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whatdoesshedotothem · 3 years ago

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Saturday 7 October 1837

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A- had not long since had Cookson when I went to bed last night but was asleep not quite in good sorts for I had just after dinner said something about her not bearing the di[s]appointment about the pony very well and was beginning to say if she had had more disappointments when she said she had had a great many and on my saying but I had not disappointed her it seemed that I had she was right on awaking this morning by on my gently wanting to know how I had disappointed her she got wrongish again and left the breakfast table before Mr. Gray and when she had only poured me out one cup of tea and tho’ all passed off tolerably when I saw her afterwards yet my own feeling was uncomfortable and I mused of getting rid of her – Mr. Hoylands’ man

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painted inside of hall ante cellar door, and I stood by – breakfast at 9 ¼ with Mr. Gray – A- there at 1st but soon went away – then had Braithwaite Mr. Husbands’ radical Northgate blacksmith – wanted his bill paying – not signed by Mr. Harper so could not be paid – Blythe afterwards told me, Mr. Harper declined signing it – too high – had Robert Schofield for A-‘s drain along the Crownest carriage road at 1/9 per rood = £8.1.10 ½ - £4 paid in a/c – A- poorly so paid Robert for her – had Mr. Firth senior and gave him check in a/c of Northgate hotel £70 + £30 in a/c of Shibden hall – then had the man with Brays’ bill for lime and Booth with him, and gave the man a check for the amount = £38.3.0 and gave Booth check in a/c for £100 – then a little while with A- and wished good morning intending to go to the bank, and to ask Mr. Parker as to the law respecting returning horses as unsound – off about 12 ¼ - met Holt the engineer in the back road – returned with him – he had walked from Keighley sent him into the servants hall to dine with the servants and talked the engine matter over, with Mr. Gray who cannot yet understand the dead water business and how we shall avoid it at the new E.P. H- had brought his estimates of different considering engines

12 horse power £300 without boiler or 360 with ditto 15 of horse power

14---------------------320 ----------------------400-------------------16

16----------------- 340--------------------------440--------------------20

Cliffes’ estimate £360 near the gas works Huddersfield or

£430 and shafting and gearing

100 extra about £100.

200

730 and engine house £200

But C- would engage to put up a 10 horse engine with shafting and gearing and Engine house all complete for £500

Engine Holt said 4ft. strokes and 25 strokes per minute = 60ft. up and 60ft. down = 120 described by the pumps

mentioned 3 pumps instead of 2 (Mr. Gray thought they would work easier) yes! H- thought they would – mentioned the being bound in a hundred pounds penalty to have the engine working by Xmas or in 2 months from the time of receiving the other – he had said 4 months – would try – this to be settled afterwards – ended by giving him the following to answer ’40 yards lift – how many gallons delivered per minutes H- said if the engine was a portable one (a fixed engine or ‘land engine’ would cost double removing) he would move it for £10 – a land engine would cost double that moving – H- will consider the subject and give me an answer in gallons – said a 10 horse engine would burn along 8 loads of local per day

by 10 horse power

by 12 ditto ditto

by 14 ditto ditto

portable engine

6in. bore pumps

delivered by 2 and by 3 pumps’

Holt Engineer was hardly gone before Mr. Holt (collier) came with Mr. Cliffe of Huddersfield and another man, his engineer I should suppose – C- brought his estimate (vid. above) for a 14 horse power Engine too work two nineinch bore pumps and brought a plan of the engine to be warranted for six months they finding the fireman (I to pay him, I suppose) during the six months – C- explained what was comprised in the estate and I learnt the useful lesson that

the shafting and gearing would be extra about £100

and the engine house would be ditto about £200

quite against a portable engine – the difference would be in the expense of masonry – and they would move a land engine for as little as they would a portable engine – would move either for £20. quite against 3 pumps instead of 2 – would not work ½ so well – with a 14 horse

power engine two nineinch bore pumps was lift per minute 240 gallons

three six inch. ditto ditto ------------------------------------------ 120 ditto

two ditto ditto ditto ditto --------------------------------------------100 ditto

vid. Adcocks’ engineers pocket book of 1832.

their 14 horse power engine to have 2 nine in. bore pumps

pumps 10 strokes per minute

engine 25 or 30 strokes per minute

C- said the water wheel went too fast – there was ‘vibration’ makes 12 strokes per minute 10 strokes enough –

Holt owned that would not 240 gallons per minute to pump, nor even 100 gallons – they had been at the L.E.P. and owned that the present pumps were quite master of the present water and Holt owned that he did not expect to have as much water to pump as we have at present –

then why a 14 horse power engine? to pump the water so much faster that the engine may stand in the night – yes! but it cannot stand while the men are working as they will all night be till the Incline and all is completed and after that the engine will be moved to the Platform where 6 horse power is calculated to be enough – then why a 14 horse power?

Holt on taking him aside, owned that 10 horse power would be enough – sees no difficulty in carrying vent from Listerwick pit if 6ft. deep in water – and vent will be got to the Incline from the drift to let off the rag-water

C- will take the old pumps at 67. per cwt. the new will cost I think he said 15/. per cwt. the difference between a 14 and a 10 horse power engine = £124 with boiler and about £85 without boiler

10 horse engine boiler = £50 and 14 horse engine boiler = £70.

C- reckoned (including boiler) £31 per horse power .:. a ten horse Engine with boiler = £310

vid. last page Holt’s estimate 12 horse power with 15 horse power boiler = £360 or £30 per horse power

C- is a man of much ‘mouse-hole’ talk – would have not ‘after claps’ that is, I suppose fault found with his job when finished – he would not ‘make mouse holes’ – Mr. Gray told me at dinner he did not much like C- I like H- better –

C-‘s engineer owned that a 10 horse engine would work three six inch bore pumps and Holt collier owned that the present 2 were quite master of the present water, and he did not expect as much water in the new engine pit as in the present one!

While C- was here (after 2) Mr. Jubb called to see A- she had been gone ¼ hour? asked him to call again on Monday anytime before 1am he looked at Hotspurs’ eyes – believed he would go blind, but it might be a year or 2 before – doubted whether returnable because not at present unfit for his work – I proposed sending for Wheatly – yes! the best plan – he would know all about it – just before A- went Oddy came for wine for 1 of Nelsons’ men upon whom the old shed (coal shed) or something had fallen – supposed the man ½ dead – took him some of my fine old cognac brandy – It revived him and he would soon be right again then it came out there was another man hurt, and sick and a candidate for brandy – A- sent him some of the household brandy for I saw there was time to get it – the 2 men were soon at their work again – Messrs. Holt and Cliff went away about 3pm then out about for a little while – George had been to Granny hall to see the horses to be sold on Monday (near Brighouse) – all cart horses – had seen a brown 4 year old colt by shuttle of Mr. Macaulays’ in Georges’ opinion very likely to suit A- worth £30 to £35 but Mr. McA- might not ask that for him – then had Parkinson (and Booth had brought

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a hundred pounds from the bank) and had Booth to see all right paid to P- and had Blythe till 6pm – then out – at the turret and in front of the house till 6 50 – dressed – dinner at 7 50 (A- away to dinner tomorrow) and sat talking over the dead water and engines till 8 40 – coffee – read the paper partly aloud – strong address from Birmingham to Lord Melbourne against Peal’s bill of 1819, and our present ruinous monetary – vid. p. 4 of the paper and same p. shewing treasure-troves (coins found 18in. under the surface of the ground) to be the property not of the Lord of the manor, but of the crown – came upstairs at 9 40 and from then to 12 writing the whole of today – fine day F56 ½° at 9 40 pm – told Mr. Cliff that what I said was to go for nothing for that I should leave the business to Mr. Harper – that only one firm could have the job – I had nothing to do with estimates (unsuccessful) Mr. Harper would settle all that – looking over bills etc till 12 40

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mrscheetos · 5 years ago

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【ALL about the mysterious case of Jonathan Brandis】

▒▒▒▒↳I do not intend to offend anyone, just inform, feel free to share this post if you want.

ＪｏｎａｔｈａｎＢｒａｎｄｉｓ

• Biography;

Jonathan Gregory Brandis was born in Connecticut, in the year 1976, average 1’77, and He was an only child, but soon moved with his parents Greg and Mary to the city of Los Angeles, in California.

Since he was little he already had a very striking natural beauty.

He began his film career at the age of 11 when, after working in advertising, intervening in television commercials from a very young age, he appeared in episodes of well-known series, including "Who's the Boss?" L.A Law”,“ Murder, She Wrote ”or“ The Wonder Years ”. Her film start came with a brief role in the film starring Michael Douglas and Glenn Close "Fatal Attraction" (1987).

He subsequently appeared in Jeff Burr's "The Stepfather 2" (1989); starred in the sequel to "The Never Ending Story" directed by George Miller in 1989; and starred in "Sidekicks" (1992), a martial arts film starring Chuck Norris.

“The role that would bring him to fame would be that of Bill Denbrough in the 90's mini series It, the killer clown, based on the work of Stephen King.”

For seven years he took a film hiatus. He worked extensively on television, in telefilms and series, such as "SeaQuest DSV", a Steven Spielberg production that made him very popular in the United States.

