Good catch Tom. As you have pointed out many times before, the definitions of masculinity these days are usually in a parallel universe compared to the reality of men and masculinity.
They need to open their eyes to that which surrounds them. Who is following federal police around, blocking their vehicles, screaming and attacking them? Let me see... channeling J.K. Rowling, “‘People who menstruate.’ I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?”. And to be precise, white women.
Poor Virginia just elected such a white female lunatic as governor. Help me out. Abigail Spankbottom? Spermdonor? Spewmeister? Let's just refer to her as the AWFL (affluent white female liberal) - in - chief.
They can do all the bogus research they want. Until a cure is found for Toxic Feminism and the Woke Female Mind Virus, I'm limiting my research reading to the Hot-Crazy Matrix. It makes the most sense these days.
Nice work, Tom. As you indicated, the authors made a gigantic leap in going from answers on the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory to labelling the male participants as having "toxic masculinity."
Also, no women were administered the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory in the study. I am interested to know what % of women would have also been categorised as having "toxic masculinity."
What a great question! What percentage of women taking the ASI would be labelled as toxic. Oh man, that one is worth poking around and getting some stats....
The "toxic masculinity" craze is projection at its finest. Don't fall for it. Do you want to know who is actually toxic? Look to the people using the term.
Furthermore, I don't give a sh!t what anyone thinks about me so I'm not worried...and I (we...with my wife) raise my/our boys the same way.
Feminism, like Nazism and Communism, is a Critical Theory. Such theories assume as a premise the existence of absolute and irreconcilable enmity between villain category and victim category. They are fast-food for the mind, crude emotional pornography, easily transmitted and believed, and they turn people who would otherwise be rational, kind and fair-minded into monstrous true believers, consumed by hatred based on a sense of all-consuming grievance that can never be sated, with no limits on the insanity and cruelty they demand.
Thanks, Tom; a great post with great analysis. I can't say I enjoyed it, but I am grateful that you keep an eye out for the seemingly endless inventiveness of these misandrists. It's a pretzel of a study, twisting this way and that to make sure that the results confirm what the pseudo-intellectuals believed before they started. Happy you are here to rally the troops.
The use of the phrase "Toxic Masculinity" is so prevalent in the media and academia. It is unsurprising that researchers would produce research using confirmation bias.
Daphne Patai, in her book "Heterophobia", referred to the work of Joel Best and how claim makers go about getting their claims accepted. It is an insidious process: once they get a claim accepted, they expand the domain of that claim.
"Toxic Masculinity" was used in the beginning to define men who are incarcerated. Gradually, the domain of that definition was expanded and then extrapolated to apply to the male population in general.
It has now become the whip used to beat the male gender into submission as it also aligns with the erroneous concept that the "Patriarchy" also harms men.
In the last century, the idea emerged that men needed to connect with their feminine side to heal and grow.
Tom, I think you are devoting more effort to refuting this than it deserves. The very idea that such a "study" involved "research" is laughable. It is obviously based on ideology and someone's opinion, and such nonsense does not lend itself to "proof". What this really demonstrates is the debasement of the very idea of scientific scholarship.
I hear you, but I can't stand seeing the div 51 folks put such propaganda into the world. It really needs to be exposed. The journal that this piece was in, is run by Div 51 and I think just about every article could be easily dismantled. They are anti male propagandists.
A good an necessary piece! The only critique I have is how AI-like the writing is. If you're using AI, you should be up front. And if you're not, you have to strongly internalized AI writing tyle.
Ok First I am unambiguously a woman. Everything has melded together in me physically, mentally and sexually to prove to me and anyone interested that I am a woman. So, I cannot believe that masculine traits such as, protecting women and children from harm, fear and pain is toxic. Nor is being polite and stepping back to let me and my dog walk along the inside of the pavement and avoiding pushing us into the traffic toxic. Nor is carrying things that I have difficulty in even lifting without assistance. Not is reaching up to get items in the supermarket off the top shelf that I am too short to reach toxic. What is toxic about men being helpful, polite and protective? If it weren’t for a man , a complete stranger, I wouldn’t be posting this. I went to step off a kerb when I was suddenly grabbed around the waist and forcibly pulled backwards. As I had gone to step forward, a car had hurtled around the corner, clipping the kerb and roaring off. I suppose saving me from injury or death was toxic too! Stop all this idiocy. Yes there are some awful bullying men about, but there are also awful bullying women about too. When we begin penalising men for the help and protectiveness and abilities that their masculine attributes enable them to utilise, it is just sheer insanity. Me , I like most men and find them far from the monsters that it has become fashionable to portray them as.
