Andy Rooney has finally gone too far. I have never been able to stand the obnoxious 83-year-old twit as he blabbers every Sunday night on “60 Minutes,” but he has finally given me a real, concrete reason to expect his dismissal from television.

In an interview on Boomer Esiason’s talk show on the MSG network earlier this month, Rooney made an appalling statement.

“The only thing that really bugs me about television’s coverage is those damn women they have down on the sidelines who don’t know what the hell they’re talking about,” the ignorant geezer said. “I mean, I’m not a sexist person, but a woman has no business being down there trying to make some comment about a football game.”

Let’s start with this: how valuable is his comment if the only thing that bugs him about football broadcasts is the sideline reporting? There are many things that can be said about a football broadcast before getting to the sideline reporting. Football has been tarnished by former coaches spewing their often idiotic opinions that don’t translate well onto television; games last three and a half hours and continue to get longer; players act like they have won the Super Bowl after every play. As bad as sideline reporters can be, it seems there are many things the NFL and the networks that broadcast games should concern themselves with first.

Let’s now turn our attention away from one word and focus on the whole statement. I have heard some agree with me and Rooney at the same time. They claim Rooney said what people have been feeling for many years. Sideline reporters have no place in football. They ask stupid questions and have little insight. While all this may be true, it has nothing to do with the fact that many of these reporters are women. Networks have decided that sideline reporters are not supposed to be interesting, but good-looking. It is simply the nature of television that many people are hired based on their looks and this goes equally for men as it does for women. You would never see John Madden as a sideline reporter.

We must now turn to the second sentence of his statement where he claimed he is not a sexist person, but women just shouldn’t comment on a football game. Not only is he wrong about not being sexist, because the comment is by definition sexist, but he is also wrong that women shouldn’t comment on football. Some of the best reporters in football are women. Andrea Kremer, from ESPN, immediately comes to mind as a woman who is at the top of her profession and has been for many years. What’s more is that if a woman gets to the position of sideline reporter for a sport dominated by men, it is clear to me that she probably has more to say than your average man. Women have had to fight for everything in sports and still have a lot of fighting to do, so a woman who has prevailed has clearly proved she knows what she is talking about.

Some women’s groups have come out and called for the firing of Mr. Rooney. While this seems extreme, consider precisely what he has claimed and who he has alienated. Women make up more than 50 percent of the country. What do you think would have happened had he said black people shouldn’t be on the sidelines of football games? Blacks represent only 12 percent of the population, but I don’t think you would have seen such comments pushed aside as his about women were. It is disgusting how easily he has gotten away with such atrocious statements. I used to hate the segment of “60 Minutes” when Andy Rooney would come on and speak his mind about airline food or Toyota trucks. Now I won’t deal with him and I would have to think twice about changing the channel to a network that would keep such a man on its payroll.

The final thing that worries me about Rooney’s comment is that I fear he is not alone. It angers me that there hasn’t been more of a reaction to his hurtful statements. I think he said what a lot of football fans agree with: that the game is meant for men. It is a reflection of not just football, but all sports. We like to think of ourselves as living in an accepting society, but developments over the past few months have woken me up to how little we have accomplished.

From the controversy at Augusta National to Andy Rooney, it is clear there is still a lot of hatred out there. It boils down to men not wanting to give up the one thing they can hold onto as their own. It is time to finally shut up and understand that women can be as interested in sports as we are. We need to stop complaining and instead make room on the couch and order some extra wings.