Over on The Spearhead, W.F. Price celebrates the harassment directed at Anita Sarkeesian’s Tropes Against Women video project as a sign of a powerful new backlash against the evils of feminism, a backlash he’s proud to be a part of. Dudes being obnoxious to a woman on the internet: Men’s Rights at its finest.
Oh, sure, Price acknowledges, some of the attacks on her were “juvenile” – and thus not as effective as they might otherwise have been — and the controversy did enable Sarkeesian to raise more than $130,000 for her project, but Price even sees this as a victory of sorts:
As for Sarkeesian’s success, we should be happy about it, because I can’t think of a more worthless way to spend over a hundred thousand dollars than in finger-wagging over video games. For one thing, it’s sure to piss even more guys off, and the game industry is very competitive, so her documentary (now expanded to 12 parts!) will likely have zero effect on production and consumption of this form of entertainment. The feminists are simply pissing all the money away, and that’s fine, because this time they’re paying for it themselves.
No question about it: those grapes were definitely sour.
Naturally, the Spearhead regulars were overjoyed by these new signs of, er, progress. Here are some highlights from the discussion that followed; lest I be accused once again of cherry-picking outliers, each and every one of the comments I quote below got literally dozens of net upvotes. This is what these guys really think.
Mojo offers a sort of backlash manifesto:
Feminists will never understand that it is -they- who are the oppressors. They cling to their delusion that they are the ‘underdog’ against the system, even as they control the system.
Revolution requires an enemy class to attack … this is seen as justified when the enemy class controls the system. But feminism is perpetual revolution. So what happens when they gain control over the system? They continue to attack the enemy class, i.e. men, thinking they are striking the next blow against the patriarchy, when what they are doing is more like a pogrom.
Yep, he went there.
Now -they- are the system, they are able and more than willing to intimidate, humiliate, expropriate. It will get indefinitely worse if they have their way. Liberal feminism leads -necessarily- to radical feminism.
Still, we don’t need feminists to ‘understand’ that they are the persecutors (I imagine some of them know this full well and are just misandrist sadists, little Eichmanns). It doesn’t matter what they think or know or understand. What matters is what -we- think, know and understand, and how we are going to act on it.
So … like the swivel-eyed feminist lunatics progressing from attempted assassinations to laying the foundations for institutional and legal abuse … I ask you – what are we going to DO with this knowledge and awareness beyond changing online discourse? …
Thinking like a leftist, though: why not attach ourselves to the GOP in order to subvert its gender politics and radicalize it in the MRA direction? That kind of approach has worked wonders for leftists and their infiltrations into public institutions …
Huh. Reactionary anti-feminists attaching themselves to the Republican Party? No one’s ever thought of that before.
Keyster offers some equally, er, innovative thinking:
Feminism has failed because women as a group adopted the notion of “equality” with men, while stubbornly clinging to their sexual/reproductive power over men. Had feminism truly helped women “realize their greatness”, there’d be far more great women. Instead there’s just more feminists. It’s run it’s course over 3 generations and it’s out of time to prove itself righteous.
The original “male chauvanist pigs” of the early 70′s, were right all along. Women are biologically and chemically ill-equipped to be men. If the Creator had meant women to be more like men, he wouldn’t have given them the ability to bring forth life from their bodies.
Ryu not only embraces the backlash, but seems perfectly fine with the notion that the Men’s Rights movement is a hate movement:
Good. Hatred and anger are power. Whenever you hear someone say “stop the hate”, it is a call to throw down your greatest weapons.
Young Guy purports to speak for all young guys (manginas presumably excepted):
If feminists think men, especially young men, are angry, they don’t know the half of it. As a 26 year-old male, I have seen this society bend over backwards to accommodate women all the time.
The school curriculums are geared toward female success. Schools have countless women’s programs. Female teachers can be as hateful as they want towards male students without facing consequences. People cheer when girls succeed in school, but jeer when boys succeed in school. Even though females have every advantage in the education system, they somehow still have the audacity to complain. They take fluff majors but don’t realize anyone with less than half a brain could pass classes in the humanities and social sciences.
What makes so many MRAs such proud yahoos?.
Oh, and just look at the workplace. Sexual harassment laws give women freedom to dress slutty and still have the nerve to complain when men sneak a peek. If you are a man who has a female co-worker, you have to walk on eggshells everyday or else you can get fired because the twat in the other room got her panties in a bunch over something minor you said. You can be a man who has busted his ass everyday to succeed in your chosen profession, only to see it mean nothing because some woman who was nothing more than an affirmative action hire. If this isn’t bad enough, you get these useless women who are subpar, yet they still never shut up about breaking through the mythical glass-ceiling that they didn’t break and didn’t exist in the first place.
Working men, forever cursed by subpar women.
