Sorry, Charlie?

I neither say Warner Bros. nor CBS had the last laugh today when Charlie Sheen was summarily dispatched from "Two and a Half Men." Not without knowing what gems the troubled (or is it conniving?) actor is ready to spew forth. Perhaps it's Sheen who is laughing all the way to the bank.

Rumor has it that Dallas Mavericks owner -- and a maverick in his own right -- Mark Cuban is interested in hiring Sheen for a talk show on HDNet. At least a few think this to be a horrible idea. But perhaps it will take Cuban's seemingly bottomless pockets to finally pay what at least Sheen and his goddesses think he's truly worth.

Last June, I wondered aloud (virtually) why Sheen is considered worthy amid all of his repeated nonsense over the years? I'll admit I kind of like "Two and a Half Men," knowing full well that Sheen is simply being himself. There's something so alluring about a train wreck, and every Monday at 9 p.m. for the past 8 years we've been privy to Sheen's gradual self-destruction, albeit a slightly fictionalized version.

But it's not like Sheen is God's gift to actors. Arguably his best film, "Platoon," is in fact carried by Willem Dafoe and Tom Berenger, in my opinion, anyway. Oh, and don't forget Forest Whittaker and John C. McGinley. Johnny Depp, even. Don't get me wrong, much to my dad's chagrin, I think the film is one of Oliver Stone's best. And sure, Sheen got the premier role, thanks to his dad's reputation. But even back then, as a 12-year-old, I never truly bought the performance, which to me seemed forced.

Nothing, however, seems fake about this grand meltdown before the world these past several weeks. Or maybe the joke is on the rest of us and Sheen is really crazy like a fox? He's played the media, his entourage and perhaps some of La-La Land's most prestigious suits. Who's to say we're any different?

Blink 182 -- Per Minute

Nerves are a crazy thing. People show anxiety in a number of ways. Rep. Michelle Bachmann just happens to blink ... a lot!

I was watching "Meet the Press" this morning and was flabbergasted at the freshman congresswoman's penchant for flapping her eyelids so quickly and so often while being interviewed by NBC's David Gregory. There have been numerous articles -- some scientific, many others not -- on how body language can tip off others to a lie. One of the purported ways is excessive blinking. I'm not expert on the subject, so I decided to see if I could find an definitive studies on the topic.

I did what any curious person would do. I consulted Google. While I could find nothing specific and scholarly, I did find link after link on conjecture. It seems studies are ongoing, but the general consensus is that rapid, abnormal amounts of blinking could signal that a person is lying. But the dancing eyelids could also mean the person is extremely nervous or anxious, not necessarily byproducts of a deceitful mind. Excessive blinking could even mean the person is searching for answers, which I'm pretty sure is the case with the curious case of bungling Bachmann. Maybe she's just a poor public speaker/interviewee. Or maybe I'm being too kind.

To be fair, this phenomenon is not just a trait of the Tea Party, or the Republican Party for that matter. Recall that just a few years ago John Edwards was suspected of lying because he also blinked faster than most people can type words per minute. And on the flip side, a prolonged, stare just as often indicate someone is lying. Any comment, Nancy Pelosi? I thought not.

If anything, this just might be a trait of politicians in general. Blinking, lying, a deer-in-the-headlights stare. Take your pick.