In 1999 he resumed his career on the big screen, working with Michael Corrente and the Farrelly brothers in the comedy "Outside province" (1999), with Ang Lee in the western "Cabalga Con El Diablo ”(1999), or with Bruce Willis and Colin Farrell in“ Hart's War ”(2002), film directed by Gregory Hoblit. Brandis, as well as an actor, also made his first steps as a director, directing an episode of the aforementioned series "SeaQuest".

↳Relationship;

•He was a boyfriend of the actresses Vinessa Shaw, his co-star in the movie "Ladybugs" (1992); Tatyana Ali, with whom she shared credits in the telefilm "Falling To Darkness" (1996), Heather McComb, Tiffani-Amber Thiessen and Monica Keena, co-star of "Bad Girls From Valley High" (2000).

•Death;

If you have already come this far, we start with the causes that led to his death.

As the years passed, it ceased to have a major role in Hollywood. the producers stopped calling him, his beauty and fame were crumbling like the Berlin wall.

So how was the most famous boy actor of the 90's being soll an ordinary man?

Both his family and loved ones admitted that Jonathan had not been feeling well lately, falling into depression with no return. Not a single word of love could comfort the young man's broken heart.

The last film that this actor made Hart's war. However this was very bad for Jonathan, who after finishing his filming, would find out that finally the directors decided to DELETE ALL THEIR SCENES.

«This was the last straw, they finally shot him down. He had removed the little prince from his fantastic world which he always saw as normal»

His friends assure that he did not leave his room even to eat.

At the end of the night of November 11, 2003, around 11:40 pm, a friend of the actor called the police to report that Jonathan Brandis was seriously injured after trying to commit suicide by hanging, which would be the final causes of his death occurred at 2:45 p.m. on November 12, 2003 at the Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles.

↳My opinion

• Jonathan Brandis is the living representation that if you are famous as a child, you will hardly be able to thrive into adulthood.

Too bad several young actors end up like this, one of the cases that I can mention, very similar to this, is the case of Macaulay Culkin, who although he did not commit suicide, if he spent a long time on drugs and depression, although thank God he is rehabilitated today .

Unfortunately for Jonathan, he found himself alone in his own world, he stopped being the perfect son of Hollywood, the loss of fame and money left him so low that his only solution was to hang himself. He belongs to the famous club of 27, since he died at age 27.

Jonathan Brandis Image Gallery

#movies #celebrities #celebrity #jonathan brandis #death #mistery #suicide

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sanikori · 6 years ago

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So, i forced myself to watch Leaving Neverland...

And i swear, i've never hated some stangers in my life to the point where i want them dead. I felt my oxygen leave me and i was choking on my fucking tears from all the lies. I felt so sick, that i puked 5 times. But now i've recomposed myself so that i can expose these liars. I didn't want to go back in time and know how in feels to be a moonwalker in 1993. I wanted people to still talk about Michael, but not like this, never like this.

First things first, as Michael Williams, stated on Twitter, Michael has been investigated from the FBI for 13 fucking years.

Here we see 72 officers and 50 FBI agents in the Neverland Ranch in Santa Barbara. They searched every angle and interviewed everyone to find evidence and guess what? They found nothing.

He's been proved innocent at not 1 but 2 trials. To this day, there's still no valid proof that Michael did any of those things.

Even Michael’s fucking bodyguard stepped in to defended him and expose Wade.

Here's some of the bullshit they said in that documentary, Let's start with James Safetruck: James: "I've spent Thanksgiving in 1987 with him at his home" Wrong, Michael was in Australia as a part of the Bad Tour in November 24 1987 James: "Michael didn't want us spending any time with women and cut contact with me after puberty"

Really James? then how come we see you AFTER puberty holding an umbrella for Michael while Michael's ex wife, Lisa Marie Presley, was there with the both of you. James: "I was abused by Michael in New York in 1989 after he performed at the Grammys" Fake. The Grammys were in Los Angeles and Michael didn't perform at the Grammys in 1989. Now let's go with Wade Robson Wade: "I was molested by Michael between ages 7 and 14" Wade is now 36 so it happened from 1989 till 1996. So you're telling me that these "rapes" happend DURING the Chandler investigation and DURING Michael's marriage to Lisa Marie Presley as well? and the FBI found nothing? really? bitch please.

Here comes my favourite lie Then there's the MANIPOLATED footage of Michael begin honoured at the Regent Hotel and he apparently recorded a message for Wade "on his birthday" where Michael "says" "Hello Wade, today is your birthday"

The video at the Regent Hotel was recorded on the 20th February in 1990 while Wade's birthday in on the 7th of September and the original video was meant for Elizabeth Taylor.

Also Wade and James didn't even really grew up with Michael, they didn't even know Michael that well... they BEGGED to have Michael's attention and since Michael is an angel, they got it. Also i'd like to tell you that it’s the same Wade that DEFENDED Michael not only once, but 3 mother fucking times.

If you two are saying that Michael raped you both, then how come that Macaulay Culkin (the kid from the "Home Alone" movie) the one who literally grew up with Michael by his side, who basically lived at Neverland and was a child like the both of you, said that nothing happened between him and Michael and is still defending him to this day?

They change their stories every fucking second too. Wade has changed his story 4 times and James 2 times. Wade's first version of the story: Michael threatened and manipulated him that they'll go to jail if he says anything Wade's second version of the story: He didn't "realize" he's been abused Wade's third version of the story: He felt shame Wade's fourth version of the story: He ALWAYS knew what Michael did but he didn't realize it was bad (because who doesn't have anal sex with kids, right?) Then there's James: James's first version of the story: Michael and his people were threatening him to keep quiet and James refused to testify but he and his mom knew he had been abused James's second version of the story: He didn't realize he was abused till 2014. They're so worthless that they don't even know how to lie. If you gotta lie about a dead man to earn money, do it properly. It's also funny how they don't mention that Michael was around little girls as well and not only boys, whenever it was on the streets or in Neverland. Meanwhile Oprah just said "Fuck you" to 3 generations of Jacksons by backstabbing the man who welcomed her in his house by siding with these little shits. Not only Oprah knew, but she provited the “victims”. Also the reason why Oprah promoted "Leaving Neverland" is because at the Sundance, it was also a documentary about Harvey Weinstein, who is an actual pedophile and has been found guilty. But since he's Oprah’s best friend (yes, you heard that right) they just diverted the attention in media to Michael instead of Weinstein But Wade is the one i hate the most because not only he is a liar but he's also the REAL pedophile... his reputation was so bad that kids at jumpdance called him "Uncle Perv" and the mothers wanted them to stay away from him. Like, there's literally a photo of him side hugging a girl and his left hand is close to her breast while he has his right hand on his fucking dick.

He cheated on Michael's niece, Brandi Jackson (the two have been in a relationship for 8 years) with Britney Spears which resulted in Justin Timberlake's "Cry Me A River" song and he did hard drugs. Not to mention that he made out with his SISTER ON STAGE! and this bastard has a son which i really feel sorry for... but most of all, he's a crazy ass bitch. Paris Jackson (Michael's daughter) and Taj Jackson (Michael's nephew) are both REAL victims of sexual abuse, stop to think how these two feel about this. Also Taj found texts with Wade in 2009 where Wade is thanking Taj for letting him go to Michael's memorial

Also Taj recently stated in an inteview that Michael's third son, Bigi (Blanket) Jackson is not talking anymore. And the teachers are worried about him. He literally won't speak, at all.

In conclusion: Michael Jackson is innocent. He’s the real victim.

Please, tell what would lead him to do such a thing?

You're just gonna forget all the money he gave to charity? the many lives he saved? how he considered his fans as part of his family?

I've been a fan of him since i was 4 and i'll love and defend him till i die. This man saved me with his music in my darkest times, i feel protected whenever i see or hear anything related to him, he's my inspiration, my everything and if i could make a dead celebrity come back to life, it would be him... i was meant to go to his "This Is It" concert in July, meeting him for the first time but... it never happened... because he left... i've been called a pedophile supporter just for defending him... do you know how much this hurts? I've seen "moonwalkers" turning their back on Michael like it was nothing... i've been told that i need to accept the fact that my hero is in reality a bad guy, that i'm protecting him just cause i'm a fan.

They made you belive that he bleached his skin when in reality he suffered from Vitiligo and wasn't confident enough to show it to the entire world.

They made you belive that he changed because he had too much plastic surgery when in reality he suffered from Lupus. But even if the did have too much plastic surgery, why should it matter since half of the celebrities have plastic surgery?

They made you belive that he was gay when in reality he has been married to Debbie Rowe, who gifted him with Prince and Paris, and Lisa Marie Presley, he crushed on Diana Ross and Brooke Shields, was kissed on stage by Taitana Thumbtzen aka the girl in TWYMMF (The Way You Make Me Feel) and how to forget his infamous In The Closet song with Naomi Campbell? but even if he was, he’s still Michael.

They made you belive that he was a Junkie when in reality he had many medical illnesses that needed medication and a lot of painkillers.

But most of all, they made you belive that he was a pedophile when in reality he wanted to create the childhood he never had in his adulthood and there's nothing wrong with that, he couldn’t trust adults because instead of seeing him as a human with emotions, they saw him as a cash machine. If it wasn't for the kids, he would have already killed himself, he wouldn’t care to live and he said that he would rather slit his wrists instead of hurting a child.

It's not about defending my idol just cause i'm one of his countless fans, it's about giving a voice to a man who's no longer here to defend himself.

