It is true that sometimes the human condition requires you to deeply embrace your inner hypocrite. The leaders of our “free world” exemplify this, as Iskander Mirza said: “Democracy is hypocrisy without limitation”
So it came as no surprise to me when President Obama came forth to condemn terrorist attacks on Oslo while his own country is currently engaged in war with at least three countries on his watch (who knows what the death toll will be from these misadventures). There would have probably been more of a stir if he hadn’t.
What really sticks in my throat is how the tabloid newspapers are now heralding Amy Winehouse as a “legend”, and as someone who will be “sadly missed”. Of course this is accurate for a lot of people (especially her friends and family); but I can’t help but think that all the tabloids will miss is an opportunity to smear her name to sell their newspapers; I cannot remember them saying a kind word about her before now, and deeply suspect their “kindness” today is not motivated by anything other than a need to generate public interest to sell newspapers.
Like Joplin, Hendrix and Cobain, Winehouse had been slowly killing herself in front of the world for years; now she has tragically passed aged only 27, the sinner has apparently turned saint. But the sad reality is that Winehouse was never allowed to live in peace.
She obtained a court injunction against paparazzi in 1997 under the Protection From Harassment Act, where the court banned a leading photographic agency from stalking her. Photographers were also banned from following her within 100 meters of her home, or photographing Winehouse in her home or the homes of her friends and family. According to a newspaper report, sources close to the singer said legal action was taken out of “concern for the safety of Winehouse and those close to her.”
If a court was forced to intervene to protect the star in life, how much compassion can the tabloids expect us to believe they have for her tragic death?
Paparazzi feed from the misery of others; the more miserable their subject, the more money they can demand from the newspapers that want to publish the bad news. That is the way it works. Winehouse was a sensation and sensations sell newspapers. They fed off her disease and added to her pressure, as Francois de La Rouchefoucauld said: “Hypocrisy is the homage vice pays to virtue.” I think this is particularly true in this case.
Winehouse, like Joplin and all of the other stars whose lights went out too soon, was a victim of media pressure. Of course, I do not blame the tabloids for her problems; but they sure as hell did nothing to support her, or educate any of her young fans about how to avoid a similar fate in their lives (as any responsible press would have); they simply made her a target of ridicule for their own profit.
Drug addiction and alcohol abuse is a serious problem in this country. Four years ago the Independent on Sunday ran a feature on a young 16-year old girl, Hayley Nash, who had been an alcoholic since she was 12 (drinking 8 cans along with a bottle of Vodka every day). Although this is an extreme example, the article went on to say “Hayleys situation is being mirrored throughout the country as young people drink more alcohol than ever before, prompting calls for the scale of the problem to be acknowledged.”
“Amid growing concerns over 24-hour drinking, soaring rates of liver disease and police forces unable to cope with drunken disturbances on the streets, there is a dramatic rise in children admitted to hospital because of alcohol-related illnesses. The biggest increase is seen among girls under 16 years old, and the problem is getting worse.” When asked why she felt she needed to drink so much, Hayley freely admitted that it was a “coping mechanism.”
At this time, it is estimated that over 300,000 people in the UK alone are addicted to Heroin, a drug that is known to cause strong feelings of warmth, wellbeing and euphoria, as well as eliminating physical and psychological pain.
Are these stories not telling us something about our society? Drug addiction is a symptom of those who cannot cope (for what ever reason) with the pressures of this world (and this is not an excuse, it is a reason); if our children are being driven to drink to cope, and our role models are dying of suspected overdoses, how does this comment on the compassion and love in our society today? Somewhere, (if we were ever headed in the right direction) we have made a seriously wrong turn towards the path of our humanity.
Everyone has a mental concept of how they perceive an addict to be: I have met people who believe that alcoholics and “junkies” are simply cowards who can’t face life. I think it is us who are the cowards, because time and time again we refuse to take responsibility for the well being of everyone, equally, everywhere.
No one can really come to terms with why such a beautiful and talented woman with her whole career ahead of her would end up this way. But I don’t think her talent makes her any less of a tragic a figure than Hayley, or any of the other addicts who are currently suffering, or make her families loss less than the suffering of families and friends who are coping with the death of loved ones due to addiction.
If anything, I hope this ladies death raises the debate that celebrity and fame does not equate to happiness: just because everyone has seen your face or bought your album, does not mean you are accepted or lucky. It simply means you have money; and as every addict will tell you, money cannot buy you love.
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