Don’t blush, baby

Monday 4th January 2016. Mark that down as the date theabsurdity finally won their war against an enemy that never even existed.Those who lead lives so miserable and meaningless they need to hijack every single flavour of the week cause and steal some of the spotlight have got what they have been campaigning for over the last couple of years. The same people who see tragedy as an opportunity to score points will now get to fulfil their dream of living in a cold, sterile anti utopia where everybody is as miserable as they are.

Today everyone has been bombarded by headlines depicting a scandal so despicable anyone would have thought the Skaf brothers were at it again. An international cricket superstar sexually harassing a journalist trying to do her job. Oh how the self appointed social commentators in the blogging world have cashed in. Infamous social pot stirrers finally getting their moment in the spotlight by reporting on an “incident” they have decided to turn into a full blown gender war. Society has officially lost the plot. The reality is the headline should read something like “Man invites lady for drink, she declines”. Instead, it’s as though he took it out. Back in the real world, we’re all shaking out heads. There shouldn’t even be any headlines. How is this scenario considered remotely newsworthy?

Every hypocritical, sanctimonious prick who claims to be someone of note has been very quick to spit vitriol at Chris Gayle despite their intervention not being needed or wanted by the only person who has any right to say anything on the matter. These grubs have been so quick to accuse Chris Gayle, a player immensely popular with fans all over the world and known for his charity work and larger than life personality, of “demeaning women” they didn’t even consider the fact they were committing the very act they claim to be so personally offended by. I’m a big Mel McLaughlin fan, first being introduced to this seasoned professional via Fox Sports football coverage. She has been in the scene for a while and handled herself with class and dignity last night. The same can not be said for the ptichfork wielding mob united and galvanised by their latest hashtag. In their haste to score points and make the whole thing about them, they have totally disrespected Mel and dismissed her handling of the event. They have essentially decided she is a small, weak girl who can not defend herself and needs an army of white knights to protect her. Which is obviously a crock of shit and extremely demeaning if you ask me.

What is even more absurd is the hypocrisy shown by Big Bash League &Channel Ten executives on multiple levels. Gayle has been a big feature of their marketing, not just because of his playing ability but because of his personality. Now the second he displays it they throw him under the bus? Anyone with a passing interest in cricket knows who Gayle is and knows what he is like in interviews, especially in a fun, party environment such as a BB game. To suggest they did not have an idea of how the interview would turn out is naive. They sent McLaughlin out hoping for something like this. And then straight after the interview they posted it all over social media with the ‪#‎smooth‬ hashtag! Fortunately the pot stirrers out there screenshotted it to share with the world. So while publicly condemning their star attraction back in the office it’s high fives all round.

Now as for Channel 10 and specifically executive David Barham who was apparently “deeply offended” by an adult complementing another adult, you guys have got a bit of explaining to do. For a network that all of a sudden is all about family values you sure do air a lot of content that, if I was someone who enjoyed a little bit of faux outrage, would say is also “deeply offensive” and demeans both women and men, treating them like sex objects.

Firstly, has anyone heard of Thunder player Chris Green? Don’t recognise the name? That’s ok, you wouldn’t have heard it much. Green happens to be quite easy on the eye and because of this he is referred to almost exclusively by his nickname – “FES”. In case you were wondering, FES stands for “Female Engagement Strategy”. So here we have a young athlete trying to make a name for himself, but not being able to because nobody ever actually says his name. I watch a lot of cricket and to be honest I’m not even sure where his cricketing strengths lie, because they’re never discussed. You can rest assured his good looks are though. At least 20 times per innings when fielding, and almost as many when his team is batting, despite him not being at the crease. Even the great man Boonie never got this much attention, I wonder why? But apparently this is all acceptable behaviour?

One man playfully asking one woman out on a date is apparently a no go zone, yet one man dating TWELVE women AT THE SAME TIME whilst leading them all on is acceptable? Apparently so, as fans of one of 10s flagship shows The Bachelor Australia would all know. And because we’re all about equality in 2016 one woman simultaneously dating twelve men is all cool too, just ask The Bachelorette Australia.

Ten is also OK with running a marketing campaign for another one of it’s disposable “reality” shows, I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here Australia, where the them almost entirely revolves around comedian Julia Morris objectifying none other than the wholesome Bondi Vet on TEN, Dr Chris Brown who has seemingly lost his luggage. Well, at least the part that contained his shirts. He seems to be getting more used to it and comfortable than he was a couple of years ago

I see promos for Neighbours every ad break. Not sure what the plot is going to be but the ads have been fairly insistent the new cast members are HOT HOT HOT. Shirtless, bronzed guys and seductive girls with bedroom eyes doing their thing around the pool. Neighbours sure has changed since Dr Karl, Lou Carpenter and Harold Bishops days!

 

Let’s not forget 10 used to be the home of Big Brother Australia back in the days of Hotdogs, Krystal and co. Ten used to take great delight in showcasing the lives of horny and confined housemates on their scandalous Adults Only Up Late edition. And who could ever forget those loveable rogues that turkey slapped their fellow housemate whilst all in Channel 10s care. There were calls to ban the show then, but Channel 10s response was they were still “committed to the program” Thank god they didn’t do anything really vulgar, like ask her for a drink! One last mention must go to 10s longest running show, The Bold and the Beautiful. A show that has somehow survived for almost as long as TV itself despite having no real plotline of note. But hey, when bored middleaged housewives get a bit frisky, that’s just a bit of cheeky fun and let’s be honest, it’s nowhere near as hot as it used to be ever since original Ridge Forrester, Ronn Moss left the show.

