Michael Jackson: The Verdict

[O_SoPrettyNikki]

All I know is that nobody bet not say nothin' bad about Michael Jackson.... Michael tain't neva hurt nobody (not proven anyway)....Lawd help 'em if they talk about Michael ..Imma hafta cut 'em ......Whewwwwwwwwwwww chile!!!!

[CrimsonTide4]

[O_SoPrettyNikki]

GASP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


No she didn't post that about my Michael

**Passes out***

[AKA2D '91]

Dat isht is funny!

[Steeltrap]

Why did I receive an e-mail from "Michael Jackson" that linked me to this site:

http://www.touchedbymichael.com.

SASAS. I have no intention of going to see it.

[AKA2D '91]

It's worth the read!

Dick Gregory's Comments On Michael Jackson
By Bakari Akil II

Dick Gregory, activist, health guru, ex-comedian as well as advisor to many
influential people is a man who has been a mainstay in American culture for
decades.

As a friend of Michael Jackson for many years he recently offered
insight to the current situation involving Mr. Jackson and provided a
perspective that has not been evident in many media outlets.

On a radio show entitled, Make it Plain, hosted by WOL's Mark Thompson in
Washington, D.C., Dick Gregory stated in response to the mad media frenzy
and tilt toward guilt coverage, that those who believe in Michael
Jackson's guilt or innocence should first ask for truth to be exposed. Whether it
is damaging for Michael Jackson or not, he insisted that truth is the most
important aspect of this issue.

However, Mr. Gregory does not believe that Mr. Jackson is guilty of the
charges and raised many questions concerning the events leading up to the
actions of law enforcement and consequent media coverage.

He asked why was it necessary for 40 police officers and 20 FBI agents to
raid Michael Jackson's property? More specifically, why were FBI agents
present, especially since the allegations against Mr. Jackson are not a
federal offense? He also questioned the legitimacy of the claim of law
enforcement that they did not know of Mr. Jackson's whereabouts and the
timing of the raid.

According to Mr. Gregory, there is a monetary element to this entire
situation. He states that Michael Jackson purchased the Beatles catalog
for nearly $48 million and it is now worth $1.5 billion. He also owns the
rights to the Elvis catalog and found out after his purchase of the Beatles
collection that these rights also included ownership of Little Richard's
catalog of which, Michael Jackson promptly called Mr. Richard and
returned it to him.

His suspicions arise from the fact that Michael Jackson has taken out
loans and his lenders wanted collateral, which was none other than his Beatles
catalog. Mr. Gregory stated that Michael Jackson did not mind offering
that up as collateral because every time he would come out with a record he
would make around $500 million from his efforts. For those who doubt those
claims, he explained that there is a mischaracterization that occurs when people
think about what is success for Michael Jackson. Although he may not achieve
the outrageous sales of his more youthful days a majority of successful
artists sales would pale by comparison.

Mr. Gregory found it odd that every time Michael Jackson is about to come
out with an album or moneymaking venture he is hit with a scandal and that
this situation is no different. He also admonished the audience not to
forget that Michael Jackson embarrassed SONY and music mogul Tommy Mottola
when he claimed that they were racist and that they took advantage of and
mistreated Black artists. Not holding anything back, Mr. Gregory stated that
Rev. Al Sharpton, who
came to the defense of Michael Jackson during this time was soon overwhelmed
by media coverage of a video tape which showed individuals attempting to
frame him in a drug deal. He went even further stating that this type of
behavior could be traced to Bill Cosby and the suspicious murder of his
son Ennis, who was gunned down while changing the tire of his Mercedes on a
California highway. He claims that this happened after Mr. Cosby hinted
that he wanted to purchase NBC when it was up for sale.

Dick Gregory also alleged that when they showed Michael Jackson in
handcuffs, it was symbolic and when they handcuffed him, they handcuffed
us all (Black communities). He stated that they allowed Mr. Jackson to board
his private plane in Las Vegas, fly back to California and then handcuffed
him and immediately took them off when inside the police station.
According to Mr. Gregory, law enforcement had not judged him an extreme flight risk
if they let him fly in and obviously not a danger if they immediately
uncuffed him once inside, so why the posturing?

Mr. Gregory further intensified his discourse by reiterating that the value
of Michael Jackson's Beatles catalog cannot be underestimated and asserted
that Mr. Jackson could easily be killed, have it consequently ruled a
suicide and thus his collection will be forfeited in lieu of his debt.
He further commented that people such as Liz Taylor, whom he knows
Michael Jackson would rush to their aid in times of need, have not come to his
defense or spoke out on his behalf. He also talked about how many people
take "Michael" for a joke, yet he is very intelligent and that he knows
what is going on.

