Rose42

Somebody has to fight the wolves.

My colleague, Annie Holmquist, discovered some statistics about the decline in masculinity that have troubled me since the moment I looked over them. Here’s the key part of her piece:

“In recent years, a mildly trending topic of discussion has been the question, ‘Where have all the men gone?’ While there are a number of theories as to the answer, a British survey just released by YouGov may shed some light on the issue.

Among other things, the survey asked participants about their impressions of the word “masculinity” and found a surprising generational gap:

‘Both young men and young women have a lower opinion of 'masculinity' than older people, but young men are harsher critics of the concept than young women. In contrast, the majority of young men (58%) have a positive impression of 'femininity', as do the majority of young women (55%). Overall 'femininity' has a net positivity score of +56 compared to +44 for 'masculinity'.’”

For those who believe the patriarchy is the root of much evil in the world, these numbers are probably cause for celebration. But perhaps not. While young men are giving up on their manhood, women still seem to want it.

As Annie asked, “Where have all the good men gone?” Well, they’ve been beaten down. Many of them lack a strong father at home, having been raised by a single mother. The education system does little to nothing to help boys grow into good men. On TV, in movies, and in commercials, when do they see a strong, virtuous male? Only two come close to the traditional portrayals of strong, men. One is Captain America. And even he is a super hero, not a real man. Yet we can see just how much things have changed by how his mannerisms and language stand out compared to a Tony Stark or any other male character. He is both refreshing and an anachronism. Chris Kyle of American Sniper is another. But he, too, strikes the modern senses as a relic of a different age.

Even fashion is doing everything it can to make young men effeminate with skinny jeans and clothing that purposefully minimizes the male physique. We’ve come to live in Garrison Keillor’s Lake Wobegon, “where all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average."

While it may be clichéd, there’s a lot of t***h in the opening monologue of the father in American Sniper. There is evil, there are wolves, and a society needs strong, virtuous men – masculine men – to keep order and protect the weak. And it, too, seems to be an affront to today's culture.

https://youtu.be/Ar1WygVl_Vg

While we like to pretend things are different in the 21st century and we’ve progressed, the t***h is that we have not. Human nature is still human nature. World War II won’t be the last world war. Hitler, Tojo, Stalin, Mao, ISIS, and the rest won’t be the last bad guys. Just like in the past, as we see in the Middle East and Africa today, the wolves are often quite powerful, raping and pillaging, enslaving and conquering.

But even when we’re not confronted with these great battles of the ages, we are challenged by the wolves in our daily life. There are, of course, the temptations of the heart, but there are also those will always prey upon the weaker. If the good are not stronger than the wolves, what will stop them?

Democracy on its own certainly won’t. If we’re honest, democracy – like all societies – requires alpha males to keep order and to enforce the values of the society against those who would act on their own “wills to power”. V**e all you want, but if no one follows up the laws with force, they are meaningless.

Of course, it’s also important to note that when we talk of needing masculinity and strong men, we not only recognize biological reality, but that we also call for virtuous behavior. We need strong men who hold to their duties to their families, to support and protect their wives and children, who act with honor to those around them, who pursue t***h, beauty, and goodness.

Alas, to have such men, we must get back to thinking about and celebrating such things. Save for a few examples, don’t look to Hollywood, the media, or the education system to do so. If we want strong men, then virtuous men and women will have to take it upon themselves to do the job.

https://www.intellectualtakeout.org/blog/why-we-need-alpha-males?fbclid=IwAR0N7EbXbhy40prKFvBLHkQV9yzQ3UmjysUm6HKeToxlAxCsA-QFD0PEY24

bahmer

Amen and Amen very good Rose42 thanks for posting this.

slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas

4 Qualities That Make A Real Man (slightly edited)

By John Kim, LFMT

My goal in writing this post isn’t to sell you my definition of man. It’s to challenge your beliefs. Years ago, while working at a non-profit and treating teenagers struggling with addiction, I learned that what they all had in common was an absent father. Either dad was not in the picture or he was emotionally unavailable. The result was blurred boundaries, low self worth, and very little awareness. It caused anger and emotional voids that were filled with unhealthy habits.

