Most of the coverage of the Costa Concordia disaster at the moment seems to be focusing on the Italian cruise ship’s captain and his douchey behavior, which involved not only running the ship aground but also abandoning ship prestissimo while passengers remained trapped on board.
MRAs, by contrast, are using the tragedy as an excuse to rail against the notion of “women and children first” and, of course, to make jokes about women drowning.
Now, the Titanic aside, “women and children first” isn’t now, and hasn’t ever really been, the standard way to evacuate those on a sinking ship, though many in the public — including some of those who were on board the Costa Concordia – seem to believe that it is. (See here for more details on how evacuations are typically handled these days; generally only those with mobility problems are given special treatment.)
In the case of this particular evacuation, some on board apparently tried to enforce an informal “women and children” policy, but many men weren’t willing to wait.
What’s got some MRAs in a snit is that some people, in the media and online, are calling these dudes cowards. In The Daily Mail, a right-wing British tabloid, A N Wilson wrote:
[I]n our day, with the advent of feminism and the professional woman, chivalry and manners are considered stuffy and old-fashioned.
As the father of three daughters, I do not, with a single fibre of my being, wish to go back to a time when women could not have the vote or get a university degree. Nor do I, surrounded by extremely strong-charactered and intelligent women in my family and among my friends, feel tempted to regard women as the frail sex.
But the fact remains that there is a longing among most men to protect women and children, and chivalry is simply a manifestation of that longing.
And whatever transpires about the reason for the Costa Concordia disaster, the disappearance of a chivalric code is a sorry reflection on society today.
This is not what you’d call a feminist argument; it’s a traditionalist argument, published in a tabloid rag that’s generally quite hostile to feminism.
Nonetheless, some MRAs are using the Costa Concordia disaster as an opportunity to deliver a big “told you so!” to the … imaginary feminists who live in their head.
Over on The Spearhead, where one familiar commenter actually described Wilson’s Daily Mail article as “feminist,” guest poster Lyn87 wrote:
The MRM is getting more vocal, and a lot of guys are now saying, “You wanted equality. This is what it looks like.” And they are saying it aloud and in public. Even a few women chimed in, saying that men have no obligation to die for women if women want equality. (Somehow I suspect there wasn’t much, “I am woman, hear me roar, watch me drown” on the Costa Concordia itself, but hey, it’s a start.)
MRAs: Always up-to-the-minute with their pop culture references!
This post was helpfully illustrated with a stock photo of a woman drowning.
Commenters got in their digs as well.
Keyster riffed on Lyn87’s incredibly au courant Helen Reddy reference:
I am woman hear me…blurp….rah…gurgle…raha…ffftt…orr…roar…gurgle…help me…somebody…fffft…please…blurp…help…help me please!
Aharon told both ladies and fish what’s what:
I eat fish. Fish don’t eat me. My life is too precious to sacrifice it so some spoiled bitch can have a pussy pass into the life boats.
Anti Idiocy got all hypothetical-cruise-ship tough guy on us:
Anyone who attempts to keep me on a sinking ship because of the genitals with which I was born is attempting to murder me. I have the right to respond accordingly.
And Thomas Tell-truth kicked chivalry – not to mention basic human decency — to the ocean floor:
Equality means that when the ship is going down and you are a woman, you had better get out of my way or you are going to drown with my footprints on your back.
Apparently Thomas Tell-truth is actually George Costanza:
Jeb, meanwhile, offered a more scientific rationalization for being a complete douchenozzle:
As far as I’ve heard, the one and only sport in which women naturally out-do men is endurance swimming. Women are also more bouyant, and as survivalists will explain, women float easiest on their backs (making it easy to breathe while expending minimal energy) whereas men float easiest in “the dead man’s float” (ie. face down, head in the water) and must expend more energy to stay alive. Furthermore, women have more body-fat than men which insulates them better against aquatic dangers such as hypothermia.
Given all these factors it is quite rational for men to pick women up by the seat of their pants and toss them overboard to make way for men and children to safely be rowed ashore on the lifeboats.
It’s all about doing the right thing and saving lives, after all.
MRA humor is very sophisticated indeed.
EDITED TO ADD: The Spearhead has put up a followup post, once again taking aim at imaginary “lifeboat feminists,” though the only person the post cites lamenting the end of “women and children” is Rich Lowry from the National Review (not a feminist publication).
I knew he wouldn’t xD He wouldn’t do it if it would make him look bad and expose his reach as being … exaggerated. xD
Also, whenever I read about MRA meet ups it always seems to turn into “if I go out in public the feminist snipers will pick me off” sorta things xD
The truth is, the logistical problem was me….
but don’t tell them >_>
*puts feminist black ops equipment behind her back*
shhhhh
Amused | January 20, 2012 at 3:15 pm
It’s alright. Another ten years, and Paul Elam will be able to clone himself for such events!! Ten years, ladies. You’ll be sorry.
