I have no problem with Jeff being a co-manager for Archie as many stars have their mother/father managing them. Why not spread the weath versus giving it to someone else? Since Archie made about $2million this last year, Jeff’s probable 7% share of managing is still darn good money to support his family. Though I have to admit it’s not fair to judge someone you don’t know, Jeff always gave me the creeps. My instincts are usually correct. In any case, I am sure Archie knew about this whole business, but what was he supposed to do, he loves his parents and nobody’s perfect.

Pleading “No Contest” to this kind of charge is neither an admission of guilt or innocence; however it is a means to avoid going to a trial and allows the defendant to just pay a fee and avoid a trial and hopefully publicity, which didnt’ work in his case because he happens to be David Archuleta’s father.

No twitter today about it being Fatherà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Day!!!!!!!

actually, after you posted david tweeted

I hope everyone had a good day this fine day. I know I did! Happy Father’s Day to all fathers!

Not only this, but sheer decency would indicate that we not ascribe to good behavior negative underlying motivations. Why do this? To what purposeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’especially when the negative interpretations are so fanciful and easily explained awayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’and especially when they fly in the face of the evidence presented by those who know David well?

Because it’s still speculation, whether it’s positive or negative.

Heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s not traumatized whatsoeverà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’but heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s probably secretly pissedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’and has been for a long time. He knows his dadà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s no prize but heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s not about to admit it. More credit to him.

How in the world could you possibly know that?

Heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s not traumatized whatsoeverà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’but heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s probably secretly pissedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’and has been for a long time. He knows his dadà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s no prize but heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s not about to admit it. More credit to him.

I won’t assume he is not traumatized. How could he not be? I have never heard him say a bad thing about anyone, so I doubt he will start with his dad. He will take the high ground.

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m not so sure about that. I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t want to minimize whatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s happened here, but I think David will handle it all just fine. The kidà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a professional in every sense of the word. The show must go on, as they say. Heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s managed to cope with the knowledge of what occurred for the past 5 months. I think heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a tougher kid than heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s given credit for. Heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s keeping things light today on Twitter to show his fans that heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s okay and heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s moving forward.

I think you’re right. I wrote this before I read some of his recent tweets. He’s in good humor–which indicates to me he’ll be fine. It also suggests he distanced himself from his father psychologically a good while ago. He’s not traumatized whatsoever–but he’s probably secretly pissed–and has been for a long time. He knows his dad’s no prize but he’s not about to admit it. More credit to him.

Good point. David used to put a smile on my faceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’it was a joy to watch an innocent kid radiate such happiness singing. Now I suspect all that joy has been blighted. The notoriety will have a damaging effect on his performances, definitely.

I’m not so sure about that. I don’t want to minimize what’s happened here, but I think David will handle it all just fine. The kid’s a professional in every sense of the word. The show must go on, as they say. He’s managed to cope with the knowledge of what occurred for the past 5 months. I think he’s a tougher kid than he’s given credit for. He’s keeping things light today on Twitter to show his fans that he’s okay and he’s moving forward.

He’s obviously wanted to be in the public eye given his appearances on both Star Search and Idol and anything since. He lives for music. If anything, it might be an escape for him during all of this. Like with most things, real life can intervene and sometimes you just have to take the good with the bad. If previous rumors are to be considered true, I’m sure David always knew there was a risk that it would all come to the forefront at some point in his career. We all have skeletons in our closets.

David is or will be forced to realize by the shear magnitude of the public spectacle, the fact that his siblings and mother must live and deal with it in the public eye is a direct result of him pursuing his own dreams.

Good point. David used to put a smile on my face–it was a joy to watch an innocent kid radiate such happiness singing. Now I suspect all that joy has been blighted. The notoriety will have a damaging effect on his performances, definitely. That’s why I think he might do well to cancel the tour and take a year off.

Normally, at this stage in a newcomer’s career, a year’s sabbatical would be counterproductive. People would forget who he was after a short while. But in David’s situation, after such notoriety, this is unlikely to be the case. Instead sympathy will linger and he’ll be remembered as the kid who got away from it all in order to get his head together.

David is or will be forced to realize by the shear magnitude of the public spectacle, the fact that his siblings and mother must live and deal with it in the public eye is a direct result of him pursuing his own dreams.

Ouch

I feel for David, his mother and siblings. This would be a awful situation to have to deal with even if they were some anonymous family, but the suckiness (is that a word, Firefox spell check tells me no) is compounded by the fact that Davids celebrity means it is being played out in the public arena for all the world to see (I saw an article in the HUFFINGTON POST for gods sake).

David is or will be forced to realize by the shear magnitude of the public spectacle, the fact that his siblings and mother must live and deal with it in the public eye is a direct result of him pursuing his own dreams.

