What would you wear to court? (this is not a snarky question)

Black wool ankle-length trumpet skirt w/ lace trim, white high-collared blouse, Edwardian-style black wool riding jacket, and black flats. I wouldn't wear my hat, and I probably wouldn't wear the giant pointy rings because they make security guards nervous. So, an even-more toned-down version of my interview clothing.

Definitely B, Dana.

Why should an innocent man change innocent behavior?

Because sane people do not consider sharing a bed with non-related children to be innocent behavior.

In a seminar on early adolescent psychology I took, the presenter said that teenagers are sometimes hard to spot for signs of mental illness, because lots of natural parts of that age, such as severe mood swings, self-consciousness, obsessive behavior, are all normal. He said he was taught to go by the "back of the neck" test. If the person makes oyur hackles rise, pay attention. In other words, we as human beings have a sense for when others are "off" and we can tell the difference between eccentricities, which are a choice, and illness, which isn't, even though they can present in the same way. Healthy people react with suspicion to unhealthy behavior. The suspicion and name-calling and all of that "circus" behavior is horrible and I want no part of it, but it is understandable.

My feeling is that MJ is damaged, not merely unique, and to treat him (or anyone famous or monied or not) as just an interesting guy is bad for him. That's what his money has allowed to happen for years, and even if he has NEVER done anything sexual with a child, he still seems to have a horribly unhappy life. I wish he had someone around him who loved him to call him on his shit and that he had lots of therapy. I think his parents have a lot ot answer for, frankly.

Because sane people do not consider sharing a bed with non-related children to be innocent behavior.

Apparently, there are a dozens or hundreds of parents in the world who do not agree with you and are fine with their kids and twenty or thirty other kids having a slumber party with Michael Jackson.

Hee! Warning signs that your child may be a Goth.

Voted most likely to sack Rome in his high school yearbook

or, they are not sane. At least in Betsy's opinion.

Other people doing something does not mean that it is not crazy. Since crazy is not a testable discription, if I think someone or something is crazy - then as far as I am concerned, it/they are.

There are dozens or hundreds of people in the world who do lots of things I consider insane.

Hell, there are thousands of parents in the world who do things I consider insane.

Hands up all the parents on this thread who would let their kid share a bed with an unrelated 40-year-old adult. Assuming it's not a lifeboat situation, that there are enough beds for everybody to have their own.

He said he was taught to go by the "back of the neck" test.

Sure, but was that assessment made from obsessive news reports or meeting someone personally?

My feeling is that MJ is damaged, not merely unique, and to treat him (or anyone famous or monied or not) as just an interesting guy is bad for him. That's what his money has allowed to happen for years, and even if he has NEVER done anything sexual with a child, he still seems to have a horribly unhappy life. I wish he had someone around him who loved him to call him on his shit and that he had lots of therapy. I think his parents have a lot ot answer for, frankly.

Well, nobody treats him as just an interesting guy and the way things go are pretty bad for him too. He probably does need a shrink. And a time machine stocked with parenting classes for his folks. Assume he IS a fucked-up rock star, so what? He's just fucked up in an unusual way. (again, this is assuming he's not a pedophile)

Wow! Weatherbug says that it's 40 degrees outside!

is the problem that you think the media has equated his guilt of being a weirdo with guilt of pedophilia?

or that the media plays up his weirdoness?

or that we all think is a weirdo?