How am i going to belive them since they're accusing Michael Joseph Jackson, the same Michael that didn't want to step on a bug and called his bodyguard to take it while saying "Don't kill it!" while he was performing on stage? the same Michael that would have died for a squirrel?

This man is dead

Attacking a dead man isn't brave.

James Gunn is still alive and he signed with a major studio

Where in everyone in the media?

They are a bunch of pathetic cowards.

So guys please, don't watch this so called documentary cause they are calling:

His ex wives liars

His friends liars

The people who worked for him for over 20 years liars

His fans liars

His FAMILY liars

But they want you to just belive the word of two proven liars.

It’s been almost 10 years since we lost him.

Wake the fuck up.

Can’t belive we’re in 2019 and you decide now that he’s guilty for something he never did. Evan Chandler forced his son, Jordan Chandler, to accuse Michael for money. Then when Michael died, Evan regretted it so much that he hanged himself. I'm waiting for Wade, James, Oprah, Martin, Connrad and everyone who belives them to do the same thing since they're all nothing but a waste of air. But don't you worry cause Taj is making a TRUE documentary that proves Michael's innocence and once it's released, they will watch their lifes crumble into tiny pieces with their own eyes and i will be there, smiling while eating pocorns. Anyone who’s a brain washed moron who don’t belive that Michael is innocent or even thinks of calling me a pedophile supporter needs to fuck off right fucking now because you will be attacked visciously, blocked and reported so DO NOT BOTHER ME

In case you didn’t understand, i’ll gladly repeat in a more vulgar way since it’s the only way you can all communicate with other people

DUMBASS BITCHES DO NOT INTERACT WITH ME! STAY THE FUCK BACK!

You guys don’t bother to do your research, you should hear both sides of the story to come to a conclusion instead of going along with everything they say. You all eat their plate of lies just like you eat your mother’s food at lunch time. You don’t ask yourself “Are they lying to me?” no, you just go along with every single fucking thing they say cause you’re dependent from the Media.

Face it, we are in the right and we’re going to win this battle. Also, these people without Michael in their lifes, would have been nothing. PS: Someone needs to tell Wade that fantazing about having Michael's dick in his mouth at age 11 in not normal.

Now i want you all to blast at all volume the songs Money, Tabloid Junkie, Morphine and Leave Me Alone in honour of these good for nothing liars as you read this post of them begin exposed from head to toe by me

#michael jackson

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theromancewatcher100 · 6 years ago

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Michael Jackson: The Facts

Alright y’all the Leaving Neverland documentary controversy was really starting to get to me. It’s so difficult knowing what to believe so I decided to do some research of my own, something I suggest everyone does before making a judgment based on one documentary. It doesn’t matter what I think but I believe the facts here speak for themselves so I’ve collated a big list of all the current evidence that’s been going around recently. Read it and then make up your mind. Feel free to add anything if you like. Thanks.

*****************

Action to sue James Safechuck SNR for almost $1 million was filed on the 26th April 2013. Stephanie Safechuck had shares. James Safechuck Snr was served on the 14th of May 2013. Wade Robson appeared on the Today show on the 16th May 2013. James Safechuck Jnr sees it and realizes he also had been abused.

Michael Jackson was not living in California when the abuse supposedly took place.

Wade Robson had to ask his mother over twenty questions about his first few nights with Michael Jackson because he couldn’t remember

For the court case in 2005, a psychological profile was performed on Michael Jackson. A forensic psychologist from the University of Cincinnati named Michael Borack evaluated many pedophiles and said that Michael did not fit the profile. Borack stated, ‘His eccentric behavior is not typical of most offenders’. He went on to say, ‘most offenders are normal people who could be your neighbours’, not anyone we would consider weird. He also stated that ‘most paedophiles will keep toys or other such appealing items around to lure children, but they do not usually play with the items themselves’. Michael thoroughly partook in playing and enjoying games and toys surrounding him for his own personal enjoyment.

Safechuck’s mother says in 2009 she danced when Michael Jackson died because she knew he’d never hurt another child, even though her son didn’t realise he was abused until 2013.

Wade Robson says they visited Neverland hundreds of times. But he had said in court that they only went to Neverland 14 times. Michael was there 4 times out of the 14.

Safechuck in his lawsuit claimed he was abused by Jackson in New York in 1989 after he performed at the Grammy’s. But the Grammy’s were in Los Angeles that year and Jackson didn’t perform at the Grammy’s in 1989.

Safechuck said in 1987 he spent Thanksgiving with Jackson at his home. But Jackson was in Australia doing the Bad tour at the time

Prior to his death Michael Jackson was investigated by the FBI for 13 years and found nothing. 72 officers and 50 FBI agents

Found innocent at 2 trials

Michael’s bodyguard, Bill Whitfield has defended him stating, ‘everyone that knows me knows that if I believed or knew MJ would harm a child I would not have worked for him. As his personal security, I would have known if something wasn’t cool and trust me I would’ve kicked his ass myself! As I protected him in life I will protect his honour in death #igotyourbacksir’.

James stated that ‘Michael didn’t want us spending any time with women and cut contact with me after puberty’. Photographic evidence exists of James, Michael and his then current wife Lisa Marie Presley with James holding an umbrella for Michael

Wade stated that ‘I was molested by Michael between ages 7 and 14’. Wade is now 36 so the abuse happened between 1989 and 1996. So, the abuse happened during the Jordie Chandler investigation and during Michael’s marriage to Lisa Marie Presley - with the FBI finding nothing.

Manipulated footage of Michael exists. Michael was being honoured at the Regent hotel and supposedly recorded a message for Wade wishing him a Happy Birthday with Michael saying, ‘hello Wade, today is your birthday’. The video at the Regent Hotel was recorded on the 20th February 1990 while Wade’s birthday is on the 7th of September with the original video being intended for Elizabeth Taylor.

Wade defended Michael 3 times: 1993, 2003 and 2009

Wade has changed his story 4 times. During the first, he stated that Michael threatened and manipulated him that they’ll go to jail if he said anything. The second was that Wade didn’t realise he’d been abused. The third was that Wade felt shame. And the fourth was that Wade always knew what Michael did but didn’t realise it was bad.

James also has changed his story twice. He said that Michael and his people were threatening him to keep quiet and James refused to testify but he and his mum knew he had been abused. The second time he said that he didn’t realise he had been abused until 2014.

Wade had also maintained a relationship with Michael Jackson’s niece, which wasn’t mentioned in the documentary, Brandi Jackson and cheated on her with Britney Spears to get ahead in the fame game.

Mike Smallcombe who wrote the 2016 book Making Michael: Inside the Career of Michael Jackson has accused James Safechuck of lying about his involvement in the 2005 trial. In the documentary, Safechuck said he refused to testify. However, Smallcombe stated that ‘in the documentary, Safechuck claims Jackson called him ‘near the end of the trial’ and asked him to testify on his behalf once again as he had done in 1993. Safechuck said he refused and that Jackson then got ‘really angry’ and threatened him. He repeated this claim under oath, in his ongoing lawsuit against the Jackson estate. However, it simply can’t be true. Very early on in the trial, the judge ruled that he would allow the jury to hear about five boys whom the prosecution claimed were sexually abused by Jackson’. Smallcombe claimed that Jordan Chandler, Brett Barnes, Jason Francia, and Macaulay Culkin were among the boys asked to testify in court, adding that the judge presiding over the case had said Safechuck’s evidence would not be permitted. ‘The judge came to this decision because nobody had ever claimed they had seen Safechuck being abused’. This meant Jackson could not have asked him to testify at any point, but particularly not months after he had been ruled out as a witness when the trial was near its end. Smallcombe also claimed that both Robson and Safechuck are in debt to Jackson’s estate after they tried to bring lawsuits against it in 2013 and 2014 respectively, both of which were thrown out. ‘Robson owes the estate almost $70,000 million dollars in court costs, and Safechuck owes the estate several thousand dollars as well. Both Robson and Safechuck should have been questioned about their motives for trying to get hundreds of millions of dollars in damages from the estate. These things should have been put to them in the documentary, or by journalists in their television interviews. We still need to challenge, especially when there are credibility issues’

In 2005 he was found not guilty in regards to allegations of sexual abuse of another 13-year-old Gavin Arvizo.

