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[这个贴子最后由mkgenie在 2004/04/19 10:36am 第 2 次编辑][B]（我来译）[/B]THE SLOW MURDER OF MICHAEL JACKSON:Fear And The Sexiness Of The Undeadby Polar Levine for popCULTmedia, February 16, 2004 John Ashcroft’s thirst for capital punishment aside, America’s thirst for death as catharsis and entertainment still hasn’t gotten around to FOX’s inserting live executions into its reality TV lineup. For the moment we’ll have to be satisfied with the much slower Jacko hunt. I believe the media is chasing a very unbalanced and vulnerable man to suicide to be followed by a year-long explosion of Michael Jackson tributes, posthumous music releases, bioPix, merchandise and -- when all has been said and sold -- soul-searching questions about our own culpability in our victim’s demise. I’ll be amazed if Jackson reaches his fiftieth birthday.I’d say, “go get him” if I were aware of any serious evidence of child molestation. As a dad of a young kid I take a hard stand on pedophilia. But as far as I’m concerned a 45-year-old man sleeping in the same bed with a child, adult or any other mammal is not the same as having sex. Like having a Bud is not the same as being an alcoholic. Like being a Muslim is not the same as being a terrorist. No specific evidence of sex with children has been publicly disclosed. For that matter I’m not sure Michael Jackson has a history of sex with any human, animal or vegetable. His true crime is being weird. More specifically, his true crime is being weird in precisely the same way that our pop culture is weird -- but he’s a few years ahead of the curve.Alleged pedophilia aside, let’s look at his weird activity. His obsession with his looks coupled with his surgical alterations reflect the same obsessions and alterations found in much of our mainstream youth-worshipping society. Compulsive shopping sprees reflect America’s extreme style of consumerism where buying unnecessary stuff is a mode of entertainment and shopping ourselves into debt has become not just a mundane activity, but our patriotic duty. His over-the-top new age Hallmark rhetoric reflects our own taste for draping doilies in the form of kitsch and sentimentality over our anxiety and terror.Michael Jackson has lived an extreme life and he acts out his culturally-derived fears and anxieties in an extreme version of the way millions of Americans act out. We’re living in a hothouse of media-projected fear. The entertainment/infotainment industry derives much of its cash flow from the violence it amuses us with in movies, video games, tv dramas and the news. The nightly perpwalk has been a staple of local news broadcasts for decades and the droning headlines and newsmag features on serial killers, pedophiles, terrorists, muggers, scam artists, epidemics and countless possibilities for injuries are as regular as cornflakes. Michael Moore’s ‘Bowling For Columbine’ brings this fear factor chillingly to light.No study seems to conclusively link this steady diet of violence to a violent society, so it’s hard for people to consciously attempt a movement to put on the brakes. I believe we’ve been focusing all these studies on the wrong question. People may not be more likely to kill as a result of this diet of non-stop media violence but it certainly leads to a pervasive culture of free-floating fear. This unconscious blanket of fear gets played out in a variety of ways, often in rituals adopted by different subcultures. When fear is free-floating, as opposed to based on a specific real threat, we feel compelled to detach from life to some degree to ease the pressure. Drugs are the most obvious escape. But there are other equally destructive roads out of reality. Entertainment bingeing is epidemic: watching tv, playing computer and video games, recreational shopping. The comforting certainty of fundamentalism -- theological, political or philosophical -- has a powerful attraction. The cult of beauty and sexiness, like money, is the requisite currency of happiness. It attracts love, riches and the eternal happy ending. The hipster set has discovered the reality-buffering qualities of extreme irony as though wrapping our fears in graphic dark humor punctuated by a blasé “whatever” will say “BOO!!” and make all those scary issues of mortality, nonprettiness and decrepitude flee from consciousness. Every day we receive information and instructions from prerecorded voices -- the chit chat of the “undead.”Our fear and loathing of Michael Jackson is the fear and loathing of our own attraction to the road he’s taken. We’re predisposed by instinct to recoil at the recognition of our own death trip. Jackson is being crucified for the sins of our cult of artifice and detatchment.Michael Jackson has been living in public since he was ten. He’s the prototype for ‘The Truman Show.’ Imagine going through puberty and adolescence in front of a fleet of cameras. The world gets to see, hear and comment on our sexual awakening and cluelessness, on our bodies going bonkers: zits, voice changing (a singer’s voice), too fat, too skinny, nose too big, not nice enough, not down enough, too politically conscious for Young America, too soft for the streets, too black, too white. Too much responsibility. Not enough fun.The Jackson 5 hit the charts during the chaos of the anti-war movement and the militant phase of the civil rights movement. Michael was too young and too driven by the commercial demands of his family and his mentor/employer Berry Gordy to tap into the political/philosphical side of youth culture -- a rare sliver of time when young people had goals deeper than fun and status. His major breakthrough occurred in the 80’s as a solo artist during the Reagan era when our lingering humiliation over Watergate and America’s first military defeat sought relief in nostalgia for the certainties of the 50’s. Coupled with the birth of MTV, materialism replaced social consciousness as the reigning aesthetic of youth culture. Artiface and acquisition, vogueing and coke, polyester motorcycle jackets and business suits. Fashion models became superstars just because they were pretty, corporate CEOs because they were rich, and Robin Leach because he publicly swooned over the rich and pretty for our amusement. Jackson was the most famous rich pretty person on earth. The pressure to stay young and pretty, coupled with the onset of his alleged skin condition (vitiligo, which causes irregularly shaped white blotches on the skin), must have put this hopelessly exposed and fragile man-child into an ongoing dull roar of panic. The extreme nature of his fame, visibility and the pressure to maintain the winning formula in a formula-bound youth culture must have been crushing to a person who had known nothing but pop music success.The call to surgically derived youth had been answered long before Michael Jackson got to it. But Jackson, unlike his nipped and tucked predecessors, was introduced to the scalpel at a time when the technology of virtual youth offered transformative potential that would have given Mary Shelly the creeps. And few humans of any age had Michael Jackson’s enormous wealth with which to indulge surgery to such monstrous ends. Only in horror stories of the “undead” were these transformations previously contemplated: ‘Frankenstein,’ ‘The Island Of Dr. Moreau’ and zombie flicks like ‘Dawn of The Dead.’ The enormity of his talents has only been surpassed by the depths of his preventive isolation. His pathological drive to stay young for his adolescent market and his lack of intellectual curiosity and maturity precluded evolving into a “mature” artist like Al Green, Sting, Mick Jagger and Robert Plant, whose records are no longer guaranteed to sell multi-platinum but allow for longterm creative careers. The audience that grew up with Michael Jackson would certainly forgive him for aging along with them. He could have let the teeny boppers serve the teeny boppers. Instead he chose the reality-defying strategy of being a teenager for life. Steven Tyler proved that a popstar could remain a teenager in the head for life. Committing one’s body to this goal is a hard wall to bang and Jackson is a banged up old guy for trying. Fear is a soul-twisting thing; but no fear is as distorting as a generalized fear of reality. The cult of fear and its antidote -- artifice -- leads to a dead end. Artiface is a facsimile of life -- the aesthetic of the “undead.” Death metal, fashion models posed and lit to look starved and devoid of consciousness, serial face-lifting that renders a person’s face a cadaverous mask, the Tarrantino fetish of graphic violence as comedy.I have no aesthetic or principled objection to a bit of nip and tuck and a bucket of hair paint. But taken too far, the effect becomes self-defeating. A person who’s had a dozen face lifts looks more dead than vital. A face that’s been marinated in Botox looks more like a wax museum replica of a young person than a living one. The fact that we identify these deathly faces with youth and sexiness rather than sickness says much about our growing confusion over reality and artiface. The eroticism of deadness is everywhere. The punk era popularized the black lipstick and mascara look of a cadaver. A woman’s face with so much makeup as to obscure emotional expressiveness is generally associated with sexiness as is the dissipated manequin-chic that typifies so much fashion modeling. The exquisiteness of design and the fact that much of this aesthetic has a nudge-nudge-wink-wink aspect doesn’t lighten its weight in the overall cultural lexicon, particularly as it filters down to younger generations who are unaware of the original ironic allusions.If all of us could afford the excesses of Michael Jackson, how abnormal would he then be? Could I go that far and not know it? That’s the scary question we ask ourselves when we rubberneck our tv every time he appears. It’s our own cult of necrophilia that causes the air to vibrate when we see that face and hear that voice recite the Peter Pan platitudes in a woozy