Flying High No Longer

God how I wish the AFL would let Ben Cousins get past that white-line and on to the field…

Last night (25 Nov 2008 ) St Kilda declared that they had no interest in taking on Ben Cousins. This comes after North Melbourne, Collingwood (after hiring a private investigator - awesome use of my membership resources) and most recently Brisbane all declined the fallen eagle.

The more I think about this the more I think Cousins is a lost opportunity both onfield and off.

On field: Cousins is one of the greats – winning Brownlows,  winning grandfinals, achieving All-Australian selections, being deemed best and fairest, and holding the captaincy for five years. 

If he was an okay player, a good player, or even an excellent player then sure I could probably understand the hesitation. But he was (and could be again) great. He kicks goals and wins games, he boosts moral and memberships alike.

Shouldn’t this be enough to warrant a second (factor in public brawl with Kerr), no wait third (oh there was that incident with the WA gangland), okay forth (abandoning his car to run from a booze bust – hilarious), whoops fifth (that little incident at Crown in 2006)…shouldn’t this be enough to warrant ANOTHER chance???

When I first heard that St Kilda had rejected him my initial reaction was: Karma Benny. Obviously the guy isn’t the most sensible (or stealth) eagle in the nest. However the more I think about it the more I think perhaps he has been a little hard done by.

Yes drugs are socially frowned upon. Yes him taking them (AND GETTING CAUGHT) brought the game in to disrepute. However the only person who has lost (i mean a really lost) is Cousins. He has lost his reputation, his dignity, and the job he is seemingly so passionate about.

His job is (was) to play AFL football. To be fit, to kick goals, to win games. He is very good (great) at that job. He is not a politician, he is not a police officer, he is no-longer captain. He is not a role model .

I can’t help but think how unbalanced the treatment of Cousins has been. Contrast with Wayne Carey. Carey committed THE ULTIMATE SIN. As captain of the North Melbourne Football Club he cheated on his wife with the wife of his best friend. Oh and his best friend just happened to be his vice-captain. So many people lost. Carey (who also dabbles in non-prescription medicine) was picked up by the Adelaide Crows the next year.

Cousins has admitted he had a problem, sought treatment for that problem, and agreed to the re-entry conditions of the AFL (in the form of stringent drug testing). Another precedent: Piegate . Alan Didak, also an absolute great (minus the captaincy, Brownlow and Grandfinal) got a second (and third) chance when he was involved in an underworld joyride followed up a year later by a drunken joyride with team mate Heath Shaw. Shaw managed to crash his car into a parked car. Throughout preliminary questioning from the club Shaw stated that he was in the car with a ‘mate’. He did not mention this ‘mate’ was Didak. Didak straight away admitted he had a problem…no hang on…rather than admit to being drunk and in the car he concealed the truth (as he did a year earlier to police) from his captain, coach, and president. Pain all around – not to mention the horror that could have unfolded had the car plowed into a child rather than a parked vehicle. Didak coped a fine and missed a couple of games.

Supporters want their club to win games. Winning games boosts membership. More memberships boost sponsorship. More membership + Increased sponsorship =  Lots of money. 

Having Cousins in a team will create media hype but it doesn’t necessarily have to be bad. If the team does its due diligence (note to Collingwood re: Didak) and closely monitors Cousins it is possible that they will be praised for being a reformer.

Unlike Carey and Didak – Cousins’ actions stem from an addiction. Drug addiction is an illness, a horribly serious one. Cousins needs support so he can recover and perhaps even go on to become a voluntary role model to others suffering from similar illnesses. Give him a life-line.

I am a hypocrite (with an awesome tan)

A discussion I overheard today got me thinking about role models and their ability to spark debate in society. In my opinion there are two categories of role models. The first are the people who put their hands up to take on positions of esteem. This group includes politicians, teachers, parents, and the captain of the North Melbourne Football Club. The second, more interesting, type are those who are involuntarily branded advocates for a particular cause. This group includes B-grade celebrities who get breast enhancements at the age of 19 and then appear on popular reality TV shows.  

To set the scene – earlier today I was traveling home from the solarium (“woah stop, she has just lost all credibility on this issue”) when I heard two women sitting oppoite me on the train (“oh ok she takes public transport instead of adding to the carbon footprint by driving, she can’t be all bad, We’ll listen a bit longer”) discussing Krystal Forscutt (pictured) from the 2006 series of Big Brother.

