One Year Later

The sheen which developed on the waters of the Gulf of Mexico is nothing compared to the one Charlie Sheen, recent activist for mental illness, has managed to create for himself lately. Obviously the timing is off. Charlie Sheen is already in BP Oil Spill Month 5 mode, when people just sort of shrugged and the damage control had shut everyone up about talking about anything. The two situations are similar in this way.

Charlie Sheen has spilled all over pop culture while his true problems lurked under the surface of the water, disrupted by dispersants, and this has gone on for years. Then suddenly we see the pathological outbreak in a series of almost unbelievable news stories – crashed cars, threatened ex wives, domestic allegations, alleged use of substances – and it is capitalized on.

With BP and other corporate hijackers of democracy and ecology, we see the pathological behavior and wait until the moment of infamy, and then let them get away with it (since we are disenfranchised, our outrage counts for nothing anyway). One year later and the outcry is buried in new outcries. No anti-worldrapists got offended when plutocracy and capitalism eroded another massive chunk of the world. Not even Charlie had it so easy.

If only an oil spill were as profitable and easy to manage as a fame spill.



Most people have already given most of their attention to Charlie Sheen, not the Gulf Sheen. It was bound to happen and nobody is particularly self-righteously angry about it. Even the biologists who had the loudest cries of moderation and despair are chained to a petroleum society and probably hurt the environment in more ways than they care to really scrutinize.

Likewise Charlie Sheen, who people love to analyze while ignoring their own faults. I see my own position as impartial. I hate oil spills and tabloid culture equally, because both are damaging to vulnerable ecosystems. I don't hate celebrities, unless they are particularly worthless, and Charlie Sheen proved himself in Platoon, at least, and also arguably in Wall Street. Two good films right there you should view.

Success goes to everyone's head. Lets see how both entities are doing in this, the wondrous future. Charlie Sheen is still profitable, he's on tour, and while his star is fading, it is likely it will take a while to extinguish itself. He's got some friends, if you know what I mean.

BP is still profitable, still on a rapacious global rampage, and has even taken up the cause of its biggest detractors and sued the companies whose cost-competitive bids undercut safety. Capitalism. Winning. Duh. Never mind the oil in the waters, friends, it's going to stay out of sight for a long time.