soprano. We’re terrified but can’t look away. His music is now merely an asterisk on his resumé. Removing him is the only way out of our discomforting addiction to sensational coverage of his ever-evolving creepiness. And pedophilia is the silver bullet.Last year I watched the BBC documentary on Jackson. It was a truly repellant experience. The only thing more horrifying was the parade of coverage and commentary that revealed a bizarre giddiness in its malice. Whom did he murder? Whose life savings did he scam? Whose job did he outsource?Why are so many people so sure he’s a pedophile despite the absence of any reported clear evidence? Would we so readily believe Oprah or Derek Jeter to be guilty of pedophilia? We believe what we’re comfortable believing. And we want to believe Michael Jackson is guilty. We want to believe that it’s impossible for an adult to lie in bed with a child or adolescent without any sexual activity or motivations. Is it possible that a young kid with cancer who’s been told by the medical authorities that he’ll soon die has moments of sheer terror? That he’s had his youth stolen from him and is alone in the world while other people float outside in a festival of normalcy? Could he have wanted his sympathetic famous benefactor to lie next to him and maybe even rock him to sleep? Is it possible that Michael Jackson knows exactly who this kid is and wants to give him some peace? I have no way of knowing what Jackson did or didn’t do. I do know that our slow collective public murder of this man is one of the ugliest non-military media spectacles I’ve ever witnessed. If we’re not ashamed, then we truly are the undead.Polar LevineEditor, popCULTmedia.comwww.polarity1.com/bla1704.html----------------------------------Here are a few reviews of this article. you may go to this URL(http://www.polarity1.com/bla1704r.html) to check for yourselfThis is an excellent piece of writing which has changed my way of thinking regarding this topic.Well done Polar Levine and thanks to Music Dish for such an interesting and informative site.-- wilz I've seen this picture. My 24 year old cousin with cancer (fatal) took enormous comfort having his father curl up at his backside and just hold him.-- aromacat Isn't there enough to write about, without leaping to the defense of Michael Jackson? Child molesting is not one bit funny; and it seems to be the state sport of California. Get a grip.” -- Anna TaylorPolar Levine responds:Anna: Yes, there's plenty to write about and this is one of the many issues and non-issues of the day I find worthy of comment. I'm in total agreement that "Child molesting is not one bit funny" which I state very clearly in paragraph 2 of my piece: "As a dad of a young kid I take a hard stand on pedophilia." That statement was in no way gratuitous. But while the entire planet is watching "noted authorities" discuss the case and smirk through reams of personal data about Jackson -- much of which is irrelevant to the case -- it must be noted that he's not been convicted of any crime and no convincing evidence has been brought to light by the prosecution. That is because actual evidence is revealed, not on FOX News, but at a trial before a judge and jury. In the 1980's there was an epidemic of child molestation cases where many day care workers served long prison terms for charges that turned out to be untrue. The media dug up whatever trash it could find on these "monsters" to stoke public anger and draw ad revenue. Why don't *you* get a grip, Anna, and wait until a verdict is announced. By the way -- if you have in your hand a list of all the child molesters who are participating in "the state sport of California" -- please pass them on to the authorities. WOW!!!! One of the most intense commentaries I've ever read!!! There's no way you're wrong on every "bullet-able" point in your article. It just backs up what I've said for years ... that old thing about a man, his money, and public contempt. It's about GODd#amn time someone actually stood up and said it!Kudos my friend,-- John Foxworthy, Chief Editor, Garage Radio Polar Levine, you're one of the most prolific, thought provoking writers i've ever read. Thank you for painting such a grand picture of the 'truth' of our culture's blatant and heartless attack on this issue of Michael Jackson.But, regardless of the subject, you are a phenom and i'd like to applaud your work and gifting!-- Ray Fuller Impressive self-aware article about our current society. More please!-- giacThe Michael Jackson editorial was powerful: the tears are coming down my face in recognition. In 1993 I wrote an editorial for Sexual Perspectives on Michael Jackson, also, only then I was foreseeing that the public would not believe that he could be a pedophile and that we would change our views on man/boy sex. Here we are again, and yes, we are fascinated. This current view is more perceptive than mine was, and probably much more likely.