Quit Picking On Britney... I Mean, Beiber!

 CALABASAS, Calif. (AP) — A neighbor accused Justin Bieber on Tuesday of battery and making threats during an argument in suburban Los Angeles, authorities said.

The above headline from Yahoo News is just one in a string of stories about how out of control singer Justin Bieber is. In the past few months he's been in fights and car chases with the paparazzi which have lead to his reputation as a spoiled rich kid but I'm willing to cut Justin some slack. Normally, when I read about this kind of behavior I assume it's ego and money fueled along with drugs and alcohol but I haven't read any mention of drugs or of Beiber acting or sounding intoxicated. He just seems to have a temper. As a public figure whose every move is caught on video he ought to be the perfect gentleman whenever he's out in public, and he should be, but Justin Beiber is in a unique position.

Every once in a while the media, and hence the public, likes to single out a particular, popular singer and make him the subject of intense public ridicule. Barry Manilow became a running joke on the TV sitcom Night Court and poor Michael Bolton suffered a prolonged and agonizing campaign of scorn and ridicule. Both of these singers handled their situations with grace by essentially just ignoring it. But Justin Beiber's a kid who reached the heights of fame very young and certainly doesn't deserve the derogatory treatment he gets in the press. When a photographer chases him down for a photograph it's not just for a picture for a teen magazine to be cherished by teenage girl fans, it's something to sell to TMZ so they have a visual to show while making jokes about his youth / hairstyle / music / pick whatever you like here /.

Sure, fighting back and refusing to take it seems natural but if he was a little more mature he'd realize it's just pouring gasoline onto the fire. Doing what he's doing is playing right into "their" arms. But he's young, he'll learn and as long as his misadventures don't start to include drugs or alcohol he'll be just fine.


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