thing about Lisa forging it? Oh my goodness, people, honestly. Listen to yourselves......what are you saying?

That note proves that Michael just wanted to get away from her
You see, guys, things like this is when I HAVE to believe that ignorance is happening on purpose because what else could it be? Did you write the note? Were you there that day? Okay then. Enough said.

Now let's get to all the stuff that gets everyone the most excited...

SHE SAID AND SHE DID AND THEN SHE SAID...

But, she said stuff about Michael.
She sure did. How many of you have ever talked about your ex? Anyone? Everyone? Oh, but wait. Your ex's aren't Michael. You're not doing it on TV. Right... I get it. But see, here's a few things that if you actually want to be balanced open minded people on this, you really should take into consideration.

She felt what she felt
That's the first thing y'all need to understand. Whatever she felt, whether it was true or not, it was her truth at that time. I am not going to tell you what she felt, I am not her. But she told you. You REALLY need to understand that in order to carry on here. She FELT what she felt.

We weren't the third party in their marriage
Was what she felt valid? I think it was, because I think anyones feelings at any given time are valid, but I dcon't know that everything she felt was the ultimate reality. You know who knows that? The two of them together. Her. And he knew that. And everyone else in the entire world that sits there and judges and picks it apart and has for the last 15 or so years needs to understand that. Yes, Michael fans love Michael. I know that. I love him too. But, you have to understand that being his fan, even his friend, is not the same as being married to him. In ANY marriage, there are two people that will experience things that only the two of them will ever truly understand because they are the only ones that were THERE. Not one other person can understand. I am so confused as to how people can sit there and judge her so harshly, telling people what she thought, why she did things, why she felt things... what on earth are you talking about? How on EARTH are you telling people why she did - what she thought - what she really meant - huh? Guys... we. weren't. there. Michael was wonderful and fabulous and I understand the fierce need to defend him, but you are not defending him by pretending to be able to know the inner details of a marriage that he was in. You are not defending him by inventing things to fill the gaping holes of what we DON'T know. You are not defending him by insulting his ex wife (or her current husband or her children - her CHILDREN? A+, Michael approves, I'm sure. Hello.) I'm not saying he was "the bad guy". I'm saying, I don't think there was one. I think the marriage ended. And that's not our business. So, that's another thing that needs to be understood before we go into "but she said....". Before we can attempt to understand the aftermath, we need to understand that we don't understand the marriage. As much as we love him, we don't know him as she did and they obviously both did things that contributed to the good and the bad. Okay? Okay.

Yes, she said- and she did - and she - I know
I watched the interviews too. There is no disputing that she said some things. But, let's take a step back for a second. Remember the two points I just made - she was feeling what she was feeling - and we weren't in the marriage so we don't know what actually went down between them. Now, let's put ourselves in her position. We feel whatever she felt and things didn't work out and we're doing an interview about, whatever we're doing an interview about, and every. single. time. his name comes up. FOR FIFTEEN YEARS. "Why did you marry Michael Jackson?" "What happened with Michael Jackson?" "Tell us about the divorce." "Do you think he - " "Why did he - ". Every time. There are interviews where she clearly said "I'm not talking about him.". There are interviews where she passively reacts. And then, yes. There are those interviews where she said some things that weren't the nicest things in the world I'm not saying it's awesome that she said them. I'm saying - he is not Michael Jackson to her like he is to us. He is her ex husband. And she's not happy. And she feels - again whatever she felt. And she reacted. And was it the best choice, no I imagine it wasn't. And just as we don't know what she was feeling then, we don't know what she's feeling now. Do you intend to punish her for the rest of her life for not saying the nicest things all the time about her ex husband years ago? I really think that one of the biggest problems here is the misrepresentation of Michael - and it's one that's not fair to him either. He wasn't perfect. He was a human being. He breathed air, he walked and talked, he got sad and happy and angry, he did stupid shit just like the rest of us.

It is your decision if you choose to hold onto this anger forever. But understand this - you are not doing Michael any favors. I understand the intention, I do, because in, say, 2003, I probably would've - well, I wouldn't have said the shit I've seen, but I would understand feeling hurt on his behalf. But, now it's 2012. Lisa has done a lot of self reflection and chose, though she did not have to, to share that with us in her 2010 interview with Oprah. People evolve and people learn. And Lisa did that. And then she moved forward while still holding on to memories. And that is what we all need to do for ourselves. We aren't helping anyone, least of all Michael, by judging things we don't understand, by throwing out negative energy (that by the way, she isn't catching so it's just staying with you. Do you see her acknowledging you? No.), by doing the exact opposite of what he stood for and spreading hate.

Michael called his fans his soldiers of love. It's time to start living up to the name. Think of all the time and energy you've spent hating Lisa and what good you could have done in that time. Let her go. You don't have to be a fan, but let it go. (Although she's pretty cool. You could do worse. I proudly dispute the nonsense going around that you can't love Michael and be a fan of Lisa - I'm doing it right now.). I'm not asking you to love her. I'm asking you, that if your goal is truly to defend Michael, to do what he'd want, to stand for him - then DO that. This isn't doing that. I know that the intention (from some anyway.) is to stand up for him, I get it......but it's gone well beyond that now. This is not okay. Lisa is a human being, not a tv character and the hate is out of control. You are not being fair. We can not judge what we do not understand.