The problem is that our culture/feminists have created a space where they double dip. They want to be seen as victims AND they want to be seen as all powerful. That is bad enough but at the same time the blame men for all the problems of the world.
I have to admit that I was brought up in a home where manners, both for male and female were de rigeur. My father and my brothers walked on the outside of the pavement when a girl or woman was with them. They opened doors, they stood up when a woman joined them at the table. They helped without being asked and certainly looked after me and my sisters. We were taught to say please and thank you when we were in receipt of mannerly gestures. Plus, we were taught to compliment men and boys when they looked smart, when they achieved something important to them, from little boys managing to tie their shoe laces to young men studying and making the effort to look smart. Male and female are not in competition
we are supposed to be a caring sharing unit, not enemies creating a battlefield from life .
I remember those times and there is an important element that is often missed: Men were admired and respected. This is the fuel for the masculine and if you blame men for the worlds problems you are not admiring and respecting. You are sabotaging things. The problem is that feminists have weaponized gynocentrism. You can read about that here: https://menaregood.substack.com/p/3-leveraging-and-weaponizing-gynocentrism
You do great, consistent work, Tom. I went along to some of the meetups a few years back in the uk re mens rights, the toxic effects of gynocentric society etc and there were some intelligent and thoughtful voices however to often the talks descended into I.T heavy jargon and though it was nice not to feel alone in being restricted as a man in todays society it didn't really jive with me. Your essays however prove insightful and definitely great tools for reaching out to people less "in the know" and highlighting what we can do; infinitely more productive than the afore mentioned meetings.
Good catch Tom. As you have pointed out many times before, the definitions of masculinity these days are usually in a parallel universe compared to the reality of men and masculinity.
Thanks John. Parallel universe indeed!
They need to open their eyes to that which surrounds them. Who is following federal police around, blocking their vehicles, screaming and attacking them? Let me see... channeling J.K. Rowling, “‘People who menstruate.’ I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?”. And to be precise, white women.
Poor Virginia just elected such a white female lunatic as governor. Help me out. Abigail Spankbottom? Spermdonor? Spewmeister? Let's just refer to her as the AWFL (affluent white female liberal) - in - chief.
They can do all the bogus research they want. Until a cure is found for Toxic Feminism and the Woke Female Mind Virus, I'm limiting my research reading to the Hot-Crazy Matrix. It makes the most sense these days.
Hot crazy matrix for the win!
For those of you who've been living under a rock:
https://youtu.be/pInk1rV2VEg?si=PBkkYvw3LtxsL7n_
"Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?"
Try "wifman", the true Old Germanic origin.
Nice work, Tom. As you indicated, the authors made a gigantic leap in going from answers on the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory to labelling the male participants as having "toxic masculinity."
Also, no women were administered the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory in the study. I am interested to know what % of women would have also been categorised as having "toxic masculinity."
What a great question! What percentage of women taking the ASI would be labelled as toxic. Oh man, that one is worth poking around and getting some stats....
The "toxic masculinity" craze is projection at its finest. Don't fall for it. Do you want to know who is actually toxic? Look to the people using the term.
Furthermore, I don't give a sh!t what anyone thinks about me so I'm not worried...and I (we...with my wife) raise my/our boys the same way.
Projection indeed, as is most feminist "thought."
Feminism, like Nazism and Communism, is a Critical Theory. Such theories assume as a premise the existence of absolute and irreconcilable enmity between villain category and victim category. They are fast-food for the mind, crude emotional pornography, easily transmitted and believed, and they turn people who would otherwise be rational, kind and fair-minded into monstrous true believers, consumed by hatred based on a sense of all-consuming grievance that can never be sated, with no limits on the insanity and cruelty they demand.
Very well said. Fast food for the mind! Indeed.
Tom, I posted on X about your critique: https://x.com/JamesLNuzzo/status/2013263228521132070.
Thank you Jim!
Thanks, Tom; a great post with great analysis. I can't say I enjoyed it, but I am grateful that you keep an eye out for the seemingly endless inventiveness of these misandrists. It's a pretzel of a study, twisting this way and that to make sure that the results confirm what the pseudo-intellectuals believed before they started. Happy you are here to rally the troops.
The use of the phrase "Toxic Masculinity" is so prevalent in the media and academia. It is unsurprising that researchers would produce research using confirmation bias.
