Not guilty? Not guilty like OJ? Who can blame him for being different, he is Peter Pan, his doctors made him so.

You see we agree! Welcome to the dark side!

agree, we do. The path to the dark side, this is.

Don't know that he's innocent so much as that they were unable to convict without reasonable doubt. Prosecution had a crappy case... witnesses were shady from the get-go. Sad. I pray, for the sake of children who might be put at risk in the future, that he's innocent. Doubt it though. Hope this is enough to get him to change the way he operates though... somehow I don't think he could survive a third trial, should there be one. And any parent who is foolish enough to send their child to Neverland? I pray for them too.

You are a wise person HC.

I think the celebrity factor played some in his verdict. If Joe School Teacher or Mike the Soccer Coach or your local cub scout leader was doing this stuff, he'd be guilty of something. Just because Michael is wealthy and famous, he's "eccentric" rather than "predatory". Not guilty doesn't mean innocent, it just means the case wasn't proven to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt.

Also, and this may be off topic, where do you find a jury of peers for a guy as unique as Michael Jackson?

agree, we do. The path to the dark side, this is.

Wise are you.  Soon will be a part of the real force, you will.

where do you find a jury of peers for a guy as unique as Michael jackson?

Carnival freak show?

Carnival freak show?

Tried that...said they didn't want to have their name tarnished by associating with a weirdo.

Tried that...said they didn't want to have their name tarnished by associating with a weirdo.

I can understand that.

it doesn't matter who's wrong or right, just beat it.

it doesn't matter who's wrong or right, just beat it.

... clever.

Peace........................

I don't think any of us have any real idea of whether he is guilty. For me, the Bashir docco convinced me it was fairly likely that he is innocent. Unfortunately though plenty of people think he is weird, and is therefore guilty. We are just as afraid of what is different as we always have been.

Just because it is not a social norm to share a bed with a child who is not your own biological child, does not make Jackson a paedophile. Many societies have believed in much more communal approaches to parenting than Western society's current norm. Why shouldn't Jackson adopt such an approach and give the children what they need: affection. It is a tragedy when members of society assume that any sign of affection towards a child by a man is a sure sign of their sexual desires.

agree, we do. The path to the dark side, this is.

I just wanted to post that again because I love Yoda!

Interestingly, in the Scottish legal system, juries can return one of three verdicts: 'guilty', 'not guilty' and 'not proven'. 'Not proven' is the equivalent of what a lot of people are suggesting here: probably guilty, but the case was not made beyond a reasonable doubt, so the defendant walks.

I don't know how much of the court case was actually shown on t.v., but I personally wouldn't even venture an opinion unless I had heard most of what the jury heard.

I would hate to see him in prison, though. He's not stable or even sane, and prison would not only be dangerous for him (while I'm sure he would be kept separated from the general population, there's still great risk to his life), but I'm not sure it would even be the appropriate place for him.

If Ted is right, he will go back to his old ways.  But if he is not guilty, then perhaps this will be a wake up call for him, and he will avoid any instances that appear inappropriate.

I do agree with you however.  Given that pedophiles do not last long in prison anyway, he would not have survived to serve out any sentence.