Women to NFL: 'Hands off our handbags!'
2013-08-20
Now it's spawned an angry mob made up of half the population of the United States.
A new policy at NFL stadiums this year limits the size of bags permitted for men and women to bring to the game. Purses are restricted to "small clutch bags, approximately the size of a hand, with or without a handle or strap." A clutch the size of a hand means you can carry ID, money, one lipstick and an iPhone. Anything more has to be carried in a large clear plastic bag, like the ones you use for liquids to prove to TSA agents you are not an underwear bomber.
Does anyone know a single female out there who can go anywhere for more than 30 minutes with only a hand-sized clutch?
Women fans showing up to NFL preseason games unaware of the new policy have had to go back to their cars to stow their purses. One claimed she had to throw hers away. "If I were a thief, I would show up to a #nfl game. I would say at least 50 percent of all cars will have a purse in it. #ihatefootball," tweeted one woman quoted in USA Today.
Obviously the NFL is run by men unaware that a woman's purse is an extension of herself. Sure, the league says it's about fan safety and moving lines at the entrance along, blah blah blah, but force a woman to leave that 25-pound shoulder suitcase behind, and you might as well cut off her arm while you're at it.
This is bigger than purses. This is about freedom, choice, women's rights. Are you ready for some (political) football?
Fans go through security check points prior to an NFL preseason football game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Tennessee Titans, Saturday, Aug. ...
Tom Uhlman / AP
Two women have hit YouTube with a hilarious video that makes fun of the new policy by making fun of themselves. They equate the NFL purse ban with Roe v. Wade in "My Purse, My Choice."
How dire is it when you can't take all your belongings into the stadium with you? "You can't see if you have anything in your teeth, because you don't have at least three Sephora mirrors you got with gift cards," complains one woman in the video. (Watch it here.)
The two women, dressed dramatically in black, go on to point out that purses carry items "essential to our freedoms and securing our future." What kind of items? "Gum. My aviators, my tortoise-shell Ray-Bans, my cheap sunglasses. A smaller purse," along with trash, Groupons, a weapon, someone else's smaller purse and my favorite, "17 J. Crew receipts."
As for carrying extras in a large plastic bag, the women dismissed that as "disgusting, because I don't want strangers to see what's in my purse."
Their campaign has only merely started. The two have created a #MyPurseMyChoice hashtag on Twitter. Yet even as they shout into the camera that the NFL should "Come and take it," it's clear as they lift up shoulder bags heavier than most firefighters carry, they were a lot more comfortable without their purses.
Come to think of it, if you can carry a purse heavier than a small Fiat all day around a stadium, why aren't there any women on the offensive line?
First of all, Jay Cutler needs to improve his horrible touchdown to interception ratio (27 to 26) that he posted in 2009. That interception total is by far the most he has thrown in his four year NFL career. Not only does he need to develop more consistency in 2010 with ratio, but his receivers need to do so as well. Chicago does not have a true No.1 or star receiver. Who the heck in the NFL [at least at the moment] is afraid of Earl Bennett, Devin Aromashodu, Rashied Davis, Juaquin Iglesias, and Johnny Know? No one that's who. Even each of those five receivers have talent and athleticism of their own, neither one of them have established themselves in the NFL as of yet and part of the reason for that is their youth. Neither one of them have been with the Bears for more than four full seasons.
So that in essence is what Cutler has to deal with. Matt Forte, their star two-dimensional running back, is the best overall player on their offense these days but he CANNOT do it all alone. His body can only take so much. But Cutler despite all the youth and lack of big time ability at receiver, has to be held accountable too. Those receivers are in the NFL for a reason, which means that they belong in this league somehow, and smart NFL betting knows that the Bears have had some real trouble at the Receiver position.
Cutler has the arm strength, the accuracy (when he wants to), the brains (he went to Vanderbilt for God sakes!), and the talent to succeed in this league. But this writer doubts he will ever get as far as he is capable of with the receivers they have. Tight end Greg Olsen is a stud, but he like Forte is only one man (although a very talented man). Olsen is not only a safety valve for Cutler, but he is a heck of an athlete and he can be a vital weapon when the receivers are jammed up in coverage. But don't think defenses haven't seen how much of a vital cog Olsen is to this offense. Because if he gets hurt or goes down, Chicago is in trouble.
The good thing about Cutler though, is that he doesn't have to worry about looking over his shoulder for competition at his position. Caleb Hanie, Brett Basanez, and rookie Dan LeFevour are future players who aren't ready to start for anyone in this league let alone the Bears right now.
Cutler has been tantalizing Bears fans with his talent but one year is an unfair time to assess him. If he stinks up the joint with another INT to TD ratio like in 2009, there may be calls for his head. Barring injury and huge inconsistency, Cutler should be much better in 2010. The Bears have the defense and just enough talent to make some noise in the NFC North. Adding former Minnesota and Baltimore standout Chester Taylor at running back will help the Bears and Forte in 2010. Like Forte, Taylor has been stupendously successful as a runner and pass catcher out of the backfield. The onus for the Bears to be successful offensively in 2010 doesn't all fall on Cutler's shoulder's, those receivers have to step up too. Bennett though 4th on the team in catches and 3rd in receiving yards, but its time for him to start making the transition to between 900 to 1,000 yards receiving. He and Cutler played two years together at Vanderbilt, so there has to be some synchronicity with those two.
But if Cutler goes down to injury so goes the Bears season. He, Forte, and the development of the Bears receivers are some of the most vital elements of whatever the Bears will do in 2010, and NFL betting are keeping a keen eye on them. They have the defense, the starting offensive line is good (although 40 percent of it is aging), and head coach Lovie Smith believes in Cutler. New offensive coordinator Mike Martz demands perfection and Cutler will have to adjust or there could be some problems between those two. Martz loves to throw the ball and tire out defenses with multiple passing routes, and Cutler excels at throwing intermediate, short, and deep passes. Cutler has the talent to succeed in Martz's offense, and his systems for years have made some already gifted or talented receivers and quarterbacks look even better than they should. Then there's the fiasco in San Francisco with Martz and Alex Smith. And Smith is a calm guy and Cutler is not exactly the quietest guy in the room.
Martz and Cutler's relationship could either blow up in the Bears faces or their relationship could place Cutler in the Pro Bowl for years to come. Its pressure being an NFL quarterback, and this story shows that. Cutler has a lot to overcome if he hopes to take the Bears to the next level.
Where do you do your NFL betting? Head over to www.sportsbook.com where everybody bets.