“Zed,” also known as “The Zen Priest,” was one of the originators of the Men Going Their Own Way “philosophy” and is treated as a wise elder by many longtime MRAs.
WF Price of The Spearhead described a compilation of Zed’s writings as “really quite profound as well as a great read” and used to give it out as a bonus for everyone who signed up for his email newsletter. Paul Elam of A Voice for Men laid it on a bit thicker, saying of the man he described as both a mentor and a friend:
[H]is writings have taken him to iconic status in the minds of many men who have been at this for a while, this writer included. This has happened despite the fact that he has eschewed the path of self promotion and opted to speak from behind the persona of an archetype, maybe because of it. Either way, he has wielded a sharp sword from his underworld den, and worn the uniform of a warrior in the battle for sanity between men and women … .
So what kind of fellow is this Zed?
Well, as I learned from a recent thread over on MGTOWforums.com, where he is officially an “elite member,” he’s the sort of person who thinks you should’t bother to save a four-year-old girl from drowning, because then she’ll grow up into a woman, and most of them are just terrible.
The regulars on the forums there were discussing the case of Michael Patterson, a Georgia man who was paralyzed after diving into a creek to rescue a four-year-old girl from drowning, and who has now died after several weeks in the hospital.
While a few suggested that Patterson was a hero, others made clear they wouldn’t have done the same thing themselves. 0kool put it like this:
i know i would never save an adult CUNT….and i know that as sure as i breathe air. however, i would be hard pressed to save a female child knowing what she might have the potential to do in the future. My hat’s off to the guy. Let’s hope his death isn’t in vain and the child doesn’t become a CUNT piece of shit!
Zed, that grand underground warrior for gender sanity, that icon of the Men’s Rights movement, argued the same thing in slightly more restrained prose. In one comment, he warned of the dire possibility that the seemingly innocent little girl you save could grow up to be
another Amanda Marcunt, or Jessica Valenti, or Betty Friedan? Do we think it is worth a man giving his own life to save the life of a woman who will spend it being totally destructive?
In another, he raised the specter of an even more hated figure, at least amongst MGTOWers and MRAs:
Given the evidence around me, it does appear far more likely that a girl will grow up to be another Sharon Osborne – who thinks it is “fantastic” when a woman cuts off the penis of her husband, or the audience of women who cheered that statement – than a woman who contributes much, even to her own family.
I really can’t think of any woman in the public light who the world would be much worse off without.
When a female is in trouble, if I don’t know her, I don’t see her.
This is the kind of timeless wisdom that makes you an icon in the Men’s Rights movement, I guess.
NOTE: Thanks to @taylerlp on Twitter for the tip.
EDITED TO ADD: When I wrote this post, there were 13 or so comments in the MGTOWforums thread; there are considerably more now, including a number from MGTOWers who say they WOULD try to save a little girl. But Zed only doubles down on his position.
Speaking of irrational hatred of certain foods….
I absolutely hate mangoes. I think it’s the texture and that bitter taste they have. *gag*
Also I’ve never liked sushi, I’m not sure why, just tastes too bitter and gross.
Really late to this, but I think this, along with the comments in praise of George Sodini that “this is what women should expect when they refuse to have sex with (certain) men” have to be one of the absolute worst things I have EVER seen someone in the MRM say.
This man exhibited amazing bravery and generosity that is frankly inspiring. It shows humanity at its finest. It’s a tragedy that he died because of it, but I guarantee that he would have still dived into that water to save that girl even knowing it would kill him. Not because he was “expected” to, and not because he was “forced” to, but because he was an amazing person.
And for these assholes to take this story and twist it into their hateful worldview just makes me nauseous.
I tried eggplant in a stir-fry last night. I feel like I should have put the eggplant in first and fried it more, because it came out slimy and kinda gross. (but the overall stir-fry was saved by the bok choy and pork combo)
First time eating eggplant.
PS: on the drowning front, has everybody seen the video/article thingie about how drowning on TV has trained us not to be able to recognize an actual drowning right in front of us, and most drowning victims die within twenty feet of somebody who could have helped them but didn’t realize they needed help? Link
Brains are ok. Done well they are textured like scrambled eggs (or so incorporated they lose texture). Most organ meats are ok with me (save liver, qua liver, and tripe; those are both largely texture issues).
Howard: Did you purge it first? Eggplant works best if you cut it up, salt the pieces, then let them sit in a colander in the sink for an hour. Rinse the salt off then give them a squeeze and pat them dry with paper towels. That’ll get rid of the bitter/slimy texture, and allow the eggplant to suck up more of the cooking flavours.
Mangoes are one of the most repellent foods I know. The smell of them is almost indescribable; a sort of rancid meat and kerosene odor.
