Amanda Fortini--what a pathetic woman. She tries so hard to be fresh and relevant. She only comes across as cold-hearted and contrived. Not as clever as she would like to be. Her comment about the Maya Angelou poem read by Queen Latifah?: "What's a big schlocky event without one?" Such infantile thinking, Ms. Fortini. It wasn't a "big schlocky" event, you dope, it was a funeral. Mr. Jackson's family wanted to include as much of the world in on it because Michael had global appeal. Were you even moved by 11-year-old Paris-Michael's tears? I'll wager you weren't.

How many batty thoughts swirl around in your vacuous mind each moment as you strain to find the "right" insult? Ma'am, I don't want contrived, I want fair and decent. When you die and are lying prone in your coffin, your silly mouth forever silenced, I wonder who will even bother to mark your small "schlocky" passing? I'll wager that no one will be clamoring to pen a special poem for your sorry ass, least of all Maya Angelou...

Gee, how condescending can SALON get?

One must wonder what is at the personal crux of Ms.Fortini's bleak and jaded account of an event that meant so much to so many. Perhaps she deems it clever to take pot shots at the wounded and unguarded.

Amanda Fortini thought she wrote a balanced article in-between Rep King’s condemnation and Al Sharpton’s praise making no one happy.. Rep King represents the minority. But usually condemning those accused of pedophilia is the majority, or else people are afraid to praise a tainted friend or else they themselves might be tainted with the accusation of being a pedophile just by coming to defense of a friend who was thus accused.

One may think that the fact that Michael Jackson was never convicted of anything makes the difference. However in Philadelphia, a women with extreme mental problems handed her children to a man who had been once charged with a sex crime. The first officer on the scene found two dirty toy endowed children, the man found it too awkward or dangerous to give them a bath. This officer told the reporters then on the scene that the man never did anything wrong to the kids. He was jailed anyway on an old bench warrant on an unimportant matter. A more famous case is that of a school teacher in Scotland who accused a camp owner of being a pedophile because the camp photos always showed the boys with their shirts off. After the camp went bankrupt, he went crazy killing the teacher and several students as well.

Michael Jackson let us know he was still human despite being tainted. Let Michael Jackson inspire us to realize some of the others accused of pedophilia are just as human as he is. The Michael Jackson memorial can inspire us to finally put and end to a 40-year old witchhunt. Join me at RamblingsFromTheHornetsNest

or RichardKanePA at blogspot

Such a good line; I didn't want to waste it in subtext. Wonder if he's demanding an apology from God for making him black?

What exactly were you anticipating? Your view appears to be strangely skewed! Why were you there? This article says much more about the author than it does about the memorial service. What were your motives for writing it and why do you think so many others saw it in a different light? Were you expecting a rock concert? Did it cross your mind that a mother was facing what no parent ever wants to face -- outliving their child. How does this ill written snarky article benefit anyone? What value did it add to the world or for that matter to your own career.

"Not nearly as crowded or wild as expected by whom?"

Well, you know us black folks. Every funeral is always like something out of Tyler Perry, and the media (especially the obvious bigots like Fox) were expecting--more like hoping--for TP x 20. You know--Latoya screaming and "falling out" across the coffin and Tito speaking in tongues and Katherine Jackson carrying on like Medea ...:P

"A "somber" service for someone DIED, yes, how "strange.""

Yup, because black folks are incapable of somber. "Hysterical Grief" to "Religious Fervor" are the only two emotional speeds we can bring to a funeral.

What a lame and predictable article. Going out of your way to present the funeral as a freakshow is a bore..you sound like a jaded teenager

Ms. Fortini, please keep your article as a keepsake and remember in less than 10 years how you and other ill-prepared and non-empathetic reporters help kill interest in media coverage because of your prospensity to give your personal perspective while writing in 3rd party. It woud have been better if you would have said from my vantage point the people appeared... I certainly could not see the entire crowd. But, instead you ranted on as if you were everywhere. Also, when you did obviously give your perspective you came to conclusions that again sounded very myopic. For example: "Maybe, I thought, the low energy derived from the fact that Michael's death, despite what we keep hearing on TV, wasn't an unexpected tragedy. He had been sick, mentally and physically, for so long -- he was, in many respects, the world's youngest invalid -- and it had been ages since he had made any good music. Maybe the loss of the singing, dancing Michael, the early Michael, had been mourned so long ago, that when he finally died -- of self-ordered anesthesia, it would seem -- it was hard to feel much of anything." Ms. Fortini, why not mention how the media killed MJ's image in his own country because of the mischaracterzations, assumptions vitriolic negativity. Perhaps, what you really saw was a controlled anger and sadness about a man who was tortured unrelentlessly by the media, comedians and eventually some of the public who were influenced by this constant 'Michael is a pervert' message. Did it occur to you that his behavior was misinterpreted because he had exhibited child-like wonder, sensitivity and unconditional love even after most men would have put away such childish things and instead take up other 'man-like' behavior like ignoring their children, abusing their wives and children physically and mentally,including cheating on them? Some of these men get elected to high public office but, nevertheless are being held up by so-called Christian organizations and other men and women of faith using scripture "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone." Were you even paying attention to what the speakers were saying about MJ? Perhaps, if you wrote about this your management would not have let you print it. However, I don't think you were listening because you made your mind up a long time ago that MJ was a freak. It was so obvious when finally you wrote the above paragraph in first person. Let me give you a little more insight into my mindset. I have read comments on other online newsletter sights that have mentioned that although MJ was never convicted in a court of law, he was still a pervert. The commenters would then add "What grown man would sleep with a young boy?" Well, I would, because I would not be thinking unpure thoughts. Perhaps those that think it's perverted could not fathom themselves having pure thoughts in that situation. This sad situation is truly an indictment of our society as a whole. Lastly, why do you think MJ's 50 show UK tour, scheduled to begin this month, was sold out? Was it because, as you said, "...it had been ages since he had made any good music. Maybe the loss of the singing, dancing Michael..."? What is said here in America, by reporters like you, does not necesarrily resonate with the entire world. Thank God for that!