Super Bowl Super Offensive?
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Okay.. I realize I am the same person who just blogged about chest sizes in Hollywood, but today a more serious spin on sex, sports, the media and particularly the Super Bowl.
Today’s Super Bowl experience stirred up a lot of emotion for me and it’s not because it turned into such a close game in the 4th quarter.
Before the game even started, I was mortified that Ben Roethlisberger is still wearing a Steelers uniform and not an orange prison suit. And for me, seeing him throw the interceptions was like divine intervention. I never wish failure on anyone, however watching him throw the game away felt so right, because the idea of him playing just felt so wrong.
If you are not up to speed Roethlisberger’s history. Two women accused him of sexual assault within a year. And the reports on these cases are appalling. I still can’t believe he has never been arrested, charged or convicted of anything. I believe if he weren’t who he was, he’d be locked up. And the NFL didn’t need a conviction to take action after the most recent case came to light last March.
http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/new-twists-in-ben-roethlisberger-sexual-assault-case-041610
The NFL suspended him for four games earlier this season, saying his behavior violated the personal conduct policy. A four game suspension does that sound reasonable to you? Should the league be that forgiving?
Now read the lawsuit that had been filed against him just months earlier. I realize you can’t believe everything you read, but come on.
I didn’t know hot to take some of the comments I saw on Twitter last night. I posted a few here. Should we really be laughing about it? Or then maybe it’s good that the world is showing it’s not ready to forgive and forget.
As if Roethlisberger still playing in the NFL isn’t insulting enough to women.!! Did you see some of the commercials? My 12-year-old son’s eyes nearly popped out of his sockets when the first Go Daddy ad came on. Then there was the Sketchers ad. I would post links here, but then I feel like I would just be further promoting the smut.
It’s not like we run a G or PG rated home. We are a pretty open, easy-going non judgmental family. And I realize this isn’t Go Daddy’s first Super Bowl Rodeo. I get it. Go Daddy wouldn’t continue producing these types of campaigns if they weren’t effective.
Maybe it was just the cumulative effect for me. Between “Ben the bearded monster” and the raunchy ads, I’d had enough.
I thought the Super Bowl was supposed to be a family friendly event. Remember the brouhaha when Janet Jackson exposed a little too much in the half time show years ago? She did that on her own without NFL or network approval. Today’s series of unfortunate events were all pre-approved. Who is signing off on this stuff?
If you ask me the National Football League is in Need of Female Leadership.
What do you think?
Wow – being a former Pittsburgh resident, I was glad to see the Steelers in the Super Bowl. However, being a west coast resident and not an avid football fan, I had no idea about Roethlisberger’s history. Some of the behavior celebrities engage in with impunity is shameful.
I can say with pride, though, that my husband (while he, ahem, enjoyed the Go-Daddy eye candy) thought that – hands down – the best ad was wholesome Little Darth Vader. From the morning-after ad buzz, he is not the only one. So that warms my heart a bit.
We liked Darth too. And I am a big fan of Mike Tomlin and what he has accomplished at such a young age as head coach of the Steelers. Take Care Keenie.
Hi Iryanis. Personally, I see Superbowl Sunday as a great day for the kids to go skiing or to go to the zoo. You know. Stuff that’s usually too crowded to enjoy on a regular Sunday. That’s largely because I resent thugs like Roethlisberger getting to skip over all those pesky laws the rest of us peons live by. Unfortunately, it’s not just the NFL, it’s the entire football culture, right down to the high school level, with padded grades and rule indulgences that the average geek would never get. At this point, I don’t care if my 6’6″ tank of a teenage son never plays for his high school team again. Fortunately for me, he doesn’t care, either. So to answer your question, I don’t think it’s a male/female issue. I see just as many women cutting slack to the kids in high school as I do men. And those ads? Oh, well, they’re associated with football so we’ll let them slide, too. Love the post. All the best.
I have always loved watching football. So maybe that’s why the whole scenario seems so disappointing. It makes me sad to think our society allows this whole football culture to exist. I am guessing your son sees this stuff first hand at the high school level. Wow, you have a mighty big son!!
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