Michael Jackson talks about happiness (unreleased footage)

Palmyra

New member
It's really difficult to know whether Michael's words are accurate or not.  His answer was entirely predictable: he becomes very sad when something happens to children.  It's as though he completely forgot adults exist, because he was always talking about children and their plight. 

Rather than something vague and distant (what happens to kids all over the world), I wish Michael addressed some of the pains in his own life.  For instance, was he very sad/depressed when Bob Jones turned his back on Michael?  How does Michael feel about being in a room full of supposed friends, some of whom are telling Michael they love him while they have tabloids on speed dial?  If only Michael ever answered questions from a personal perspective...not world peace, poverty in the world, or the plight of children.  Yeah, we got it.  You don't like those things.  Personal reflection, Michael? 
 

MJfan01'

New member
[quote name="Palmyra"]
It's really difficult to know whether Michael's words are accurate or not.  His answer was entirely predictable: he becomes very sad when something happens to children.  It's as though he completely forgot adults exist, because he was always talking about children and their plight. 

Rather than something vague and distant (what happens to kids all over the world), I wish Michael addressed some of the pains in his own life.  For instance, was he very sad/depressed when Bob Jones turned his back on Michael?  How does Michael feel about being in a room full of supposed friends, some of whom are telling Michael they love him while they have tabloids on speed dial?  If only Michael ever answered questions from a personal perspective...not world peace, poverty in the world, or the plight of children.  Yeah, we got it.  You don't like those things.  Personal reflection, Michael? 
[/quote]
I agree, but I could tell from his eyes that he wasn't a very happy person at all. You could tell he was very uneasy about answering those questions so he just put in the stuff about world peace.
 

whisperAdmin

Administrator
Staff member
Now we're getting into wanting him to answer questions like how we want him to answer them. If that were the case, then we'd be no better than anyone else expecting him to be how we wanted him to be instead of accepting him for who he is.

I have absolutely no doubt that he was incredibly affected by exactly what he said. I've known for a long time that Mike's psyche was beyond our current comprehension. He had a sense of community and collective suffering/happiness that maybe people had a thousand years ago. Or maybe a couple of hundred years from now people could all feel about this Earth and about each other exactly the same way.

And what's with this? Mike has always been open about how he feels so when his answers are consistent with what he's been saying his whole life, all of sudden his answers are "predictable"? His answers are honest to him.

BTW,this interview was before Bob Jones the snake was revealed in his full glory at the 2005 trial.
 

Palmyra

New member
[quote name="Saphster"]Who was this Bob Jones character and what did he say?[/quote]

If there is anyone who betrayed Michael the most, it was Bob Jones.  If you check out very old pictures of Michael (around Jackson 5 days), you'll sometimes see Jones in the background.  The reason I keep mentioning him all over this message board is because of how long he knew Michael and how big of an about-face he made during the 2005 trial.  He was around Michael for so long, it was extremely disappointing to see him betray Michael the way he did.  He eventually wrote a "tell all" book with Stacy Brown (a guy) that made wild accusations about Michael, including a crazy accusation about Michael supposedly being racist and calling black people all sorts of names.

At the trial, Jones was on the witness stand for the prosecution, but during his testimony, he had to admit that some of his claims in the book were just for hype (to drive sales).  He says it in his own words.  Anyway, Jones died shortly after the trial.  He never apologized to Michael, and I don't know how Michael felt about Jones' death.

[quote name="whisper"]Now we're getting into wanting him to answer questions like how we want him to answer them.[/quote]

You don't have to be defensive.  We're all fans here, and it's just that I am somewhat more comfortable in criticizing Michael than many fans.  I think it's healthy to criticize him.

If that were the case, then we'd be no better than anyone else expecting him to be how we wanted him to be instead of accepting him for who he is.

I asked those questions precisely because I wanted to know what he was thinking and what he was like. 

I have absolutely no doubt that he was incredibly affected by exactly what he said.

I don't doubt him either (he was certainly genuine in his concerns), but I just wanted him to take the questions in a different direction.  For the most part, Michael utterly failed in the Bashir documentary.  Michael consistently took the bait and answered questions that were condescending, inappropriate, or bizarre.  He should have refused to answer some of Bashir's questions and stood up for himself.

Mike has always been open about how he feels so when his answers are consistent with what he's been saying his whole life, all of sudden his answers are "predictable"?

Not all of a sudden.  They've been predictable since some time in the 80s.  Before then, he didn't really publicly talk much about children and their suffering (not that I know of).

By the way, whisper, it's good to see you back.  You usually don't take part in discussions. 
 

OneMoreChance

New member
[quote name="whisper"]
Now we're getting into wanting him to answer questions like how we want him to answer them. If that were the case, then we'd be no better than anyone else expecting him to be how we wanted him to be instead of accepting him for who he is.