Today in my practice, a common thread with many of my female clients is the way they were treated by men and the affect it has on them. I believe men underestimate the impact they have in this world. I believe definitions need to be challenged. I believe every man should posses these four characteristics.

1) Men respond. Many, if not most males don’t think of how their words and actions will affect others. An example of this is a husband who assassinates his wife’s character or verbally vomits on his children. Also, someone who gets into physical altercations to prove something. Someone who pulls from his ego instead of his heart. It takes discipline, patience, and maturity to filter oneself and think about others before one responds. A response requires thought, meta-cognition. A reaction is instinctual. Boys react. Men respond.

2) Men look inward first. They are willing to examine their defects. They practice t***sparency and non-defensiveness. They express how they feel. They don’t try to be someone they’re not. By walking with a mirror, they don’t get caught up in heated arguments. They handle confrontations by acknowledging, taking responsibility, and making choices. And they move forward, changed.

3) Men have a cause. Something worth fighting for. It doesn’t have to be to end world hunger. It can be to save a marriage. Fighting for one’s position in life. Expressing art. Sharing gifts. Being a better version of oneself. Something he believes in, even if others don’t. Whether it’s one’s character or an empire, men build. Boys deconstruct.

4) Men take action. Boys complain. Many habits like complaining and losing one’s temper stem from undisciplined thinking and the inability to manage emotions. I know many men who talk about change. Who talk about wanting to “fix” their relationship. To lose weight. Be a better father. To stop drinking, c***ting, spending, hiding, and numbing. But only a few take action and climb that mountain daily. Only a few fall down over and over but keep getting back up. Only a few put their money where their mouth is.

permafrost Loc: Minnesota

rose, your graph does not seem to support the text...

did I read it wrong?

Oh, I also do not agree that we have a shortage of "masculine" men..

we have a number of these "alpha" men in my neck of the woods..

permafrost Loc: Minnesota

good post slatts, better then my Meme... So very well said..

Rose42

Depends where you live whether there’s a shortage or not. When I go to different cities I see mostly the metrosexual, effeminate types. Its changed a lot over the years. Now feminists work to marginalize men, there are new labels such as ‘toxic masculinity’ and all kinds of silliness.

Rose42

I find this too generic for most of this applies to women too.

bahmer

I remember that they had David Duke on the NFL channel one night and they asked them why the black males were always in trouble with the law and hit women and so on and so forth. He said that the reason was very simple and when they asked him what it was he said very simply no daddy at home. That is the crux of the problem but there are also men that are married where there is no daddy at home just a little boy that never matured. Which still leaves the fact that there is no daddy at home.

ImLogicallyRight

You are right in that there is a push to feminize men in America. Then they run around trying to get more women into actual fighting positions in the army and marines. Society is going nuts. And the driving force behind this is the so called regressive Progressive movements. Single mothers raising boys is one cause and we are not putting them down for being alone doing a tremendous job. But they are women and trying to raise men and often with resentment towards the absent man in their lives. So through various insidious means they put men down and raise cupcakes. Or the kid runs loose and becomes the very bad guy they resent and need a man to protect them from. It's crazy.

Then there are the public schools that employ more women mostly and cupcake men except for the football coaches, etc. This wouldn't be so bad if they weren't democrats pushing this effeminate quality. At least private schools seem to have a better record of building morally stronger men who will stand up and protect instead of being the ones we need to protect ourselves from. And all male schools taught by men have an even better record.

We need good two sex families raising men to be fathers and real men and raising women to mothers and r**l w***n. Companions in life and not competitors.

Just some thoughts along the lines of this thread.

Rose42

Thinks thats directly related to the breakdown of the family unit?

bahmer

Yup all of that help that we gave the black families has brought about this disaster and we can thank LBJ if my memory serves me correctly. Now if only the b****s would wake up and smell the coffee we could start correcting the problem.

slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas

Okay, fair enough.

slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas

Oooorahhhh to your meme

SEMPER FI, Frostie.

Rose42

I missed your meme permie. We must have been posting at the same time. Going to send that to some Marines I know.

Rose42

Its something we all need to work toward - which I didn’t include. This writing thing sometimes messes me up.