One Day We Might Wake Up to The Worst Possible News

The instant I saw the news this morning I started wondering how to cover this story, Ben Cousins has been charged by WA police.

He has been charged with possessing a prohibited drug, threatening to injure a person and two counts of breaching a family violence restraining order.

Already cries of LEAVE BEN ALONE have echoed through social media and we should for his own good.

Generally these howls come from those who elevated Ben to near sainthood, wanting to know anytime he farted, now, sadly we have more news today.

In the literal sense of the word the situation is pathetic, it's just plain sad, for Ben, for his family and especially for his kids.

And that is where I come from now.

I spoke to a lady some time ago about her son who is in the grip of addiction, not meth , he's still in hospital today, she's also a die hard WCE fan, and I asked her this morning for her thoughts on this current situation.

All of us who have kids should think of what she said to me, "everytime the phone rings I have terror that it will be the call to give me the news I dread"

I'm not a doctor or counsellor, I'm not a WCE fan but I am a parent and I cannot imagine what it must be like to be in the midst of this nightmare.

Ben Cousins, I believe, should have been taken away from the spotlight, away from the footy field, away from the fans and given the help needed to give him a productive life.

He should not have been left out there because he could help win a flag in 2006, we're talking about a bloke's life here.

Like any team fan of course you support your club, this goes beyond that.

It was put to me this morning that some in the WA media must have known what was going on and said nothing which does make us complicit, I cannot deny that, and now there is blood in the water again there is no doubt salivating by a few.

Media is a grubby business on occasion, I like to think I have some compassion though.

Where to from here, who knows, but one thing is for sure, if a major change is not made soon we will wake up to the worst possible headline.