I fear for the future of music...

Warning before we get started.

I don't claim to properly know the guy of the topic, Justin Bieber, nor do I have a proper clue of his biography aside from the swift rundown I did. Simply put - I will be brutal. Readers, you might not like that. Get over it.

I have a duty to respond in a blog (I emphasize "respond", i.e. an emotional response). When I try to look at music in general, I dive into the worlds Rock, Electronica, Classical, Jazz, and some Rap. I explore and enjoy their sub-genres and hybrids. But when it comes to Bieber's work (Pop?) stuff, I can't help but to cringe. No hate to the person themselves, but FOR ME, their stuff is trash...so's country music, but that's a different story...

Now then, if I hate his life's work, shouldn't I hate him?

Not necessarily. Bieber's work may seem terrible to me, but his story isn't one to abhor or anything. The kid has talent, obviously. But because I am emotionally too outraged to continue writing coherently -- simply because I despise his music -- I will show a list of why I do not hate the person. (You'll see, even though my previous statement really does hinder my goal, you'll see why I don't hate the guy).

Reasons why I don't hate him, per se.

1. He's made over 200 wishes come true for dying people through the Make A Wish foundation. He plays a part in the Charity: Water stuff, giving clean water people around the world who don't have it. He has power, and so far, he uses it for the right things. There are plenty of more charity examples.
2. The guy has worked hard to make it. Talent + work = success.
3. I'm an artist, I inherently support other artist - it's my thing.
4. For more reasons of why I don't hate him, check out this random guy's blog (I think number 5 is pretty funny). He pretty much summarizes the reasons, in a jerk-ish, funny kinda way.

No hate for Bieber, but I don't care for him (I'm neutral).... and so, if my hate is not for Bieber, but I support his endeavor to succeed, to whom should I direct my burning hatred?? Well, I personally blame sappy pubescent girls, I mean, young teens for making a market for his TERRIBLE MUSIC (x_x)... 

Kill the that music...KILL IT WITH FIRE!!!

ThE lOtIoN iS a LiE!

Man, my router and I constantly have a never ending war...if I ever win a battle, I get a few days of speedy internet. If not, I have an eternity of brutal hours, suffer from internet withdraws... jk. Okay, let's get to the meat of this meal! ---->

SCANDAL in the J&J family pharmaceutical company!

 I've never trust big companies. MacDonald's, Coca-Cola, Funimation, The CONGRESS; I all subscribe to their products, but I'm always suspicious of what their pushin'. I'm particularly suspicious of pharmaceutical companies, a fear probably rooted from my experience with Capcom's Resident Evil game series and with my in my ignorance of how medicine works.

It seems a big company Johnson & Johnson is shelling out more than 2.2 Billion big-ones in order to settle criminal and civil accusations of improperly promoting the using of a certain anti-psychotic drug, Resperdal, to the elderly (with dementia) and to children (with disorders) -- regardless of the fact that the drug may have adverse affects for anyone other than the F.D.A approve schizophrenia patients. Adverse affect, you say? Yes, they include an increased chance for stroke in the elderly, and breast growth in young boys. Weird, right?

Our US Legislature may seem pretty weak with recent events (remember that Government Shutdown?)...

but at least our judicial system is making headway. J&J isn't the only major business being cracked down for their questionable promotion of possibly harmful drugs. Among that number are Eli Lilly, AstraZeneca, Abbott, just to name a few. It's about time some regulation is put into practice on pharmaceutical companies that hold so much...BIOLOGICAL control. I mean, all we have to determine of a vitamin pill will be good for us, is what they shove on to the label. I'm a skeptic, there, I wrote it.

“As a group, [we've]...sent a message to the pharmaceutical industry that this kind of widespread fraud and disregard for F.D.A. regulations isn’t going to be tolerated." Well said, Mr. David Stone, a winning lawyer from the suit.

So remember

When you're eating a multi-vitamin, taking cold medicine, an antidepressant, give another thought as to where that medicine came from. It might serve you well to be a skeptic, who knows...

when you grab that bottle of J&J lotion, remember, ThE lOtIoN iS a LiE! 

Smoke-Screen!

"The proposal provoked some protest among people who pointed out that New Yorkers under 21 can drive, vote and fight in wars, and should be considered mature enough to decide whether to buy cigarettes" - this happens to be the response from the people in NY city after a reform to raise the smoking age in the city came through.

they fell Hook, Line, and Sinker!

When I contemplate this reform, I knew exactly what the implications were. I wasn't around to witness it, but when the drinking age rose to 21, a phenomena occurred -- people began to purposely drink under age because it was fun to be rebellious! What is the difference here? Nothing. Kids already smoke from a very early age. New Yorker kids have a something to poke fun at now, and will purposely smoke just to spite the new reform. This has nothing to do with "maturity", being able to "vote and fight in wars" at eighteen, etc...although, that does make a valid point.

Who has to gain from this?

I'm far from a conspiracy theorist, but the only entity I feel can really gain from this is the tobacco industry itself. Tobacco will sell, there's no doubt about it. But now, more money will be pouring in from rebellious youths (from whichever way they'll indirectly get their cigs) to line the pockets of tobacco corporations. Sure, from a distance, this reform looks like an affront to the industry, but with all the cash they have, this is nothing to them. Tobacco, like anything else addictive like beer, aspirin (yes, think about it), and gasoline, will continue to make big C.E.Os prosper and an event like this could only boost their short-term (and most likely, their long term) gains.

You want reform, NY?

Stop enforcing age-restraining laws and whatnot, and get to the root of the problem -- lack of education. If you really feel it's necessary to make it harder for a product to be bought, on your concern for your people's health, educate the people about the risk of smoking. Make anti-smoking propaganda: tv commercials, online ads, posters, the works. Tobacco companies did the same to forward their agenda, and in a free economy, you're free to fight back on their turf.

Making laws to stop people from doing something? *sigh* please... that only works when everyone's already not doing it haha