-- Sally Miller Sally@SallyMiller.com.Whether Jackson is guilty or not, this is very insightful and I sincerely hope it's read by enough people to make a significant positive difference in the current world of thinking. You never make anyone guilty just by wishing it so. -- D Jackson Robert Kramer writes:In as far as the Michael Jackson flap goes, maybe sometimes a duck is just a duck. Whether Michael Jackson is found guilty or innocent will be a matter for the courts to decide. In spite of Polar Levine ís colorful pop-ish idiosyncratic diatribe, there are a few points I tend to agree with. Fear has long been a motivating factor in the publicsí judgement of artists, musicians, actors and an endless parade of those whose 15 minutes of fame lasts way longer than tolerable. And our morbid fascination with cultural icons being roasted over by the media has been present at least since the invention of the supermarket tabloid. Like the gapers block at a car accident, you canít look at it, and you can't look away.We tend to abhor that which is different or strange, or not to our tastes or cultural, social or religious comfort zones, and our hatred comes from a fear of not fully understanding these things, as well as not having all the facts.Truly, we, the public, don't have all the facts in the MJ matter yet. The prosecutors who levelled the charges claim they do have facts. Enough facts that they believe support their motivation for filing charges and bringing the whole matter out in court to determine the truth. Innocent until proven guilty. That is our judicial systems motto. What the media and subsequently the public think they know or believe about the facts is really immaterial. Yes, it is a shame how the media slams, defames and shames certain people in the court of public opinion.Too bad. If you object to free speech, don't read newspapers, donít open your email, and don't watch tv. Let's face it. The only way the media can truly offend those who are offended is thru direct contact with the medium.Too often, the media has been called to blame for the sins of morbid curiosity; sins that truly fall upon us, the public. You don't like what you read or hear? That's a shame. To be sure, someone is right and someone is wrong in the dispute over whether Michael Jackson, a 45 year old man with the emotional maturity of a ten year old, and questionable stable mental faculty, was acting inappropriately with children. It is at this point, however, we need to separate the man from the myth. Would this story have the same impact if Michael Jackson were a janitor, teacher or a cook at McDonalds instead of a world famous performer? Would it even have made the ten o clock news? Many would say no, but I disagree.I truly believe that our society has matured to the point where we can now understand and recognize there are certain types of behaviour that automatically show up as a red flag in our conciousness. ANY 45 year old man sleeping with children NOT HIS OWN, demonstrating a blatant disregard for the safety of a child that WAS his own, and showing no conscience or remorse for endangering a childsí life would TEND to make people think that perhaps you were dealing with a potentially dangerous and unstable individual. If Joe Nobody, who lives across the street, were seen dangling an infant from the third floor of his apartment, there would be SWAT teams with rifles trained, and police surrounding the building trying to talk him into surrendering. But because itís Michael Jackson, self-proclaimed king of pop, it only mildly annoys some, with others claiming while it was somewhat strange, there was no real harm done. It was not the medias fault why Michael Jackson turned into the ! self-indulgent freak he has become. It was his own fault. He chose the life he now lives. He alone made the choices that put him in the eye of the media storm that now rages. It is time to admit that each of us is wholly and entirely responsible for our own actions.Whether or not the man can sing and dance is besides the whole point here. Hitler and Gacy were painters. Their talents did NOT, in any way, reflect the measure of who they were in total. Nor do you hear anyone coming to their defense, or blaming ìthe mediaî for hounding them and indulging in public assassination of their characters, trying to use the extreme stress they were put in from having ìtoo much media exposureî as a reason for their ìquirky behaviourì. No, I know, Michael Jackson didn't kill any children..that we know of. But maybe there is reason to consider him as potentially dangerous, given what we have heard and seen so far. And maybe it is time for the public to assume responsibility for pre-judging someone before all the facts are known. In either case, it is clearly the time we, as a society, stop indulging in the kind of blind fan-worship that causes us to ignore inappropriate behaviour. Our noses, in retrospect, may be uglier than anything MJ ever! did to his.Robert Kramer Polar Levine responds:The issue here is not my delicate sensibilities. Of course I can turn the tv off. But as a media critic I comment on media’s