Wade Robson’s allegations of child sex abuse against Michael Jackson have reportedly been disproved by his own mother in historic court documents. Mike Smallcombe, a Michael Jackson biographer claims a testimony from Joy in 1993 shows some of Wade’s allegations in the documentary cannot be true. Wade claimed the abuse started when his family went to the Grand Canyon and he stayed behind with Jackson. But Smallcombe claims his mother Joy told a court in 1993 that Wade did not join them on the trip. He argues that Joy’s testimony under oath is proof that Wade has lied. Smallcombe said, ‘in the documentary, Wade Robson described how he and his then 10-year-old sister stayed in Jackson’s bedroom the first two nights they were ever at Neverland in January in 1990. Wade the claimed that his family left to go to the Grand Canyon, while he stayed behind with Jackson alone at Neverland for the next five days. Wade claimed it was then when he was first abused by Jackson, going into graphic detail about what had allegedly happened over the course of several nights. His mother, Joy Robson testified under oath in a deposition in 1993/ 1994 in relation to the Jordie Chandler case that Wade had actually gone with them on that trip to the Grand Canyon before the entire family returned to Neverland for the second time the following weekend. Joy Robson had no reason to lie about this; she openly admitted that Wade stayed with Jackson alone on other occasions. She could have said, ‘Wade stayed behind with Michael when we went away to the Grand Canyon between weekends’, it wouldn’t have made a difference. Her words in that deposition were ‘we went to the ranch for the first weekend, and then we left and went to the Grand Canyon and we toured. We came back to the ranch for the following weekend’. She was asked to elaborate on who had gone to the Grand Canyon, and she said ‘my family’. There was no mention of Wade staying behind. To confirm this, later on, revealed that the first time Wade stayed alone with Jackson at the ranch without her was actually in 1993. She said, ‘my son has never been to the ranch without me up until this year (1993)’. Smallcombe said that when testifying in defence of Jackson in 2005, more than a decade after his mother’s deposition, Wade also testified that the only time he had been at Neverland without his mother was sometime in 1992 or 1993 when Macaulay Culkin and Jordie Chandler was also there. Smallcombe said, ‘when giving evidence and asked if his sister had stayed in the bed with him ‘the entire them’ they were at Neverland on that first trip, Wade answered ‘yes’. Meaning he never stayed alone with Jackson during that trip. HIs mum corroborated that when giving evidence the following day’. Smallcombe said that Wade admitted that he ‘did not know’ whether what happened that night ‘came from (his) own recollection of it was told to (him) by someone else’. In one email his mother, he also asked her scores of questions about what had happened that first weekend at Neverland. That was when Wade was drafting a book about the alleged abuse, having to get the Cirque du Soleil job with the estate. All of this shows that Wade’s story about being abused for the first time, while the rest of his family had supposedly left the ranch to go the Grand Canyon, is false. Of course, while this doesn’t categorically rule out that Jackson abused Wade Robson, it does make you wonder if this extremely detailed and key story in the documentary has been fabricated’

#leaving neverland #michael jackson #wade robson #james safechuck #evidence #allegations #facts #documentary #controversy

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shitloadsofwrestling · 7 years ago

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All In independent show sells out in 30 minutes [May 13th, 2018]

It was definitely a happy Mother’s Day for The Young Bucks and Cody Rhodes, whose independent event All In sold out in less than 30 minutes. This isn’t a 500 person capacity venue we’re talking, this is over 10,000 tickets sold to an independent wrestling event! The event will take place on September 1st, 2018 at the Sears Centre Arena near Chicago, Illinois, and the only match announced for the event is that Cody Rhodes will be battling for the NWA Heavyweight Championship. The current champion is Nick Aldis, but there’s still 3 and a half months between now and All In, so that could certainly change!

Other participants on the event include Rey Mysterio, The Young Bucks, Kenny Omega, Tessa Blanchard, Kazuchika Okada, Brandi Rhodes, Matt Cross, Stephen Amell, Jay Lethal, Britt Baker, Joey Janela, Penelope Ford, Chelsea Green, Deonna Purrazzo, Penta El Zero Miedo, Rey Fenix, Hangman Page, Marty Scurll, and of course, Cody Rhodes.

In addition to the All In event, the weekend will also feature Starrcast, a fan event that will feature Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Ron Simmons, Tully Blanchard, Shane Douglas, Diamond Dallas Page, Colt Cabana, Mikey Whipwreck, Jerry Lawler, Terry Funk, Kevin Sullivan, Christian, actor Macaulay Culkin, and more.

#all in #pro wrestling #cody rhodes #the young bucks #independent wrestling

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teosartcorner · 3 months ago

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So, the out-of-story context for this one would be a "recreate this pic using your OCs" challenge among some of my friends and I, which very quickly turned into a recurring event featuring various silly photos. This piece is based on one of those photos, because I saw it and my brain instantly thought (more like screamed at me) “Brandy and Malcolm!!!!” 🤣

The in-story context would be: just Brandy and Malcolm being their natural selves, and having a great time while doing so. 🤣🫠💖 They were at Dougie’s place here, btw, so he’s most likely somewhere off-screen being something like “🤨”, but also laughing his ass off at the same time. 😂

#🎵#original characters #ocs #oc art #original art #original story #storytelling #illustration #digital illustration #digital art #character art #comic art #brandy macaulay #malcolm macaulay #brandy&malcolm #d&b-verse

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suekre · 3 months ago

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I never put these doodles of Donnie and Blair up, aaah!

The Terror Twins, Donnie and Blair Macaulay, who are big loves of my life and who belong to my wonderful friend Teo aka @teosartcorner

I need to draw them again as soon as possible. Also, other characters. Malcolm. Brandy. Aggie. DOUGIE. I fell deep into Teo's D&B-verse, and I keep falling. It's fine, it's a fun fall. 😂

#friends ocs #my art #art for friends #gift art #artists on tumblr #dammit these two lol

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bobbystompy · 7 years ago

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My Top 120 Songs Of 2017

Previously: 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011

The one saving grace is we do have 12 fewer than last year.

As always, criteria and info:

This is a list of what I personally like, not ones I’m saying are the “best” from the year; more subjective than objective

No artist is featured more than once

If it comes down to choosing between two songs for an artist, I try to give more weight to a single or featured track; not the ultimate factor, but it typically makes sharing the music easier

Speaking of… each song on the list is linked in the title if you wanna check any or every out for yourself

Oh, also, off the suggestion of Mike Gilkes -- and a few others -- I made this whole thing into a Spotify playlist, which you can peep here (includes 114 of the 120):

Let’s go?

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120) Big Sean & Metro Boomin f/ 21 Savage - “Pull Up N Wreck”

Some mediocre, listenable rap made by dudes who know a bit better (well, at least 2/3rds of them).

119) Maroon 5 f/ Future - “Cold”

This song makes me feel mostly nothing... but the first minute of the video does have some solid Adam Levine alone-in-the-car acting.

/oh my god it has 119 million views

This was a lot easier to enjoy when I assumed it went unnoticed. Bonus points for the Wu-Tang shirt at the end.

118) Bleachers - “Hate That You Know Me”

Closed out 2017 undecided as ever on one Jack Antonoff. Should we hate him for dating Lena Dunham? Somehow respect him more? Give him mega credit for his big time pop songwriting collabs? Or is that a ding? Is he a nerd or the coolest guy in the cocktail bar? I do not know the answers to any of these questions, and this song is merely OK.

UPDATE: THEY GAWN

117) B.o.B f/ T.I. & Ty Dolla $ign - “4 Lit”

Real bad song with a mindless/terrible/misogynistic chorus. Yet... something about professional musicians sitting in a room and coming up with “4 Lit” as some sort of escalated to catchphrase to “lit” is just hilarious.

116) Prophets of Rage - “Unfuck The World”

Sure, this hits a lot of the same beats as Rage Against The Machine’s “Sleep Now In The Fire” from 18 years ago, but in these increasingly polarized, political times, I welcome their voice.

115) Kacy Hill - “Like A Woman”

This song is so chill and ethereal that it seems almost unfeasible for my punk/hip-hop/XX chromosome havin’ ass to completely sync with its wave.

114) The Decemberists - “Ben Franklin’s Song”

What happens when pop indie teams up with the lyrical stylings of Lin-Manuel Miranda? Well, this. I’m not sure if The Decemberists drop f-bombs in any of their other songs, but it pleases me to think it only happened here.

113) Offset & Metro Boomin - “Ric Flair Drip”

Mostly here for the beat.

112) Hurray For The Riff Raff - “Hungry Ghost”

A cool song that’s hard to put into a box. Indie? Pop? Rock? Forget labels, just enjoy.

(Minus a few points for the low hanging “girl/world” rhyme)

111) Wavves - “Dreams Of Grandeur”

I was pretty let down by the new Wavves LP, but this song sounds enough like the old stuff to be a net positive (despite being, like, 70 seconds too long)

110) Culture Abuse - “So Busted”

Culture Abuse got on my radar with last year’s all-timer, “Dream On”. It was an unrelenting, robotic pulverization. “So Busted” is more of a drug comedown; a ballad, even. While “Dream On” wanted to seek you out and kill you like a terminator; “So Busted” just wants a cuddle.

109) Trey Songz - “#1Fan”

This song is so dumb and funny and pseudo competent. Really not sure how the R&B guys get away with this shit.

108) The Killers - “The Man”

Is this in a movie? It should be in a movie. It’s kind of, like, a better version of what Arcade Fire has been trying to be.

107) New Lenox - “Protest Sweater”

A good song for the ending 2017 -- or any year, really -- and its run time (1:30) would make Joyce Manor proud.

106) Logic - “Everybody”

This is really good, but it reminds me so much of Kendrick that it becomes distracting.

105) Gorillaz f/ DRAM - “Andromeda”

Didn’t spend enough time listening to the new Gorillaz record, but I actually put the blame on them: it was long, man. So while I woulda loved to pick one of the songs with a cool cameo (hi, Vince Staples!), this is the one I actually had around the most. It’s all we’ve come to expect from this cartoon band -- kinda British, kinda futuristic, very undisturbed. Also, if it gets you back to the album before me, I heard that Damon Albarn told all collaborating artists to record their parts like the world was ending tomorrow.

104) Dropkick Murphys - “Blood”

If you know me at all, you know I historically have not been a fan of this band. But for whatever reason, this one connected -- bagpipes and all.

