Gao's Thoughts: Is Bullying Natalia Kills For Bullying Right?

I know I may seem late to the game here, and to be honest, I really hadn't planned on talking about this at all, but after seeing the hate still spewing from the internet, I guess it's time I weighed in. Natalia Kills has always been one of my favorite artists, but after her seemingly unforgivable actions in New Zealand, I was unsure on how to feel. After taking the time to think the issue through, I believe I have come to my own conclusion about the matter.

Let's start off by saying that how Natalia Kills acted on X-Factor New Zealand was deplorable. To sit and ridicule a person calling them a copy of someone else is just unacceptable. That being said, she did apologize -- multiple times. She apologized directly to Joe Irvine, to her fans, and to the viewers of the show. To me, it's an open and shut case. If you can't accept a person who would say things like this and don't wish to be her fan any more, that is fine by any means. If you believe that she was coaxed into being the "mean judge" for the show and that it wasn't really her decision, that's fine too. What isn't fine is lashing out with violence and threats.

I know that when it comes to the internet, people get brave. I really doubt that even a fraction of the death threats and downright nasty comments Kills has received recently would have been done in person. Many people love the anonymity of being online. Even if they say things openly on Twitter or Facebook, we are still only seeing their online presence, not the real person. There are people using the internet as a weapon, and I do not agree with it, no matter what the person has done.

"You are a sociopathic bitch and I hope a tiger eats you alive after you gang raped by dirty Indians. You deserve it, c**t"
"No one cares your a stupid ass bitch go drink bleach"
"You motherf**king stupid bitch c**t and your gay husband should be handed to ISIS and burned"

These are just a few of the threats that she has received. I know some of them seem silly, but in reality they are mentally damaging. I honestly don't think that fighting bullying with more bullying is the right way to go. She didn't threaten Joe's life, and to be honest, her rant has given him a lot of attention, sympathy, and praise, which has helped boost his profile beyond the scope of a spin off of an already dying show.

People have been asking me personally how I feel about Natalia Kills. She has been featured a large number of times on the site, and people are questioning whether I will continue to publicly support her in her musical career. The answer isn't as clear as one might want it to be. I love Natalia's music. Nothing she does will change my love for her talent, but as far as supporting someone who not only has said such hurtful things, but is also viewed so negatively in the media, I was unsure. My conclusion is that she has shown a lot of remorse for what happened, and combined with her constant stream of amazing music, I can't see myself not posting on her new endeavors.

Normally I would be on board to shun someone who has done something this crappy, but given the circumstances, and my history with the artist, I feel that it's time to let this one go. Whether or not you are ready to forgive is up to you, but this writer has bigger issues to worry about then someone vamping up their profile for their major tv debut.