I can't say I was a fan of hers, and I never bought her music, but it's always sad when a young talent loses control and is gone before their time.

I hope she finds the peace in death that so eluded her in life.

It's sad. She really should have gone to rehab.

Agreed. It was pretty clear where the paths available to her would lead. Rehab = Chance at life. Abuse = Waste of Life.

Very sad, such a waste at such a young age....

This came as a surprise to no one, especially not the people around her who enabled her problem. It is proof that fame and wealth do not bring happiness. I wonder if the Lohan family will take notice.

They call this the curse of 27. Many talented young musicians all died at the age of 27.

Mr. Mackey said it best: Drugs are BAD!

I was watching E! and it was reported she just checked in to rehab or out of rehab, one of the two. Either way it is sad to see someone so young and talented lost so soon.

She was reckless and selfish and I think it is ridiculous to have a post dedicated to her.

The news is hitting you pretty hard, huh, cpnsmom?

cpnsmom sounds pretty selfish herself. I sure hope CPN grows up to have more compassion than his/her mom. Sheesh!

If you dance with the devil, you will get burnt. Amorette has this right. Who didn't see this coming? I'm sorry for her family and friends, but they played a significant part in her demise. But then, if she wasn't interested in getting some help, then her family and friends had to stand by and hope that her personal rock bottom didn't result in her funeral. Bummer.

[This message has been edited by Mathew Schmitz (7/24/2011)]

Everyone saw it coming. It wasn't a surprise. But it's still sad.

Why do people feel compelled to dance on the graves of the unfortunate and troubled? Who knows what demons the poor lass struggled with in her life? Who knows what torments may have driven her creativity? Who knows how hard she tried to take a constructive path vs. the one that finally destroyed her?

The answer is simple. Not a single one of us.

And our obligation is simple, too. Judge not!

If Amy Winehouse's life and death can be used in a positive way to help other troubled youth choose a better route in their lives, then great - do it.

But that isn't what cnpsmom's statement does. It is simply hateful and mean.

What kind of lesson is that to teach our children?

Apparently Ms. Winehouse went to rehab more than once, according to the news I'm hearing. As anyone who's familiar with substance abusers knows, it's very hard to break an addiction the first time in rehab. I hope cpnsmom doesn't experience this problem in her own family.

Exactly! I've known many good people - wonderful people! - who have struggled with alcoholism and other addictions throughout their lives. Some win the battle, some don't. But it is never easy and the battle usually isn't won until after much is lost. Sometimes that loss includes their life or the life of someone else.

When we see someone struggling, a compassionate person's first response should be to first think: There but for the grace of God go I.

Isn't that the Christian thing to do?

Reagardless of one's opinion of Ms. Winehouse's lifestyle, Back to Black is an awesome recording.

And this is from someone who generally despises today's popular music.

I prefer my children look-up to more deserving people, like the Marines my husband helps lay to rest each week. I think it is absolutely ridiculous that this drug-addict is all over the internet when so many men and women get passed by without a second glance. I bet not a one of you heard about the young Marine who recently took his life because he couldn't live with the guilt of killing 30+ men while in Iraq. Or the Marine who took his life because he couldn't live with being only one of six in his unit who was not killed by a bomb. Or the two young Heroes who threw their lives on a bomb so that the men and women around them would not have to die. What about the Marine from Bozeman who was killed in NYC by a vehicle after stepping out of his taxi? That didn't receive much attention on MilesCity.com.

I stick by my previous statement that she does not deserve her own post or all the publicity that she is being given. Maybe I should make an individual post for each of the 100's of Soldiers and Marines that I know who have been lost in the war or because of the war. How much attention would any of you give them?

Similar discussion from another forum.

http://forums.bicycling.c...2201062927

Hey cpnsmom, if you can manage to unfurl yourself from that flag you've wound yourself up in, maybe you will realize that it's entirely possible to have empathy for the unfortunate while simultaneously admiring and respecting the men and women in uniform who make sacrifices on a daily basis.

You aren't the only one with loved ones in uniform, my dear. In fact, some of us have recently lost loved ones while they were serving.

So please cut the "holier than thou" crapola and grow a heart. It appears that would be the best thing you can do for your children.

"Holier than thou"...you obviously have me mixed up with someone else. I don't believe I ever said that I don't have empathy for her, I simply said its ridiculous that she is all over the internet and has her own post. I am entitled to my opinion just as much as you are but you took your opinion too far. I made no personal attacks against you and it was absolutly unnecessary for you to bring my children into this TWICE. How can you even judge that aspect of my life when you know nothing about me or my 3 children?

I mentioned children in general early in the thread. You are the one who brought in your children specifically in your second post. I didn't refer to your relationship with your children until after you did.

I didn't mean to imply that you are a bad mother. I simply wanted to make the point that I think the best thing children can be taught is to have empathy for others.

And while you never stated outright that you had no empathy for Amy Winehouse, I believe your first statement would be interpreted by any reasonable person as being devoid of empathy.

As for your holier than thou attitude, your second post is comprised of statements and questions that show you believe you have far greater reverence for our brave soldiers and Marines (btw, soldiers isn't capitalized) than those of us who expressed some grief over the loss of a young woman's life. I took offense at that. Again, I think most reasonable people would come to the same conclusion I did.

