What were they thinking?

To rip off Marc Anthony, I have not come to bury Charlie Sheen, but to bury others. First a recap.

A successful actor, Charlie Sheen has been known to live a life of utter debauchery. You know the story well enough that I don't have to repeat it. His latest entry into rehab was not his first.

Since 2003, he has been the star of the very popular television program Two and a Half Men. The recurring theme of the show is his character's debauched lifestyle. Much alcohol and many women (including prostitutes) are what his character lives for. It's a bit of an inside joke, though everyone else gets it. Here, art imitates life as Charlie's past lifestyle is parodied in his character's.

The problem is that it seems that Sheen has never successfully kicked his vices. Even during the show's run, he has been the cover-boy of the tabloids for his on-again, off-again escapades.

I sincerely hope that this rehab trip does him some good. Even if he brings destruction upon himself, I would like to see him free from it and live a normal life. Better yet, I pray that there is a strong believer near him who can bring him to Christ. But that's not what this post is about.

It is funny in a way to lampoon the real-life Charlie Sheen in the fictional Charlie Harper. But I am wondering what is going through the minds of the writers and producers as they turn out this product. I suppose if Sheen had been completely rehabbed, it would be amusing to have him play the person he used to be but from which he has broken free.

But how do you write scripts detailing his boorish behavior when he still engages in it? When you know Charlie Sheen and you see how he is damaging his own life, when does it stop being funny? The dues the fictional character pays pale in comparison to what the actor is paying. Don't these people have any responsibility here at all?

Furthermore, are you in some way enabling him in his behavior by making a joke of it? Maybe he would realize he has a problem if you cast him in a drama where this lifestyle completely ruins him. As long as he struggles with his addictions, I think the laughter is hollow.

So I don't come to bury Charlie Sheen. I think it is Charlie Harper who should be buried. And maybe a few writers with him.