role in our culture. My take on this Jackson thing also entails our corporate and government bodies' increasing ability to tap into our personal private lives and retreive the nasty data as soon as one of us is accused of some dirty deed. Whether you're a popstar or a janitor you do not deserve to be dessicated for the amusement of a stimulation-challenged public. A musician should not be penalized for being popular. The idea that a *public figure* is toy for the public to twist, pound and mutate like a lump of Play-Doh is sick. And it's a cheap philosophical loophole that legitimizes our violence and envy as medication for our ennui.It’s well understood that Jackson is mentally askew in certain vital areas. It’s also understood that he’s an extremely well-focused and proactive businessman who’s very much in charge of his multitude of income-generating activities and holdings. We can point to many eccentric -- ok, extremely neurotic -- people who are highly functional in other areas.We don’t know if he acted “inappropriately with children” and we won’t know until a verdict is handed down. Even then we won't know for sure. But that’s the way our legal system works. It's "too bad" if you have to wait until then to howl with the mob. As you say, Jackson’s actions “would TEND to make people think that perhaps you were dealing with a potentially dangerous and unstable individual.” I agree. But that doesn’t mean that he actually *is* a dangerous individual. Sleeping in bed with a child means different things to different people. A child in pain or distress can be comforted by lying next to an adult he/she trusts. Because some people, or the majority if that's the case, think that it is the same as molestation -- doesn't mean it *is* molestation. In fact -- *you* could find yourself, like Richare Perle (the wrongly accused 1998 Atlanta Olympics bomber), having your life and reputation destroyed in public because you're wrongly accused of a horrendous crime with no convincing evidence. Remember, Perle was not a celebrity. The public, the police and the media needed a suspect and here was a guy who was near the scene of the crime. He'll do.I'm a big free speech guy but I'm no fan of using free speech as a blunt instrument for generating profits for media at the expense of private citizens. Jackson's serial facial alterations are not much more extreme than that of Joan Rivers or Cher. And as weird or repellant as his lifestyle may be -- it does not suggest that he has criminal tendencies. We're entertained by the rage and repulsion we feel but that doesn't make our invasion of his privacy and endless malicious commentary any less morally repugnant. If he's guilty of child molestation I'm for putting him away for a very long time. Until that verdict comes down, he deserves the same dignity as any upstanding citizen like yourself. |
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发表于 2004-4-17 00:00:00
显身卡
Jackson家族后代3T的歌迷热切的企盼着的名叫《Identity》的专辑，于2004年4月5日在部分欧洲地区发行了。在法国，瑞士，荷兰和比利时发行的专辑包含十三首歌，其中包括他们全新的单曲“吸引力”。在该新专辑《Identity》内页中，3T向叔叔Michael和姑姑Janet致意：“致MJ和JJ：感谢你们的理解和爱意。我们永远不会忘记你们为我们做的一切……”[来源：MJJForum 发布：redwall/Keen]
狗仔卡
楼主
U.S. singer Jermaine Jackson (L), brother of Michael Jackson,Jackson family spokesman, Firpo W. Carr and Khawaja Khurshid Reshi hold a rug with a woven picture of Michael Jackson April 19, 2004, in Manama. Jermaine Jackson, a Muslim, is visiting Bahrain to give a lecture on Islam at Universities and societies. 
U.S. singer Jermaine Jackson, brother of Michael Jackson, shows photographs printed in an U.S. newspaper of American soldiers killed during the Iraq War, in the Bahrain capital of Manama on April 19, 2004. Jackson was speaking at the University College Bahrain,where he gave a lecture. MANAMA, Bahrain (Reuters) - Pop star Michael Jackson's brother, Jermaine, in the Gulf to promote understanding between Muslims and his fellow Americans, said Tuesday that Muslims are "the new Negroes in America." Jermaine, a convert to Islam and dressed in white Arab garb, has been speaking about Islam and U.S. "adventures" in Iraq to enthusiastic audiences at Koranic centers and universities in the Gulf Arab state of Bahrain. "I think Muslims have become the new Negroes in America. They are being mistreated at airports, by the Immigration -- everywhere," he said. Jermaine, also a singer, told Reuters in an interview: "I do not agree with the U.S. government. What they are saying about Muslims and Arabs is all propaganda and brainwashing." "I don't think it is right for us to go to someone else's country and tell them what to do and how to do it," said Jermaine, who is a guest of the royal court in the pro-Western kingdom, which hosts the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet. He disapproved of Muslim extremism, which has been on the rise in the wake of the U.S. occupation of Iraq last year. "I understand their feelings but do not approve of their methods. Islam is a religion of peace. They are wrong," he said. Reuters 2004. All Rights Reserved. 