I'll leave you with this... this is off of Storm & Grace btw... and ask that please... if you can't get past this for whatever reason, then at least let go of the negativity. You're hurting yourself and, frankly, doing what you've been doing as some kind of service to Michael is actually doing him a disservice. Think about it.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_MilZRtmFU

www.twitter.com/neverletyoupart

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Turning anger into a career? Pearl Jr and her motivations.

For quite awhile now, Pearl "Jr" (not her real name, but it doesn't matter.) has been pushing her "ebook/movie" and how Michael Jackson faked his death. And, of course, that's not true and is ridiculous and all that... but what I kept getting stuck on was why Pearl was doing this.

Why would a seemingly respectable journalist throw away her credibility by using Michael's death and a grieving group of fans just to make a quick buck? She's made a mockery of herself in her profession, profited off of peoples grief... why?

Pearl knows Michael is dead. She was at the hospital on June 25th. She wrote the foreword for a book of letters saying good bye to him.. she knows. And yet, she suddenly decided to do a 180 and prey on those in his fan base who were in despair and unwilling to come to terms with the fact that he was really dead. WHY? Things like "cash" have been suspected... that she took the only road that a struggling journalist hadn't taken before just to make some money... but that never seemed right to me. And why did she do things like launch these insane stories about Karen Faye and seem so focused on hating her? She had no reason to hate her (other than that she was telling a different story - like, the truth.), let alone to make up absolutely horrible accusations and stories about her. It just didn't make sense. She didn't get cash for her Karen lies, did she? (Although, to be fair, she did include some idiotic story in her ebook which she charged for... but you know what I mean.)

There still seemed to be something missing, but because I hadn't the faintest idea what it could be, I just shrugged it off and went with "crazy" like everyone else did.

But, then the other day, I came across this blog that Pearl had written. And some thoughts entered my head. These are thoughts that ANYONE who has bought her product, talked to her, worried about anything she said, or cares about Michael, should have the opportunity to read. This isn't me attacking Pearl. This is serious.

Since I've read the blog, I've started to think that perhaps there is more to it than money.

The link to the blog is as follows: (If it is no longer up, let me know. I have screen caps in case she decides to take it down.)

http://pearljr.livejournal.com/330.html

The title of the entry is "Integration Equals Another Racism!"

To summarize, it is, in my opinion, an INCREDIBLY racist rant about the horrors of Black men being with White women. Now, I understand that this is the way some Black women (and probably Black men) feel. It is no different (as long as it's not taken to a different level like it was by Pearl) than people wanting their children to marry someone in their own race or religion... it's just the way some people feel. And for some reason, some people also seem to feel that racism does not apply if it is directed at white people. FYI? That's not true. A blog supporting Black women? Fantastic. I'll read it AND share it. But a blog such as this one that puts down White women by saying how awful it is for a Black man to be with them? That's not okay. Imagine the reaction if a white woman posted a blog about how horrible it was for white men to be with Black women. That would be disturbing. This was no less disturbing. It was incredibly racist, period send. And, yes, I'm a white woman calling a black woman racist. And if that offends any one of you, I'm sorry. But white people can be discriminated against too. They can be hurt too. And they are not immune from racism or suppression, in several cultures.

Now, please let me be clear:the African American community has CERTAINLY suffered from discrimination from White society along with other minorities. I do not and never would dispute that fact. But this... this was clearly much more personal.

But, really, you'll need to read the blog yourself to understand the ranting I just did. And probably the rest of this blog.

So, we have Pearl writing racist articles... but that's not the only point. Let's take a look at some of the stuff that REALLY caught my eye:

In her words;

"Due to the alarming trend of too many Black men abandoning their racial responsibilities in regards to being the provider and the protector of the Black race family, I have vowed to NOT purchase any products by any Black man that is currently spending my money on making sure his non-Black wife/woman lives comfortably. Heck, White men do a good enough job that White women don’t NEED our men to do what their men are most capable of doing. "

Black men have racial responsibilities to marry Black women? Wow. But, okay, let's look a little closer at the second part... Pearl has vowed to NOT purchase any products by any Black man that is currently married or dating a White woman. Hm.

She then went on to say:

"As I pondered about telling the truth about a few high profile powerful Black men, I realized that I pay their bills and they don’t pay mine. I am no longer supporting them either by watching them on TV or in movies, buying their records, supporting any products they promote, or contributing anything to someone who doesn’t care about my feelings or my plight as a Black woman, which inevitably includes their own Black daughters."

Then she gives some examples:

"~ Tiger “Cablasian” Woods married a White nanny. Now, we all know if a Black female nanny was just as beautiful as that White woman, he would have never given her a chance. A sistah would need to have a couple of MBA’s, Ph.d’s, MD’s and a trust fund to even be considered. My bad! Nothing would probably help because his words tell me he HATES his Blackness.