Also, I have really had enough of women dragging this country down with their dead-weight. Female soldiers, police officers, and firefighters are liabilities. No, all you ladies in these jobs, you aren’t heroes. I am going to go insane if I hear one more female soldier, police officer, or firefighter cry about not getting the respect she thinks she deserves. She doesn’t get respect because she doesn’t deserve respect. The military, law enforcement, and firefighters would be A LOT better off if women stopped lowering the bar to astronomical proportions.
“Lowering the bar to astronomical proportions?” Young Guy here has clearly not yet mastered the fine art of metaphor.
He blabs on a bit longer before wrapping up with:
The backlash is not only real, but it is well-deserved. Apologies won’t erase the damage which has been done. Acting like what happened because of feminism either didn’t happen or was minor is a slap in the face. Saying women have suffered from feminism just as much as men is like spitting in the faces of all the men who have suffered ten lifetimes of pain because of feminism.
Not one, not two, not five, but ten lifetimes of pain? MRAs really are the world’s greatest drama kings.
Andrew S., meanwhile, seems a little confused as to what feminists would like to see happening in the video game industry:
It will be interesting to see if feminists can ruin the gaming industry like they ruin pretty much everything else. There is a lot of money being made off “gamers,” and even guys like me who play the occasional game but aren’t hardcore contribute a lot of money to the industry.
I doubt there are a lot of young guys and men out there who are going to want to play games that involve a bunch of screaming feminists, and where the object of the game is to destroy the “evil patriarchy.” The truth is guys who play games want their female characters to be either hot, large breasted, ass kicking types, or sexy non-feminist types that you save. If the gaming industry changes this dynamic to much due to Feminist/liberal pressure they will destroy a cash cow. And feminism will have yet another “victory.”
Unrestricted and uncriticized access to giant tittied video game ladies: a sacred men’s right!
Kevin evidently speaks for many when he says he wants video games to remain a boys club:
Video games are pretty much the only place that feminism can’t invade unless the principle consumers of them want it. You don’t have to play with girls, or listen to girls, or do other pansy shit. You probably can’t leave a football team and join a different one that has no women, you sure as hell can do that online. Don’t like all the teamwork talk? Play by yourself.
Feminists don’t like video games because; they can’t make them, they can’t force you to buy them or play them even if they did, they couldn’t ruin the experience for you unless you wanted them to.
You can do anything feminists don’t want you to do, and best of all you’re rewarded for it.
Anonymous Age 70 doesn’t even play video games, but he was pleased to learn that you can shoot ladies in them:
Speaking of video games, I am reminded of my son 8 or 10 years ago. I visited him, and he had some kind of shoot-em-up video game. He was partnered with a dearie, and the instant the game started, he always put a bullet in the middle of her forehead. Then, he’d laugh as if it were the funniest thing ever.
I told him he was a sick man, but I was also laughing as if it were the funniest thing ever.
Seriously, he told me he performed better with her dead than needing to be protected.
A great analogy for marriage 2.0, yes?
Women, can’t live them, can’t shoot them in the head. Except in video games!
Criticizing video games is misandry!
What you’ve just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.
” Sexual harassment laws give women freedom to dress slutty and still have the nerve to complain when men sneak a peek.”
Cos men simply can’t control themselves. They are all biologically programmed to wolf whistle at the sight of bare ankle. Tsk, tsk.
“Feminists don’t like video games because; they can’t make them,”
My degree in computer game development would prove otherwise.
Good idea, MRA’s. Play video games by yourself. I’m sure you’d contribute so much to a mulitplayer game with all your sandwich jokes and sophomoric come on lines.
Thanks guys, all this talk of anger and hate put PIL’s “Rise” in my head. Anger is an energy…
The argument that video games are made for men because women don’t play them is ludicrous. Game dynasties like The Sims have raked in billions, and their players tend to be female. Hardcore male gamers can sneer at these games and say they’re “fake” all they want, but the fact remains that these games are making just as much money as their precious Bayonetta, probably more. And the gender breakdown of people who play MMORPGs shows it is quickly approaching the 50/50 general population split. Last I heard 40% of these players are female.
Also, yet again we have MRAs arguing out of both sides of their mouths on a topic. Women are the dominant class, but “nothing’s going to change” regarding the portrayal of women in video games.
I believe this Internet Foul is called the “Technical Godwin.”
…And that’s why sperm is a feminist myth!
(And men who can give birth, but Spearheaders really would call them a feminist myth.)
How many places even have co-ed football? Much less mandatory co-ed football.
I did play co-ed football in high school but that was just intramural flag football; the “real” team that entered in the playoffs was all-male.
See there’s this thing called a dresscode….many workplaces have them. Maybe if you weren’t such a rage-filled shitbag you’d pay attention to reality a little more.
Have they even attempted to define “dressing slutty” yet, or even attempted to explain why there’s so many explanations for the idea?
Would be interesting to see a bunch of MRAs try to define it based on what they find arousing, then getting into a massive argument because not everyone finds the same things arousing.
Also yay, video games/feminism intersection topics are my favourite!
