Justin Bieber has gone off the deep end. The one-boy-band has launched a new album called Believe (that's for those NOT keeping score. I wasn't.). Now, I rarely point out the inequities of the super rich and/or famous because–at least in the confines of this blog–they don't weigh-in to my world. But that is about to change. I am appalled, disgusted and and mostly disappointed at the behavior and action of a young man who has grown up in front of us all. A guy whose destructive actions and horrific choices are damn near criminal.
Oh sure, I know how the story goes. Young man, privileged with opportunity and excess without the wisdom or maturity—or moral compass—to navigate such things, becomes a victim of his own success. A bright star that inevitably burns out because the excess and absence of boundaries lead him down a self-destructive path that downward spirals into an endless abyss.
However, while we're on the "poor baby" pity party (maybe for Justin its 'poor baby-baby-baby—Ohh), we can keep a few things in mind while we are presiding over a verdict over this guy in the court of public opinion:
- Justin is a vandal. In a recent excursion to Australia, JB decided to "Party Hard' in a plush hotel by tagging (spray-painting for the folks following at home), destroying hotel property and being a general nuisance to the other guests with him and his entourage. Way to go.
- Justin is a bully. Recently, 'Biebs' spit off a balcony into crowd of adoring young fans. As if that wasn't enough, in a separate incident, he also urinated from the balcony of a hotel room, also onto a crowd of fans. Last time I looked, spitting on someone and peeing on them are the actions of a coward.
- Justin is immoral. While in many circles (and counties) sleeping with hookers isn't the worst thing you can do, in most places it is illegal and contributes to to suppression of women's dignity. Sure what two consenting adults do behind closed doors is their business. However, let's remember his key demographic is teen girls aged 11–17. So the message there is... to get with Justin, you gotta be a hooker. Nice.
- Justin is abusive. A short time ago, the Bling-boy was at a resort where he came across four young girls sunning themselves–again, a prime fan candidate–and proceed to single one girl out for her weight, remarking how she was a 'beached whale' and such. Really Justin? Did your overpaid posse of bodyguards give you that extra incentive to let this little girl know how you really felt?
- Justin is Gordon Gecko. Much like Michael Douglas' classic 'money-over-everyone' super evil money man in the classic 80's excess film Wall Street, the Biebs is an unstoppable financial juggernaut. He earned just over $108 million in the last two years, making him pretty dang rich–and ruthlessly callous. Look, I know being wealthy isn't a crime, being a prick with endless pockets is pretty bad by any measure, though.
Justin is on a one-way ticket to crash-and-burn-ville. He doesn't have a filter, a barometer of compassion or a sense of morality. I'm hugely disappointed in him because I thought he would be a better man than he's become. He has lost the respect of adults everywhere and his fans are bleeding away in droves.
A simple closing thought to you Justin as we close out 2013. Want us to believe? Stop being such a tool and give us something to believe in.
*Shame. Shame rhymes with Lame...
