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Ben Cousins - what action should the AFL take?

What action should the AFL take?

  • Ban him for life

    Votes: 62 53.9%

  • Kick him out for a couple of years

    Votes: 29 25.2%

  • Slap him on the wrist (again) and 'say dont do it again'

    Votes: 24 20.9%
  • Total voters
    115
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I noticed in today's Melbourne papers a picture of the smirking pratt shopping in Richmond. Maybe he reckons the Tiges might take him on. Not even they would be that desparate.
 
hangseng said:
[/I]Why then aren't these "AFL player" held accountable? Surely the AFL and the Victorian people are aware of this (as you are) and wouldn't be turning a blind eye if a crime is being committed now would they?
Click to expand...

HangSeng, I reckon that everyone who has posted in this thread would absolutely agree with you that the AFL policy on drug use is badly designed, corruptible, and well, just a joke. We would love to see drugs eliminated in sport and elsewhere, and EVERYONE who has tested positive to drug use, or ADMITTED to drug abuse should be outed and dealt with (which probably means suspension and then treatment in a good rehab centre)

Of course this means that Cousins would be included by his, well, rambling round about admission.

We have no control over the AFL much as we would like to. You simply cannot use this as an excuse for what is happening in Perth. My neighbour breaks the water restrictions, he doesn't get caught (or a blind eye is turned by SA Water) - does that make it right for me to do it? If that is your rationale then it is flawed.

Whatever the AFL does, or doesn't do, in no way excuses what Ben has been up to in Perth, and the USA recently, and the whole team is suspect after what happened in the US on a footy trip maybe 12 months ago?

By the way, you should be in Adelaide when a Crows player does something wrong!
 

Good morning Prospector.

No that is not my rationale, nor intended to be.

An open statement to you all. If Ben is found guilty of a crime then he should be punished accordingly, I not suggesting otherwise. At this point there is no charge let alone a crime.

It is the pack dog mentality and double standards being applied that has my attention.
 
Hello all - I have never posted anything on a thread until this
"unjust" poll caught my eye!!! And felt the need to speak out
in Ben's defence!!!
Ben has been cleared of all charges!! FACT
Ben has never tested positive to any AFL drug tests & he has
had many!! FACT
Sometimes it can take years to get the medication (the right dose)
correct for depression, Schizophenia and other mental illness. Some
can be managed without medication (seeing counsellors/case workers).
Have any of you read Ben's Medical Records????
Were you with him in LA & speaking to his counsellors????
NO....didn't think so.....do not believe all you read...I am so with Hang-seng
on all the @rse-wipes here making a judgement on someone that
they do not know only what they have read!!!!
Trial by media....YES!!!....poor Ben...poor Ben...I would not want blood on
my hands!!!
Julia: My answer is also Yes...I am defending an addict at the moment
that is in rehab for 6 months, homeless and desperate for help. Her 2 boys
spend the weekends with me....to give their Gran (who is recovering from
chemo) a rest!! It makes me sick that non-one else has reached their
hand out to these people that are in need.
I am also very lucky that I work in an eviroment that deals with the less
fortunate on a daily basis....these people deserve empathy and compassion!!
Mental illness does not discriminate.....and it can grab you when you
least expect it!!!
Ben, if you read this take Hangs advice and Tom Percy's - look into
your legal options - the way the WCE have treated you is a disgrace!!
Good luck to Ben and his family....they have my Best Wishes.
 
Refusing test = drug cheat.

And he has been convicted on a previous occasion...

The above quoted by "Chops".....Rubbish!!!
Did anyone else see him or Chickie driving erratically....How convenient
that 4 "Detectives" and a camera crew just happen to be there to frame oooooh I mean book them!!!! I wouldn't have taken a test either....!!!
 

Doesn't matter. Professional athletes should be prepared to be tested at any time. It's a part of the job description.
 
It seems to me a few are suggesting Ben has a mental illness...can someone back this up with proof?
or is it just wishfull thinking...somthing that gives a way out...surely he can't be responsible for his own demise ??
it's gotta be
a media beat up
an AFL thing
a police conspiracy

I'm guessing bi-polar?
 
Refusing an alcohol/drugs test (in SA anyway) is treated by the Courts the same as a positive test. Same penalty. And this is the second time he has avoided a RBT/driver assessment. (Fact) And you don't even have to be driving erratically to be asked to do a breath test because driving a vehicle is a privilege and a responsibility and is treated as such by law. (Fact)

No doubt as a result/cause of drugs - difficult to separate the cause/effect of drugs - the issue of a mental illness will most likely be raised.

