Thanks football for setting us back amost 100 years..

I should be studying, but I decided to take a quick NY times break. Big mistake, because now I'm unbelievably aggravated.

Apparently there are currently around 100 former football players receiving funds due to dementia. The football commissioner has been meeting with former players to determine if there will be more response to this issue, but has decided to ban wives from attending at the request of some former players.

One of the wives, a senior executive at Pfizer, tried to show up to a meeting anyway and was barred entrance. You know why? Some of the players expressed concern to Commissioner Goodell about their ability to express themselves with women present. So, Goodell acceded to their demands because he's worried that some of his big manly ex-players won't feel comfortable sharing in a meeting if women are present.

Eleanor Perfetto, however, points out that the men who are able to attend the meeting and explain their concerns are not those with the most serious needs. Thus, men like husband who require constant help and attention due to dementia are left without advocates.

There is just so much wrong with Goodell's reasoning that I don't know where to start. Is he really concerned that adult men will be uncomfortable sharing their problems and declining physical health because women are present? Presumably many of these same men are married to women, and I would assume that their wives are very much aware of their problems and spend a good deal of time and money helping them as their mental capabilities decline.

Is the stigma of being emotional, or sharing personal details in front of women so strong that these men are willing to harm their fellow players by limiting their access to essential meetings?

I really thought the idea that women are too emotional to have a vote died in the 1920s...