But it's obvious I offended your maternal side in my response. I should know that no mother worth her salt is going to stand by while her skills are questioned. So I apologize. I'm sure your kids are very lucky to have you protecting and guiding them.

[This message has been edited by Steve Craddock (7/24/2011)]

I consider myself a reasonable person and I would never put this woman's lifestyle on the same level as someone's lifestyle who gave his life for his country. To do so would in my opinion be an abomination.

no human life should be elevated above others IMO...a human life is a human life and to judge otherwise is against the teachings of Jesus...

[This message has been edited by howdy (7/24/2011)]

Amen Howdy.

Geez - I started this thread to simply say goodbye to a young woman who led a rather bleak life - to mourn another young talent wasted.

How and why that turned into a debate over the relative worth of human life is beyond me. I think it's a sad that a simple goodbye was quickly turned into something so judgmental and ugly. Where is the compassion?

I'm not sure what the big kerfuffle is here. There are several threads on mc.com which are much more inconsequential than one about the early death of a talented musician. If cpnsmom is so concerned with giving our fine men and women in khaki their due why hasn't she started any threads herself? And don't let the kiddies on the internet if you don't like the content.

Don't let the kiddies on the internet? Where did that come from?

cpnsmom said...

How can you even judge that aspect of my life when you know nothing about me or my 3 children?

&

She was reckless and selfish and I think it is ridiculous to have a post dedicated to her.

How well do you know Amy Winehouse? Judge not lest ye be judged.

[This message has been edited by Kelly (7/24/2011)]

Cpn was talking about herself only when she said she didn't like seeing the woman's name splashed all over the internet. Nowhere does she say or imply that she is afraid her children will see it on the internet. Those are two different posts dealing with two different subjects.

(btw, soldiers isn't capitalized)

Actually Steve FWIW, there is an Army directive that writers capitalize the word Soldier in any Army correspondence.

I know that is not the situation on this thread, but just thought you'd like to know.

Cheers!

Interesting. I wonder if Wendy knew that about the 'S' in soldier.

By the way, Wendy. I think this whole thing might be bigger than a kerfuffle. I suspect it's approaching a bru-ha-ha.

Speaking of brew, I need a fresh one.

Hey Barb, that's interesting. I certainly have nothing against capitalizing soldier, but it hasn't been the convention to do so. That changed in all Army communications in 2003 when the Army chief of staff (not capitalized) decreed that the word "soldier" be capitalized.

But that is the Army. I haven't seen that convention followed by the media in general or adopted into the AP or UPI stylebooks. So if you are writing something for the Army, it's Soldier. For all other situation and uses, it's still simply soldier, the way it has been for

Marine is different. As a matter of convention, the word Marine has been capitalized by nearly all writers and publishers since the U.S. Marine Corps was founded in 1775. I believe that is because the term Marine always referred only to a member of the Corps and therefore was considered more of a proper noun, whereas the term soldier was often used generically to describe any member of the various armed forces and militias.

For the record, I'm all for capitalizing the words Soldier, Sailor and Airman (actually, I think we need a better term there), Guardsman, etc. It isn't the rule - yet - but perhaps it should be. Then again, there are many other trades that are worthy of respect. Police Officer, EMT, Firefighter, etc. etc. etc. Those people put their lives on the line everyday for very little pay, too. So once you begin, where and when do you end?

(Edit to Dave: Whether a kerfuffle or a bru-ha-ha, this thread has turned into "much ado about nothing")

[This message has been edited by Steve Craddock (7/24/2011)]

back to the point, i'm going to agree with Gunnar that Back to Black is an awesome album. Whether or not you cared for Ms. Winehouse's lifestyle you gotta admit her voice was STELLAR.

This may be a bru-ha-ha but it's more fun to say kerfuffle.

Meh. I'll jump in to voice "who cares" as well, to help balance things out.

I suspect part of the reason she was so talented was part of the problem that lead to her downfall and death. Seems to me that talent and self-destructiveness are directly proportional in many areas of life, but even more so in music. Janis Joplin springs to mind as an example. There are literally thousands more. But then, I also agree with cpnsmom to a degree. she made her own damn choices and she is dead. And no one is surprised.

On a side note, South Park did a great episode about this involving Brittany Spears. Society demanding the hype and then death of one young star after another.....

It isn't the rule - yet - but perhaps it should be. Then again, there are many other trades that are worthy of respect. Police Officer, EMT, Firefighter, etc. etc. etc.

I can't imagine that there are too many soldiers, firefighters, etc. who give two sh!ts if their job title is capitalized. I personally don't think any of them should be capitalized. It's getting out of control...Disney World refers to their customers as "Guests" which is sort of silly IMHO.

(I never heard anything by Amy Winehouse so I can't really talk about the actual topic of this thread, so I've fallen back on the sub-topic.)

[This message has been edited by Forsyth Mike (7/25/2011)]

She may have lived her life in a way that many condemn. It's sad to me that her day to day was such a struggle for her. No matter what the circumstances, she was famous and is now dead. People are going to discuss it and "give" it it's own post on milescity.com! Woop woop! Just because she struggled with addiction and made bad choices doesn't mean she doesn't have a family grieving their child!

Drugs don't just destroy who you are -they destroy the people you might have become. Famous or not, 27 is simply too young to die.

great point Dona!

her music sucks. sounded like dog crap

Yes, very insightful!

at least she has been sober for 72 hours and counting...

Forever 27!