In Defense of Justin Bieber

January 24, 2014

I’m a firm believer that people are responsible for their own actions, no matter their upbringing. People make choices in life, some good, some bad. Some people choose to take the path of least resistance. Others take the path of good work ethic and set their goals high. There will always be a need for garbage collectors and burger flippers in society. Sure there are always examples of kids being brought up in bad environments, turning to drugs, alcohol and crime or joining gangs for the sake of some sort of family comfort. There are also examples of kids who make the right choices, no matter what their surroundings and become strong mentors and role models. Clarence Thomas and Thomas Sowell comes to mind.

Justin Bieber is no exception. This kid is by no means a role model or a mature adult. He is a by-product of his surroundings and care givers. I pick on people like Bieber because he is in the public eye and has countless children and young teens tripping over themselves to be just like him. Bieber has some serious problems with alcohol, drugs and self control. You can make up all the excuses for why this kid continues to make bad choices, but at what point do you start putting the blame on him not taking responsibility for his own actions? When does Lindsay Lohan get in front of a judge and gets hard jail time for giving our judicial system the finger every time she gets thrown into a drunk tank or drug rehab clinic?

Why is it people like Paul Walker that end up on a cold slab?

In a day when young folks are looking for publicity, whether through social media or by shooting up a school, someone needs to put their sights on these problem celebrity kids well before they kill themselves or someone else.

So what if Justin Bieber had not been stopped by the police the other night while behind the wheel of a car that is capable of hitting speeds in excess of 180 mph in a matter of seconds? How many innocent people could he have snuffed out in the blink of an eye?

Everyone laughs and jokes about how stupid these celebrity kids are but no one really gives a damn or even entertains the idea of how dangerous they are becoming. You’ll still take your kids to their performances and talk about what a bad boy he was and how he or she will just grow out of it. Then you’ll wake up one morning hearing the news of how one of them died in a car crash or by suicide and you’ll cry and lay Teddy Bears and flowers on the site where their lifeless body was found. Then another reckless child celebrity will come along and take their place.

Lets face reality people. No one really gives a damn about these spoiled little rich kids. Their only purpose in life is to keep our children entertained while we all look the other way. Right? Well not so fast…

Today I received a comment from one of my readers. Teresa took issue with my poking fun at Justin Bieber and made some excellent points that I want to share with you. You see, Teresa gets it. -JRoycroft

“Hi Mr. Roycroft This is not the first time I have written to you – I have historically been a big fan of your blog but as a mom – I just have to tell you – we are not on the same page on this one. Hear me out for a second.

I am going to call on the old adage that its easy to pass judgment on someone – it seems it is going to apply here – and in case you are wondering – no I am not some Bieber groupie that is disgruntled – just a mom with a psychology and spirituality background whose heart breaks when I see stories like the Bieber story and more so when I see responses like yours to those stories by people such as yourself.

Were you aware that Justin grew up quite poor? Were you aware that his father was absent for most of his life – that is until he became a global phenomenon . . . Were you aware that his mother struggled to keep food on the table? Were you aware that Justin’s stardom began when he was a mere child ? As a dad and the extremely smart, intuitive, practical and from my perspective grounded and common sensed kind of guy – could you possibly see Justin as a product of the environment that pimped a child and made money off of him. As a little boy Justin was probably thrilled at the idea of not being poor anymore. . . where was the guidance that a “child” needs in a situation such as he found himself in?

Yes his actions were quite irresponsible but are you aware of the countless amount of money Justin has given away for charitable causes ? Can you see Justin as a product of his environment – a kid starved for love and validation who’s self worth is wrapped up not in his inherent worth as a human being but in how much money he can make for the people who stole – yes robbed him mercilessly of his childhood and adolescence?

Yes boys are supposed to grow up to become men – but they need to have men to model what that means . . . they need to have inherent self worth . . . they need guidance and structure . . . they need to be forgiven and loved when they screw up so they learn to forgive and love so when the boys they are mentoring into men screw up they can teach them the same lesson.

I could go on – but I know how damn smart you are and I know you know where I am coming from. Consequences – yes – most definitely ! Crucifixion – not so much . . .

Hope your lovely family is well – looking forward to your next posting . . .”

God bless! Teresa