The content I’m about to discuss is something I’ve been thinking through for a while because it’s worsening. It’s something that’s been really bothering me, but I usually wouldn’t talk about subjects like this because I don’t like discussing polarizing social issues.
I stay in the middle of the road because I didn’t want to alienate anyone. I want everybody to feel included, and I don’t want to piss off people. But today, I will piss off some people. I don’t really care because we’ve lost our minds as a society. I’m talking about the mix of cancel culture, the manosphere, and media hype that are so incredibly prevalent currently.
So, on one side, you have the woke, cancel culture. People are canceled just because “we don’t want to hear what you are saying.” Free speech is about the free flow of ideas, so a great idea can be canceled by people who simply disagree with it or find it counter to their goals. The result is a benefit to all of us is lost.
One of the problems with cancel culture is it causes a vast community of men to feel disenfranchised and lost. You are not bad for being a man — quite the opposite. You’re amazing. There’s nothing wrong with being male or masculine. There’s nothing wrong with being feminine, either. If you want to be a dude, if you want to be something else, or if you want to identify as something else, I don’t care.
On the other side, you have these crazy conservatives where the manosphere is pissed off at women and trying to make them the enemy. Women aren’t the enemy. If you’re not happy or successful, the problem is you, not them. Many men are sheep, blindly following somebody and listening to idiots who are saying that women are the problem.
You also have the extremely bothersome portrayal of people by the media. They make men look dumb, impossibly suave & dangerous, or any number of really lousy archetypes. But they also show families as substance-less, happy drones eating their products. They show teens as either oblivious to life or sex-charged & beautiful rebels. They show people doing ridiculous stuff and dealing with stupid, petty, pointless drama without ever spending a day behind a desk or digging a trench.
On the flip side, the media makes everyone, male and female, attractive — not just attractive, but gorgeous (unless that portrayal is of beauty on the inside with a touching story about how hard it is to be an overweight female). The media shows stormy relationships between angsty characters as some kind of ideal to achieve, a position for younger people to strive for. They make sexuality out to be a rite of passage, proof of maturity and power. Don’t internalize the noise.
One of the many problems with cancel culture and with some media hype is that they are trying to convince the world that men are bad, oppressive, and doing terrible things. As a man in today’s crazy world, you should be focused on doing things that will help you improve your life. A real man doesn’t have time to worry about other people. Real men are not oppressing anyone.
The other reality is that you can’t argue with any of them (cancel culture or manosphere). This is something that I learned a long time ago: don’t try to convince somebody who believes something different from you to believe something else. It’s a waste of time. Instead, focus on you. Focus on me the best you can possibly be, and do not apologize for being a man or for having an opinion that’s different from someone else.
Ensure you don’t listen to the noise — cancel culture, manosphere, and media included. If you’re consuming media, don’t let it rot your brain. Don’t believe the hype. Media damages self-image if you look at it as anything other than commercial fantasy. Understand there’s an agenda coming from all three sides. Be a critical thinker in today’s world and have principles.
Make sure you have moral character and integrity. Set yourself apart from other men, and don’t allow others to convince you otherwise. Keep your head down and focus on what you can do, knowing you cannot control others. The only person that you can control in this world is you. Don’t waste time scrolling; instead, focus on what it means to care for yourself physically and mentally. Make sure you’re straight financially. Avoid the noise, and don’t follow the herd.
