not necessarily talking about anybody specifically here (but we'll use mj and steve mcnair for examples)...does your view of a person while they were alive change when all sorts of bad things come out after they're dead? or do you kind seperate their personal life from their public life?

all depends on what comes out after they die. If someone I was close to died and then I found out they had a big ol' voodoo black magick alter with pins and needles in dolls and burnt pictures of me and my loved ones or if they we Jack the ripper. That would change my view of said person

The opposite happens when someone dies and we ignore their faults and give glorious eulogies Absolutely it can happen the other way. Personally, having known someone who lived a scandalous life, I still chose to focus on the positives and while I didn't lie about her scandal and bad choices, I still chose to remember what drove her and why she did the things she did therefore using her life as a learning experience instead of something to condemn and get high and mighty off of.

Speaking of a non-celebrity.... I would try to look at their life as a whole and remember what I knew.

For example... a family member. I had a young cousin that died young of a drug overdose, it saddens me because my aunt and uncle didn't accept his gay lifestyle and he turned to drugs as a result. So I look at his life as a cautionary tale.. making sure to accept my child so that I won't lose them that way. Javier was a beautiful person and a drug addict that was all f**** up emotionally. I miss him. I will not forget any part of him good or bad.

As for a celebrity, I look at HOW that celebrity impacted my life... like when Luther died and MJ, I miss them both. I won't dwell on how they died because its none of my business unless their death caused change in my life.

So a celebrity death I would separate public image from private. For example Frank Sinatra isn't known for his mob ties, he is remembered as "One of the greats".

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[Edited 8/3/09 14:46pm]

paintedlady said:

I haven't been as gracious about Michael Jackson's death but that has more to do with his delusional fans than it does with remembering the good in him.

But yes, my cousin is the person I'm speaking of. Bad choices, hard life but I too am taking her death and using it to try and help others, especially those who have been abused and or in pain. One can acknowledge the reality of someone's life and still rise above.



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[Edited 8/3/09 14:47pm]

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Back at cha S&T.

paintedlady said:

No. you. di'int!