Bieber fever or Bieber disaster?

What do smoking weed, abusing prescription medication, drinking and driving, pranking peaceful neighbors and assaulting a limo driver all have in common? Allegedly, Justin Bieber.

His exploits make zingers like that one too easy.

Seriously though, what is with this kid? And at 19 years old, is he even a kid anymore? Why does there seem to be a scandal involving Bieber every other week, and why can he not get his act together? Does he even want to?

These are questions that rational adults and young people using their God-given logic would ask to themselves in Bieber’s situation. But is Bieber asking himself these questions?

This kid is out of control.

When trying to understand a celebrity’s actions, I try to look at the situation from his or her perspective.

For example, I think Miley Cyrus’s sudden transformation in the past few years from good-girl Hannah Montana to the ostentatious, twerking mohawk girl is tragic, but I understand her reasoning.

She seems to be trying to break her good-girl image. She wants to feel empowered as a woman instead of being looked down on as a girl. Some might say she has accomplished that. Most would say the girl just likes to party.

Cyrus said she is just getting all her crazy out while she is young.

“That’s why I think some people kind of fall off, and they end up going crazy, because you don’t give yourself time to go crazy,” Cyrus said in an interview last year. “That’s what you’re supposed to do. You are 20 — you are supposed to be a mess, because you haven’t figured it out yet, and 10 years from now, I am supposed to have it all together.”

I would say she is achieving her goal.

Bieber is on a whole different level, though. It is one thing to dress scantily and make suggestive body motions on stage, it is a whole other problem when those cries for attention result in behavior that is physically harmful to others.

In our modern world, we have a constant stream of media and entertainment entering our minds. Filtering it is extremely hard, and consequently we end up taking in — often against our will — morally obtuse information and images. The only way to block out the bad that comes with the good is to disconnect from technology completely, which is not a very attractive option.

Cyrus’ antics fall into that category.

Bieber likes to party, but the similarities stop there. The difference begins with how Bieber is recklessly endangering people to fuel his party lifestyle.

According to a report by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Bieber and his father smoked so much marijuana on a private jet that the pilots had to put on oxygen masks.

Oxygen masks. For marijuana smoke. On an airplane. There is a lesson about common sense in there somewhere.

Two weeks ago, Bieber physically assaulted his limo driver in transit because the driver would not turn up the music loud enough. The pop star later turned himself in to Toronto police and was charged with assault for an attack, police said.

There is a lush list of indiscretions to choose from. The fact is, Bieber’s recent actions should override any sympathy we have for superstars who have been forced to grow up quickly.

Becoming incredibly famous at such a young age is difficult. I cannot pretend to relate or understand. I have 134 followers on Twitter. Bieber has 49.6 million. That is a lot of pressure.

The problem is, Bieber is not only a bad example for young people, he is a hazard to society. He needs to grow up or step down. No one can live his life for him. He has to make his own choices.

Those choices have just happened to be incredibly immature, self-centered and ignorant as of late.

Bieber’s mother, Pattie Mallette, expressed her concern for these choices when talking with the U.K. Sun.

“I think so many people go into the entertainment industry with amazing Christian roots, and they get influenced somehow,” Mallette said.

Comedian Dave Chapelle spoke on the topic of the entertainment industry in an interview with James Lipton, saying that, although no weak people have made it big in Hollywood, the atmosphere can destroy you.

“These people are not crazy,” Chapelle said. “These are strong people. But maybe the environment is a little sick.”

Bieber, you tell us to “never say never,” but I can say with relative ease that I hope my future children never have to grow up with the same pressures you did, if this is the result.