DONNY DEUTSCH DOESN'T GET IT

On "The Ed Show", Donny Deutsch made the statement that Michael Jackson was simply a dancer and singer and he didn't understand why Michael Jackson was being treated like royalty.

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Well Donny, ... you just don't get it, and you are dead wrong. Michael Jackson was much more than a singer and dancer. Michael brought average people, world leaders, and people from all walks of life together in love, and he enhanced our lives.

No matter what age group you are in, you loved Michael Jackson and his musical messages of joy, hope, love and peace; Michael's music lifted you up, put a smile on your face, and put a spring in your step. That was Michael's essence.

Michael never uttered a negative word about anyone; and there are so many things that are positive about Michael; however, many of us didn't know how enormously generous, sweet and wonderful Michael was until this past week and today.

Music makes the heart beat with joy; and great music [like Michael's] will embrace your spirit and vanquish your sorrows and tears. Sometimes the same music will bring tears … but tears of joy.

Doctors are able to work long hours in the operating room by having their favorite music playing in the background. I would bet that some of them even listen to Michael Jackson's music. Many of our hard working nurses and public servants listen to Michael's music and it helps them get thru a day that would otherwise be burdensome; or when they get home from a hard days work, they kick off their shoes, and lay back and relax with some of Michael's songs playing in the background.

Hospital patients listen to Michael Jackson's music and they feel better. Music often heals the soul and heart and body, and will nourish you through difficult times.

Music plays a significant role in most cultures.

Great music exemplifies the best in us, and is a great unifier and communicator.

When you watched Michael dance and you heard him sing, you wanted to jump out of your seat and dance and sing along with him. If you were in a crowd and Michael’s music came on, everyone in the crowd was dancing and singing together. People gravitate towards joy, and there's no mistaking, people gravitated to Michael and his music.

You can be in a room with someone who doesn't speak the same language, but the moment someone turns on some great music [like Michael Jackson's music], everyone is tapping their feet, and they are humming along with the music, and there's a smile on their face.

Michael Jackson, the exceptional and gifted musician, entertainer, dancer, visual artist and humanitarian did all the above for us and more.

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Loved these comments from Uchenna Oguekwe on Huff:

"Ed looked like he really wanted to tell Donnie off. Donnie Deutsch needs to ask himself how much has he done to help people? MJ gave and gave millions to more charities than anyone, 39 in all. He visited our troops here at home and over seas and visited sick children at hospitals all around the world and gave them gifts. People like Donnie and Peter King don't understand all the attention MJ has been getting because they are the types of people who think MJ was strange or bizarre, as Donnie had stated the other day on Morning Schmoe, and only want to focus on the negative. That is why they think MJ was just a good singer and dancer. But can any of them say that in their lives they have even come close to captivating the hearts of millions worldwide through their talents and kind contributions to the global society? I think not."

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Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Poignant service says goodbye to M.J., the man by NEKESA MUMBI MOODY

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DEATH OF MICHAEL JACKSON

THE SHORT LIVES OF BLACK MALES

My father died at the age of 52. At that time he was the only remaining brother of a family of 11 siblings. All his brothers died before the age of 60.

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My father was a WWII veteran, a good man, a great father, and I was so proud of him; and even though he only had an 8th grade education, he could build a car from the chassis up and he was a whiz at electronics.

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Back in the day, just about every male smoked cigarettes. You weren’t cool if you weren’t posturing with a “cig” between your lips. No one knew at that time that cigarettes could lead to cancer and emphysema and other respiratory illnesses and diseases. Cigarette and alcohol advertisers often targeted minority communities. My father smoked unfiltered Chesterfields and he had high blood pressure; and in his late 40’s he contracted emphysema.

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A year before he died, my father made a strange statement. He said that if he couldn't smoke, he didn't want to live. WOW ...my father could hardly climb the stairs because of the emphysema, but yet, ... he said that if he couldn't smoke, he didn't want to live. I didn't understand it until years later. I think my father lived a very stressful life.