As a young athlete the issue of drug testing is drummed into high performing athletes at a very early stage. They do know the risks, and the consequences, so in this point Chops is right. As a professional athlete that is exactly the case. (Fact)

Ben Cousins hasnt been cleared of drug use. The charges have been dropped. Big difference. When the charges are dropped, if new evidence arises people can just as easily be charged again for the same incident. People are only cleared of an offence when the charge has been heard in a court and a Magistrate/Judge/Jury finds them not guilty.(Fact)

HangSeng, I think that people are struggling with empathy when they see, for a number of years, an incredibly talented person whittle away their potential by behaviours that most would abhor. He has deliberately avoided detection, he has had a lot of support (until now) from his club; his parents have stuck by him (and they must be suffering, badly); has been paid money that most of us could only dream of, yet none of the consequences seem to have impacted in any way on moderating his behavior, so it is like he is saying he just doesn't give a toss. OK, it doesnt really impact on us, but surely, as a 29 year old, he has some thoughts as to what his parents and his (ex) girlfriend must be going through.
 
hangseng said:
Very limited view Chops.

Broaden your thinking and look inside for a person and empathy.
Click to expand...

Why? When you are dealing with drugs in sport, it simply does not work like that.


I don't buy an argument of him being bi-polar. Certainly, on a sub-clinical level, yeah sure. But it just is not possible to be performing at a consistently high level if you have actually got it. Especially as there was no evidence of this in the years where symptoms need to be noticed in order for a diagnosis to be made.

But with someone with a long term drug problem, it is difficult to tell where the existing pathology is, or was, and where the resulting pathology of the drug abuse begins. Especially with stimulant abuse, because it mimics the elevation-crash cycle of someone with bi-polar. Given enough time this becomes a pattern, with or without drugs. But it isn't bi-polar, it is a drug induced psychotic condition. And that's where Ben has got himself now it appears - a self induced drug psychosis. Or some variant of.
 
Prospector said:
People are only cleared of an offence when the charge has been heard in a court and a Magistrate/Judge/Jury finds them not guilty.(Fact)
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I Agree.

They are also only guilty of an offence when the charge has been heard in a court and a Magistrate/Judge/Jury finds them guilty.

When this takes place I will be silenced on this point. I don't see the media or the ASF as Magistrate, Judge or Jury. This is a mere Kangaroo court.
 

Yup, but it was also a reasonable premise to conclude that the police had got the (very complex) process of apprehension right. Coz that error was the only thing that saved him, this time.

This is a public forum and no offence to ASF but in the overall scheme of things, we really don't count. Actually, we all might learn something!
 

Prospector I find your views quite balanced.
 

Completely support this contention, Chops.
Bi-polar is flavour of the month at present. Everybody and their dog has it.
Normal mood swings, anyone? It's bipolar.
 
lol funny you should mention, I too have noticed that bipolar is flavor of the month.

Wonder how often its being used now a days as a defence in court ?
 
bennys been banned for a year from the afl
fair punishment i reckon??
now he can go back to LA and go on a year long coke binge
party on
 
Barrw said:
bennys been banned for a year from the afl
fair punishment i reckon??
now he can go back to LA and go on a year long coke binge
party on
Click to expand...
Probably fair enough. But that was going to be the result anyway, because he couldn't nominate for the draft.

Would like to have seen the standard 2 year ban applied for drug cheats, but this 12 month suspension seems to be the norm for team sports.

Hopefully now the AFL will force the AFLPA to suck it up and agree to a proper drug code, so that the players can't abuse drugs. And the distinction between illicit drug use and performance enhancing use is brought up to the international standard.

Would also like to see a more specific statement from the AFL, and a press conference without Bender smirking.

But did anyone notice the number plates of the car he left in? USE-909. Cracked me up.
 

I see the dog pack is out in force, drooling over the last of the pickings.

Never satisfied are you, just keep on kicking. The only smirking I am noticing is in the weak snide comments. Displays a very poor side of your personality.
 
hangseng said:
I see the dog pack is out in force, drooling over the last of the pickings.

Never satisfied are you, just keep on kicking. The only smirking I am noticing is in the weak snide comments. Displays a very poor side of your personality.
Click to expand...

You don't know me from a bar of soap, so STFU.
 
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