The Allure of the Bad Boy

The celebrity buzz lately has focused on Sandra Bullock’s shocking discovery that her husband, Jesse James, has been cheating on her with a tattoo model (and perhaps others).

Sandra was blindsided by the news just ten days after her emotional Oscar win for Best Actress. Sandra is wildly successful, undoubtedly attractive (she even looked good when crashing totally nude into the ever-delicious Ryan Reynolds in “The Proposal,” no?), and she has been described by countless people as the “anti-diva.” Why would anybody cheat on somebody as magnificent as her? In fact, why is it that some of the world’s most beautiful and successful women get cheated on? (Think Halle Berry and Reese Witherspoon).

We won’t be so presumptuous as to say we know exactly why and we’re not going to cop out and blame the notorious “Oscar Curse." Obviously, we don’t personally know what goes on in the minds of any of the douchebags that have cheated on some of our favorite women and we haven’t experienced the dynamics of each of their relationships. But we can derive a little nugget of advice for all you SPW out there. We know bad boys are hot. Really hot. We know you think that your sex appeal/charm/feminine wiles are going to change him into an edgier version of Prince Charming. Well, snap out of it - steer clear of that bad boy!

Let’s keep it simple - “bad boy” is a euphemism for “attractive asshole.” He may be attractive, but he’s still an asshole. You can’t hang around an asshole for too long before you get shat upon.

Keep in mind that a bad boy also has his nice moments. Nobody’s 100% bad. In early interviews, Sandra was quoted by People magazine saying "[She] ha[s] [her] family, and it's the family that some higher power put in [her] path.” Clearly, that statement came during a particularly happy time in her marriage when Jesse was on his best behavior.

How can you tell if a guy is a bad boy or not? Well, it can be really easy to spot – his sexual history encompasses half the female population, he tells you he prefers flings over real relationships, and he doesn’t do things when he says he will. You wouldn’t put up with a guy that did all these things if he looked like Screech, so why put up with it just because he’s a hottie? And if it’s any consolation, chances are when they’re 55, Screech and Jesse James won’t look a whole lot different from each other.

Sometimes the bad boy isn’t as easy to spot. In this case, we suggest you take a look at his track record. All actions have consequences, and not many people can go around living a life of debauchery and deceit without a few carcasses lying on the side of the road. Jesse James is a tatted up motorcycle tycoon with three kids who, surprisingly, owns an organic fast-food joint. At first glance, not necessarily the worst guy, right? Now, if Sandra had taken a bit of a closer look, she would have seen that Jesse James has bedded a ton of women, and for heaven’s sake, he was married to a friggin’ porn star before Sandy! We’re relatively sure that a look into Jesse James’ past would have had at least a few blaring red lights that would have caught her eye.

The next time you’re tempted to go after the bad boy, remember there’s a reason we call him bad, and there’s also a reason we call him a “boy” and not a “man.” While dating somebody dangerous can be fun, we’d encourage SPW to try a “nice guy” type and compare and contrast. Remember the element of danger might be initially alluring, but a quality man that does you right is what’s ultimately satisfying.