103) Captain, We’re Sinking - “Books”

CWS was never, ever going to top the falling-apart-desperation of 2013′s “The Future Is Cancelled”, but this song comes pleasantly close.

102) IRONTOM - “Be Bold Like Elijah”

My buddy Crooks rec’d this band, and the guitars give me Queens Of The Stone Age vibes in the best possible way. A bio on lastFM compared them to Arctic Monkeys, and you know what? I agree with that, too.

101) Jidenna - “A Bull’s Tale”

This song feels primed to explode and makes you wanna rip the shirt off your chest; only we don’t know if the bomb’s gonna blow in the middle or at the end.

100) Jeff Tweedy - “I Am Trying To Break Your Heart”

Yeah yeah, the original version of this dropped in 2002, and yes, it’s just a cover by the dude who originally sang it. I... do not care. It made me appreciate the confessional regret all over again.

99) Talib Kweli f/ Yummy Bingham & Jay Electronica - “All Of Us”

It was all bad just a week ago

Kweli and Jay Elect are a collab made in conscious rap heaven, so this song was more than a pleasant surprise.

98) Rise Against - “House On Fire”

This song could have been on “Revolutions Per Minute”. Or maybe I’m just saying that because of the hand grenade lyric in the chorus.

97) HAIM - “Want You Back”

Can’t imagine there being a lamer song on this list. HAIM and Bleachers should get in a wuss rock beef that ends with pistols.

96) The Bigger Empty - “By Its Own (So What)”

My producer plays bass in this band. This song is super solid, and, maybe most importantly in these completely divisive times, unoffensive and approachable. Kinda Hush Sound-y.

95) Little Big Town - “Lost In California” (note: link is to live version)

From the bros and broettes who brought us “Day Drinking” comes this much more subdued track. If you squint, it doesn’t really even seem like country. Granted, if they sang “Alabama” instead of “California”, you could probably call that claim out immediately.

94) Lana Del Rey - “Heroin”

Another beautiful/dreamy song from an artist who’s near-perfected that niche.

93) Wavves & Culture Abuse - “Up And Down”

Wavves and Culture Abuse have already made appearances on this list, and we haven’t even cracked the Top 80. Fortunately, their collaboration scored a little higher than their individual outputs. Shout out to their uplifting outro “I’ll just get high and I’ll die alone”.

92) The Chainsmokers & Coldplay - “Something Just Like This”

This song played at my gym all the time, and I was positive it was Coldplay. Then someone told me it was The Chainsmokers. Then I looked it up on YouTube, and it says “The Chainsmokers & Coldplay”... so what’s the deal, assholes?

91) Lil Peep f/ Lil Tracy - “Awful Things”

I hadn’t heard of Lil Peep when I found out of his passing in 2017. After looking up some pictures, I was nearly 100% positive his music was not for me. This was incorrect. I haven’t really listened to songs that sound like his; it’s kind of like rap that treads this line of being bad while also kinda sounding like alternative rock; destructive love song that doesn’t flinch.

90) AFI - “Dark Snow”

Nothing new, but Davey Havok can still sing circles around almost anybody.

89) Dashboard Confessional - “Love Yourself” (link is to live, partial version)

Well, Dashboard covered Biebs, and we all lived to tell the tale.

88) Garrett Dale - “2016 Was...”

This song would be a blast as a singalong in a late night hotel room. There’s something calming about celebrating -- or at least acknowledging -- everything sucking.

87) Katy Perry f/ Skip Marley - “Chained To The Rhythm”

Got more than a few issues with this song, but it’s catchy, so they’re mostly forgiven. Even though it’s Katy Perry, I was pretty surprised to see it racked up 444 million views.

And seriously who the hell is Skip Marley?!

86) The Ramblin’ Boys Of Pleasure - “Glug, Glug, Glug”

Now is probably a good time to plug the lead track from my band’s b-sides record that came out this year (ten years in the making, baby!). Mandatory listening if you’ve ever bonged brandy, partied in Champaign, or counted down in a country voice.

85) Charly Bliss - “Glitter”

It’s been nearly a year, but it’s still somewhat difficult to calibrate this singer’s voice. Is it a little too saccharine, too childlike, or just perfect? You be the judge.

84) Emperor X - “Wasted On The Senate Floor”

This singer is real god damn frenetic.

83) Father John Misty - “Total Entertainment Forever”

/obligatory “yes, this is the one with the Taylor Swift lyric” reference

FJM has such a pro’s pro voice and makes super sound music... but it’s also kinda hard to have an overall opinion. The more 50-50 I get, the more I think it’s not all that great. The video is a microcosm. Like... why is Macaulay Culkin paying Cobain? Is this a commentary on capitalism? Oooh, nah nah nahs are nice! As divided as I still am, I’m pretty positive this song is good-if-not-great.

82) St. Vincent - “New York”

This song is further proof that soft, radio friendly music can still benefit from a well placed “motherfucker”.

81) Andrew McMahon In The Wilderness - “Dead Man’s Dollar”

As long as Andrew McMahon’s project is called “Andrew McMahon In the Wilderness”, I will make fun of him like clockwork.

This song is nice. I sometimes sing “I want Thon Maker” when he says “I want to make a” in the chorus.

80) Kele Okereke - “Streets Been Talkin’”

Kele’s most impressive feat was sneaking “bae” right into the chorus without me noticing until literally right now.

79) Rick Ross - “Summer Seventeen”

How the hell did this dumbass song get so high up on the list? I have no explanation. Classic Roazy though -- aim high, fake it till you make it. When I started my new job in August, IT reset my password to “summer2017″, and I had this song’s hook in my head nearly every time I typed it in. All told, a pretty hilarious way to start a work day.

78) Michelle Branch - “Best You Ever”

This song sounds so dark and sultry, but I’m not totally sure why. Branch rules.

77) Calvin Harris f/ Pharrell Williams, Katy Perry & Big Sean - “Feels”

The best way to ruin this song for anyone is to point out how much the hook sounds like Katy Perry singing “Don’t be afraid to catch fish”.

76) Morrissey - “Spent The Day In Bed”

This is a very low maintenance lyric video. So you can either make fun of that or the “I spent the day in bed / I’m not the type, but I love my bed” line.

75) Red City Radio - “If You Want Blood (Be My Guest)”

The “We don’t need a god damn thing from you” chorus is a little punk cliche to win me over, but the Oklahoma City reference (”where our dreams come true and die”) is the line I’ve been waiting for since I found out RCR was from there.

74) Sam Coffey & The Iron Lungs - “Talk 2 Her”

The closest we’ll get to a new Clash song in 2017.

73) Bad Cop/Bad Cop - “Womanarchist”

Factoring in the 2017′s themes (#MeToo, Harvey dead, etc.), this has to be the song title of the year. I smiled ear-to-ear watching this music video.

72) The Movielife - “Mercy Is Asleep At The Wheel”

Hey, The Movielife reunited!

71) The Rocket Summer - “Gone Too Long”

Unlike that lazy ass Morrissey, The Rocket Summer gave us a lyric video that basically passes as a legit music video.

70) Miguel f/ Travis Scott - “Sky Walker”

Me, every time I listen to this song:

“Ooh, beat is pretty solid.”

“Ah yeah, the hook’s good. I thought I really liked this song though...”

/falsetto part

“AW YEAH.”

69) Queens Of The Stone Age - “The Way You Used To Do”

Had never known about the Josh Homme/Elvis comparisons, but after hearing this, I totally get it now. Also: god damn it, man.

68) Macklemore f/ Skylar Grey - “Glorious”

What can we do to make Skylar Grey more famous? She Ginger Rogers’d for Em on “SNL” -- seriously, she played piano and sung Dido, Beyoncé, and Rihanna hooks (that’s a solid ass trinity!) -- has unarguably awesome songs, and never takes anything off the table. I honestly don’t care if she has another hit... let’s just, like, all Venmo her five bucks or something.

One of my fav music videos on the list so far. Be as skeptical of Macklemore as you want, but when his grandma offers him a drink (haha) then says she wants to “do it all” with their day together, it warms the hearts.

67) Direct Hit! - “Blood On Your Tongue”

Direct Hit! continues to be the best modern version of Green Day, The Ramones*, and themselves.

(* - without being Ramones-core)

66) Boyd & The Stahfools - “Party Penguin”

I’ve been in the game for a long while, but, for the first time in my career, I finally was part of a music video. If you told me it was a 2Pac parody that advertised craft beer, I’d, well, I’d believe you. We got Dave Hernandez on the hook, Mike Healy as Dr. Dre, and yours truly as Makaveli.

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And all jokes aside, “On vacation like Bev D’Angelo” is one of my favorite penned lines.

65) Rancid - “Telegraph Avenue”

I like when Tim sings about grabbing his left-handed guitar.

64) Big Sean f/ Jeremih - “Light”

Sean Don made a forgettable 2017 album with many throwaway tracks -- but “Light” ain’t one of ‘em. I liked this song even before the touching video cemented its power.

63) blink 182 - “Parking Lot”

This is that weird mix of what makes all new blink really good and really eh at the same time -- Skiba involved (for better or worse), inspired Mark (for better or worse), and Travis’ overplaying (for better or worse). It’s for sure easier if you just turn your brain off and go with it.

Why does he reference Chicago in the verse then California in the pre-chorus?

I SAID “OFF”.

