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Ron Jackson's Perspective
The Sunday Journal -
Think
Kankakee, Illinois
December 6, 2000
Stupidity must not
be illegal in America |
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Jim
Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, River Phoenix, Chris Farley, John Belushi, Janis
Joplin, Dorothy Dandridge, Billie Holiday, and Kurt Cobain have a lot in
common. They were all famous, rich and addicted to drugs.
They all chose to die at the peak of their careers.
Robert Downey Jr. is famous, rich, young and addicted to drugs,
too. Is his premature death imminent? Just three months
after being released from jail, Downey was arrested for cocaine and
methamphetamine possession, being under the influence of a controlled
substance and committing a felony while free on bail. Stupidity
must not be illegal, or that charge would have been included.
At 35 years old, he is still a young man but he is too old to be making
the same mistakes over and over again. Then again, maybe he is
not. Maybe he is not stupid either. He knows what he can get
away with.
Downey is affable, charming, popular and cute. That transcends
into marketability which means he can make a lot of money for
others. Like a super star professional athlete, Downey has been
afforded a certain amount of protection and justice not available to the
common citizen. How many probation violators are quickly released
on $15,000 bail?
He has powerful, rich, influential friends. As an acclaimed actor,
he also has the ability to cry on a moment's notice when before a
judge. Humans, especially Americans, are suckers for a crying
man. It's so moving to see a man cry. It shows
sensitivity. It's cute. It's even sexy.
Famous males in tears have become as great a piece of art as the Mona
Lisa's smile. Ministers have mastered it. Politicians have
perfected it. Athletes have made feeble attempts at it.
There may be some validity to it.
We twice believed Jimmy Swaggart when he cried and begged our
forgiveness. We have forgiven Darryl Strawberry, Steve Howe,
Lawrence Taylor and countless other high profile athletes just because
they cried. If O.J. Simpson had only shed a few tears, he would
still be making commercials.
Downey differs from the above mentioned men in that they are all big
burly brutes. He is but a diminutive, make that wimpy, type.
Any teary-eyed man standing well over six feet tall and weighing close
to 300 pounds can suck the sympathy out of the most insensitive
audience. Take the big prisoner in the movie, The Green Mile.
Now that was a sensitive man. But a little runt of a man barely
over five and a half feet tall, weighing 135 pounds soaking wet
from tears, looks more like an over-watered sunflower. There is
nothing sexy about that. Unless maybe when you're in jail.
Millions of decent Americans fight illegal drug use everyday, and
billions are spent annually against the war on drugs. Each time a
Robert Downey Jr. or a Darryl Strawberry is given a slap on the wrist
for repeated drug violations, all that hard work and money are wasted.
We will have to wait and see what becomes of Robert Downey Jr. We
know Morrison, Hendrix, Phoenix, Farley, Belushi, Joplin, Cobain,
Dandridge and Holiday paid dearly for their choices.
A year ago, Downey told a judge his addiction was, "like I've got a
shotgun in my mouth, with my finger on the trigger, and I like the taste
of the gun metal."
It's really easy to dare him right now. |
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