How did it happen?

I was checking out Yahoo's Most Emailed website, and came across this link to a smiling Michael Jackson leaving court: It's grotesque (and when I say "it", I'm not sure whether I'm referring to the picture, which is definitely an object, or the person in the picture, since he/it is also definitely an object). I couldn't help remembering the Michael Jackson images from my own youth in the 1970s (Jackson and I are about the same age): Somehow I wanted to draw some compelling lesson from this juxtaposition, but I couldn't figure out what it would be: How about, beware of corrupt plastic surgeons? Or, is this the inevitable result of too much money and too little contact with reality? Or, is Michael Jackson mentally disabled and, if he were he anyone other than a mega-millionaire celebrity, would he get the treatment he deserves? Or, is ours simply a very sick culture? With regard to the last one, the lipstick on the current Michael Jackson face (the top photo) really freaks me out. Is this the end result of metrosexuality? Is this where we end up when we deviate too far from what gays, etc., refer to as heteronormative behavior? None of these questions sounds particularly profound and I can't answer them in any event. Still, it's a weird cultural image and I couldn't resist putting it on my blog.