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AP file
Michael Jackson in 1993
In the end, the music is all that remains.
Dr. Conrad Murray has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson. Whether he serves years in jail or just days, nothing can bring the singer back. There seems to be no doubt that both Jackson and Murray made some incredibly dumb decisions.
You feel for Jackson -- pushing himself to take on a 50-date concert extravaganza, and with dreams of opening the world's largest children's hospital. He must have felt there weren't enough hours in the day. No wonder he couldn't sleep, and no wonder he became increasingly desperate to somehow force his body to do so, even if it meant taking the surgical anesthetic propofol.
Murray is a little more of a mystery. He must have thought he'd landed the job of a lifetime, the job of anyone's lifetime, being asked to serve as the personal physician to the legendary singer, earning a reported $150,000 per month. Did that make him think that he had to give the singer anything he asked for? Surely he figured that if he didn't provide the magic "milk," an increasingly desperate Jackson would simply fire him and hire someone else who would.
That's understandable, but it's not forgivable. Personal assistants can do what it takes to fulfill the requests of their celebrity clients, but we hold our doctors to a different standard. Time and time again during the trial other doctors took the stand and said that, in Murray's place, they would have told Michael Jackson "no." No, I can't give you propofol to sleep, it's a drug used for operations, not to be given in one man's bedroom. No, I realize you think it's what you need, but we're going to have to find another way.
No one but Jackson and Murray were in that room on June 25, 2009, and the real story of what happened there will never be known. Those of us who are just onlookers, merely fans of Jackson's incredible career, don't have to live daily with the pain that his three children do. Sure, they're rich and famous and set for life, but the son known as Blanket isn't even 10 yet. Would many of us trade a lifetime with our father, however many years we were allotted, for luxury goods and cash?
The Murray trial will soon slip into history, like Jackson's earlier court cases and headlines. It'll forever be a part of his life story, but it'll never outshine the real legacy, his music. Walk away from a television covering the Murray trial and find a radio or a CD or MP3 player playing Jackson's music. The hypnotic opening beats of "Billie Jean," the haunting notes of "Thriller," the jazzy tune of "Black or White," the soaring notes of "Man in the Mirror."
Turning on Jackson's music after hearing more of the endless details of the Murray case is like walking into a cool lake after a slog through a mud puddle. For those of us who grew up with it, our own life memories flash through our head when we hear it. School dances choreographed to "Thriller," dramatic breakups spent humming "She's Out Of My Life," the early days of "Rock With You" and even "ABC." They're a part of our culture, almost inescapable. Whatever Jackson did with the rest of his life, he gave us that.
Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror"
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Glad to hear that the dog and pony show is over but the little freak and child molester is still dead and that is the best thing.
So will stories of his child-molesting!
I couldn't agree with you more BAMA. People seem to have amnesia about his child molestation. Just sick.
Jackson's Thriller album will last the same as Bing Crosby's White Christmas album and a thousand others. The bottom line is that Jackson was doing what most of hollywood and the music industry does, take anything to stay young, keep up a schedule, relax and sleep. The Jackson family are not victums who lost something, Dad and mom robbed these kids of a childhood and then lived off of this kid's talent. I wouldn't feel sorry for them for one second because they will continue to live off his legend. Michael was going to die young in some bizarre way as he had lost his way in the world, just look at the numerous attempts at fixing a nose that had nothing wrong with it. He tried to find a childhood he never had and used all the means he had to get it back. Another great talent is gone and there is more than one guilty person sitting in that courtroom.
This freak had more plastic surgery than anyone. He must have weighed all of 80 lbs and was obviously having health and drug issues, now I have to pay for the doctors jail time..... what BS. This freak was death waiting to happen, but they would have found somebody guilty somewhere, so now we can pay for the incarceration of the Dr.
Embarrassing that hundreds were there , but never were there so many for a single veteran.
Will Macy's still run their annual Michael Jackson Sale Days..........you know.......Boy's Pants Half-off!
Disgusting. The jackson family destroyed another human being for revenge because Michael shut them out his whole life. Dr. Murray is not guilty. The judge remanding Dr. Murray to jail before sentence was pure Hollywood theatrics, pandering to the jackson family who have milked the death of Michael for all the $$$ they can get. A disgusting display of theatrics. A travesty of justice. A shame. A waste of taxpayer money. --p a p a r a z z i n c . c o m
Dr Conrad Murray should know not everybody fell for this shame trial. We know Michael is responsible for Michael. We know Michael is a drug addict. A drug addict. Thats right. Say it. Believe it. Because it's true. Those of us in L.A. who work with or around celebrities know what's going on. We also know what the 'doctors to the stars' are doing. Furiously pumping drugs into whatever celebrity walks in. They keep them coming back so the paparazzi come back again and again for pictures. The Beverly Hills doctor who got away with murder, we all know who he is, again gets away with it because he's to powerful and connected to be charged. Dr Murray was the patsy in this case. Keep in mind Murray barely new Michael and was a tiny minor influence in the long storied life of Michael.. -
--p a p a r a z z i n c . c o m
It amazes me that two of the most honored people in our society are two junky pedophiles, Michael Jackson and Elvis Presley.
Dr. Murray got what was coming to him. In the long run this is not about Michael Jackson. This is about greedy so-called Doctors who are worst than drug pushers and have killed 400,000 Americans since 1995 with their poison pills and maimed and addicted countless others. Its about time someone puts the fear of God into these quacks and snake oil salesmen. The CEOs, lawyers, researchers, salesmen for Big Pharma need to spend time in prison too preferably on the same tiers with the relatives of people they have killed.
p.s. the part about leaving a patient after they are put to sleep? Ask ANY anesthesiologist what the practice is. They all leave the operating room to put other patients to sleep in other operating rooms. This is standard operating procedure. I have never heard of an anesthesiologist that stayed for the entire procedure. Going to the bathroom, in Murrays case, was not negligent. Doctors family's all know this. Thats why when a doctors family is having surgery they instruct the surgeon/anesthesiologist to say for the entire surgery. This is the dirty little secret the medical community doesn't want you to know about. --p a p a r a z z i n c . c o m
Wow! Did you see the pictures of the people outside the courthouse? Talk about people needing to get a life themselves.
There is no doubt that the doctor was negligent and he has no concept of "first, do no harm." He was willing to do anything for $150,000 a month.
But then, isn't this what so many people did to Michael Jackson his entire life. He was a wounded child, and it seems that nearly everyone in his life took advantage of him.
His creepy father was abusive, and I believe that his mother lacked the ability to "mother" her children. Michael Jackson's life was one where I think a lot of people used him - especially his family.
The flip side of this is that Michael Jackson was a weak person who only seemed to take comfort in his music. He was tormented and I think this led to his drug use. And when the drugs stop working there are only two options, and Michael chose more drugs instead of rehab.
I have a tremendous amount of sympathy for Michael Jackson's children, although I think that Blanket really needs to change his name. Calling your child Blanket is hideous!
I have no sympathy for Dr. Murray because he was in it for the money. Unfortunately, and in all honesty, I also have no sympathy for Michael Jackson's parents. They were incapable of love, they abused him, and he was their meal ticket. Sure all the kids had musical talent to some degree, but I think that Michael Jackson expressed his abuse through his music.
I hope that soon we will no longer hear about this family. They seem to think that they "America's Royalty", and that's gotten old.