10 years? Feminism’s had cloning for deca…
oh right… wasn’t supposed to leak that xD
Could somebody copy & paste what he actually said?
remember you can’t spell Misandry without AMI
Yay!
I think that’s going to be my new slogan.
Loss of logistical support due to philosophical differences?
I love it.
Oh no! “Logistical problems” have made it impossible to plan something involving a tiny number of people in a major city three months from now! I’m pretty sure most demonstrations are organized with less than 3 months.
“we had a most unfortunate and sudden pull-out of needed logistical support for the Sink Misandry event … purportedly due to philosophical differences.”
A group of people who were persuaded to make up numbers actually *read* AVFM and realised that they were getting involved with the looniest and fringiest of the lunatic fringe?
“The manner in which it happened left me unable to compensate for it immediately, and so that too, for time being, is off the schedule.”
The event is almost THREE MONTHS AWAY!!! With their “huge funds”, can’t AVFM arrange something – anything – to mark the centenary of the most hallowed date in MRA mythology?
No? Oh well, they’re still winning, according to Antz.
That’s what she said!
(Sorry.)
Also, we had a most unfortunate and sudden pull-out of needed logistical support for the Sink Misandry event in Washington, D.C., purportedly due to philosophical differences. The manner in which it happened left me unable to compensate for it immediately, and so that too, for time being, is off the schedule.
Coincidence? I think not!
I told you I’m responsible 😀
I knew it!!! I must go and tell my bro- What the?!!!! *is peppered with bullets*
hmm the bolds didn’t show up that good…
*A*lso, we had a *M*ost unfortunate and sudden pull-out of needed log*I*stic*A*l support for the Sink *M**I*s*A*ndry event in Washington, D.C., purportedly due to philosophical differences. The *M*anner *I*n which it h*A*ppened left *M*e unable to compensate for *I*t immedi*A*tely, and so that too, for ti*M*e be*I*ng, is off the schedule.
there 😀
Bad news, folks. I was planning a pic-a-nic lunch sometime in July, but due to an unfortunate pull-out of logistical support I will be forced to eat a sandwich in my apartment instead.
As far as I can tell, the “logistics” involved here are:
1) Book hotel rooms in some reasonable proximity of DC
2) Travel to DC
3) Purchase or bring cardboard and markers, make signs
4) Stand on sidewalk yelling incomprehensible sexist slurs
I’m pretty sure I could do all of those myself if I were so inclined.
My guess is that Elam realized he was looking at an embarrassingly small turnout, had one or two of the few people who’d RSVPed “yes” flake out on him, and decided to scrap the plan rather than hurt his Internet fame by having people know he could only rally up three people and a small dog.
why don’t they just hold coincidental protests in all of their cities? or rolling protests, like the slutwalks?
It was cancelled because feminism.
It was cancelled because feminism.
It was cancelled because feminism.
It was cancelled because feminism.
It was cancelled because feminism.
It was cancelled because feminism.
I, for one, am devastated by this news. I had already booked my plane tickets and EVERYTHING.
(not really.)
“On Monday, John is going to protest in Milwaukee! Tuesday, Dave is going to protest in Cincinnati! Wednesday, no one could get off work! …Thursday, John is going to protest in Milwaukee again!”
That’s why not.
Isn’t John in Soviet Canuckistan? o:
Also, I plan on asking the dozen or so protestors expected in court next week how long it took to plan the one that led to their getting arrested.
“On Monday, John is going to protest in Milwaukee! Tuesday, Dave is going to protest in Cincinnati! Wednesday, no one could get off work! …Thursday, John is going to protest in Milwaukee again!”
That’s why not.
I thought they were way more powerful than we gave them credit for and boast thousands of hidden members?
Also wouldn’t men rally to their cause once it started? o:
Besides, it’s not like protest marches for various communities are that gigantic, esp when they first start…
And Elam boasted he had more readership than feministe (or isting, I can’t remember xD I get the 2 sites mixed up all the time) recently… so… this could really work. :3
I knew it. I knew many of those Internet warriors at AVfM only feel comfortable saying their crap anonymously on the Internet. They wouldn’t want to actually express their beliefs out loud in public.
Jeremiah asked Elam
Elam responded
That probably translates to “It’s embarrassing to have a protest with only five people”. I don’t see how logistical problems could prevent a van full of MRA’s from going to Washington DC. There have been protests in Joplin done on the fly. With Facebook, we got counter protestors ready for the Westboro Baptist Church. That took only a few days, and we got thousands of people. Now I eagerly await a long winded blog post blaming feminists and “the blue pill masses” for the cancellation of Sink Misandry.
Going by aMIRA’s comments on the other thread my guess is that some evil feminist reported Elam to INTERPOL, and they knocked on his door and told him to cancel.