Whether you liked Amy's stuff or not, and whatever she may have chosen to do to squander it, the girl was definitely gifted with a stand-out talent. This having been recognised amongst all the other talent that goes unnoticed and unrecognized, it's indeed a shame that she didn't make more of it. But surely it was her talent to choose to do with (or not do with) what she wished ?
Addiction in its many and varied forms, is something that's frequently (tho' not exclusively) associated with creativity and artistic, musical or literary talent. Especially in a developed society where the luxury of a lack of a necessary preoccupation with day-to-day survival allows it to flourish.
Anyone who's ‘stared into the precipice' in their lives, whether as a result of self-inflicted harm or other causes, knows how easy it is to cross the line. In the end, the choice is always the individual's and I've little doubt that Amy would accept responsibility for the series of choices she made in life. The pain caused to her family and friends and the inevitable judgement of others being wrapped up in this.
Humanity is not naturally built to manage freedom, fame and indulgence. It distances a person from both nature itself and the natural order. The further you get from this the greater the emptiness that results. Given her personal disposition, maybe the best chance she'd have had of managing her ‘demons' would have been to withdraw from the life she knew, seek out decent and loving people and experience the value of making a contribution to the welfare of others in genuine need.
At the risk of upsetting anyone, have to ask whether judgmental comments about how much mind or forum space is taken up over a piece of news like this as compared to other pieces of news are a bit misplaced ? Cumulatively, the footy and keeping in shape columns will surely win over all others in the end and thoughts of both will, I'm sure, not be put aside for very long on account of a popstar death, bombing or a shooting spree ?
I'm sure a load of readers have thoughts about Norway that are echoed in what's already been contributed on that subject. Atrocities of this magnitude continue to go on in Africa, for the best part unreported due to ‘media fatigue' and the lack of political or economic prominence of the countries in which they are carried out. As a consequence with barely an acknowledgement. That's just as much of a tragedy ?
