Every day, it seems, I learn a little bit more about the oppression of men. Recently, for example, I learned that men who are working customer service jobs are oppressed because they are prohibited from punching their customers, even when these customers are really, really annoying, and possibly even ladies. At least that’s the lesson I took from a recent Facebook posting by MRA and frequent Spearhead contributor Jack Donovan. Here’s Jack:
Men want to carry their own weight, but to do so, they may have to take a job which requires them to choose “flight” over “fight” as part of their regular duties. All customer service oriented jobs, for instance, require men to take abuse from … someone who is angrily issuing insults and challenge cues … and reply submissively.
Even worse is when some of these poor men, like Jack, are natural “alphas” forced to take these beta-ass jobs because for some reason the people in charge of hiring haven’t recognized their awesome alphaness:
It would be interesting to see someone do a study tracking the testosterone levels of “alpha” type men who would not choose a customer service job, but who were forced to take a position where they had to apologize and beg forgiveness from abusive women and “betas” all day.
It’s almost like you have to act as if the customer is always right!
As a man who had blood in his face for *several hours* after having to hold my tongue while I was screamed at by a neurotic old female customer this week, the physical effects were pretty noticeable in the short term. I was murderously furious for hours and then emotionally exhausted and kind of depressed through the next day.
Wouldn’t it have been better for everyone – with the possible exception of the old lady, of course, and the rest of the customers, and maybe the firm employing Mr. Donovan – if he could have chosen “fight” instead of “flight,” and just popped that old bat in the nose? Problem fucking solved!
Let’s just shut down the economy and the judicial system for a day or two while we work out a way that Mr. Donovan can just punch people without any consequences. Because he’s an alpha, damn it, and he really shouldn’t be hemmed in by petty “laws” and “social conventions” and “moral codes” clearly meant for betas and ladies and other losers.
EDITED TO ADD: Donovan has responded to this post in the comments here. He says he’s not an MRA, so I’ve edited out that part. (I did find his Facebook post through a link on the MR subreddit, FWIW.)
I should clarify that Donovan did not talk directly about punching people; he talked about the “fight or flight” instinct.
MRAL, I said “I’m a way, way more classy and thoughtful and kind person” than you are, not that I’m smarter or better-educated. I mean, I’m pretty sure I’m those too but they aren’t relevant to the discussion of how sick your mom must be of living with you. 😀
The school where I went to undergrad doesn’t need any kind of modifier when talking about how highly ranked it is. It’s one of the top five in the country. And I got best thesis.
I don’t at all think that my education is what makes me a good person.
Or that higher IQ or test scores, or grades indicate who is the “better person.”
I do think that treating people with respect and decency is a good place to start one’s inquiry. Kindness. Generosity. Empathy. Refraining from using the word “gashes” to describe women. Not wanting to poke people’s eyes out for perceived or imagined slights…
Those kinds of things are what make people good, to my mind.
Too true, Bee. Good people occur at all points along the IQ scale (insert really long rant about the validity of IQ tests, or intelligence tests in general, with reference to biocultural evolution and the importance of good childhood nutrition).
MRAL, you should really check out the philosophy of enlightened self-interest. That’s pretty much how humans actually work. If you can’t grok being a good person for the sake of doing so, you might want to try being a good person to make your own life easier and better. It really works!
And yes, FWIW I like to say “I test well” when it comes to things like standardized tests because that’s all they tell you, that you test well or poorly, not whether you are intelligent (of various kinds) or not.
Okay, first, i don’t know who Hanna Rosin is, but whatever she says about what women are good at, nobody elected her Representative of All Women Everywhere, so you can stop that argument right there. Don’t assume any of us agree/disagree with anything she has said – seems tantamount to us assuming you’re an MRA, otherwise.
Second, in a related note, you don’t get to claim you know what jobs men are good at, because you don’t know all men (it’s still wrong even if you use science terms like “what men have evolved to be”). Nothing has been “proven” about what jobs men are best at, because as you yourself said, no one has studied testosterone levels during these, or most, job situations. You may not be an MRA, but you share their love of anecdotal “evidence” that doesn’t actually prove anything you believe about either sex. You assume all people of either gender are one way, and if they’re not, they’re gay/manginas or delusional. And you assume all men out there are just like you. (And to nip this argument in the bud: no, i’ve never stated in this post or any other that all women/feminists are alike or like me. that’s the point. we’re all different, therefore your generalizations are a fallacy). Being a manly man with testosterone is not an excuse for getting out of service-industry jobs that require people skills and diplomacy (which you have admitted you personally don’t intend to do, but believe me, someone is going to use it for that), or for getting out of childcare, housework, or any of the other zillion “equally-good/bad-for-both-sexes” chores men like you have tried to get out of because “even though it’s hard for you, because i’m a man, it’s automatically way harder for me.” There is no statistically significant evidence of this, and frankly, if there was, statistics still mean little on an individual basis. We’re not all the same, dude. Not all men are bad at taking crap, and not all women are good at taking it. If you’re a man who’s not good at taking crap, there’s nothing wrong with that, but don’t assume every other man is like you.
btw, i was responding to the comment of the guy whose post was being critcized by David Futrelle, not the comment shown above mine. just to clarify.
Oh ffs, why is that jerkass back here? Did someone lose a bet? Did we get him in exchange for NWO? I see he’s at least given up on the pathetic excuses for his behavior. Good to see he’s embraced his inner douchebuckle. Either that or he realized not everyone is as gullible as he is.