中新网译：昨天出版的《纽约日报》披露说，本来是“癌症患者”的迈克尔·杰克逊娈童案的原告，如今又是活蹦乱跳起来。他还搬入了纽约西部富人区的公寓，他的母亲则开上了新车。《纽约日报》将这条新闻放在了头条位置。报道说，这位14岁原告的滋润生活与以前他朋友的描述有着天壤之别。去年11月，杰克逊因被控对这个男孩进行性骚扰而被捕之后，原告家的朋友就透露说男孩患了癌症，身体十分虚弱。喜剧俱乐部的主管马萨达的描述令整个美国都心碎了：“他只有一个肾，半边脸肿着……真是让人心碎。”去年11月，他还告诉纽约时报记者说，他给男孩的弟弟捐了几张床，这样他们就不用在地板上睡觉了。马萨达说：“他们是穷困可怜，但又简单的人。”去年12月他又向美联社透露：“孩子的情况不乐观。”过几周，一项深入的调查却发现，孩子的身体状况十分良好，能跑能跳，能击剑还能扛来复枪，一点不像患过癌症的样子。马萨达在法院的质询中保持沉默，拒绝作出任何评论。今年1、2月间拍摄的照片显示声称被杰克逊性虐待的男孩在海边的学生军训营中操练来复枪，和家人朋友玩得十分开心。新闻调查已经质疑所谓这个男孩家庭贫困的报道。今年一月他们搬入了富人区的一幢公寓。男孩的母亲开着昂贵的2004年款红色大众跑车。调查显示了更多可疑之处。尽管1月间他们的律师称，男孩及他的家人不想成为公众人物并拒绝媒体曝光。但是10天之后，男孩的母亲却允许她的两个孩子和当地某电视记者参加一个没有人监护的晚餐会而后又去购物。在27日法院的公文中，两位负责处理杰克逊性虐待案的官员证实杰克逊案的证人身体十分健康。圣巴巴拉城高级检察官写道：“他(那个男孩)身体非常健康。我1月19日一直和他在一起。他精神状况也很好，称自己完全处于健康状态的14岁男孩。他正在读书，也参加体育和课余活动。”圣巴巴拉城长官也同意说：“我的调查人在过去两周两次与他(那个男孩)偶遇，他认为男孩的身体状况很好，不像患过癌症的样子。”The secret life of Jackson's accuser From gravely ill and living in poverty to attendingboot camp and going on shopping spreesBy MICHELLE CARUSO AND ALEC BYRNENY DAILY NEWS WRITERS The young cancer patient who has accused Michael Jackson of sexual abuse is now a robust teenager able to withstand the rigors of a military camp and scale 8-foot walls, the Daily News has learned.He also has moved into a comfy condo on the city's upscale west side, and his mom is driving a new car.It is a remarkably different picture from what the family's friends have described.In the swirl of publicity after Jackson was arrested for allegedly molesting the boy in November, family friends said the boy was desperately ill - in dire need of a kidney transplant - and so poor that he and his siblings didn't even have beds.Comedy club owner Jamie Masada, who introduced the accuser to Jackson, broke hearts across the nation when he described the 14-year-old boy's failing health and grim living conditions in a series of interviews late last year."He has only one kidney and it's failing him, and part of his face is swollen up. ... It just breaks your heart," Masada told The News in late November, adding that he donated bunk beds so the boy and his younger brother wouldn't have to sleep on the floor. "They're poor people, simple people," Masada said.In late December, he told The Associated Press, "The kid is not doing very good."Weeks after Masada's heartrending media blitz, an in-depth investigation found the boy in good shape, despite his cancer bout, and strong enough to run, jump, scale fences and even hoist a rifle.Masada, silenced by a court gag order, declined to comment.The accuser and his mother are among the witnesses who reportedly have testified before a Santa Barbara County grand jury probing abuse allegations against the pop star.The 19-member panel will decide if Jackson should be tried on the charges, which could send him to prison for 21 years. Exclusive photos obtained by The News, which were shot during January and February, show the boy practicing grueling rifle drills with the Sea Cadet Corps, a boot-camp-style youth group, hanging out with friends and enjoying family outings.The News investigation also raises questions about reports of the family's deprivation and poverty.The accuser's mother was repeatedly seen driving her new red 2004 Volkswagen Jetta - with a $21,000 sticker price, a big-ticket purchase for someone struggling to make ends meet.The family moved in with the mother's new boyfriend, Army Reserve Maj. Jay Jackson (no relation to Michael) sometime last year.By January they had relocated to a pleasant two-bedroom condo near L.A.'s posh Brentwood neighborhood - a far cry from their former rundown apartment on the city's dicey east side.The no-nonsense Maj. Jackson, 42, a personnel administrator for an L.A.