Entertainment

Well, He Has At Least Three People Rooting For Him

by Ivy Jacobson

If Justin Bieber does get deported back to Canada following his two arrests, he'll have at least three men ready to welcome him back with open arms: a mayor, a principal, and a disgraced politician. The 19-year-old singer is a native of Stratford, a city within Ontario, and the Mayor of Stratford, Dan Mathieson, said that Justin Bieber is a hometown boy no matter what.

No matter what happens, it doesn’t negate the fact that Justin is from Stratford, Mathieson says. As far as I’m concerned, he is a 19-year-old person who has made some errors. I don’t condone them, but I also understand that we all have made errors in our life. I hope for his sake that he can get a reset, and get back to music and doing what he loves... Let’s hope that with some good guidance from those he trusts, things all come back to where they should be.

Mathieson also has advice for the troubled singer.

Stay true to the family and friends who have been there from the start. And lie low for a bit, Mathieson says. There are some sad people out there taking great joy in another person’s challenges, and I find that to be very disheartening. He is a celebrity, but he is entitled to some form of normalcy in his life.

Act normally, and get treated normally, Biebs. But not to be outdone regarding hometown pride, Bieber's former principal at Northwestern Secondary School in Stratford, Martin Ritsma, beliebs that Bieber is still the same normal kid he once was.

He was an everyday, average young man then and, in my heart of hearts, he’s still that everyday young man. We can put him under a microscope and judge, but that’s something I’m not prepared to do, Ritsma says. As a young person, I made mistakes. I’m glad no one put me under a microscope.

Even though Bieber has been arrested twice in two weeks, may get a felony for egging his neighbor's house, and has a penchant for strip clubs he'd still be welcome at his elementary school.

This is still where Justin grew up and if he walked through the front door today, he’d be a welcome young man, Ritsma says.

Upon seeing the article, Bieber tweeted:

I believe this is an instance of Bieber hearing what he wants to hear. Ritsma and Mathieson are sympathetic, but are clearly saying that he needs to pump the brakes. Even "small town kids" egg houses, but most do it with one carton of eggs outside a suburban home.

And going over to the peanut gallery, disgraced Toronto Mayor Rob Ford also threw in his two cents regarding Bieber.

Well, you know what, he's a young guy, Ford says on a radio show. At 19 years old, I wish I was as successful as he was. He's 19 years old, guys. Think back to when you were 19.

Image: Giphy; JustinBieber/Twitter