It's like now, being called a narcissist, selfish, self-centered, arrogant, and a douchebag aren't insults to me anymore.
It is as if you had to check your morals at the door when you decided at some point that you wanted to live a life of riches. To say "Nice Guys Finish Last" is one thing but to actually see it play out is something completely different. One too many guys on this sub will claim they have read the sidebar or understand the red pill but for a good number, their comments don't line up with what they claim. Everyone claims to be a cold red pilled alpha until you actually put them to the test to find out how many men are just bluffing.
I am finding how so many highly successful men I have crossed paths with have unbelievably high amounts of self-respect for themselves, the kind of self-respect which is irrational confidence and narcissism. The kind of self-respect that breeds a huge ego yet at the same time, makes some beautiful women fall in love with them. It is the kind of self-respect to where when the world is mocking them and telling them they cannot accomplish something, they ignore what the world says and go out to do it.
For most men out there who aren't born with the perfect circumstances (tall, handsome, wealthy family, ideal upbringing, etc.), it is almost as if they had to be irrationally confident and have that massive ego in order to even give themselves a chance at a better life. If they wanted to be rich, people tried to talk them out of it and tell them how they "couldn't do it", often acting from a place of "concern". If they wanted to go for that really hot girl, people told them she was "out of your league" and has way better options than them, but they kept going.
And that's the scary truth I am learning.
If you weren't born for success in life and with women (great looks, rich stable family, nearly perfect upbringing, etc.), society will try desperate to keep you where you are at.
If you were born poor or middle class, society will try its hardest to stop you from being wealthy.
If you were born outside of the physical ideal for a man in regards to looks, society will try its hardest to stop you from maxing out your appearance by calling you vain and telling you how pointless it is because "looks are all genetic".
If you were raised in circumstances that stopped you from doing well with women (or in an area where hotties were rarely found), say you end up being a virgin past the age of 18, society will try its hardest to stop you from being a player hence the witch hunt against places like these.
In reality, no one wants to see the underdog rise, it is scary. No one likes a success story until it has already happened and everyone has realized it is too late to stop it.
They'll even use a moral high ground to stop you.
Don't be rich because all rich people are evil, why obsess over money?
Don't try to be good looking because it makes you vain.
Don't try to go for good looking women because it makes you shallow, shouldn't you judge a woman for something other than her looks?
Don't try to make a lot of friends because it makes you fake.
This is the one that is tough to defend against, when they attempt to attack your character and your morality as a person because they realize it will make you feel guilty for ever wanting to better your situation. Obviously all ugly women have nice personalities and poor people can't actually be evil.
And along the way, a lot of the negative traits society shuns actually become useful.
Becoming self-centered, irrationally confident, and borderline narcissistic is almost mandatory when time and time again people tell you that you will stay poor, stay ugly, and stay loveless. Time and time again, the belief you have of your shit not smelling is the one thing that can get you away from the Crabs in a Bucket. You almost have to have these traits to some degree because you need some way to cope with society beating you down whenever they see you rise above your circumstances. In most cases you almost develop these negative traits because only they help you survive the brutal Crabs In A Bucket nature of society.