62) New Found Glory - “Your Jokes Aren’t Funny”

This song doesn’t break a ton of new ground, but it’s got this circular, easy chorus that keeps me coming back.

61) Teenage Bottlerocket - “Goin’ Back To Wyo”

Similar to Red City Radio writing about OKC, I can’t get enough of TB writing about their home. Did I blast this song while driving across the entire state alone this summer? Do you know me an ounce?

60) Frank Turner - “The Sand In The Gears”

A little dissatisfied with the current administration? Frank may be from across the pond, but he’s with you on this one, man. One of my favorite parts of this song is when he breaks the rhyme scheme just to angrily say “I thought that we were winning the war against the homophobes and the racists”.

59) Billy Bragg - “Not Everything That Counts Can Be Counted”

Billy Bragg is here for all of us, with perspective, wisdom, and insightful guidance in tow.

58) Dave Hause - “The Flinch”

Send this one to an old flame if you’re hoping, you know, to maybe rekindle.

57) Selena Gomez f/ Gucci Mane - “Fetish”

That’s right -- “Bad Liar” got beat out by this significantly less popular single featuring one of my least favorite rappers.

/looks up play totals

”Fetish”... 130 million

“Bad Liar”... 214 million

Comparably popular, I say! For me, this one is all about the chorus -- and that beat’ll get you swayin’.

56) Jay Electronica - “Letter To Falon”

‘Cause who gon’ save them babies? / And finally put a definite to all those maybes

Death, taxes, maybe death again, and Jay Electronica never releasing a full length album. Our man has been on Roc Nation for nearly ten years. I hate him so much. /anxiously awaits his next move

Jay Electricity in his zone on this one; so comfortable, in full operation within the confines.

55) Laura Jane Grace - “Adore”

I don’t know who Amy Shark is, but LJG covered her song and punted my heart into Lake Michigan.

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54) Russian Girlfriends - “Antidote”

Upbeat, direct song that starts kinda Metric-y with the riff but then gets more pop punk as it progresses.

53) Brian Fallon - “If Your Prayers Don’t Get To Heaven”

My fiancee laughed when I looked up how to play this song on the guitar and the guy who tabbed it out wrote “Typical Brian Fallon open chords” in the intro.

52) Cloud Nothings - “Enter Entirely”

If “Womanarchist” is the ‘best’ song title of the year, “Enter Entirely” is certainly the coolest. And please don’t let the very boring music video fool you -- this song gets after it, man. If you are a fan of rock music, it would blow me away if you found this song remotely objectionable.

(After seeing CN open for Japandroids on back-to-back nights this November, it feels criminal to have such a slow song represent the band, as their drummer is the Russell Westbrook of the indie scene. That dude does not tire and comes off as more machine than man.)

51) Conor Oberst - “Napalm”

Oberst released a 10-song album in 2016 that was super brooding and piano-y... then he released another album in 2017 (17 songs) that had every track from his previous record and seven new ones. Kind of a weird move, no? This is one of those seven; suffice to say it’s a little more upbeat.

50) Sorority Noise - “No Halo”

You could tell me this song came out in 2002, 2007, or both -- but not 2017. How is this not a time capsuled rival of Taking Back Sunday or My Chemical Romance? I don’t know, but if you like a lot of death, this one’s for you.

49) N.E.R.D f/ Rihanna - “Lemon”

Let’s lighten the mood back up with some RiRi rap. My buddy Crooks’ take: “That's how every 2017 hip-hop beat should sound.”

48) Kesha - “Praying”

It’s damn near impossible to talk about this song without talking about The Note. It occurs at 4:21, and it will make you a little faint.

Kesha dusts herself off and gets beyond empowered in this one. This song could legitimately soundtrack the entire #MeToo movement. When the drums kick in halfway through, you’ll be ready to fight back too.

When I’m finished, they won’t even know your name

47) The Smith Street Band - “Laughing (Or Pretending To Laugh)”

This soft, hopeful love song is almost *too* respectful when it comes to interactions with the opposite sex. I’m not sure there’s a more endearing 2017 lyric than “And I don't wanna marry you just yet / But at least let me get you a cider / And I don’t even think I’d have to pay for it / Hopefully there’s a couple left on the rider”.

46) Run The Jewels - “Legend Has It”

Whenever I think of this song, I will always have that image of El-P holding up that gun to the bunny’s head. This song is braggadocious, each line one-upping the previous in perpetuity. Man, they probably rule live.

45) Vic Mensa - “Say I Didn’t”

Vic Mensa's Roc Nation debut (CAN YOU HEAR ME AT ALL, JAY ELECTRONICA?!?!?!?!?!?) was real strong, and this one gives you a good taste of what he’s about. He’s intense but controlled and even gets a little soulful. And depending what sphere you come from, you’ll either be extremely more or extremely less interested after he drops a Weezer reference. If that gives you trepidation, maybe the Nate Dogg namedrop will reel you back in?

44) Kendrick Lamar - “HUMBLE.”

I like Kendrick Lamar and will always recognize his talent, platform, and body of work (there’s a real case to be made that his “Control” verse killed hip-hop, and it’s just been an animated zombie ever since). Having said that...

He doesn’t always make it easy. The all caps song titles, the weird high pitched flow, the massive reliance of “bitch” in his choruses... yet, he’s the same dude who begs for stretch marked butts and body positivity. I don’t know, man. By the time he hits the “I make a play fucking up your whole life” line, I’m nearly all the way back in.

Last complaint: that organ-y keyboard thing could be so much louder. The beat almost feels diet because of that decision.

43) PKEW PKEW PKEW - “Cold Dead Hands”

This song is about how you can’t freeze this band to death, because they’ll party their way out of the situation.

42) Weezer - “Any Friend Of Diane’s”

This song puts me in a trance; they sing the same chorus lyric a million times, and I still almost want more.

41) Taylor Swift - “I Did Something Bad”

If this song isn’t a hit in 2018, then I do not know anything. For as uneven and questionable as her new singles were, this song has none of that. By the time she’s rolling on the tremendously magnetic “over and over and over again” part, you’ll feel like it’s 2009.

Maybe the old Taylor is still alive after all.

40) Best Ex - “Someday”

What’s that, you want your pop with a lot less baggage? This song is currently at 1,042 views, which is further proof of no justice in this world. I remember grocery shopping with this in the headphones, and you woulda thought it was the happiest moment of my life by the expression on my smiling, dumb face.

39) White Reaper - “Judy French”

“There are no good new rock bands wahhhhh”

Nah -- you just suck at finding music when it’s never been easier in human history, I guess?

38) Anti-Flag - “The Criminals”

This band has always lived in this dramatic life-and-death world, and it’s been going on for so long, that it’s like their vision of what they were always rebelling against was willed into existence.

37) French Montana f/ The Weeknd & Max B - “A Lie”

My dislike of French Montana is so high that I sometimes think about having to answer for saying something heinous about him. Kinda like when Kevin Garnett was accused of calling Charlie Villanueva (who has alopecia) a “cancer patient.”

KG’s all-time response:

“I am aware there was a major miscommunication regarding something I said on the court last night. My comment to Charlie Villanueva was in fact ‘You are cancerous to your team and our league,’" Garnett said in a statement to the media on Wednesday.

Hahahaha.

French, you are a cancer to hip-hop and our league. His verse even references stupid Karl Malone, because why wouldn’t it? The good news is we have The Weeknd on the hook *and* in the first verse, so you can basically just pretend it’s his solo song with a few regrettable cameos.

36) The Penske File - “Oh Brother”

The Penske File make it look effortless sometimes. After hearing this song and doing a Malört shot with their singer, I have higher hopes than ever for their 2018 full length.

35) The Front Bottoms - “Don’t Fill Up On Chips”

TFB’s new album didn’t give me everything I wanted in terms of uptempo bangers, but the lyrics, sentiment, and craftsmanship are all still very much present.

34) Vince Staples - “Big Fish”

The Juicy J chorus might not win a Pulitzer (”I was up late night ballin’ / Countin’ up hundreds by the thousand”), but Vince is rapping invincible, and by the time the lyrics call back his monster single (“Norf Norf”), you won’t be questioning anything anymore.

33) Julien Baker - “Shadowboxing” (link is to live version)

I know that you don't understand 'Cause you don't believe what you don't see When you watch me throwing punches at the devil It just looks like I'm fighting with me

I swear, Julien Baker might be one of the only people on this planet with the power to shut us all up and listen.

32) Paramore - “Fake Happy”

Paramore is a band that does dumb shit all the time. Infighting, legal drama, horrible makeover after horrible makeover. Seriously, this is real:

But through it all, there’s that unbreakable Hayley voice, and it’s like everything is gonna be OK again. I mean, no, it’s not -- but let’s still enjoy these fleeting moments, full blown pop transition or not.

31) Nothington - “Cobblestones”

This song briefly sounds like Lucero before turning into no nonsense despair punk.

30) Lorde - “Perfect Places”

Such a phenomenal album closer; great to have her back in the pop music fold. Car, headphones, party, whatever -- this song goes all around you.

29) Remember Sports - “I Liked You Best”

If Kesha’s high note in “Praying” was pop music’s peak vocal moment in 2017, I’d like to nominate the “You made this me-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-hess” (2:37) part as punk’s.

28) Phoenix - “J-Boy”

This band makes such gorgeous music.

