For those who just can't stand the existence of Joe Jackson in the Jackson family.
What do you want to do? Take him to prison? Have him cut out of the family? Have him isolated on a deserted island away from all humanity?
Remember, as much as we are fans & a "family" for Mike, his REAL family comes first. He's not leaving his kids to any of us. He's leaving them to his family (& one of his Motown family in Diana Ross).
There are some who are so into Michael & so admiring of his qualities that they grow a blind spot to anything outside of him. As if he doesn't have faults or errs significantly.
Jackie Jackson said that in Michael's young days "Michael was bad when he was little." He said it with a smile in a joking way but it was honest.
We all see Michael as an angel but at one time Michael was rambunctious. We see the remnant of that part of his personality when he was on stage. The crotch grab anyone?
And here's an example or two for those talking about Michael as nothing but an angel. Sister Janet's nickname is Dunk, right? Who do you think gave her that nickname? Michael. And you know what it was short for? Donkeybutt. He was talking about Janet's big butt as a youngster & even as an adult. Janet's future worry about her weight & looks were probably influenced by this nickname Michael used to call his sister. He used to call LaToya 'Moonface' because of her full round face. Marlon was called 'Liver Lips' by the brothers becuase of his lips. I remember seeing this 1975 home movie of The Jacksons spending Christmas on this ranch with Michael, Randy, & Jermaine all working the camera, you hear Michael refer to Randy as "that big ugly ape".
It looks to me that Michael could dish it out but couldn't take it. He teased his family just as much as they teased him. Exception was when he was on the receiving end, he couldn't take it. It affected his esteem & being in the spotlight added fuel to the fire. And Joe may have teased him to give him a taste of his own medicine. You don't know exactly how that family interacted. We weren't there.
Michael was the only one bold enough to challenge his father when he was young. He reminds me of this little cousin I just visited with today & this weekend over my family reunion. He's got a sassmouth & will sometimes slap you in the face when he's feeling himself & getting rowdy. You see the good in him too but he's just got too much energy & starts really acting up.
Some of y'all need to get acquainted with the animated movie BeBe's Kids to understand this. Some kids don't behave & spanking is not necessarily abuse. If you can discipline your kids without spanking, then good. It shouldn't be overused anyway. But if you think all kids listen to reason, you just haven't dealt with any highly spirited "bad ass" kids.
Joe was right. He worked two jobs. If you don't think Katherine spanked those 9 'spirited' kids in a house no bigger than a 2 car garage, then you're fooling yourself. Now of course Joe's spankings were probably more fearsome as he had the role as disciplinarian. And I wouldn't deny that maybe he took it too far & went all James Evans from Good Times on them. One thing for sure those kids didn't backtalk or badmouth their parents like some kids nowadays do.
Joe's problem was that he didn't show affection. THAT was his problem. He looked like a monster because he didn't outwardly show the love he had for his kids like Katherine. He felt it was the man's role to be hard & stern. If Joe showed a little more affection there would not be an image of him being emotionally abusive. The stance on physical abuse depends on your cultural beliefs & generation of birth.
There are some who live by the Bible's saying "Spare the rod, spoil the child". Some accept this way of life & some don't. A spanking is not necessarily abuse but it's not mandatory for everyone. I got whooped with a switch & a belt too. I'm Black & from the South. I'm not emotionally traumatized or shy & withdrawn. It affects certain people differently. Some Blacks who received this type of discipline choose not to continue the tradition while others do.
In my grandma's day if you acted up, the whole neighborhood gave you spankings depending on who you offended & THEN you got spanked by your parents too. You act up at somebody's house, they would spank you send you home & then your parents will spank you AGAIN. I guarantee you there was a lot more respect for the parents then there is now because of that. Not for the spanking aspect but the community aspect of discipline.
Remember not to be so caught up in Michael to badmouth his family. That's in bad form. If you were truly his fans, you would understand his view on his family & accept it. I never liked when fans ran down family members like that. THOSE are the people who will back you up when nobody else will (a good one anyway). You don't have to agree with all of their decisions but respect Michael's stance on his family. That walling away some of his staff did is the same thing we do when we try to erect walls between Michael's kin & himself.
John Lucas