Yet for all his concerns, Dick Gregory stated that Michael Jackson will
"come out clean" in this dilemma and he called for people to say a daily
prayer for the "truth to come out" about this situation concerning Mr.
Jackson at 12:00 P.M., no matter what the time zone. He believes,
ultimately, people will be shocked at what that truth is.
In the final analysis, many may balk at the comments and observations of
Mr. Gregory, believing that governmental officials, media organizations and
corporations in the music business may be beyond collusion or
conspiracies (when two or more make a conscious effort to bring about a certain
reality), which is fine. Yet, free and independent thought that Mr. Gregory
exhibits is absolutely necessary, especially in an
era where fact and fiction has
taken an equal seat in mainstream media and thought.

Hopefully, people will not jump on the bandwagon of mainstream reactionary
thought and will judge this situation objectively and think about how the
constant stream of Black men being vilified as sexual and violent
deviants will affect Black communities and Black individuals in general. I will
not even address how these events also help serve as a smokescreen to other
national and international events, but if we do not become more vigilant
of our surroundings, it maybe a mistake we may all regret.

Bakari Akil is an editor for GlobalBlackNews.com and can be reached at
GlobalBlackNews@hotmail.com

[Love_Spell_6]

I didnt know how to post the pic..but this link is pretty funny.

http://65.54.246.250/cgi-bin/getmsg/homealone.jpg?
*I tried*

[TonyB06]

Ok, I'm not on anybody's bandwagon but I keep coming back to the key question: why? Why would MJ, or his record collection, be the focus of conspiracy by elements of the federal government? I know the federal government's hands are not clean on many issues, but what juice does Mike have that makes him a perceived threat? If I'm being naive somebody buy me Hooked on Conspiracy Phonics...

I applaud Bro. Dick Gregory for rising to the defense of another black man but reading this I'm like

[Love_Spell_6]

Yea I'm a little over the whole "Conspiracy Theory" defense everytime we get into trouble. How about he shouldn't been in the bed with little boys!!!

[darling1]

Originally posted by TonyB06
Ok, I'm not on anybody's bandwagon but I keep coming back to the key question: why? Why would MJ, or his record collection, be the focus of conspiracy by elements of the federal government? I know the federal government's hands are not clean on many issues, but what juice does Mike have that makes him a perceived threat? If I'm being naive somebody buy me Hooked on Conspiracy Phonics...

I applaud Bro. Dick Gregory for rising to the defense of another black man but reading this I'm like

i feel the same way overall, except it is ironic that this drama has come out right when he is attempting to promote his album. it seems a bit shady to me.

i still think michael has a problem and he thinks that because of his stature he can get away with being strange and conducting himself in ways that are not 'normal' to society by virtue of who he is. despite the nose job, the skin bleaching, he is a black man and i think he has forgotten that.

[Love_Spell_6]

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/doc_o_day/doc_o_day.html

DECEMBER 9--A confidential investigation by Los Angeles police and child welfare officials concluded earlier this year that allegations Michael Jackson sexually abused a cancer-stricken boy were "unfounded," according to an internal government memo obtained by The Smoking Gun.

The probe's findings were based, in large part, on interviews with the alleged victim, his two siblings, and the boy's mother. According to the memo, when the child was questioned in February by a social worker assigned to the Sensitive Case Unit of L.A.'s Department of Children & Family Services (DCFS), he "denied any form of sexual abuse" by Jackson and said that he never "slept in the same bed as the entertainer." While not specifically named in the DCFS memo, the 45-year-old Jackson is referred to repeatedly as "the entertainer."

The memo notes that the boy, now 14, and his 12-year-old brother--who also denied sexual abuse--expressed "a fondness for the entertainer and stated they enjoyed visiting his home, where they would often ride in the park, play video games, and watch movies." The pair's sister, now 17, told a social worker that she accompanied the boys on "sleepovers at the entertainers home," but had "never seen anything sexually inappropriate between her brothers and the entertainer."

The children's mother told investigators that Jackson was "like a father to the children and a part of her family." While acknowledging that her son "has slept in the same room as the entertainer," the woman claimed "they did not share a bed. The entertainer would sleep on the floor," according to the November 26 memo.

The joint probe by DCFS and the Los Angeles Police Department ran from February 14-27 and, the memo states, the "investigation by the Sensitive Case Unit concluded the allegations of neglect and sexual abuse to be unfounded both by the LAPD-Wilshire Division and the Department."