 

I could go on and on and on but I feel the point has been made. 10 is run by lowlife hypocrites and the sooner they formally apologise to Gayle the better.

As I mentioned earlier I believe Mel McLaughlin is a fantastic sports analyst and a strong, personable TV talent. I’m a big fan of hers and have been for years. She has been great on Foxs football coverage and earned respect throughout the industry for her insight, knowledge and passion for the game. Her credibility is beyond question. However in this situation I must question her approach to an interview she would have had ample time to prepare for. For starters, TV execs would have been crossing their fingers all tournament waiting for a moment like this. Gayle is a known “smooth operator”, and is known for his having a bit of fun when he’s interviewed. So given that knowledge, and knowing the vibe of the BBL I struggle to understand why she approached the interview as if she was interviewing Mike Hussey during an Ashes series. BBL is popcorn entertainment. Nobody cares about stats or hard hitting analysis. Especially when the game is done. It’s a party vibe, and the viewers want to see the players real personalities. Not the usual boring one liners about the guys are looking solid, need to take our chances, blah, blah, blah.

With all that in mind, I feel a professional of McLaughlin’s calibre could have approached her assignment a different way.  To all those who say how dare he disturb her when she was doing her job, well they were both doing their job. His is to entertain by playing cricket, and in this specific situation hers is to give the viewers an insight into their favourite players. Given Mel has shown time and time again that she can more than hold her own with the lads, I was quite surprised to see the way this panned out. Personally, I would have loved to see McLaughlin dish it up twice as hard and put Mr Gayle in his place with a brutal take down. Imagine if Mel chose to embrace the jovial spirit of the tournament and shoot Gayle down with a stinging retort like “in your dreams, pal” or “after the way you just got out? Kidding yourself!” Boom! A hilarious zinger for the ages! The so called “player” and legendary pants man having his ego savaged live around the world by a gun reporter. Everyone would have loved it and it would currently be on every sports highlight reel around the world. Oh, what an opportunity missed!

All the armchair commentators in the Twitterverse blowing up at all who question their hysteria need a reality check. One of the constant themes has been how dare someone treat McLaughlin in a certain way because of her looks and nothing else. Umm, hate to break it to you all, but you’re the ones doing that. Any sports fan would have no doubt been aware of Mel’s existence before 5 minutes ago, unlike the rabid mob. And guess what, every sports fan I know agrees that she is amazing at her job. Sure, most agree she is a very attractive lady as well. But so fucking what? Is being beautiful a crime? Is acknowledging beauty a crime? Apparently so, according to those who have not bothered to even research the subject of their crusade and are making assumptions based on her looks. How fucking judgemental.

To be brutally honest, I doubt there is any denying her attractiveness has helped get a foot in the door. It’s common knowledge that more attractive people will always have an advantage in the job market. And we’re talking about an on screen presenting role here! And whether right or wrong, it has opened doors for McLaughlin. But make no mistake. Someone may have opened the door because they saw a pretty face for TV, but Mel kicked the door down in no uncertain terms, and has proved she is far, far more. What’s the big deal here? It’s not like this has anything to do with anything. People are blowing up because Chris Gayle gaver Mel McLaughlin a compliment. I could understand the level of outrage had his remarks been offensive or in anyway vulgar. But they weren’t. He said she had nice eyes. She does have nice eyes. What of it!?

A storm in a teacup that lasted 10 seconds has turned into the scandal of the year so far. And for what. The only winners in this whole circus are the pot stirrers, cashing in on everyone fighting over who is the most offended. McLaughlin has already come out and said she does not want this bullshit to continue and she wants to move on, yet the sanctimonious, self serving morality police flat out refuse to respect her wishes. They are now threatening to damage her career. If they keep this up much longer she will forever be the unwilling face of media fuelled social outrage. One of best cricketers in a generation will perhaps never grace these shores again, and people will always associate McLaughlin with that, despite her not wanting a bar of any of it. That’s the legacy these hyper-sensitive ego maniacs are trying to build for her. If their nonsense is allowed to continue they’ll make her some kind of symbolic martyr, rather than leave her to be the passionate, professional and respected journalist that she is.

Now that would be cause for outrage if ever I saw it.

One day after penning this rant reports are coming through that Chris Gayle will not be permitted back to next years tournament. That’s if he’d even want to.  If true this is the most absurd decision of all time. The overwhelming majority of cricket fans support Gayle. CA are trying to appease the self-righteous, sanctimonious do gooders of the world. None of whom are even cricket fans. This is akin to KFC banning the sale of chicken to appease the vegan market. If this is the last season Gayle plays, this is the last season I watch. Same goes for all other forms of the game. I will not support an organisation that panders to the psychotic banshees of social media while refusing to listen to their actual stakeholders.

Men now must watch every word they say to avoid stuttering, slipping up or saying the wrong thing otherwise they’ll be labelled a sleaze, a pervert or much worse. Women by the same token will now find it tougher to speak up if faced with REAL issues, for fear of not being taken seriously by a society that has been torn apart by imaginary gender wars.