One last AVFM Conference update, with links to two more stories about that historic event.
The first, a gently skeptical Washington Post story by Monica Hesse titled, with a certain irony, “Men’s rights activists, gathering to discuss all the ways society has done them wrong.”
The whole thing is worth reading. My favorite bit:
One presenter, a military veteran speaking on the treatment of veterans returning from war, put up a PowerPoint slide alleging that 70 percent of men returning from war get divorced, and 90 percent do so within five years. When asked about the source of this statistic, he said, “That particular statistic is from my personal observations. I’m just speaking here as a dude.”
Ah, the prestigious Journal of Statistical Dudeness!
The second, well, it’s a bit more disturbing. DarkHorseSwore – a regular in the AgainstMensRights subreddit who raised money to go to Detroit to cover the convention only to be turned away at the door – managed to finally get an audience with some of the conference attendees and organizers – after the convention, as they celebrated at a bar and then in a hotel lobby. She got this access because none of them knew who she was. (Eventually Dean Esmay showed up and had her escorted off the premises.)
Now DarkHorseSwore has set up a website – DarkHorseSwore.com – and has started posting about the strange 5 ½ hours she spent amongst the AVFMers. She tells the tale of a strange encounter with one of the Honey Badgers and then an even stranger tale of an even stranger encounter with an old man and his camera. You’ll have to go read it. Be warned: It’s creepy as hell.
Oh, and she picked up some amazing conference swag as well. And by “amazing” I mean “possibly the worst conference swag I’ve ever seen, I mean, what the hell, and also why are they all beige?”
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Ken L., I sympathise! My husband wears fedoras and I think they’re gorgeous hats. It irritates me that they’re associated with these losers.
Whatever else one can say about hipsters, at least they dress well. I’m not into beards but the full, well-groomed beards I see some young guys wearing look really good.
@Robert
Listen I hear what your saying it is just that this type of groupthink is what can lead to an Elliot Rogers type of incident. This is where it originates with these mra’s as a collective mindset and then you hear of a horrible violent crime in the newspaper. Wasn’t all the talk after the Rogers massacre about mra’s? But not many people knew about the mrm prior.
As for me I still think he is dangerous but I am glad the conference is over. I’m tired of arguing and Isidore pointed out to me in her comment about burnout. This conference and mra stuff is causing me to get depressed and not sleep well and agitated.
So whatever I’m glad this is the last thread on the avfm convention and I’m going take a break for a few days and chill out and camp out in upstate NY in the mountains as Isidore mentioned. I’m tired and annoyed how all this mra stuff is getting to me emotionally and I do not want argue. I need to call a halt to all this mrm stuff.
I still contend this is a great blog and most people here have been very supportive to me even if they disagree. I know this is more of a mockery blog and I was maybe getting to high strung and serious but I mean well, and you guys are awesome because your at least putting a light on a very dark aspect of our society.Cheers
It was actually Isabelle not Isidore who pointed to out to me about burnout. Thanks Isabelle
@Gunter
Re DarkHorseSwore.Reading her account she was sat next to that guy a while,You’d of thought he might eventually have said “I just realised what I said earlier,I didn’t mean it to come out like that.” Don’t these people hear themselves?
Regarding my point about the state of their movement,although it was a joke I think it’s a fair assessment but I wouldn’t give them any credit for deliberately trying to confuse outsider’s.I’m sure they sincerely believe that randomly insulting women (that’s an understatement)on the internet is all they need to do.Notice how when they’re asked about how they’re actually helping men they never bloody answer and usually hurl out more abuse and a lot of the time when they mention specific men’s issues it’s to moan about why feminist’s aren’t doing anything about them.
@brooked – That song played so damned much for a while that I still get it stuck in my head. Having rapey bullshit play over and over again in my head does not make me happy.
She had better learn to fear the Feminist Overlords, though. I’m training my cats to jump and attack the faces of anyone who uses the term “Men’s Human Rights Activist” seriously in their presence. My kitties have a fine ear for sarcasm, though, so no need to worry here. 😀
@kittehs – Steeb also loves fedoras, and is quite unhappy about the fact that they’ve been ruined for him by misogynists. And congrats on the upgrade to mod!
@Gunter
I hope my last post didn’t sound patronising at the end.
Like this?
lolno. I think they’re the most self-uncritical group of people I’ve ever seen. And they’re in the running with the fundamentalist street preachers I used to bat around for fun.
I think it could, possibly, be both. They mock and laugh at David’s attempts to pierce the fog of their ridiculous arguments, so I wouldn’t put it past them to do some weird things just for shits and giggles. How else do you explain JudgyBitch? Wait, don’t answer that…I think the mental agility required to follow an argument that necessarily convoluted might result in a sprained frontal lobe.
But I do agree that, for the most part, they think that piddling around on the internet, being hateful bigots is all the “activism” that really needs to be done, hence the lack of “MHRM” mens’ shelters and the like. They want feminists to do their legwork for them, ideally while not complaining about being called whores about a thousand times (thanks again, JB!).
@tiko72 – I didn’t read it that way! 🙂
@kittehs – Something like, but with a giant Maine Coon that hates having her claws trimmed!
That’s a picture begging to be made, Gunter! XD
@Gunter
Thanks,being newish sometimes a bit worried about how I come across.
@brooked
Thanks.
@Everyone (apart from trolls)
I love kitties and the one sat on my knee right now told me to tell you.
Ask, kittehs, and ye shall receive!
@tiko72 – I’ve been reading for years, but I’m new to commenting, so I know the feeling. 🙂
watermelonsugar,
A+ would LOL again
Cassandra,
LONE WOLF FALSE FLAG MENTAL ILLNESS NOT OUR FAULT!
Gunter, LOL! Love it!
tiko72, hi and welcome – glad you are another servant of the Furrinati Overlords!
PUA Hate? B*TCH THAT AIN’T EVEN THE MANOSPHERE
Thanks Gunter and Kittehserf
I’m off to bed now (it’s 3.40am here in England and I forgot to take my sleeping tab)
Goodnight.
Someone did a parody of Blurred Lines, called “Church Signs”. It’s actually amusing. Only positive aspect of that song existing, imnsho.
G’night! Had fun talking with you. ^_^
@Robert – That had me scaring the cats with laughter. Thanks for that! 😀
Niters tiko72! 🙂
I’ve actually never (to my knowledge) heard the song. I’m hoping to keep it that way.
I’m actually watching the Canada Day special on CBC and seeing some good performances, some of which I had no idea were Canadian. Apparently I am an out-of-touch fuddy-duddy. But when did Daniel Lanois get so old?
Ditto. Just laying eyes on that Thicke character the first time yesterday was gross enough.
I think (and it doesn’t make it any better) Camera Dude was trying to make a pass at her when he mentioned “later tonight”, by letting her know that he was planning to have a wank; thus letting her offer to come up and join him.
I think the Detroit thing is supposed to be the conference destroying the present paradigm of the present male-female power dynamic.