Despite David himself having done nothing wrong, his pursuit of his own dreams will make what should primarily be a private family situation that much worse. As a result, David will undoubtedly blame himself and his desire to sing for the pain this causes his mother and siblings.

I generally try to be non-judgmental and skeptical about the “news” (celebrity or otherwise) because there are just too many examples of the media / public getting it wrong and backing off (if that) only after the misconceptions have been pounded into our brains and damage has been done. (This was the best I could do in restraining myself from ranting about how poor the standards of “media” outlets have become but allow me this one final mini-rant: speculation is not fact, opinions are not fact, assumptions are not fact, news should be about fact, speculative assumptions about opinions should be kept kept out of the news and left to the bloggers and opinion columns but only if they don’t claims the news mantle.)

But in this case, whether in fact he was after a happy ending or he was just, as his lawyer says, in the wrong place at the wrong time, or even if there is some other explanation (possibly involving a time machine, a cloak of invisibility and witchcraft) that absolutely exonerated Jeff, I find myself extremely unhappy that Jeff put himself in this situation and that as a result of his own (at the very least) poor judgment / luck, David will most likely be blaming himself for the situation and to some degree doubt whether he should want to sing.

We all take on roles in our family, regardless of whether it is healthy or not. David fits the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“profileà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  of the kid in the family who holds everything together and gives the family something positive to focus on. Some would say that isnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t good, regardless of whether or not DA appears to cope with it well.

But the whole point is that he copes with it well. Sure it’s not a good situation–but that’s life. And it’s every human being’s life to boot. We don’t all have parents who are dysfunctional, but we have people we work with we find difficult, we have friends who betray us, we have relationships of all kinds that go sour. That’s life–and we cope with it. If we’re healthy-minded, we cope with it well–like David.

Merely being passive-aggressive isn’t a disorder but a behavior à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’  sometimes a perfectly rational behavior, which lets you dodge unpleasant chores while avoiding confrontation. It’s only pathological if it’s a habitual, crippling response reflecting a pervasively pessimistic attitude.

I just want Archie to have a fun and balanced life and I don’t see a tremendous balance there. But again, that is only how I feel. Others may think that it is wonderful that an 18 year old has put his education on the back burner while he is touring all summer and trying to put out 2 new albums pretty much simultaneously. David has been working non-stop for a year and his only vacation has been a few days with his family in Vegas. If I was under that kind of schedule I would be demanding a month off to lie on a beach somewhere and catch up on my reading as well as my suntan. But I am sure, based on what David has done in the past, he would spend the entire month working on charitable functions….because that is what a pleaser does.

Can we just agree he is a great singer, who appears to be a very nice person, and this is going to be difficult for him?

Bingo.

As for his being a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“pleaserà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  childà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’I highly doubt it. Thereà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s plenty of evidence of just the opposite. Heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s polite, yes. But he can be passive-aggressive at timesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’as people have witnessed who watched his handlers trying to persuade him during meet-and-greets to discontinue interacting with fans. He nodded agreementà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’and simply went on doing what he was doing. He wasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t rude or hostile to his handlersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’and he certainly wasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t being a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“pleaser.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  He was asserting himselfà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’but without being offensive about it.

Passive-aggressive behavior, which you are accurately describing, is generally NOT considered an emotionally optimal way to handle things. If he were truly asserting himself he would have politely said something along the lines of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m not ready to leave yet.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  Passive-aggressive behavior is one of the hallmarks of people pleasers.

Can we just agree he is a great singer, who appears to be a very nice person, and this is going to be difficult for him?

Thereà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s no way you can know this. None of us here know whatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s going on in Davidà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s personal life. Nor do we know his motivations. None of us know him.

Of course I don’t know him. But this just underscores my point. For every criticism about his supposed psychological weakness or unhealthiness, there’s a counter argument to be made that he’s a kid who has his act together.

Not only this, but sheer decency would indicate that we not ascribe to good behavior negative underlying motivations. Why do this? To what purpose–especially when the negative interpretations are so fanciful and easily explained away–and especially when they fly in the face of the evidence presented by those who know David well?

I’m willing to agree David’s father is nothing to brag about. I’m willing to agree his parents’ marriage may well be dysfunctional. I’m willing to agree David uses defense mechanisms to remain psychologically healthy and upbeat despite this. But I’m not willing to agree he’s been in any way psychologically damaged.

Just the opposite in fact. David seems like a very strong person psychologically. He’d have to be, given the pressures he’s been under–especially while on AI–and given his family life as we now know it. I personally believe this is the secret that fuels his love of music. Like all good artists David converts his pain into the stuff of art. There’s a dark side to him that he sublimates with music. But that’s precisely why he remains so strong and healthy.

Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s inconsistent to claim thereà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s nothing wrong with David while at the same time claiming heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s not really healthy because heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“pleaserà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  child. Those two ideas are mutually exclusive.

