The past week or so has been one that took even me-someone who’s seen a great deal in his life-by total and utter surprise. After writing a piece that was one of my more lighter works, about the need for guys to make an effort to clean themselves up, I got the usual torrent of naysayer negativity in response. That in turn led me to write an open letter, a kind of follow up to my previous piece; in it, I had the gall to make some boldface observations of the Men’s Rights Movement circa 2010-and we’re off to the races. My humble view in this regard wasn’t even the bulk of my letter; it was more like a paragraph. But it didn’t matter-that one part of an overall piece was the topic of discussion by a goodly part of the Spearhead readership, so much so that, as of last night, upwards of *350 comments* were registered. I’m not a record keeper for the Spearhead, and its owner Welmer would certainly know better than me, but it would not surprise me if it turns out that my open letter was among if not the most commented upon post in the site’s history to date.
And while such a feat would make any blogger/writer puff out their chest with self-assured accomplishment, it is in fact, anti-climatic for me, because of what can only be described as a surrealistic display on the part of many of the respondents that approaches Orwellian levels, if not surpasses them. All manner of strawman were erected, Ad Hominem attacks abounded; “advice” was trotted out for my ostensible “betterment” in how to properly address White Men; I was called Nigger repeatedly; the list of diversions, boogie men, fabrications and the like, were for all intents, endless. I was and remain, speechless by it all.
Perhaps the biggest irony of it all, was in noting the fact that the one voice of reason in the discussion appeared to be that of a Woman, a frequent Spearhead commenter named Renee; she calmly and methodically examined the comments and claims made by others, repeatedly asking where I made such claims that I had been accused of, on what basis did they have to ferret out my intentions and motivations. She did this over and over, but to no avail; these guys are gonna believe what they wanna believe anyway.
I say it’s an irony because we are told that Men taken as a group, are more logical and level headed than are Women. If what we’ve seen over the past week at one of the Internet’s burgeoning examples of Men’s Rights Activism is any indication, that is a view, an assumption, that at the very least, needs a serious rethink.
One of the more obvious questions that emerges out of all this, is one of Race. It is not unfair to say that at present and in the main, the MRM is for all intents and purposes, White. That need not be a bad thing in and of itself, but let’s face it-ours is a racially sensitive and aware age, it is the coin of the realm, and will always play a role in our national narrative for better or worse. Sooner or later, this question would have to come up in the Manosphere, and indeed it has, often not under the best of intentions.
The same questions have emerged on the Feminist side, and I’ve written about this; it is undeniable that Black Women have their own challenges in this regard, yet, if objective measures such as access to abortion and education, increased money earning and legal protections both in the workplace and at home are any indication, Feminism can be safely said to have assisted them. At the very least, it hasn’t gotten in the way. And, we can note that Black and White Women if nothing else, give the appearance that all is well.
With more Black Men coming into their own online, it is inevitable that they will come across the Manosphere, and they will do so with their own take and spin on things. Being upset with them for merely pointing out the bleedingly obvious will not and cannot move the ball forward. And again, what has been gained from merely being angry all the time? At some point you have to move on.
Perhaps the biggest irony of them all, is in noting the fact-depending on where you are, some would say a sad one-that at present, the only real example of a “Men’s movement”, are the ones to be found in PUA circles. These guys have proven they know how to organize, get their message out, and attract new recruits to their cause. They make money and fund their own initiatives. The more straightlaced MRM, on a whole, cannot say this, and I say there are many good reasons for it. Again, if what went down at the Spearhead with regard to my own posts over the past week is any indication, those reasons should by now be quite apparent.
Being a prognosticator is a tricky thing; truth be told, you strikeout a heck of a lot more than you hit the motherlode. But somehow, I don’t feel all that pensive when I say, with a good degree of lament, that the MRM’s future doesn’t at all look very bright. As I’ve said offlist, if a bunch of guys cannot even get themselves together to wash their asses and wear some halfway presentable clothes, how are they ever gonna change the world?
The Obsidian