~ Kobe Bryant had a myriad of Black girls crying when in an interview he yelled, “you see this ring you can’t have me”, and then was caught on some secret trip to Colorado cheating on his Latino-set for life-wife with a White girl hostess that worked in a hotel lobby who now lives in a mansion, drives a luxury car, and has all the diamonds Kobe’s money can buy because he couldn’t resist the temptation of a 19 year old White girl.

Furthermore, I heard Charles Barkley bragging about him and his White wife hanging with Tiger and his White wife, and Tony Parker with his non-Black girlfriend, Eva Longoria, at a golf course having a wonderful time pretending racism doesn’t exist because they are interracially loving. But in reality their cult to dismiss Black women is the newest form of racism. Do you think these non-Black women want any sistahs around reminding Black men that we need them and their resources because we are dying without them? Hell No! Further influencing these men to pretend Black women and Black race issues are irrelevant in their lives by telling them that race doesn’t matter and they are so glad that racism is over."


Now, let's ignore the obvious ridiculousness in what she's saying as a whole and focus on how this relates to the subject at hand.

Whatever you feel about Lisa Marie and Debbie, hear me out. Pearl has just made her opinion of Black men who date White women (AND of those white women) very clear. They are "not meeting their responsibilities", they are "racist", they are "part of a cult to dismiss Black women.".

Michael Jackson was married twice. Both times? To WHITE WOMEN.

Pearl does not like Black men who are with White women and she does not like the White women that are with the Black men.

Suddenly, I have more questions. Is creating (or at the very least promoting and making it a FAR bigger thing than it was) the death hoax a way of reaping some sort of revenge or getting some of "her" money back from Michael?

Pearl is using a dead Black man (who's only public romantic relationships were with White women.), disrespecting him on the worst levels possible by acting as if he's still alive, heartlessly running around leaving "clues", not caring about the grief that the world was and still is feeling. Pearl is making money off of this "theory". She acts as though she was a fan of his, likely to connect with the fans, but this article written well before Michael died, clearly shows that that's unlikely.

And let's look at Karen Faye for just a second. Take away your own thoughts about how Karen's this or that, about how Karen's my friend... and look at the FACTS. Karen used to be married to a very successful Black man herself. Karen is a White women. (Not that she wasn't successful on her own, but evidently that doesn't matter.) Pearl knows that Karen was married to this man. And Pearl despises Karen for reasons no one can make sense of, anytime someone's asked she just lies about something else.

Of course, Karen also worked for and had a close friendship with one of the most amazing Black men on the planet. The same man who Pearl would look at as "a Black man who chose White women".

And, again. Pearl despises Karen for reasons still unknown.... no one had a clue. Now, I'm not so sure. Maybe we do have a clue.

So wait a second. Is anyone else pausing? This woman essentially said that Black men who are with White women are doing something wrong - look at it any way you want to, but she's included Michael in that. He is a Black man that was married to (and had BABIES with) white women. (Note, I am not here to debate anyones paternity. Don't even start on that shit, so help me. Whatever your opinion, it's irrelevant and highly disrespectful to both Michael and his children to discuss it.).

Are we really to believe that Pearl's beliefs and convictions are not connected to her disrespectful behavior in Michael's death? That there is no connection?


Now, I'm going to go out on a limb for a second and get personal. I am a white woman. And I am hurt and offended by this blog she wrote. To say that a Black man is doing something wrong by dating a White woman or marrying one? I find it BEYOND racist and offensive. And incredibly degrading and unfair to any Black man. Do you think Pearl would have an issue with a Black woman dating a successful White man? Somehow I doubt it. People are people and despite Pearl's opinion, love has EVERYTHING to do with it. Everyone is entitled to choose what they want, but how DARE she say that EITHER a Black man OR a White woman is doing something WRONG if they fall in love. And let me tell you, if you don't think this applies to Michael too (in her head), I beg of you to read it again.

I know many Black men with wonderful Black women by their side - and many with wonderful women by their side that aren't Black. Just as I know many Black women who have wonderful Black men with them and Black women with wonderful men that are not Black who stand with them. And what all of these couples have in common is LOVE. Who tells people what race they should love? Who says it's not okay to love someone of a different race? What kind of person? Sure reminds me of white supremacists. Race purification? Is this different from saying that white people with blonde hair and blue eyes should only be with white people with blonde hair and blue eyes? Why is this any more acceptable than that? Why is this point of view okay on any level? This kind of thinking is dangerous and based on fear and anger.

And not only is this an attack on Michael in the sense that he is the exact person who she is referring to in her blog, butt is also exactly the opposite of all of the things that he stood for. I think he'd be horrified by this. Michael spoke so openly from the bottom of his heart about his love for all races, for all religions.... for all PEOPLE.

So.... she takes a famous Black man who goes against the things that she apparently believes... one who strongly and loudly believed in the exact opposite of her agenda and uses his death and his grieving fans to make a quick buck by saying that he FAKED his DEATH?

The way I see this, after reading that blog, is this is a direct, vindictive, vengeful, disrespectful attack on Michael, on his family and on his fans by a woman who obviously had a problem with the way he chose to live and love. Once again I ask.... on what possible level is this okay?

Clearly, it isn't.