I love how they’ve managed to conflate playing video games alone with activism. It’s like they’ve taking internet whinging to the next logical step.
Man, I wish I was so special that I could achieve things by sitting at home alone playing Skyrim…
Not one, not two, not five, but ten lifetimes of pain? MRAs really are the world’s greatest drama kings.
Especially since, according to his own rant, the unthinkable pain he’s suffered consists of:
— Girls at school who are smarter than him
— Humanities majors
— An imaginary office full of women in skimpy outfits (which would be horrible for some reason)
— Knowing that some of the cops, soldiers, and firefighters out there protecting his sad ass are women
I always love when MRAs get into these frothing rants about the Worse Than Commie Hitler Satan injustices perpetrated by feminism, and then it comes time to actually provide an example. Because English majors are exactly what HITLER would want.
They can’t. If they did, they’d have to admit by implication that certain outfits aren’t slutty, and then how would they justify abusing those women?
Hatred and anger are power.
It’s the MRA’s Gandhi and MLK all rolled into one. They’re a human rights organization…really…they are! 😉
Perfect example of a video game that has something for every player style. Play “good,” or play “evil.” Play as a male or a female character, with romance options with any gender and race. Spend your time fighting or crafting or treasure hunting or…etc.
This is starting to change in video games, to the point where if I start up a game and find that I can’t play as a female character, I turn it off. There is more of an expectation with gamers that we must be able to customize our avatars, at least with the sandbox games.
@Cliff
Easy, they’re prudes. They probably hate sex, and probably never have it, thus they are repressed and afraid of penises, so ANY thing will set them off and cry harassment.
@blitzgal
“This is starting to change in video games, to the point where if I start up a game and find that I can’t play as a female character, I turn it off.”
I often do the same…except Bastion and Half Life…those are just awesome. 🙂
Also, off topic, but can anyone tell me how to do the block quotes? I keep failing.
Took me a second to figure out you were “this is what the MRAs would say”ing and not trolling. :p
Yeah, there are definitely insults in reserve for women who don’t look sexy enough, but nonetheless MRAs are reluctant to draw that line, because God forbid they define just one single outfit as neither slutty nor prudish! Then women wearing that outfit could get away with anything!
…They could get away with being harassed.
…God I hate people.
MRAs talking out of both sides of their mouth…again.
1. Women are bad if they look attractive because they’re giant cockteases/they’re bad if they don’t look attractive because that is an insult to male sexuality
2. Women are bad if they are independent from men and have a career/they’re bad if they’re a SAHW and mooch off of a man.
3. Women don’t deserve the vote because they can’t get drafted and serve in combat/women are weak and make terrible soldiers and shouldn’t be allowed in the Army.
4. Feminism is a global conspriracy that controls the world/feminism is a failure because it is illogical.
5. Women are cold hearted and have no feelings/women are too emotional and incapable of being reasonable.
I’m getting whiplash. Make up your minds, assholes!
Wonder how MRAs react to Portal, where there literally isn’t a single dude in the game (closest to it is the scribblings of “ratman”).
Oh, and it’s (blockquote) TEXT (/blockquote), but with the html angle brackets instead of parentheses.
More recent games like the Fallout Series or Dragon Age have female character options that do not involve massive breasts or a need to be protected. The games are changing in that way. If MRAs want games to stay in the He-Man Woman-Hater’s Club, too bad. Go Your Own Way and don’t worry about the women who play, ok?
@ragefromthebasement: Brilliant summary of MRA philosophy. Women can’t win, no matter what.
<blockquoteWonder how MRAs react to Portal, where there literally isn’t a single dude in the game (closest to it is the scribblings of “ratman”).
Portal is misandrist! GLaDOS is a feminist creation, which is why she’s so evil. She killed all the male testers first, leaving a female for the end because…um…misandry! And the turrets are like children, which the evil feminist (GLaDOS) created to entrap you and if you don’t pay child support (finish the testing room) you’ll die! …See, MRA analysis; it’s not so hard.
(And thanks for the html help. Duh…I’d been using “quote” and “/quote.” lol.)
Hey guys so I was wondering why aren’t there more queer men that are MRAs I mean it’s such an inclusive movement for the rights of men it just makes no sense to me.
Also also, it’s Stampede brekkie day* so I’m in my sluttiest mid-length denim dress with boots and a long sweater. I look like some sort of 80s milkmaid. A sexy 80s milkmaid. Take that, men in my office! Now you’ll have to sexually harass me!!
*Stampede breakfasts are a Calgary tradition that takes place during the days around the Calgary Stampede festival/rodeo. Essentially, your company serves you free pancakes and sausages and things. Generally it’s the higher-ups that do the actual grilling and serving. “Western” dress encouraged (whatever the heck that means).
Mouhahahah! We are in your game!
And also we’re playing them. Have been for a long time. Get over it.
I’m just going to leave this here: http://misandryinvideogames.tumblr.com
You’re welcome.