Have you heard? The internet’s all abuzz about it! Single men in their 20’s are absolutely the worst! And they’re only getting worser!
Fresh off the media feeding frenzy/spooge-festival around Amy Chua’s “Chinese Mothers > American Mothers” op-ed last month, The Wall Street Journal is trying to rouse some rabble again with Kay Hymowitz’s piece, “Where Have All The Good Men Gone?“
Hymowitz, author of the book Manning Up: How the Rise of Women Has Turned Men Into Boys, argues that our society is fostering a generation of men who languish in what she calls “pre-adulthood”. Hymowitz singles out things only men enjoy like Star Wars, Playstation and Judd Apatow movies as cultural indicators that these men – or should I say boys?? – refuse to grow the eff up.
She then goes into the effect of America’s relative affluence on young men and how their role has shifted from the halcyon days of the ’50s to now, which she sees as a gradual recession into perpetual adolescence. It all ends like this:
Today’s pre-adult male is like an actor in a drama in which he only knows what he shouldn’t say. He has to compete in a fierce job market, but he can’t act too bossy or self-confident. He should be sensitive but not paternalistic, smart but not cocky. To deepen his predicament, because he is single, his advisers and confidants are generally undomesticated guys just like him.
Single men have never been civilization’s most responsible actors; they continue to be more troubled and less successful than men who deliberately choose to become husbands and fathers. So we can be disgusted if some of them continue to live in rooms decorated with “Star Wars” posters and crushed beer cans and to treat women like disposable estrogen toys, but we shouldn’t be surprised.
Relatively affluent, free of family responsibilities, and entertained by an array of media devoted to his every pleasure, the single young man can live in pig heaven—and often does. Women put up with him for a while, but then in fear and disgust either give up on any idea of a husband and kids or just go to a sperm bank and get the DNA without the troublesome man. But these rational choices on the part of women only serve to legitimize men’s attachment to the sand box. Why should they grow up? No one needs them anyway. There’s nothing they have to do.
They might as well just have another beer.
They’re onto us, fellow manbabies! These generalities about our gender are in no way too broad! Make the most of the rest of your day (masturbating to Qubo before falling asleep in a cloud of fart smoke, I presume) because soon someone might expect you to amount to something!
But women all like, only care about like, shopping and stuff. And they’re you know, totes terrible drivers.
And here I thought today’s woman doesn’t want a man to take care of her?
Some paradigms die hard…
Look! Someone is loudly chanting tired sexist stereotypes! Let’s pay attention to her!
I dunno.
Can’t say I have much to argue against in that thumbnail of an article. I think the blurring of gender roles, the (somewhat) equalizing role of women in the workplace and diminished expectations in this shit economy have put a lot of men into a state of retarded adolescence, with a need to over-compensate (man-up) after an Ikea binge. Plus, this retarded state of adolescence is where the consumer lives, and if you ain’t buying something, you’re just nothing. Sorry. Didn’t mean to get all Adbusters on you.
But all that aside, would love to see an article about how narcissistic, materialistic and opportunistic many single women have become.
What about women who like Star Wars? what does that says about them? And why single out Star Wars, dumbwit? I know a she freak who`s into Spiderman and gots her stuff together.
Were have all good men gone? To war probably. And came back as Ghosts.
It’s a free country, right?
Right?
Was that article supposed to make me feel bad about living that lifestyle? Because it didn’t.
Well, at least dudes are good at math!
So. Does this mean we can go back to drinking whiskey during all hours, cheating on our partners unapologetically and medicating them with valium when they get uppity?
I do like whiskey.
That explains the Sarah Palin popularity riddle! Men are all just teenage hormone happy yoyos. And she’s a MILF (well, I wouldn’t actually, but you get the idea) with that homegrown “Go get um Joe Sixpack and here’s a cooler fulla beer, you betcha!” perky attitude. Yup, that = votes.
10,000 better qualified women, and that’s the best we can muster?
You bet something’s wrong.
Wow! Well what do women expect from us? I am a 42 year old manbaby I guess. Which I have to agree if this is supposed to make me feel bad about how I live my life it isn’t?
Ok women wanted equal rights. No problem makes sense. Women want to educate themselves and climb the corporate ladder. Once again cool I say more power to them. Women don’t want to get married and be a “housewife” Again no problem with that.
Women have spent the last 30 or 40 years saying they don’t need a man to take care of them. Once again that is cool. This is America you should be able to chose any path you want in life.
But women can’t have it both ways. They can’t spend decades telling men we are not needed and then slam us for not being “real men”
If I didn’t know better I would think women are mad not that we are not “real men” but that we are fine with the way things are? That we don’t really care that women don’t need us?
Ziggy, seriously, this display of a woman having conflicting desires and illogical ways of expressing her needs shocks you?