-based Army unit, befriended the accuser's family about two years ago. He later found romance with the mother and took the family into his home last year.The investigation revealed even more surprises.On Jan. 21, the family's former attorney William ****erman told The Associated Press the family was "in hiding" from the media, adding, "They're very private people." However, 10 days later, the accuser's mother allowed the boy and his 13-year-old brother to go on an unsupervised dining and shopping spree with a local TV reporter.Photos show Fox 11-KTTV's reporter Barbara Schroeder and the boys cheerfully chatting on the Jan. 31 excursion. They lunched at a café, shopped at an electronic games store, where the accuser emerged with a bag of goodies, and spent 40 minutes at a video arcade.When Schroeder brought the kids back 21/2 hours later, the mom came outside to chat.Alarmed by news reports that the boy was gravely ill, the boy's father, who is barred from seeing his kids because of convictions for domestic violence, rushed to court seeking emergency visitation and joint custody.In court papers dated Jan. 27, two key law enforcement officials handling the Jackson sex-abuse case confirmed that the star witness against Michael Jackson is pretty healthy.Santa Barbara County Senior Deputy District Attorney Ronald Zonen wrote: "[The boy] is in excellent health, not withstanding his prior battle with cancer. I spent the day with him Monday the 19th of January. He was in good spirits and presented himself as an entirely healthy 14-year-old boy. He is pursuing his education and is involved in sports and extracurricular activities."Santa Barbara County Sheriff James Anderson agreed. "My investigators have met with [the boy] on two occasions within the last week and found him to appear in excellent health, despite his battle with cancer."Originally published on April 19, 2004
[B]《救赎》一书的封面[/B]
[B]《救赎》一书作者Geraldine Hughes[/B][B]04/04/12 《救赎》一书出版极有可能被人为抵制——Jackson歌迷要求真相大白[/B][I]一股潜在的声音在呼吁洗脱Jackson93年娈童案中背上的黑锅，且这股声势力量愈加强烈。[/I]《救赎：Michael Jackson儿童骚扰指控背后的真相》一书披露了93年案件中不为公众所知的一些事实。该书的作者是当年原告律师的助理，其披露93年案件只不过是原告Evan Chandler医生和其律师Barry Rothman导演的一场骗局，以达到敲诈勒索的目的。作者Geraldine Hughes出版书籍透露当年案件一些细节的做法并没有违反律师和当事人之间享有的豁免权。根据加利福尼亚证据法第956条款，“如果律师的行为是为了帮助当事人犯罪，则其不享有豁免权。” 自从《救赎》一书在今年初出版以来,销售商的定单已经被取消，连锁书店宣称该书无货源,而且一些网上零售商也发现很难找到该书的影子。Branch & Vine 出版社首席执行官James Armentrout说整件事情先是令人疑惑不解，既而是沮丧，但得知真相后反而令他们坚定信心。“在综合所有的资料后，我们的结论是某个人或是某一些人在破坏该书的发行工作。Armentrout说，“并不仅仅是我们看到了这一点，许多歌迷也已经注意到并在网上提出了这个问题。”“我们正在对此事进行调查并决定下一步该采取什么行动。我们不仅要我们的书刊得到公正的待遇，而且要把有关的信息挖掘出来以有助于澄清Jackson先生的形象。”记者Victor Gutierrez于1995年被Jackson起诉控告其诽谤，但他今天仍在继续撰写《Michael Jackson是我的爱人》一书，该书被认为源自一个13岁儿童的“秘密日记”。这本书眼下在一些个人书店和网上书店还很容易买到，那相比起来，为什么《救赎》一书就偏偏是四处碰壁呢？“并不是该书不再出版发行，”Armentrout说，“其实我们接到了来自世界各地的定单，还有一些定单来自美国的书店，那里的读者要求能够读到这本书。问题是那些大型的书籍零售商并没有购进该书，有的甚至报导该书不再印制了。”Jackson的歌迷要求得知这究竟是怎么回事。在