I have absolutely no doubt that he was incredibly affected by exactly what he said. I've known for a long time that Mike's psyche was beyond our current comprehension. He had a sense of community and collective suffering/happiness that maybe people had a thousand years ago. Or maybe a couple of hundred years from now people could all feel about this Earth and about each other exactly the same way.

And what's with this? Mike has always been open about how he feels so when his answers are consistent with what he's been saying his whole life, all of sudden his answers are "predictable"? His answers are honest to him.

BTW,this interview was before Bob Jones the snake was revealed in his full glory at the 2005 trial.
[/quote]

I completely agree whisper! I have always thought that they way Michael viewed the world was something that most people can't wrap their minds around. How many times have we heard people say that Micheal would see a commercial about starving children and break down in tears? These things affected him on a level that few people can understand. I think it was a very special gift that was given to him. It's very unfortunate that this gift caused him so much pain. This world was never ready for a soul like Michael's. Michael was who he was and I love him for it!
 

whisperAdmin

Administrator
Staff member
[quote name="Palmyra"]

You don't have to be defensive.  We're all fans here, and it's just that I am somewhat more comfortable in criticizing Michael than many fans.  I think it's healthy to criticize him. [/quote]
Nobody's being defensive. I'm expressing an opinion to the one you expressed. Criticism is healthy so long as it's not criticism just for criticism's sake. It is quite possible that that's simply the way he feels about the situation; that he thinks in a macro-sense and doesn't put his own personal grief over the emotions of a larger understanding of his place within the world.

I don't doubt him either (he was certainly genuine in his concerns), but I just wanted him to take the questions in a different direction.  For the most part, Michael utterly failed in the Bashir documentary.  Michael consistently took the bait and answered questions that were condescending, inappropriate, or bizarre.  He should have refused to answer some of Bashir's questions and stood up for himself.
I certainly would have loved to hear him tell Bashir off, but that's not him. That's never been him. I used to want him to be a certain way a long time ago but he wasn't. So I long ago resigned to accepting him for who he is.

He is deeply moved by life. Period. And there was simply too much genuine acceptance of people who didn't deserve to even be spat on, let alone invited into his life.


....ah, I can't stop talking about him in the present tense....
 

candles

New member
i'm somewhat on the fence here. i agree with Palmyra on one front. Sometimes I feel there was a block somewhere, understandably so, that Michael built a wall around him. But at the same time, by me thinking like this, wondering if he was hiding something, the 'real' pain deep within, and if his repetitive answers were a way of avoiding some other issues, makes me guilty of judging him.

people were always annoyed with Michael's answers because he didn't answer them the way people wanted. The way the world wanted. Because his answers weren't 'normal' for a man his age. Sometimes I don't think people empathize enough...he hasn't lived the typical life of most men/people. Granted that shouldn't be used to excuse him, because like Palmyra, even as a fan, sometimes I'm like...'really Michael?' I can barely watch that documentary, which I wish he never did to begin with.

Even with me acknowledging that he has every right to think and feel what he wants, I also wish that he had gotten help earlier on...like way earlier on even before Thriller. He has stated that he suffered with lots of insecurity and its no secret that his tumultuous relationship with Joseph made things even harder. I do believe the racism that he experienced earlier on in his career may have also cut him deeply in ways we don't know.

So ultimately what I'm saying Michael and his life are just so complex it's not such a black and white issue. I think he deserved to be left alone for once, whether he was depressed or not was not Bashir's business. I wish a therapist or something would've asked him that question privately but I can't even imagine Michael trusting one enough in order to give him a 'different' answer. But at the same time like Palmyra said, like everyone else he's open to criticism but unfortunately he gets it more than most. But at the same time sometimes you have to accept when you put yourself in certain situations that can be criticized and sometimes Michael did that to himself just like everyone does that to themselves. still, he does not have a right to tell us anything.
 

Shannon

New member
[quote name="whisper"]
Now we're getting into wanting him to answer questions like how we want him to answer them. If that were the case, then we'd be no better than anyone else expecting him to be how we wanted him to be instead of accepting him for who he is.

I have absolutely no doubt that he was incredibly affected by exactly what he said. I've known for a long time that Mike's psyche was beyond our current comprehension. He had a sense of community and collective suffering/happiness that maybe people had a thousand years ago. Or maybe a couple of hundred years from now people could all feel about this Earth and about each other exactly the same way.

And what's with this? Mike has always been open about how he feels so when his answers are consistent with what he's been saying his whole life, all of sudden his answers are "predictable"? His answers are honest to him.

BTW,this interview was before Bob Jones the snake was revealed in his full glory at the 2005 trial.
[/quote]

Totally, totally agree, whisper. RESPECT.
 
[quote name="whisper"]....ah, I can't stop talking about him in the present tense....
[/quote]




Awww.... whisper... I miss him... :( Can he come back??? :'( I was crying when I sang Man In The Mirror (videoke) lastnight infront of my friends and new friends and I cried lastnight in bed at my friend's house... I miss him still... :'(
 
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