I don’t think they are exclusive at all. We all take on roles in our family, regardless of whether it is healthy or not. David fits the “profile” of the kid in the family who holds everything together and gives the family something positive to focus on. Some would say that isn’t good, regardless of whether or not DA appears to cope with it well. Listening to the stuff Brooke Shields or the Culkin kids have said about their childhoods and status as family breadwinner, I wouldn’t be surprised if we hear similar things from DA when he is much older and ready to talk about it.

There’s a difference between saying DA is “not sane” and simply saying there’s a possibility there is and has been way too much pressure on that young man for way too long, regardless of how resillient or cheery he appears to be outwardly.

I never said that their is anything à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“wrongà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  with David Archuleta. He is a beautiful and vocally gifted à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“childà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ . All I said is that he displays all of the classic signs of a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“pleaserà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  child. And in my experience à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“pleaserà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  children are oftentimes that way because of overly controlling people in their lives. I personally do not think being a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“pleaserà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  child is really healthy, just like Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m uncomfortable working with people who are grown up à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“pleasersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ .

It’s inconsistent to claim there’s nothing wrong with David while at the same time claiming he’s not really healthy because he’s a “pleaser” child. Those two ideas are mutually exclusive.

As for his being a “pleaser” child–I highly doubt it. There’s plenty of evidence of just the opposite. He’s polite, yes. But he can be passive-aggressive at times–as people have witnessed who watched his handlers trying to persuade him during meet-and-greets to discontinue interacting with fans. He nodded agreement–and simply went on doing what he was doing. He wasn’t rude or hostile to his handlers–and he certainly wasn’t being a “pleaser.” He was asserting himself–but without being offensive about it. David’s not overtly aggressive–but he is feisty as heck. Cook used that word to describe Archie’s performance on Top 2 night when the kid came out swinging. He well-deserved Simon’s declaration that his performances that night were a knockout. He has plenty of normal healthy fight in him–despite his care to be polite.

If he were as other-directed and eager-to-please as you would suppose, he’d do what all the other kids his age try to do–enter into heavy relationships before they are psychologically ready. This is precisely why David seems to me so healthy–he KNOWS he’s not ready.

There’s no way you can know this. None of us here know what’s going on in David’s personal life. Nor do we know his motivations. None of us know him.

Every bit of it is speculation. Every bit.

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m claiming heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s psychologically healthy and normal. Big difference.

No one here is in a position to claim he’s either healthy or damaged. We don’t know him.

As MJ has said, no one really knows what’s going on when the doors are closed.

I’m also saying that David “may” have delayed interest in the opposite sex because, obviously, there have been past issues of infidelity and marital strife in his parent’s relationship (based on the earlier divorce proceedings and Jeff’s current misfortune) that makes him hesitant to persue any kind of romantic coupling, no matter how innocent.

When you see someone who is as “totally” driven as David (especially at age 18 where the perceived norm is pretty much the opposite) and who has yet to “try his own wings” on a personal note you begin to wonder, or at least I do. David’s life is David’s life and he needs to live it. I just hope his uber fans don’t gloss over what has happened and make excuses for it. These fans need to stop treating Jeff like a celebrity and should be telling him to go home and take care of his familial responsibilities. David is an adult now and needs to tackle the music world on his own.

For everyone that think Davidà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s life and his personality are perfection like his voice I applaud you

I for one am not claiming his life and personality are perfection. Nobody’s perfect. I’m claiming he’s psychologically healthy and normal. Big difference.

Is one thing if your friends have told you that you have issues and another to say that a person you don’t know has issues. I assume that your friends know you pretty well. We don’t know David at all. I wouldn’t comfortable making that diagnosis about someone I don’t know.

the fact that he really isnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t overly curious about dating or having a relationship. Fans call this perfection but I have lots of more sinister words for it.

If he were as other-directed and eager-to-please as you would suppose, he’d do what all the other kids his age try to do–enter into heavy relationships before they are psychologically ready. This is precisely why David seems to me so healthy–he KNOWS he’s not ready. There’s nothing sinister about this. Plenty of other healthy adolescents wait till they’re more mature. It’s perfectly NORMAL. When did it become a sign of unhealthiness to delay doing this till you’re ready? People want it both ways. They want to claim he looks and acts like a twelve year old–while demanding he enter into mature relationships. He knows he’s not sufficiently mature–except for his music. He’s willing to wait a while. Nothing wrong with that.

You donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know. You donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know him.

No, but we usually give well-behaved people the benefit of a doubt. Besides, those who do know him well tell us good, positive things. People like Cook. Members of David’s band. The McFly band most recently. You can’t fake that kind of reputation. These people interacted with him on an hourly and daily basis and are in a position to know.