Michael Jackson - A True Icon

Michael Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) - The King of Pop - without a shadow of a doubt.

I felt it was about time that i wrote a blog on the man because without being too cliche, his music has really had an impact on my life. No matter how bad or sad a mood i get in, as soon as i hear a record of his, my mood is instantly transformed into happiness (so much so i believe i can sing , much to the annoyance of those who are normally around me albeit on the tube or at home!!)

His countless number ones, go a long way to showing his dominance of popular music, but perhaps the most telling feature of his career was sadly, his death. The news was dominated by the great man's demise for weeks. He had been on the verge of a sell out come-back tours and despite rumour about his apparent poor health, the since released movie "This Is It" has put to be questions surrounding his health showing the great man at his best albeit drugged up to the eyeballs!!

Theres no doubt Jackson was a troubled man, and we will never know the truth about his apparent skin condition, the amount of plastic surgery he had, but do you know what, that doesn't matter, we lost a true great in 2009 , a God who walked amongst mere mortal men. Now some may say that is a over exagerration but i genuinely believe it to be the truth.

Jackson had a talent, a natural gift, of song and dance, that most of the current music industry today could only begin to dream about.

Now obviously being born in 1989, i missed out on a large chunk of his career but i've done my research and it seems that no matter how hard i look there is no real explanation for his sudden transformation from a young good looking black male, to a middle aged, troubled, white male accused of pedophilia.

Undoubtedly, Jackson's fame from a young age affected him mentally and that telling interview with Martin Bashir was compelling television and answered lots of questions, but i for one, do not believe Jackson was a paedophile, just merely a man who missed out on his childhood and who was suffering for it later in life. Its funny how, i find myself being a journalism student, yet i hate the very thought of journalists who hassle people, especiallly some celebrities, so much so that they have their lives ruined.

Michael was a victim of bad press, its funny however, the millions of dollars he earnt that he gave away to charity, the visits he made to sick children all over the world, the concerts in aid of all kinds of charitable causes, go unmentioned, yet the mans desire to have the perfect face or skin colour made the front page of every paper and dominated his life as a celebrity.

Jackson, clearly did make some strange choices in his life regarding his surgery and particularly odd yet sad comments likening himself to Peter Pan, but don't we all have weaknesses and things about ourselves we would love to change.

No matter the incidents or events in his personal life, the man was a musical genious, and i don't think any of us will experience another musical prodigy such as him whilst we live.

That is what I will remember him as....

Togo - Don't Give In!

After last night's shocking events, in which Togo's national football team's coach was ambushed by terrorists brandishing machine guns, resulting in the death of three men, including the assistant coach, the bus driver and the team spokesman, Togo today have announced they are considering boycotting the tournament and are attempting to get the other nations to join them.

For me, this is completley and utterly the wrong decision/movement.
Yes, the event is an attrocity and one that should never have been allowed to happen, (the security must be tightened at such events) but what one must understand is that terrorists can't be stopped. We can only combat terrorism by attempting to prevent it from happening, there will always be terrorists, their aim is to cause terror and spread fear. They have caused terror, in the result of 3 deaths and other injuries to players and members of staff, however, by boycotting the tournament, Togo are sending out the wrong message, they are letting the terrorists win and spreading fear across the continent.

The only way to tackle terrorists is to oppose them, be unfazed by their disgusting actions however hard that may be. Many people may not agree with me , however Margaret Thatcher was one of the best PM's this country has ever had, yes thats right , a woman. She had the perfect response for a journalist when the Argentinians were invading the Falklands, she simply replied "We will not negotiate with terrorists".

Thus in my opinion it is essential that Togo compete in the African Cup of Nations and that the tournament goes ahead as planned and let the authorities find the culprits and punish them accordingly......

The Big Freeze/Failure

As i'm sure you are all aware (unless you are one of those Briton's lucky enough to be on holiday or just completely unaware of the arctic conditions outside your home) the weather in Britain has been disastrous these past few weeks. Record amounts of snow has fallen and some places in the UK even had the nostalgic much sought after "White Christmas".

However, as per usual, the country has come to a grinding halt. Schools and Shops have shut for days on end , putting GCSE exams in doubt and harming the attempted regrowth of the economy accordingly. And what has the government done about it, reduced salt/grit supplies by 25% in an attempt to preserve ever dominishing supplies.

The government was warned by the MET office , weeks in advance of this "Freeze" that temperatures and conditions would be hectic, so instead of doing the intelligent thing in warning local authorities and providing counsils with extra grit , they sat back and let the snow hit us.

Now, i'm far from an expert on politics neither of weather predictions, but surely, just surely, common sense would have kicked in, and Brown and his delirious cabinet members should have been more prepared than they are, but i suppose that would be too much to ask. Given that the MP's are dropping like flies around him, this was Browns chance to maybe just maybe show some initiative that could go someway (not far at all) in the way of showing just how on earth he is the leader of this country that is going faster downhill than holiday makers in Les Arcs and The Alps alike.

Maybe Clarkson had it right when he describe Brown as a "one eyed scottish idiot".

Iceland (The Country) - As Cheap As The Supermarket?

So today, not only did i wake to what one could mistake for Icelandic weather conditions but also to the news that Iceland's president has refused to sign a bill to repay $5bn to the UK and the Netherlands.

President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson has instead opted to hold a referendum on the bill, following public large protests and outcry. On 2nd January, the president even received a petition calling for the bill to be vetoed, signed by almost a quarter of the country's population such is the disapproval from the public.

President Grimsson says the referendum will happen ASAP, now i admire the fact he is listening to the public and giving them the chance to have their say for their country, however, we are all suffering in these economic conditions and that money is owed to the UK and can't simply be written off because of a vote.

It will be interesting to see what Gordon Brown has to say about this.......

P.S Happy New Year fellow bloggers and Winchester Students!!