The general gist of their conversaion was around how “abhorrent” and “hypocritical” it was for her to appear on A Current Affair saying she doesn’t condone plastic surgery. Krystal infamously had her chest surgically enhanced before appearing on Big Brother at the age of 19. It took every ounce of common decency I could muster not to rudely interrupt their conversation. I wanted so badly to inform them that it is neither “abhorrent” or “hypocritical” of her because she never set out to become a role model.

I could be wrong but I thought people went on Big Brother to:

A) win money

B) win fame

C) have the whole of Australia watch them get drunk, get naked, pash the other housemates (possibly while drunk and naked), and generally make a tool of themselves.

D) all of the above

I didn’t think anyone seriously went on there to become a role model. On The Biggest Loser (strong views on this - check out previous post) the purpose is to lose weight. On Australian Idol the purpose is to find Australias next chart topper. On Big Brother the purpose is to uhhhh hmmmmm entertain?? I don’t even know what the purpose is. Contestants on Loser are ’supposedly’ role models for healthy weight loss – Contestants on Big Brother don’t set themselves up as role models.  

Krystal came under fire after a plastic surgeon, Kourosh Tavakoli accused her of proliferating the practice of teenage plastic surgery, “I do get about 5 to 10 percent of girls aged 18-23 who do want to look like Krystal from Big Brother”.

 While I have no desire to go under the knife and certainly don’t condone plastic surgery for teenagers (unless for reconstructive purposes), I do believe it is an individual choice. Krystal made a choice to alter her body. The only person she put in physical harms way by making that choice was herself. I assume she went into the surgery fully aware of the possible consequences and made the decision that was right for her – not for anyone else. She didn’t set out to be a role model. It is unfair for the media to point it’s judgemental finger at her as the cause of an increase in teenage surgeries. Where are the parents? Where are the doctors? Where are the real role models?

It must have been obvious to Channel Ten that by selecting her for their reality tv show they would cause controversy. Surely if they are going to publicise the fact that they have a 19 year old with surgically enhanced breasts they should publicise the risks of undergoing such a procedure. Maybe I blinked and missed it but all I saw in the 2006 series was a variety of camera angles showing Krystal parading around the house in her bikini.

Krystal should be praised for appearing on A Current Affair to warn other young people about the riskes involved with such a surgery. She was under no obligation to go public and risk looking hypocritical. She defiantly seems more genuinely concerned with the effect media can have on impressionable young people then Channel Ten.

In high school I had a teacher who could be seen at any given lunch hour in a cafe across the street from the school (in full view of students) smoking a cigarette. This person elected to become a role model to teenagers. In my opinion this teacher failed in their duties as a role model. A couple of years ago the captain of the North Melbourne AFL team slept with the wife of his vice captain and more recently admitted to drinking excessive amounts every weekend during his AFL career. This person accepted the position of captain and as a result accepted the position of role model. This person failed in their duties as a role model. A former cricketer/sms extrodinaresigned a deal with an anti-smoking campaign and in doing so declared himself a role model. Shortly after signing with the nicotine substitute maker this person was photographed smoking. This person failed in their duties as a role model.

On a personal note, occasionally I go to the solarium. I know it’s bad for me, I know it damages my skin, I know, I know, I know…but I feel healthier and more confident when I have a tan. I know there are consequences but I have weighed them up against the benefits based on what is important to me. Have I failed as a role model? Am I a horrible person?

No I don’t think so. I never set out to be a role model. I am not doing anything illegal, the closest I ever come to walking the fine line of the law is the odd jay-walk across the road. 

My decision is not physically hurting anyone but myself. I was listening to a talkback radio program a few months ago. The issue was smoking. An 80 year old man called up and claimed that doctors were making too big a deal about the link between smoking and lung cancer. He smugly informed the host that he had been smoking for 60 years and had never suffered lung cancer. His wife of 60 years never smoked a cigarette in her life and recently died of lung cancer. I wanted to call up and scream at him, ”You killed your wife through passive smoking you moron”. I could be wrong but I don’t think they have proven that passive tanning kills.  

I am over 18. I know full well the risks involved. I go to the doctors and get any moles that I am concerned about checked regularly. If any of my friends or family wanted to go to the solarium I would talk them out of it. At the very least I would make sure they knew the potential risks they faced. Hypocritical? Maybe, but I accept that.

I am not an ambassador for The Cancer Council, although I fully support them and the valuable work they do. I don’t judge anyone who gets plastic surgery and I don’t recommend anyone go to the solarium. However, if you are thinking about it please view the following links so that you are making an informed decision:

The Cancer Council

NSW Government Department of Health Solarium Safety Guidelines

Clare Oliver Melanoma Fund