Death and the Media Spin

It has just been released, breaking news, David Carradine was found dead in his hotel room in Bangkok. The cause of death is hanging, an apparent suicide. This is faintly reminiscent of the death of Michael Hutchence, also by hanging. The situations are similar in the following ways; both were found in hotel rooms (in Michael's case it was the Ritz-Carlton in Sydney), both were hung by belts, and both were partially nude at the time of death. Now I don't want to judge anyone's sexual habits here, but it seems as though both Hutchence and Carradine might have benefited from better safe words or safety precautions in general. I can't pretend to know what makes someone take this particular path in their sexuality. Those involved in these practices are often vehemently supportive of their sexual lifestyles...that is O.K....to a point. For me it just represents loss.

While I am not a huge fan of martial arts films, David Carradine was a name that I grew up know. The popularity that he enjoyed in the 1970's was immense. He and his martial arts movies were always "there" and now that is gone and so is a part of the nostalgia of my childhood. In the case of Michael Hutchence, I felt genuine grief. Although INXS has tried, they will never completely replace the voice and stage presence of their main man. The loss of the artist I felt keenly in this case. So is there any way to make these persons of fame wake up and realize that we might need them? I don't know. In the meantime, I just wish that I didn't have to read any more headlines like these.