I meant to do that...

Holy shitfire and brimstone, man.

You know how you should think before you speak?  Why do we seem to still remember that bit of sage advice but then fail to take pause before we send texts, post our crazy bullshit status updates, click that "like" button...?  And by "we" of course I mean "me."  I bet I'm the only one, right?

It's all Charlie Sheen's fault, really.  Let's go there.  Yes, this is about America's current most talked about celebrity (give it 5 minutes...wait for it...wait for it...AND there, he's over).  As most of you likely know, excluding all cave dwellers and/or anyone who doesn't watch tv, listen to the radio, read the papers, go online, or talk to anyone - hang on...if that's you, what're you doing here? - Charlie is having a very public, heartbreaking meltdown.  Or, as he puts it, winning!!!  ,

Well, I may have posted a status update making light of some of Mr. Sheen's recent utterances.  I by no means did so to make light of either substance abuse or mental illness (it's my belief that he suffers from both).  What is happening to Charlie Sheen is not funny.  Not in the least.  However, some of the things he says, especially singularly on their own?  Yeah, I've chuckled a few times.  I've not heard or seen any of these interviews in their entirety.  I have just been subjected to clips and quips thanks to morning radio and nightly news.  And in my own brand of nuttiness, my brain seemed to want to translate his words into lolspeak.  So I posted my translation.  Without thinking.  I can certainly understand that it may have appeared insensitive, and I had a moment where I thought to delete the post.  I ulitmately left it standing, and the ensuing dialogue that took place in the comments was amazing and inspiring.  So there.  I meant to do that, really. 

Maybe I'm not the only one who feels like a bit of a looky-loo, craning my head as I drive by the accident.  Damn, this bit of "news" is all over the place, all the time.  It's hard to avoid.  I read a great article on, of all places, yahoo news that pointed to us, the public, as Mr. Sheen's codependents in this situation and that the media is just doing it's job - reporting news.  It seems to me more like a two-headed beast; it takes both the consumers and the media to decide what's newsworthy.  It is elemental of our culture to find celebrity newsworthy, and the demise of the "great" also newsworthy.  We are watching a man self-destruct while he believes the exact opposite is true, which makes it even more astounding and it's hard to look away. 

But paying attention to what's happening to Charlie Sheen does not mean that we're not all totally messed up, depraved, twisted beings.  Many of us look on in shock, horror, sadness, and deep empathy.  So yes, we're looking...we're listening...but I'm not sure I would say we're exactly being entertained.  And even more hopefully, maybe we're even being educated.  At the very least it's given me pause, though I'm not sure I WILL think twice before I post whatever drivel and nonsense passes through my filter-challenged brain.  Why not be a lightning rod of controversy?  Look at where it got Charlie Sheen. 

Oh, wait, oops...