Will Charlie Sheen Ever Clean Up His Act?

The cards are not stacked in his favor. If history is any indication, the answer is no.

"Sources tell RadarOnline that Charlie has been using cocaine for weeks. He's been on a bit of a bender and he just came out of rehab two months ago," Radar's executive vice president David Perel tells PopEater. "Unfortunately Charlie's had a severe addiction problem over the years and it looks like he hasn't quite shaken it."

That's putting it mildly. What it looks like is that he'll never shake it, that he doesn't really want to shake it, that he's only pretending to try to shake it because his people tell him he has to if he wants to stay employed on a network television show.

Psychiatrist Christos Ballas predicts there is a light at the end of the tunnel for Sheen, since most troubled celebrities do eventually get it together when they grow up. But there's still a long, dark road ahead.

"I don't imagine it happening any time soon because he doesn't seem to show any interest or motivation in cleaning up," Ballas tells PopEater. "Partly that's because he's protected from the consequences of it. He doesn't get any real jail time, he gets a little rehab, a fine here and there. He never really hits rock bottom."

Why? Because Sheen is a superstar, buffered from the harsh realities of the world most of the rest of us live in, where we would pay dearly for the kinds of things he's done (attacking women, for example).

Let's take a trip down memory lane, shall we? The year is 1990. Sheen shoots his fiancee at the time, Kelly Preston (now the wife of John Travolta). His story? He forgot the revolver was in his pants pocket and it accidentally went off, hitting the toilet and grazing Preston's arm. Doesn't sound sketchy, does it? We'd put it in the same category as his manager's explanation of the Plaza debacle -- that "Charlie had an allergic reaction to some medication."

Five years later, Sheen testifies at the trial of well-known Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss, confessing that he's one of her regulars and saying that, in his defense, he doesn't pay for sex, he pays for hookers to leave. And we are speechless again.

But our shock will be numbed over the next decade-plus when it comes to old Charlie. The years will bring with them an attack on a girlfriend for refusing to have sex, dangerous drug overdoses that prompt hospitalization, several rehab stints, a marriage to and ugly divorce from Denise Richards, a marriage to and ugly split from Mueller -- along with four children and allegations of domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse and an affinity for gay and child porn.

Cut to last Christmas with the drunken knife-wielding attack on Mueller, then fast-forward through another visit to rehab, and finally we're up to date with Tuesday's joy ride at the Plaza.

The bad boy's chances of pulling himself together aren't looking too promising, are they?

Ballas says that like many other celebrities, Sheen is a narcissist, which psychologically makes him feel above the law.

"A lot of this is his own personality -- in his mind he's allowed to do these things," Ballas tells PopEater. "He definitely has a substance abuse problem, but you can't attribute it all to that. He thinks he's better than everyone else. That narcissism makes him think the world is his oyster and he can do whatever he wants. That's what makes him dangerous."

And the University of Pennsylvania psychiatrist questions why Sheen only makes a scene when he's around other people, suggesting that maybe his shenanigans are mere ploys for attention.

"The problem with today's celebrities is you can't tell what's real, what's a stunt and what's a stunt gone wrong," says Ballas. "A psychiatrist can't help but read into some of the behaviors. A naked, drunk celebrity plus a naked woman in the closet equals looking for exposure."

Only time will tell whether Charlie will ever start behaving himself. For now, you might want to grab the popcorn and get comfortable. The show isn't over by a long shot.

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