Jackson saga: Verdict was correct, but what a tragedy of indifference

The bottom line is Dr. Conrad Murray deserved what he got. He administered a drug to a celebrity without regard to the oath he took as a doctor -- and the administration of that drug resulted in a death.

So Monday's verdict was just and right.

However, there is an elephant in the room -- and one that no amount of grandstanding and righteous indignation from the Jackson family can erase.

Michael Jackson was a prescription drug addict and contributed to his own demise. And, unfortunately, no one around him seemed to care enough to do anything about it.

Jackson is not the first and he won't be the last celebrity to kill him or herself with drugs.

The only fair way to look at the Jackson case -- or those of Kurt Cobain, Anna Nicole Smith, Heath Ledger or any other that involved the senseless loss of a talented person -- is to get that there is a price that comes with indulgence and ignoring the rules that apply to everyone else.

In other words, responsibility for one's own actions.

A celebrity who buys drugs, who pays off doctors to get access to medication or who cannot control his or her drinking, is an addict and should be treated as such.

If we start applying the rules to them, too, perhaps we can stop another tragic death before it is too late.

There is already a watch list.

Published in Editorials on November 8, 2011 10:36 AM