I raise a glass to one of my sisters that has passed.

[lildreamer316]

I know most in the Lounge are not antagonistic about this death; and I thank you for your kind words. Let me say why I consider her a sister:

Because once in this biz; it is always in your blood; for good or for ill. I'm not here to debate the merits of exotic entertaining and its' effects. In the end we are all our own people with our own free will; responsible to ourselves first and foremost. Those of us who have been in the business for a decent amount of time see each other as family. We have to. NO one else has our backs. As PC as the world is now; it's still majorly acceptable to say any damn thing you want about strippers and their profession; and to pass judgment on those who choose to do this job and career. We are discriminated against in many ways also. REALLY. We are a great scapegoat for many people; and we're used to that. Anyone who has been through this understands the unique bond that we have-the unstated understanding that we may hate each other personally; but we protect our own.

Anna did what she thought she had to do; and she did her job well. It seems; despite everyone's suppositions; that she made that old man happy; so who's to judge their relationship? He wasn't stupid-he knew what he was getting. It seems to me it made HER happy to make HIM happy. That's part of what makes my job great-when I make someone happy (and it is not sexual! SERIOUSLY. But that's another discussion).

I know that she did not know how to be really happy. I can see that she did not always make the best decisions for herself from my point of view. But she accomplished a lot of what she set out to do and she was not evil or manipulative or any of those things.

And she could WORK IT.

I salute that; and wish her peace. Shake that gorgeous ass one last time baby. 'Cause now you can see your true beauty,and everyone else's too.

[Flaxbee]

1. Well said, and I'm with you. Here's to Anna Nicole

She was great, and I just wish she had more peace in life. And I fervently hope her daughter is treated well and cherished by whomever gets custody.

[ronnykmarshall]

2. Thank you !

I'm very sad over Anna's death. I always liked her.

[terrya]

3. That's a nice tribute.

Thank you for bring some humanity around here. This is nice. :thumbsup:

[idgiehkt]

4. she's definitely a cultural barometer. In life and now in death.

I'm sad. Her family is what mine is, what many people call "white trash". It is so rare for someone from that background to ever accumulate wealth. In her case it was because of her beauty, which to me proves beauty is a commodity in this culture, one of the few that women have almost a monopoly on. Because we are discriminated and held back in so many other ways, I can't fault someone like her who makes that beauty work for her. I just think she got to the point like a lot of famous people do where everyone around her was an employee or dependent, and she had no one left to tell her the truth when she needed to hear it. It's a dangerous place to be and most people can't handle that, usually the ones that can have really strong self-discipline they learned in childhood.

[lildreamer316]

5. That's exactly it.

Nail on head. She was stronger than we give her credit for; but openly needed love and to be needed. If you don't know how to meet those needs; it all falls apart. I do think that Howard K Stern was doing the best he could for her in the areas you mentioned; but I also think the death of her son combined with postpartum and the paternity stuff probably just got to be too much and he didn't see that she needed more help than he was giving.

Well; water under the bridge at this point. Hope that she and others can learn from it.

[skygazer]

6. I just think this is a terribly sad story

Not least because of some of the nasty and heartless remarks that have been made about her.

I didn't know the woman. I find it very sad when anyone dies before their time, no matter who they are. When that person has just lost their beloved son right after giving birth to a new baby, it compounds the tragedy IMO.

No, perhaps she didn't cure cancer or run the United Nations or do much of anything except make some poor personal decisions (and a few good ones) and become a reality show star.

But she was a human being with very human flaws such as we all have (though many of us are too arrogant to admit we have them) and she died far too young. Was she a drug user? Was it an OD? Does that make it any less tragic?

No, I don't think so. There are a lot of people (and some people right here, I'm sure) who have used drugs or alcohol to dull their pain. Smart? Probably not. Human? You betcha.

The bottom line is we've got people here exulting in the death of another human being, poking fun at it and belittling it.

And that's just fucking pathetic.

[ForrestGump]

7. I love this

...thank you for writing it.

:loveya:

And I'm kicking its shimmying bootay, proudly.

