by Lynda Phillips

Created on: August 18, 2009

In remembering Michael Jackson, it is important that we don't have selected memory of only the things that make us feel good about him. Were he just an ordinary person like Jefferey Dahmer, the world would have no problem remembering only the bad he did. I'm sure at one time, Jeffery Dahmer, Adolph Hitler, and Timothy McVeigh were cute little babies, that grew into adorable little boys. Something went wrong, and they came to light to the world because of their horrible deeds only. Die hard fans who made Michael an idol, will only choose to remember what makes them feel good. Detractors will remember mostly the lies and scandals surrounding him. Both scenarios are unfair and biased. To remember Michael means remembering all we came to know about him. . .the good, the bad, and the horrible.

When one chooses to make their living in the public eye, they put themselves under scrutiny. It's part of the package deal of fame and success. How each individual treats it is solely up to them. Sometimes, however, many sell their souls to the devil in exchange for the fame, idolization, and the money. Michael, indeed relished being an idol for all the fanatical fans he had. This was of course in stark contrast to the theories of the Jehovah Witnesses and any Christian doctrine. I have watched his demise after THRILLER, touted as the most widely sold album in the world. Personally, I was never comfortable with it, as I know it was very popular among Satanic cults, and devil worshippers. Folks, that's why it was so popular! His own mother begged him not to do that song. His reply, "but Mother, it's art!" Few people can influence a mega star, sometimes not even their own family.

The Vitiligo began after THRILLER, the extensive plastic surgeries, the skin bleaching cream, which has now been taken off the market for its tendency to cause skin cancer. I think what hurts most, is that at the end of his days, he ended up resembling those same ghouls that made him so popular with THRILLER. We're talking four wigs to cover a nearly bald and graying head, and a mobile nose. Without this nose, there were two holes where his nostrils were, and he was said to have looked like a mummy. Coincidence? Irony? Fate?

My relationship with members of the Jackson family began in High School. I went to school with his first cousins, the Whiteheads. Alice was the oldest, with Nadine following, and younger brother Tim, who has been Michael's road manager since his days with the Jackson 5. They

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