I know about three days before they get ripe that they are in the house (well when I lived with people who liked/could eat mango).
Last night’s meal, honey garlic baby back ribs, braised red cabbage and <a href="http://www.food.com/recipe/rice-and-black-beans-rice-cooker-352673"santa-fe style beans and rice.
No! Not the HTML monster!
santa-fe style beans and rice.
@leftwingfox
The recipe didn’t mention it, so I just kind of chopped it up and threw it straight into the stir-fry.
I’ll try it again, with preparation, and see what kind of difference that makes. 😛
With you on the texture of liver and tripe, @pecunium.
Remember my doctor telling me I needed more iron so to eat liver and when I protested, she reminded me about liver pate. Now pate I do like …
But mango juice is amazing! Particularly with vodka!
In not completely silly things, I am somehow more disturbed by the idea of you LARPing than eating brains…
Probably because the white wolf LARP stuff has chunks on, you know, consent. And not running around threatening people who aren’t playing, and how doing illegal shit is still illegal, and real weapons are a stupid idea…so I pretty much picture LARPers as idiots. Which you are not.
And eating brains as, well…I like mangos, so who am I to talk?
Huh. Better not mention to this crowd the mango sherbet we enjoyed last summer, then.
@Argenti, and wildly somewhat relevant to the Scots conversation … There’s a park just up the street from our new house that we’ve driven past lots in the last few years, and every nice, warm weekend we’re almost assured of seeing this group of folks in motley, like a batch of Robert-the-Bruces on acid, out swinging foam swords at each other.
We think they’re either LARPers or SCA.
We’ve never screwed up the courage to go ask ’em exactly what.
Never seen SCA people with foam swords, always wood, but I guess foam is probably better where the general public might get all “aaahhhh a weapon!!”
That aside, that’s hilarious, and my other problem with LARPing — my tolerance for being afraid I look like an idiot is fairly low.
I think mango sherbet sounds delicious. And that I need a nap before tackling the rest of the religion data.
I’m an incredibly picky eater. It’s probably easier to list foods I don’t like than food I do. However, I try everything I don’t like every 5~ years so that I’m certain I still don’t like it. Recent things that have changed from “Do not like” to “Like” category: Cherries and blueberries. Something I really don’t like is “fishy” flavour – which means that all seafood is off my menu.
However, I do like my steak rare or blue, and I like liver, especially when it’s been lightly fried.
Well, they’re more like PVC piping covered with foam — they’re rigid, and fairly substantial.
I figger it was that, or oars.
I’ve been trying to learn to do new things, including things that generally lean towards making me look stupid in public. Testing my boundaries, that sort of thing. It’s been mostly good.
I mean, except for that panic attack on stage, in front of all those people. I totally thought I was going to die. And I was in the back row of the chorus, for crying out loud!
Still totally worth it.
I love mango! The texture is odd, though, so I can see why not everyone likes them. I don’t find the smell objectionable at all though. Now, durian otoh…
Gristly and meat fat are the textures I find completely intolerable, followed by anything slimy. Speaking of which, Howard, if you like spicy things you might want to try classic Chinese spicy eggplant, since the cooking technique produces a different kind of texture (and also the sauce is great).
With veggies I find that proper cooking can eliminate the slimy texture problem most of the time. I often hate okra because of the texture, for example, but apparently it doesn’t have to be slimy because I’ve had it served to me in a perfectly acceptable non-slimy form in some restaurants.
Durian, *hork*
I adore mango too, but haven’t had a really good one in ages. Generally, texture is usually the reason for my food dislikes (mushrooms, shellfish); flavor is a lesser culprit (I’m looking at you, beets — why must you look so pretty, but taste exactly like dirt?!)
As far as texture goes I can’t stand okra, liver and drumsticks (the vegetable). I also have a dislike for the texture of jackfruit, but I love the taste so I manage to get over it. My ability to enjoy durian depends on the fruit and the day (ditto young coconut).
@Cassandra
Did you also grow up calling okra “Ladies’ fingers”. It led to a rather hilarious conversation the first time I went to a cajun restaurant.
@Howard
South Asians usually fry the eggplant slices before we throw them into whatever dish, it rids them of the sliminess. A less oily alternative is to spray them with oil and throw em into the oven.
My brother once compared the insides of durians to rotting chicken fat. I still think his description is fitting.
Tell me about it! I’m very self-conscious about stuff like that, so I tend not to do it. People call me a snob, but it’s not so much looking down as being afraid that someone will look down on me. For me, it’s a side effect of childhood bullying I imagine. I’d rather be called no fun then be laughed at…
@ Shadow
Yes! But the awkward conversation was with Mr C’s mother, who was all “well, yes, of course you wouldn’t want to eat that…”.
They sound a bit like Morris dancers.