High school - Andrean 24, Munster 20. College - Notre Dame 30, Purdue 14. NFL - Domestic abusers 1, Women 0.
On Friday night, I did my local radio guy imitation and walked the sidelines of Father Eckert Stadium announcing a football game in a sideways rain and unseasonable 49 degrees. It's Sunday morning and my feet are still cold.
On Saturday, Alexis and I were supposed to drive to Indy for the "Shamrock Series," which is a euphemism for Domers to thump their chests after again thumping the Boilers.
At noon yesterday, Alexis said, "Are you gonna be a jerk on the ride home if Purdue loses... just like all the other times."
"Probably."
"Then why don't we stay home, go to 5:30 mass and watch the game in a bar. At least the drive home will be shorter."
What a great idea. And in typical fashion, Purdue broke Purdue fans' hearts by hanging tough til halftime then falling apart in the 2nd half. On the short drive home from the bar, I sang out loud every verse of Neil Young's "Helpless." There's press passes at Lucas Field that went unused and am I glad for that.
Today, we're watching Sunday morning news shows and every one of them has something about Ray Rice and domestic violence. Talking heads are calling for the head of Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the NFL. Political strategists plot what the domestic abuse issue will mean to the upcoming mid-term elections. Business types wonder out loud if profits of the tax-exempt NFL will suffer.
But about the women? The ones who get punched in the face, dragged across the floor of an elevator, stalked when they pick up the kids from school? What will happen to them?
Probably not much. It's in our culture to quietly look the other way when we learn of a woman getting hit. It just is. Perhaps, though, we have an opportunity here to open up the discussion. And one direction I'd love to see the conversation go is this - How do we keep men from hitting women?
There's a ton of discussion of what to do after women "get the snot beaten out of them." That's not my words. That's how Lisa Wein of Haven House puts it. She's been the executive director of the home for victims of abuse and their children for two decades. She's seen it all, and we talk about it in the monthly Haven House radio show that I host. The effects on the children, how women usually go back, how once in a while the guy even kills the woman. It's horrifying and sad stuff.
But we do talk about it. And once in a while I ask - how can we get to the dude before he hits his wife, girlfriend, etc? How come we never talk about that portion of this issue?
Invariably, this question is met with blank stares from the women on the show and no callers.
Now comes Janay and Ray Rice, and at least a few people dare address prevention. NBC, which broadcast the Ravens game on Thursday, did an editorial about how it's time for men "to accept responsibility" for their actions. No kidding. Ray Rice, McDonald and the others - their despicable actions give us the opportunity to talk about something we never do.
How do we stop at least one man from hitting a woman?
On Friday night, I did my local radio guy imitation and walked the sidelines of Father Eckert Stadium announcing a football game in a sideways rain and unseasonable 49 degrees. It's Sunday morning and my feet are still cold.
On Saturday, Alexis and I were supposed to drive to Indy for the "Shamrock Series," which is a euphemism for Domers to thump their chests after again thumping the Boilers.
At noon yesterday, Alexis said, "Are you gonna be a jerk on the ride home if Purdue loses... just like all the other times."
"Probably."
"Then why don't we stay home, go to 5:30 mass and watch the game in a bar. At least the drive home will be shorter."
What a great idea. And in typical fashion, Purdue broke Purdue fans' hearts by hanging tough til halftime then falling apart in the 2nd half. On the short drive home from the bar, I sang out loud every verse of Neil Young's "Helpless." There's press passes at Lucas Field that went unused and am I glad for that.
Today, we're watching Sunday morning news shows and every one of them has something about Ray Rice and domestic violence. Talking heads are calling for the head of Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the NFL. Political strategists plot what the domestic abuse issue will mean to the upcoming mid-term elections. Business types wonder out loud if profits of the tax-exempt NFL will suffer.
But about the women? The ones who get punched in the face, dragged across the floor of an elevator, stalked when they pick up the kids from school? What will happen to them?
Probably not much. It's in our culture to quietly look the other way when we learn of a woman getting hit. It just is. Perhaps, though, we have an opportunity here to open up the discussion. And one direction I'd love to see the conversation go is this - How do we keep men from hitting women?
There's a ton of discussion of what to do after women "get the snot beaten out of them." That's not my words. That's how Lisa Wein of Haven House puts it. She's been the executive director of the home for victims of abuse and their children for two decades. She's seen it all, and we talk about it in the monthly Haven House radio show that I host. The effects on the children, how women usually go back, how once in a while the guy even kills the woman. It's horrifying and sad stuff.
But we do talk about it. And once in a while I ask - how can we get to the dude before he hits his wife, girlfriend, etc? How come we never talk about that portion of this issue?
Invariably, this question is met with blank stares from the women on the show and no callers.
Now comes Janay and Ray Rice, and at least a few people dare address prevention. NBC, which broadcast the Ravens game on Thursday, did an editorial about how it's time for men "to accept responsibility" for their actions. No kidding. Ray Rice, McDonald and the others - their despicable actions give us the opportunity to talk about something we never do.
How do we stop at least one man from hitting a woman?
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