Your last line is sad in its irony, though...we may see her true beauty, but her death has allowed us another glimpse into true ugliness of the heart within some alleged 'progressives,' right here in River City. Down with the Blue Meanies!!

:hug:

[sasquatch]

8. Why don't you post in the "Post your Pic" threads?

:evilgrin:

[HoneyBee]

9. Beautiful

I agree with every word you've written. Very nice.

[mentalsolstice]

10. Absolutely no judgment here!

People do what they have to do! And should do what they're best at! As long as you're proud of your career, hold your head up high, girl, and shake the other parts!

[Kutjara]

11. Amen. A lovely homage.

Thank you for your voice of compassion and sanity among all the bile and lunacy.

[SeattleGirl]

12. How lovely, libdreamer.

:toast:

[HoneyBee]

13. A great thread in GD about her life...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x160878

[SPKrazy]

14. ...

Beautiful sentiment lildreamer

:hug:

[jobycom]

15. To one of us commoners, who used what she could to make it big.

I never thought about her much, but when I did, that's what I saw. A woman born as poor and country as I was. She didn't have a great talent for acting or singing, she didn't have a gift for business. She wasn't polished in modeling school or finishing school. She had her looks, but she wasn't the most beautiful or graceful woman around. It's hard to put a finger on exactly how she did it. But somehow, by making the right moves at the right time, by turning her problems into avenues for her own success, she made it. It always impressed me that she was able to come back from the cardinal Hollywood sin of excessive weight gain. Rather than fade away, she made it her new career to lose weight, and turn it into a business. People counted her out, and she proved them wrong. I think her real talent was using whatever was put in front of her.


:toast:

[La Lioness Priyanka]

27. ....

:thumbsup:

[EFerrari]

16. I'm with you, lildreamer316.

Today we lost a beautiful woman and a fighter.

Absent friends and present company.

:toast:

[wildhorses]

17. raising my glass with you in honor of anna

may she rest in peace:salute:

[bridgit]

18. like i was saying over in GD, i thought she was alright...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=160878&mesg_id=164496 :(

[BlueIris]

19. Thanks for your kind thoughts about ANS, lildreamer.

I am disturbed (though not necessarily surprised) by the amount of animosity she is incurring on these boards.

[buddhamama]

20. this is lovely, thank you.

May Anna be at Peace. :cry: :hug: :hug:

[RebelOne]

21. Bravo!! Very well said.

[Suich]

22. Thank you, lildreamer, for the wonderful tribute!

I could not have said it better myself!

:toast:

[Bridget Burke]

23. Pink champagne, perhaps?

(Well, I'll have to settle for a pink cava.)

Anna Nicole did what she could with what she had. What she had was--a lot!

I remember her going into the courtroom in Houston, day after day--looking great. (It was local news here.) While the late-middle-aged-trust-fundy-heirs tried to keep her from getting any of their father's (or stepfather's) money. Upper class, WASP-looking guys, embarrassed that they had to appear in public. (How common!) Their raffish dad--a real character--got his revenge from beyond the grave.

[cwydro]

24. Great tribute!

And when I get home today, I'll raise a glass to her too. Hey, she was just doing the best she could...just like all of us.:hi:

[Redstone]

25. If you consider her your sister, then your sadness is well-placed. It is not for any of us to

judge anyone else, especially not those who live in a world that we do not ourselves live in.

My condolences to you for the loss of your sister, then. Leaving all else, including the hype, aside.

I feel for you and your community. And I have a reason to, though you'll NEVER get me to tell you the reason why. Just ounderstand that I do know, OK?

Redstone

(edited for spelling.)

[LostinVA]

26. Nice post n/t

[u4ic]

28. Thank you, lildreamer

I've been pretty disappointed in what I've been reading on DU.

I don't know much about her, but it's amazing how much of a circus is made of some deaths. Some of it right here, by people who supposedly abhor the media. :eyes:

Whatever someone's celebrity (or uncelebrity) status, they are still human, they had their individual journeys; joys and sorrows, and they still leave behind loved ones. We will all be in the same boat one day.

A life that was taken much too soon...RIP Anna.

[Beer Snob-50]

29. Great post.