on the mad men season finale

When I watched this season's "Mad Men" season finale, I felt disgusted and betrayed. Then, I took a step back and looked at myself.

And still felt disgusted and betrayed.

Now, if you don't watch "Mad Men" and haven't kept up with the series, don't bother reading this article. I'm not going to provide background and bring you up to speed. You may do that on your own, if you'd like. The entirety of Season 2 may be found On Demand.

Also, (SPOILER ALERT!)

So, moving on. Betty Draper. Don Draper's oft betrayed wife. Season 2 was more or less a study in Betty's loss of innocence, and descent into near madness after separating from Don.

The season finale depicted Betty's final fall into the depths of a downward moral spiral. After discovering she was pregnant and contemplating abortion, Betty runs into Don. He wants to reconcile.

She says no. Very cold, this Betty. He wants to see the kids. She says they'll make arrangements.

Later, after making more inquiries into abortion doctors (this is the mid 60s. Cuban Missile Crisis, to be exact. Abortion is still illegal. Though, "They do it in hospitals in Puerto Rico.") she drops the kids off at the Roosevelt with Don. Then, she goes out and spends some of Don's money. Ends up at a bar.

And fucks the first guy she sees. In the bar's office, no less.

I felt betrayed. How could she go out and cheat on Don? Worse, how could she fuck the first guy who made a pass at her? Couldn't she at least have fucked the Maytag repairman? Hell, she didn't even know the fucker's name!

Then, I contemplated things. Weren't my feelings something of a double standard? Don is a serial adulterer. He was fresh off screwing some nubile 21-year-old in California. And hell, he's the king of liars. He's honest to no one, not even himself. Betty going out and doing some random dude should have fallen into the "to each, their own" category. That's life.

But that wasn't the case. Maybe it's my upbringing that made my stomach turn upon witnessing Betty's betrayal. Maybe it's that Catholic ideal. Someone goes and does you wrong, you turn the other cheek. You could go for the old vengeance fuck, but you're better than that.

Maybe it's my sex. Maybe I had some ingrained reaction to what I saw: Something bred into men over millenia.

Or MAYBE IT'S BECAUSE THERE IS A KID IN THAT WOMB OF HERS, GETTING CHURNED AROUND BY A DICK OTHER THAN DADDY'S!

Then again, maybe not. All I know is I felt pretty fucking dirty after watching that episode.

Guess that's what I get for watching good TV.