27) Drake - “Free Smoke” (no link)

Drake’s full album output, in minutes, for the last four years:

2013: 59 minutes 2014: N/A 2015: 108 minutes 2016: 81 minutes

And this doesn’t include stray singles, diss tracks, or cameos (2014 had “0 To 100″, for example). What I’m saying is, despite high quality material, Aubrey has saturated us with music for nearly half a decade. So even though I dig him lots, it was like “Really?!” when I heard he was releasing 2017′s “More Life” and “WHAT” when I found out it was another 81 minutes (the same length as 2016′s “Views”). Though the record is stylistically very different -- I keep hearing people use the word “grime”, though I have no idea what it means -- it’s still got bars. My favorite stray lines (they add up):

- “More life, more everything” - “I dunk text J-Lo / Old number, so it bounce back” - “Hilton rooms, gotta double up / Writin’ our name on a double cup” - “I fall asleep in sororities / I had some different priorities” - “Women I like was ignorin’ me / Now they like ‘Aren’t you adorable?’ / I know the question rhetorical” - “I make too much these days to ever say ‘Poor me’” - “I wanna move to Dubai / So I don’t never have to kick it with none of you guys”

But, it wouldn’t be Drake without making fun of him some. The song beings with, well, him sampling himself at an award show. The sample:

And more chune for your headtop So watch how you speak on my name, you know?

Which begs the question: did he do the weird Jamaican accent knowing he was gonna sample it? It treads this weird genius/calculated doofus line. All I know is it makes me laugh.

26) Tigers Jaw - “Favorite”

This song could make me pensive and unhappy on the sunniest of days.

25) Tee Grizzley - “First Day Out”

Like many, I first heard of Tee Grizzley from a LeBron James Instagram workout video. It was an easy sell: Detroit, ferocious beat, and the dude goes *hard*. I got a little too excited and emailed my hip-hop friends: “What the fuck is this? This is GOOD.”

This was before I realized he kinda sounds the same in every song. It’s no matter -- we’ll always have “First Day Out”, a brief time in June 2017 where I thought Tee Grizzley could be the next to run the game.

I can’t even be in public with my hoodie on

24) The War On Drugs - “Strangest Thing”

It’s very difficult to write about The War On Drugs without mentioning how transcendent it is to listen to them in the car. Everyone is right about that, but, for me, I also have to mention how much this dude sounds like Dylan. People say Springsteen, but I hear so much Bob. You don’t necessarily have to get “past” it, but you do kinda have to get used to it. Once you do, the lead guitar will carry you into the clouds. This music will make you contemplate and reflect.

23) Foxing - “Night Channels”

Let’s keep the mood contemplative; you almost feel sleepless if not completely locked in to this one.

UPDATE: This dropped in 2015, /sigh

22) Craig Finn - “God In Chicago”

This is more of a movie than a song -- and the visuals agree. Focus in on the lyrics, take in the story, and then do it again soon because you’ll catch new wrinkles each time. One of the year’s best videos, for sure. Punk News phrases it well: “Here he’s made a solo album of losers who have no idea they’ve already lost.”

21) DJ Khaled f/ Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance The Rapper, Lil Wayne - “I’m The One”

No one wanted you to know he had sex in 2017 more than DJ Khaled. He made his infant son Asahd the “Executive Producer” for this video. Why? Because he’s an idiot. Khaled’s still existing fame continues to confound. He’s more faux-platitudes than man at his point. So why do the best artists in the world collaborate with someone so seemingly unintelligent? I don’t know, but this song bangs and was probably my Song of the Summer. We got JB on the hook, a dumb-but-amusing Quavo*, Wayne trying to gain footing, and Chance running across the finish line backward with Best Verse title belt. But Khaled won’t let you forget about him, blaring DJ tag and all. This song suffers for that, and it’s all his fault.

(* - his ad lib of just repeating everything becomes charming once you start to get Stockholm Syndrome with the song)

20) Ed Sheeran - “The Shape Of You”

What a 2017 for the man behind the year’s best (super successful) pop song. At the turn of the calendar, I barely knew who he was, but before we all knew it, there was a legitimate public outcry because he was on “Game of Thrones” for, like, two minutes. What a time. Oh, also, the “Come on, be my baby...” bridge gave me some “Real World: New Orleans” acid flashbacks.

Great meme, take us out.

19) Minus The Bear - “Last Kiss”

If the shattered neon heart didn’t give it away, this is a “the relationship is definitively over” breakup song. Seeing them play it at Riot Fest made me miss my late friend Luke; I wish he could have heard this.

18) Hot Water Music - “Never Going Back”

I’ve always maintained Chuck Ragan plays guitar and sings songs like a running back. Well, this song carpe diem’s me enough to play actual running back*.

(* - jk, would never do this unless it was against very small children)

17) Lucky Boys Confusion - “Good Luck”

My hometown heroes released their comeback album in 2017, and I’m not sure any track sums up the effort better. By the time Adam sings “Burned out, they call us / Screw ‘em, we got endless memories / Punk rock and the polish / I hope it gave you something to believe”, there are no dry eyes left.

(And yes, this could totally be an AM Taxi song, but with Ryan Fergus’ killer-fills-only drumming, I’m glad it wasn’t.)

16) Hodera - “Baltimore”

This song would likely have a Top 5 objective approval rating of any on the list.

...“The Wire” forever.

15) Iron Chic - “A Headache With Pictures”

It ain’t heavy, it ain’t heaven

If Hot Water Music is carpe diem, what is Iron Chic -- seize the life?! My favorite description of the band came from Sam Sutherland, who tweeted: “Whose day has already been derailed by the unavoidably weighty introspection of listening to the new Iron Chic record.”

They are a certified run-through-brick-walls outfit. One of my final 2017 memories of this song was subtweeting “Now I know” the night I got engaged and having my buddy Ricky think she might’ve declined the proposal. May have to include a ring emoji next time.

14) The Flatliners - “Indoors”

Had to listen to this, like, five or six times before its brilliant greatness overtook me like falling into a river. The chorus is so, so heartfelt.

Don’t sleep on the video, either (especially the end).

13) Sylvan Esso - “Die Young”

Though I have tickets to see them for the first time in 2018, I am not mega-versed in the catalogue of Sylvan Esso. But this feels like their best song. Imagine if Romeo and Juliet turned out OK.

12) Oso Oso - “Shoes (The Sneaker Song)”

Jade from Oso Oso would likely want all of the above stylized in lowercase -- but this ain’t Jade’s list. This was my favorite new band of 2017, and I do believe they made the year’s best album. It’s early-2000s emo at times, pop punk at others, and all ear candy.

11) Sincere Engineer - “Corn Dog Sonnet No. 7″

Staying in the new artist lane, I proudly introduce Sincere Engineer. This band sounds like if Modern Baseball had a little sister. By the time singer Deanna Belos sings “I’m still learning how to be”, you want to pat her on the back and give her all your best advice.

Fantastic music video -- and she confirmed to me this past weekend that it’s real mustard, not puffy paint (“I have a towel that is all yellow from cleaning it up”).

10) new.wav - “Girls”

Alright, so stick with me on this: new.wav is the band, covering The 1975′s song “Girls” in the style of “Enema of the State”-era blink-182. Confused? Yeah, I was too, but check it out. Maybe more impressive than the arrangements/performance is how they were able to match blink’s production style -- no easy task.

9) Jay-Z - “Family Feud” (starts around 5:30; partial version)

Shawn Corey Carter wants to get right with everyone -- America, his peers, and, of course, within his own home. And though I may never understand the “New n****s is the reason I stopped drinkin’ Dos Equis” lyric, I’m on board with about all else. Similar to the Oso Oso record, “4:44″ is such an album that it feels unfair to single out a song to represent all of its parts. Stripped from the LP, the song does not hit as hard, but in the groove of the record, it’s the apex. And despite Hov seemingly desiring peace, the song does have more than a few call outs:

- “My stash can’t fit into Steve Harvey’s suit” - “And old n****s, y’all stop actin’ brand new / Like 2Pac ain’t have a nose ring too” - “Al Sharpton in the mirror takin’ selfies / How is him or Pill Cosby s’posed to help me?”

In the latter stages of his career, it’s hard to call everything Jay does ‘necessary’, but “4:44″ definitely checked that box.

8) Rozwell Kid - “Wendy’s Trash Can”

Vacillated all year between this one and “Michael Keaton” and literally flipped a penny my cousin Maggie loaned me to decide. “Wendy’s Trash Can” was heads.

7) The Weeknd - “Reminder”

This one got backdoored in as a latter single from The Weeknd’s 2016 album. One of my favorite parts about Abel is how little he has had to change to succeed. Sure, it’s silky smooth, but he hasn’t sacrificed the drugs, darkness, or ego that should offend (but doesn’t because it he pulls it off so well). After bragging early in the song about he won a kids award for singing about cocaine, he calls out peers for biting his sound, blings out his entire crew, and, well:

When I travel 'round the globe, make a couple mil' a show And I come back to my city, I fuck every girl I know

/clutches pearls

6) The Bombpops - “Be Sweet”

The guitar riff in this song is why I fell in love with punk music. Also, super cool story behind the lyrics:

“'Be Sweet' is an homage to our dear friend, the late Brandon Carlisle of the band Teenage Bottlerocket," vocalist Jen Razavi told AP. "Back in 2010, we were partying in a hotel room with Brandon and Ray Carlisle. There was a guitar in the room and Brandon was showing us an idea he had for a song. He had written it for his wife, but he told us we should play it and change the lyrics to 'getting rad with my boyfriend.' He wrote down all the lyrics on four sheets of hotel notepad paper. Since then, the melody and the chord progression were forgotten, but I still had the lyrics. So we wrote our own version of the song in the studio and used every single lyric that Brandon had written down.

