Time Again To Reconsider Role Models
Male student-athletes comprise just 3 percent of the undergraduate college population. Yet they represent nearly 20 percent of sexual-assault perpetrators, according to a three-year study at 10 universities by the Center for the Study of Sport in Society at Northeastern University in Boston.
Among professional athletes, one in five players in the National Football League in 1998 had been charged with a serious crime — rape, domestic violence, homicide, assault, kidnapping, robbery or drug-related offenses.
These studies and others are detailed in two recent books, “Public Heroes, Private Felons: Athletes and Crimes Against Women,” and “Pros and Cons: The Criminals Who Play in the NFL.” (From October Glamour)
* For men only: There’s still room in the men’s issues class being offered through the Community College Institute for Extended Learning.
The course covers issues ranging from fatherhood to dealing with job stress to grief and loss. It’s taught by Don Barlow, a mental health counselor and single father.
The four-session course, which is open to men only, runs 6:30-8:30 p.m. on Thursday and Oct. 26 and Nov. 2 and 9, at the Institute for Extended Learning on the SFCC campus. Cost is $37.
For more information, call Barlow at 533-3041; to register, call the IEL at 533-3770.
* What’s in a name? The most common name for American males: James. Apparently the presidential race is having little effect on new parents. George ranks 16th; Albert ranks 54th. (From October Boston Magazine)
* Payback time: Got noisy neighbors? A New Zealand man has recorded a compact disc of 64 minutes of lawn mower noise.
“If your neighbors have a party Saturday night fairly late … what you do is you get up at 7 a.m., put the hour of lawn-mowing sound on and go out to a cafe,” the inventor says.
The CD is his second. The first - which he called the ultimate contraceptive — featured loud urban noises such as a car alarm, a revving motorcycle and a crying baby.
No word as to where the CDs are available, though. (From the Philadelphia Inquirer)
* Quote of the week: “In my opinion, short men don’t often attract a lot of women so when they are in a relationship, they put in extra effort to make it work and to keep their girlfriends happy.” — Nicole, age 26, who says she dates only short men, in an article about women’s dating biases. (From October Marie Claire)
* Looking back: For every 100 women, 41 missed their high school prom, 78 seriously regret a hairstyle, 37 played varsity sports, 9 ran for student body president and 60 still wonder about their high school sweetheart. — from an ad for women.com (From October Marie Claire)