When an investigation is closed, child welfare officials can summarize their findings in one of three ways. If evidence is found to support abuse charges, the case is marked "substantiated." A case is termed "not substantiated" when evidence discovered is not sufficient to support allegations (though the charges may, in fact, be true). Finally, a matter is branded "unfounded" when officials determine there is no merit to the allegations.

As with many DCFS investigations, the Jackson abuse case began with a call to the agency's child abuse hotline. According to the memo, a "Child Abuse Referral" was phoned in on February 14 by a "school official" from the Los Angeles Unified School District, which oversees the city's sprawling public school system. Citing the prior week's ABC broadcast of "Living with Michael Jackson," the controversial Martin Bashir documentary, the school official lodged allegations of "general neglect by mother and sexual abuse by 'an entertainer,'" according to the summary memo. The school official identified both the cancer patient, then 13, and his younger brother as the "referred children."

While the school official is not further identified in the DCFS memo, published reports have indicated that the older boy was taunted by classmates after the documentary aired on ABC's "20/20" newsmagazine. During the February 6 program, the child was seen holding hands with Jackson and resting his head against the singer's shoulder. Jackson told Bashir that he had slept with many children unrelated to him, but insisted, "It's not sexual, we're going to sleep. I tuck them in...It's very charming, it's very sweet."

In a clear reference to fallout from the Bashir documentary, the boy's mother told investigators that "she believed the media had taken everything out of context," according to the memo, which summarizes the DCFS child abuse investigation. The "sensitive case" memo was prepared at the direction of Dr. Charles Sophy, a high-ranking DCFS official who joined the department in late-March, a month after the Jackson probe was completed. The memo was authored by Jennifer Hottenroth, a DCFS assistant regional administrator. In a brief telephone interview yesterday morning, Hottenroth declined to speak about her memo, saying, "I can't talk about it...I can refer you to our public affairs person. I can't comment on any of this." Sophy (pictured at right) did not return a message left with his assistant. Louise Grasmehr, a DCFS spokesperson, said that while she had been given a copy of the document by Hottenroth Monday morning, "We cannot comment on anything that is stated in the memo. Because it's all protected under confidentiality laws in California."

The boy's February 2003 interview with child abuse investigators--not to mention those with his family--appears to run counter to allegations he later made to law enforcement officials in Santa Barbara, where Jackson was arrested November 20 and released on $3 million bail. District Attorney Thomas Sneddon has said that he expects to file felony child molestation charges against Jackson next week. In addition to the boy's original denial of sexual abuse by Jackson, his younger brother's February 2003 statements also appear to contradict recent published reports claiming that the child has told Santa Barbara investigators that he witnessed his brother being molested by the star.

While it is unclear what, if any, effect the LAPD-DCFS investigation will have on a future Jackson prosecution, the performer's defense team will surely seize on the February 2003 probe's findings to question the current veracity and motives of the child and his family--and, of course, further muddy a case that already promises to be a difficult prosecution.

The child abuse investigation was immediately placed with the Sensitive Case Unit since department guidelines dictate that if "one of the clients in the referral is a public figure" or if the case's allegations "would be certain to generate media interest if they became known outside of DCFS," the matter requires utmost secrecy.

As with most DCFS abuse cases, a children's social worker (CSW) was dispatched to interview the boys, as was a LAPD investigator (the memo does not indicate whether the cop and the social worker conducted their interviews in tandem). In either case, it is likely that the children were questioned apart from their mother, since the abuse referral included allegations of neglect on the woman's part, according to a DCFS source familiar with agency operations.

The allegations examined this year in the LAPD-DCFS probe mirror sex abuse claims that surfaced in 1993, when a 13-year-old California boy claimed that the pop star molested him. Jackson, who was not charged in that case, reportedly made a multimillion dollar payment to settle a civil suit brought by the child and his family. Click here to read the boy's sworn declaration describing Jackson's alleged abuse.

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/graphic.../dcfsmemo2.gif

[abaici]

It's the leading story on LA news this morning.

[Love_Spell_6]

Originally posted by abaici
It's the leading story on LA news this morning.

thats nice...not in va

[nikki1920]

Most definitely an interesting story. Please keep us up to date on what happens...

[abaici]

Originally posted by CrimsonTide4
And I don't know if this has been mentioned yet, but when is Mike gonna help Ray Ray, Monique, Dejanem.

He does...you just never hear about it. He invites tons of inner-city kids to Neverland ranch for the day. My friend's mother escorted some students from her school (this was back when I was in high school though)


But...let's get real y'all. What Black parent do you know will let their child stay with MJ overnight. I don't know any!!