Did I mention the video has an “In Bloom” feel? Stop reading, go listen.

5) Action Bronson - “Let Me Breathe”

Action Bronson ain’t givin’ nothin’ up. This is my pick for rap song of the year. It’s got TV brags (”I got two shows, I’m about to pitch another”), a tight chorus (”Let me breathe for a minute / White Range Rover blowin’ trees all in it”), and whimsy shit too (“Honey bouncin’ up and down, she nearly broke my dick”). Ghostface’s disciple is having more fun than just about anyone.

4) Japandroids - “North East South West”

Only a Canadian band could get me to care this much about my own country. The Vancouver duo penned an Americana ode to the road -- but there’s a twist... they talk about their cities too. For every New Orleans, there’s a Toronto. For every California, a Vancouver.

Maybe they’ll be the ones to end all the border wars.

3) Alex Lahey - “Every Day’s The Weekend”

This is the only submission on the list I’d feel comfortable calling a perfect song. Relatable themes, a chorus that’ll tangle you up, f-bombs in all the right places, and every part maximized. She has this way of weaving between cool confidence and youthful insecurity, all in the matter of one verse.

2) Carly Rae Jepsen - “Cut To The Feeling”

When it comes to “Call Me Maybe” and its legacy, I do not fuck around. This song gets really, really, really close. Just watch this dude.

Queen Carly blessed us with another one. The chorus soars, arms go up, and clouds are your closest companions.

1) The Menzingers - “After The Party”

It's the little things my mind commits / To etch behind my eyelids

When this song dropped, my buddy Dave Rokos called it his favorite Menzos song ever. That felt like high praise, but man, he might be dead on. “After The Party” rips me in half with its lyrics of palpable desperation:

Like a kaleidoscope in vibrant hues I navigate around your tattoos Said you got that one on a whim when you were breaking up with him And that Matryoshka Russian doll That lines your shelf from big to small What a way to start anew To shed your skin and find the old you

If Carly’s chorus flies, this one holds us down like gravity. You feel everything, you feel nothing, you feel full yet voided, but after all of this -- the life, the party, the friends, the bars, the experiences, the nights, the lights, the fights, the city you live in -- it’s still her and you. Or him and you. Or whatever it is you come home to at the end, when it’s finally quiet.

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keenobservationfest-blog · 5 years ago

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Truth > Cancel Culture

I am well aware I will get annihilated by internet trolls and well-meaning spirits alike, but I believe Michael Jackson is more likely innocent than guilty. Before you decide to type a long comment about how I am supporting a pedophile and don’t care about victims, I would like to say I thought he was guilty. I am not coming at this as a fan. All I ask is that you hear me out. I believe Hollywood’s response to the allegations against him was completely racist. My fellow white people don’t like to admit it, but racism and character lynching are still very much active processes in this country.

When Leaving Neverland premiered at Sundance in 2019, another documentary was also premiering - Untouchable. This was a documentary about Harvey Weinstein. I saw very limited press at the time about this documentary. I saw loads about Leaving Neverland. Let’s not forget a name Ronan Farrow mentioned in his famed expose, Weinstein’s Complicity Machine - AJ Benza. You may or may not know who he is, but he was on Weinstein’s retainer to report gossip about celebrities in order to cover up for any potential scandal Weinstein might have been a part of at that time. One of the names listed for a brief enlightening second was that of the famed singer, Michael Jackson. Take away from that what you will in today’s context.

I thought Jackson was guilty upon watching the 2019 documentary - but something didn’t sit right with me. It didn’t sit right that the film insinuated the audience shouldn’t look at the other side of the story. And to be frank, as the inquisitive child of a former Fed and current investigator, the body language of these two individuals didn’t seem genuine. Relentless researcher that I am, I decided to give it a couple days and let the stink of the disgusting story I had heard - true or not - wash off my consciousness and look into this story as dispassionately as I could. What I found was astonishing.

My research began with simply watching conflicting interviews. Some from Dan Reed, Wade Robson and James Safechuck. Others from Taj Jackson (Tito Jackson’s son) and Brandi Jackson (Jackie Jackson’s daughter). I took every word with a grain of salt. Both sides had motive. I just needed to figure what they were. The first egregious mistake I noted in my research was that the documentary didn’t even distinguish between the Jackson Estate and the Jackson family. The Estate is represented by executors John Branca and Howard Weitzman for the interests of Jackson’s mother, Katherine, and his three children. This means that Taj and Brandi Jackson do not make money off of his royalties. The argument that they were monetarily-motivated Estate puppets fell apart. Not only that - the Estate and the family don’t even get along. This was possibly the most easily researchable fact the documentary filmmaker could have found, and it was openly neglected. The second thing I found that interested me was Taj Jackson as well as his brother, Taryll, are CSA survivors - not of Michael, but an Uncle on their mother’s side. Not only that, but Michael was the one who supported them while they were struggling with the repercussions. Taj is on record saying if he thought for one second this is who his Uncle Michael was, he would be the first one screaming it from the rooftops. You can find this in the Good Morning Britain interview he did shorty after the doc aired in the UK. This doesn’t prove anything, but it certainly casts doubt on the popular narrative.

It is also important to note that Macaulay Culkin contradicted Neverland’s narrative on the Inside of You podcast, and again this year in an Esquire interview. Brett Barnes, who’s name was included in the doc against his will, sued HBO for spreading false information about him and including his name in the documentary. He also continues to insist that nothing ever happened. Both of these men testified in 2005.

I googled more interviews. Some of them were more extensive than others. I came across one that piqued my interest and changed the game entirely. It was a podcast interview with Brandi Jackson, and a journalist I had never heard of named John Ziegler. This is where the documentary’s case started to break down entirely. Brandi Jackson dated the accuser, Wade Robson for over seven years - during the period the alleged abuse was happening. She was never mentioned. She wasn’t asked to interview, and several television outlets canceled her appearances because her story didn’t fit their narrative. Wade met Brandi in 1991. The documentary argued that Jackson pitted the boys against women, which is a lie because Jackson apparently introduced them. The reason they broke up was because Wade cheated on her with Britney Spears, simultaneously ending Spears’ and Timberlake’s relationship - and here is where I looked into Robson a little more.

He burned a bridge in Hollywood, and there is no coming back from that. After Jackson’s widely watched memorial service, Wade begged the Estate for a job choreographing the Michael Jackson One Show in Vegas. When he didn’t get that job, he started shopping a book deal about his alleged molestation. When no one picked it up, he then decided to go on network tv in 2013 alleging he was molested by Jackson. He followed up by suing the Estate for well over millions of dollars. So yes, it is about money - and a lot of it. Safechuck piggybacked on the lawsuit after his family had been sued, leaving his motive questionable as well. The reason their case got thrown out of court was because Wade lied about not knowing the Estate existed, about the book deal, and frankly, about the molestation itself. He didn’t start selling this story until the billion dollar Jackson money tree ran out. There are court documents, deposition transcripts and an entire FBI file consisting of pieces of information that seriously call into question the motive of all of Jackson’s accusers. They are available to the public, and easily researchable.

This doesn’t prove Jackson didn’t do anything, but it does call into question the motive of the accusers and the competence, or lack thereof, of journalists reporting on this issue.

What does this have to do with racism? Here’s the kicker - the raging, fuming hypocrisy of it all - the cofounder of the Sundance Film Festival plead guilty in April of 2019 of child sex abuse, and I don’t remember hearing one fucking self-righteous word about it from Hollywood. The mainstream media seems perfectly fine with dragging the name of a black man through the mud, as we saw with the Gayle King interview about Kobe Bryant. They also don’t seem to care whether or not they are reporting the truth. So before you subscribe to cancel culture, ask yourself this - Is this really about justice? Or am I taking part in modern America’s watered down version of lynching?

Summary of Robson’s Case (at the bottom of the e-book are the sources, which I encourage you to look at yourself): https://themichaeljacksonallegationsblog.files.wordpress.com/2018/07/the-wade-robson-allegations-ebook-format-v2-0.pdf

WATZ Charles Thomson Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OL3rzFJn9tU

WATZ Brandi Jackson Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hT64RdTQ8jI

WATZ Tom Mesereau Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnP7sx4smoc

Interview with Taj Jackson on RolandMartinUnfiltered: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1i5MkC9Ncao

Interesting interview with Corey Feldman about pedophelia in Hollywood (4:49): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uL_mA9nZBDc

Emmanuel Lewis interview (5:43): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5-EzEQGLQ4

Rageaholic Rebuttals: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pnoQqlygQs&list=PLmirOw7JCi826i_J_xsWhtY7jh2sqIlpX

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yTTEwBLfUQ&list=PLmirOw7JCi826i_J_xsWhtY7jh2sqIlpX&index=2

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYx0vLfpRYY&list=PLmirOw7JCi826i_J_xsWhtY7jh2sqIlpX&index=3

#metoo timesup iknewleavingneverlandwasbs

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