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African American families usually don’t talk about the deaths of their sons and husbands for there exists a long and painful history and African American mothers and wives, while deeply concerned, try not to focus on the truth of their sons and husbands short lives.

My family has not seen my brother in almost 10 years. I certainly haven’t. I don’t think about it much and my mother simply says that perhaps he will contact us when he is ready. There appears to be an older Caucasian woman who knows how to reach him, and we simply accept that fact, though my mother hasn’t spoken to him.

My brother, a former ADA in Brooklyn, New York, has simply disappeared off the face of the earth and we say nothing. What are we afraid of? Could he be in prison or dead?
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Though my brother was an Assistant District Attorney and a law abiding citizen, he was stopped by police on more than one occasion. The last time he was stopped, he and my mother were at a shopping mall; the police said he looked like someone they were looking for. Can you imagine how humiliated he felt with my mother watching?

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I’ve asked my mother many times to hire a private investigator to find out where my brother is, what he is doing, etc … she retreats to her faith in Jesus Christ and leaves it up to him. I think this is insane, but I’m not looking for him either. I did years ago, but presently, I’m simply left to speculation.

The short lives of Black males are a reality for many families. I’m not sure how we deal with it; but we seem to exist in a state of denial.

We often trace this reality back to slavery and the enormous stress that most Black males lived under and still do live under. Many Black males have even accepted the fact that they may not see old age, some that they may not even see the age of 20.

Why are we not hearing more of an outcry surrounding these blatant truths? Why are we not focused on addressing this human tragedy?

June 25, 2009, Michael Jackson died at the age of 50. All we seem focused on is his troubled past, the bizarre nature of his death and his music legacy. This is the perfect opportunity to look at the causes surrounding the short life span of Black males, and how those short lives impact our neighborhoods, our families, our young people [especially young Black males] and the way we conduct our lives. This is the perfect time to have that discussion that we as a family and Nation have been avoiding.

Yesterday Ex-NFL QB Steve McNair was slain in his downtown condominium. Another Black male struck down in his prime. Where is the anguish? Where is the discussion we yearn for [concerning the short lives of Black males]? Have we just acquiesced and surrendered to the fact that Black males will not live out a full and meaningful life?

We know many Black males drop out of school, end up unemployed, end up in poverty, end up in prison, end up in gangs, end up in poor health, are gunned down by police, … and the list goes on and on.

Do we simply chalk these things up to/ and the Black males' short life span up to risky and irresponsible behavior or racism, etc. without any discussion and quickly move on? If this is true, then I am deeply troubled for our families, for this Nation, … and yes, for our beautiful Black males.

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UPDATE: Since posting an excerpt from this article on the Huffington Post this morning, I've received numerous replies. Most of the comments are not unforeseen. Most wanted to blame Black males for their irresponsible behavior rather than looking at why Black males have shorter life spans, and why many Black males engage in behaviors that lead to their untimely death.

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It is my belief that, because of discrimination, Black males react to stress differently than White males; thereby causing the Black male to act out in a destructive way, rather than deal with their stress in a more rational, positive way. I can't even imagine the kind of stress that Michael Jackson had to deal with; and I’m sure McNair lived a very stressful life and was subject to the kinds of discrimination that my brother was subjected to.

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According to Susan Brink [Black men’s shorter life span may be attributable in part to the stresses of their position in society]

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“For a black man, a stress response to discrimination can be triggered by something as subjective as feeling suspicious eyes on him in a department store. “That can be annoying,” says Michael Johnson, 38, of Inglewood. “You know you’ve got money in your pocket to pay, and somebody is following you around. We’ve all felt that. But you get so used to it, you’re numb to it.”

In one of the first studies to examine the effect of discrimination on lifestyle behaviors, researchers looked at 3,300 adults, black and white, from a range of income groups, ages 18 to 30, and followed them for 15 years. The study, published in the Aug. 13 American Journal of Epidemiology Advanced Access, found that 38% of whites reported feeling discriminated against in housing, education or work, while 89% of blacks reported such feelings of discrimination.

