Michael Jackson is Dead

Yesterday, the king of pop, Michael Jackson, died.  One of the most elusive and quirky pop stars of all time supposedly died of a heart attack yesterday.  He was currently trying to make a comeback to recoup some of his financial disasters.  Read this story from the Globe and Mail which discusses what was reality and was what invention on the story of the life of celebrity pop star Michael Jackson.

“Of all modern pop legends, Michael Jackson has been the most present, and the most elusive. His final press conference, to announce the concert dates in London that were to bring him back to respectability and erase his debts, was no different.

Hundreds of journalists and fans – many of them not born at the time of his greatest success, 1982’s Thriller – milled about the 02 Centre while the King of Pop kept them waiting for hours.

When he finally did appear, in trademark black wig and shades, and a military-style sequined shirt, he seemed energized and healthy, contrary to reports that had said he was wasting away, or that he needed the help of a wheelchair.

In fact, he seemed so healthy as he spoke his few lines – “I love you all so much … I’ll be singing the songs my fans want to hear” – that a rumour went around that this was not in fact Mr. Jackson but an impersonator he used for public appearances.

A rumour that bizarre would quickly have been batted away if anyone else were involved.
But really, this was Michael Jackson, whose nose no longer looked human, whose best friend was a chimpanzee, who slept in an oxygen tent, who made his children wear masks in public.

American variety show host Ed Sullivan greets the members of The Jackson 5 during their guest appearance on ‘The Ed Sullivan Show,’ December 14, 1969.

Who knew any more what was reality, and what was invention? One thing was clear: Mr. Jackson, for good or ill, was his own invention, and he was responsible if the experiment had gone a little awry.
With the London concerts he looked set to move from the sideshow back into the main ring, to reclaim his place at the centre of pop culture.”

Read more here.

Day of Mourning in Iran

It is difficult for the foreign media to report on the news on Iran at the moment because the anti-democracy move to censor the press and kick them out of the country by the rigged election winner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.  However, it is difficult sometimes to stop the desire of the people for modernism and freedom to report on the state of affairs in Iran.   The people of Iran have used the Internet and especially Twitter to get the news out on the story of what is happening in their country.  Mahmoud Ahmadinejad should realize, hey, nobody wants you.  One certainly gets the feeling that is this man a crazy, insane person judging by all of his actions and statements since the world first encountered him.  Everyone from Iran that I speak to tells me that Iran is ready for a change, they want freedom and change and certainly do not want this Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to lead their country.  Mahmoud Ahmadinejad knew that he wouldn’t win and knew nobody liked him, so it was necessary for him to rig the election.  He wants the job.  However, especially the youth of Iran, the young people who are the future of Iran, are sick and tired of him and definintely ready for a change.

The following story from Reuters, written by Fredrik Dahl and Dominic Evans repots on a day of mourning on Thursday called for those killed in the days of violence and unrest following the rigged election win of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Supporters of Iran’s defeated presidential candidate Mirhossein Mousavi prepared to heed his call for a day of mourning on Thursday for those killed in mass demonstrations against what he says was a rigged election.

Iran’s English-language state television has reported eight people killed in protests since official results from Friday’s poll showed President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had been re-elected.
His huge lead on Mousavi, a moderate former prime minister, has provoked Iran’s worst unrest since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Bloodshed, protests, arrests and a media crackdown have rocked the world’s fifth biggest oil exporter, embroiled in a dispute with the West over its nuclear program.

Security agents have detained opposition politician Ebrahim Yazdi while he was in hospital, an ally of his said on Thursday.
Yazdi, who heads the banned Freedom Movement and was foreign minister in Iran’s first government after the revolution, was among scores of reformists rounded up since a firestorm of protest ignited over the disputed election.

On his website, Mousavi called on Iranians to demonstrate peacefully or gather in mosques wearing the color of mourning — black as opposed to the green of his election campaign.
“In the course of the past days and as a consequence of illegal and violent encounters with (people protesting) against the outcome of the presidential election, a number of our countrymen were wounded or martyred,” he said.

“I ask the people to express their solidarity with the families … by coming together in mosques or taking part in peaceful demonstrations.”

“CHALLENGE TO WESTERN DEMOCRACY”

Ahmadinejad defended the legitimacy of the vote, telling a cabinet meeting on Wednesday that it had “posed a great challenge to the West’s democracy,” Mehr news agency reported.
“The ideals of the Islamic Revolution were the winners of the election,” Ahmadinejad said, adding that 25 million of 42 million voters had approved the way he was running the country.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is a madman. The people are tired of him and want him out. Time to retire. The world is changing. Mahmoud, nobody wants you. Figure it out.

Read the rest of the story here.