Daphne Patai, in her book "Heterophobia", referred to the work of Joel Best and how claim makers go about getting their claims accepted. It is an insidious process: once they get a claim accepted, they expand the domain of that claim.
"Toxic Masculinity" was used in the beginning to define men who are incarcerated. Gradually, the domain of that definition was expanded and then extrapolated to apply to the male population in general.
It has now become the whip used to beat the male gender into submission as it also aligns with the erroneous concept that the "Patriarchy" also harms men.
In the last century, the idea emerged that men needed to connect with their feminine side to heal and grow.
Well said and true.
Its Cultural Marxism Pop Psychology...I am "shocked" the data was BS. :)
Tom, I think you are devoting more effort to refuting this than it deserves. The very idea that such a "study" involved "research" is laughable. It is obviously based on ideology and someone's opinion, and such nonsense does not lend itself to "proof". What this really demonstrates is the debasement of the very idea of scientific scholarship.
I hear you, but I can't stand seeing the div 51 folks put such propaganda into the world. It really needs to be exposed. The journal that this piece was in, is run by Div 51 and I think just about every article could be easily dismantled. They are anti male propagandists.
A good an necessary piece! The only critique I have is how AI-like the writing is. If you're using AI, you should be up front. And if you're not, you have to strongly internalized AI writing tyle.
Thanks Brandon, yes, I use AI for editing. It's a great tool.
Thank you Tom, excellent article... Men Are Good.
Ok First I am unambiguously a woman. Everything has melded together in me physically, mentally and sexually to prove to me and anyone interested that I am a woman. So, I cannot believe that masculine traits such as, protecting women and children from harm, fear and pain is toxic. Nor is being polite and stepping back to let me and my dog walk along the inside of the pavement and avoiding pushing us into the traffic toxic. Nor is carrying things that I have difficulty in even lifting without assistance. Not is reaching up to get items in the supermarket off the top shelf that I am too short to reach toxic. What is toxic about men being helpful, polite and protective? If it weren’t for a man , a complete stranger, I wouldn’t be posting this. I went to step off a kerb when I was suddenly grabbed around the waist and forcibly pulled backwards. As I had gone to step forward, a car had hurtled around the corner, clipping the kerb and roaring off. I suppose saving me from injury or death was toxic too! Stop all this idiocy. Yes there are some awful bullying men about, but there are also awful bullying women about too. When we begin penalising men for the help and protectiveness and abilities that their masculine attributes enable them to utilise, it is just sheer insanity. Me , I like most men and find them far from the monsters that it has become fashionable to portray them as.
The problem is that our culture/feminists have created a space where they double dip. They want to be seen as victims AND they want to be seen as all powerful. That is bad enough but at the same time the blame men for all the problems of the world.
I have to admit that I was brought up in a home where manners, both for male and female were de rigeur. My father and my brothers walked on the outside of the pavement when a girl or woman was with them. They opened doors, they stood up when a woman joined them at the table. They helped without being asked and certainly looked after me and my sisters. We were taught to say please and thank you when we were in receipt of mannerly gestures. Plus, we were taught to compliment men and boys when they looked smart, when they achieved something important to them, from little boys managing to tie their shoe laces to young men studying and making the effort to look smart. Male and female are not in competition
we are supposed to be a caring sharing unit, not enemies creating a battlefield from life .
I remember those times and there is an important element that is often missed: Men were admired and respected. This is the fuel for the masculine and if you blame men for the worlds problems you are not admiring and respecting. You are sabotaging things. The problem is that feminists have weaponized gynocentrism. You can read about that here: https://menaregood.substack.com/p/3-leveraging-and-weaponizing-gynocentrism
It sounds like more excuses to blame men from the usual accusers, Toxic feminist pigs and stupid crawling simps.
I focus on helping couples manage money and the home as a team.
Gender norms play a big role in how folks slip into tasks, so I follow gender experts and read a lot of research.
It’s frustrating that the starting point is almost always “All men are bad.”
I don’t find this with my clients, my friends, or my family.
Your content is appreciated and provides much needed balance to the broader conversation.
Thank you, Tom.
You do great, consistent work, Tom. I went along to some of the meetups a few years back in the uk re mens rights, the toxic effects of gynocentric society etc and there were some intelligent and thoughtful voices however to often the talks descended into I.T heavy jargon and though it was nice not to feel alone in being restricted as a man in todays society it didn't really jive with me. Your essays however prove insightful and definitely great tools for reaching out to people less "in the know" and highlighting what we can do; infinitely more productive than the afore mentioned meetings.