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Regardless of income or race, all who felt discrimination were more likely to have unhealthy behaviors, including smoking, drinking and use of marijuana. “When people feel they’re treated unfairly,” says Dr. Luisa Borrell, professor of epidemiology at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and author of the study, “they’re going to find a way to cope with that unfair treatment.”

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Stress of racism, people feel and respond to discrimination in similar ways, though the experience of discrimination is more common to blacks. Among blacks, it’s more commonly felt among men, the researchers found.”

Susan Brink goes on to say:

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“The shorter life expectancy of black men has been an inflexible truth since slavery. The gap has slowly narrowed throughout the last century, and the most recent improvement is attributed to lower accident and homicide rates, along with life-sustaining treatments for AIDS, all of which afflict a greater proportion of black men.

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Still, heart disease, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, obesity and most cancers strike black men sooner, and cut them down more often, than white men. And the higher incidence of disease among black men is set against a backdrop of an increased incidence of poverty, which carries with it a multitude of health problems.

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Violence, including accidents and homicide, lays its claim on black men early. Homicide is the leading cause of death for black men ages 15 to 34, followed by unintentional injuries. (For white men those ages, unintentional injuries are the leading cause of death, followed by suicide.) In every decade that follows, for every leading cause of death, the rates of disease for black men are disproportionately high. Once they become sick, they are more likely to suffer worse consequences and die sooner of the disease.

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It adds up to an average life span for black men that is 6.2 years less than for white men, and 8.3 less than the national average, 77.8 years, for all races and both genders.”

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Ex-NFL QB Steve McNair, woman found slain in Tenn

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Improving the lives and life span of black men

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Black men’s shorter life span may be attributable in part to the stresses of their position in society

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UPDATE:

Bill Moyers Journal - The Opposite of Poverty is not Wealth ... The Opposite of Poverty is Justice, April 2, 2010

THOUGHTS OFF THE CUFF … PEACE BE WITH YOU MICHAEL

They say you will always remember where you were and what you were doing when someone of great importance dies.

Well, yesterday afternoon I was sitting at my computer about to respond to a CNN “Cafferty file” question about taxes w regards to health care.

The comment section was closed, so I accessed their “contact” and submitted my comments there. The screen that came up next said “Breaking News” and reported that Michael Jackson had a cardiac arrest. I immediately switched my television channel to CNN and called my friend Darlene. Not one to disguise her feelings, she stumbled over her words of disbelief, shock and concern.

Shortly thereafter, CNN announced that Michael Jackson had passed. The phone calling to friends and family began … and there were mixed reactions, from outbursts of tears to denial and some totally heartbroken.

After speaking to some friends, a severe thunderstorm erupted in the area where I live, and reluctantly, I turned off my computer and television, though just in time, because the electrical power shortly after was knocked out.

The news of Michael’s death did not bring tears last night, just a strange feeling that I couldn’t put my finger on. I hadn’t thought about Michael in over a year or so and since I watch a lot of politically oriented news, I didn’t see any stories about him.

Later that evening (around 10:25pm), while I was on my cell phone talking to my Mom, the power was restored. When I turned on the television, the news media was still talking about Michael, showing his videos, playing his music, and showing his fan's reactions to his death. It was then that I truly got a sense of how deeply Michael Jackson was loved and how deeply he had impacted the entire world.

Michael was bigger than life … yes, he was an icon.

This morning the tears flowed and I feel a great sense of loss.

Each morning I go through a routine … checking my website, blogs and emails, etc. etc. I don’t want to deal with any of that today. I simply want to share this day with Michael’s countless fans across the world, remembering the Michael Jackson we knew and loved and still love.

Words cannot adequately express what Michael Jackson, the multi-talented genius, innovative artist, and very shy and gracious man-child, means to me and many others.

I/we love you and you will be greatly missed. Thank you for leaving us a legacy of moving, captivating songs and visual artistry.

Farewell, … peace be with you.

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Thriller Video

Michael Jackson, Child of America, Gone