When Celebrities Cry, Should We Believe?

This past week leads me to believe that we can never truly know what is in the heart of a celebrity.

Two examples emerge, one from politics, one from sports.

Last week prior to the New Hampshire Presidential Primary, Sen. Hillary Clinton gets verklempt about politics not being a game and she nearly breaks into tears. By some accounts, Hillary is not a nice person. She is one tough woman, prone to yelling at staff and often coming across as a lecturing librarian.

Then after yesterday's loss to the New York Giants, badboy Dallas Cowboys WR Terrell Owens--often listed as Exhibit A of greedy, selfish pro athletes--cries about criticism leveled at "my quarterback" and "my team mate" Tony Romo.

But what's true and what's cold calculation when it comes to any of us, let alone celebrities?

Back In The Day when O.J. Simpson was known as perhaps the greatest running back in the history of football and Hertz rental car ads ("Go O.J.!"), I remember being shocked like a lot of people that this seemingly friendly and jovial jock could slice two people to death with a knife.

Yet, apparently, it's true--at least a civil jury says so as does a lot of direct and circumstantial evidence, Johnny Cochran notwithstanding.

We didn't know O.J. We thought we did but we really had no clue. Perhaps only a few people close to Simpson--including Nicole Simpson, who had divorced him--actually knew what he might be capable of.

By the same token, was Hillary sincere? Was T.O. sincere? Were their tears real, their halting voices true?

The sunny optimist, the side of me that likes to think the best rather than the worst in people, would like to think so.

Unfortunately, that optimism and good will is tempered with what I have seen politicians and TV personalities do first hand--to try and create a reality that is an unreality--to fake sincerity--to try and fool at least some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time.

Despite the now hours of cable TV news, a gazillion blogs, and every other new marvel of information technology, there is still no real way to say who is have an actual catharsis or epiphany before us, and which ones are modern day Elmer Gantries, pulling at our heartstrings with manufactured charm--and bad intent.

Frankly, I just don't know.

Perhaps it is as replicant Ray Batty says at the end of the movie "Blade Runner."

"All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain."

Time will tell if what we witnessed withstands the rains of history--or not.