They say a picture is worth a 1,000 words. In this case, a picture can be equated to a single letter – a scarlet letter “A.”
You may have heard about this cheating husband in the news last week. In a desperate attempt to show his remorse, he agreed to his wife’s demand that he stand in a busy thoroughfare in Northern Virginia with this home-made sign hanging from his neck. The DJ’s and local media had a field day. The wife’s desire to humiliate her wayward husband ended up earning him his 15 minutes (and them some) of national fame.
(Note to self: Scratch off “public humiliation during rush hour” from list of “Revenge Fantasies for Cheating Spouse.”)
In all seriousness, if you’ve ever been in a committed partnership, you’ve wondered what you would do if your partner was cheating. Data suggest that 25% of men and 10-15% of women will have sex with someone else other than their spouse during their marriage.
While I doubt that this wife achieved vindication or real satisfaction from this stunt, part of me was glad to see her dumping her steaming pile of anger at her husband’s door … let him clean it up! So much better than turning the pain and anger inward and being haunted by questions and self-doubt.
What’s the reaction of other Wise Women to this story?
9-1-2009 08:26:58
We’ve come a long way baby (from the days of Hester Prynne!
9-1-2009 08:59:54
I guess nothing like airing your dirty laundry…..but I give a lot of credit to this cheating male for doing this. Although, I wonder if kids are involved – if so, I don’t think this is the best approach to resolution.
9-1-2009 09:23:30
No way, no how. I cringed when I saw this photo. This public act of contrition would not eliminate the fact that he cheated, and now the whole world would know. I am sad for this man and his wife.
9-4-2009 04:12:10
I’ve been bamboozled!
(I love that word that Stacy used last week in a comment and definitely appreciated the concern.)
See this article (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/02/AR2009090201675.html) to learn that the story of the Cheating, Sign-Wearing Husband was a radio hoax. While I should be angry at being tricked, I’m actually relieved. This story just made me sad.