I'm not sure whether the news that Michael Jackson is bringing his FREAKshow to town is cause for excitement or alarm. Michael Jackson’s
disturbing behaviorThe concert adds cultural dimension and diversity to Honolulu by giving local people a chance to see one of the world's most spectacular song-and-dance acts - the self-styled King of Pop - in person.
Jackson brings a lot of troubling baggage with him, however. He bought his way out of possible sexual molestation charges by paying millions of dollars to quiet the young boy who accused him. Jackson says he's innocent, but his payoff short-circuited a full public investigation of the accusations.
Jackson has the unique distinction of offending both Muslims, who call his bizarre lifestyle anti-Islamic, and Jews, who brand his lyrics anti-Semitic.
Patrons demand that we give art its due by judging the artist's work on its merit - apart from any shortcomings of character the artist may have. But what kind of society are we if we don't hold people to account for hideous acts just because they're talented, rich and famous? What do we teach our children by giving the stamp of approval to "role models" like these?
It's not only Jackson. I used to love Woody Allen movies. I'd be in line to see each new film the week it came out. I decided to live without his movies when he started fooling around with the young adopted daughter of the woman he supposedly loved.
My little boycott hasn't affected his career or his bankroll. He continues to make his movies. He still has his celebrity. The camera never fails to pick him out of the crowd with his young girlfriend at New York Knicks games.
But I feel better giving my money - and my respect - to equally talented filmmakers who also possess personal integrity, like Ron Howard and Spike Lee.
The same day as our Page 1 story announcing Jackson's coming, we had another story about a woman in Warrenton, Va., who was killed at a drag race when she saved her 5-year-old son's life by throwing her body between the boy and a runaway hot rod.
It was just a little story on an inside page. It didn't even have the woman's name - Vicki Lynn Foster. I felt terrible about my oversight and made sure we had a follow-up story with her name on Page 1 the next day.
I thought too of Carl Viti and his tight bond with his 5-year-old son, Taylor. The Advertiser photographer was killed by a hit-and-run driver, leaving Taylor to grow up with only his memory.
We have to ask whether our infatuation with celebrity sometimes makes us too tolerant of prominent people accused of abusing and exploiting children. We also need to ask why we so often fail to notice wonderfully nurturing parents like Vickie Lynn Foster and Carl Viti until it's too late.
I'm not going to tell you to feel guilty about attending the Jackson concert or seeing a Woody Allen film. Life is full of tough choices and we each have to make our own. But why not also show a little support too for those who cherish and enrich our children? Why not throw a portion of the price of a Jackson ticket or a Woody Allen movie Taylor Viti's way?
Nothing can fill the huge hole in Taylor's life left by the loss of his father, but at least we can give him some of the advantages and opportunities Carl would have made sure he had.
Donations to a fund established to benefit Taylor can be sent to Friends of Carl Viti, First Hawaiian Bank Mililani Branch, 95-390 Kuahelani Ave., Mililani, HI 96789.
