I have a confession to make: I don’t always read the comments on posts by Men’s Rights Activists.
I realize this might come as a shock to some of you. I mean, one of the main, er, critiques I get from MRAs is that I “cherry pick” comments from MRAs to make them look bad — never mind that it is the comments that make them look bad, not me. But the embarrassing fact is that I often don’t read the comments at all.
In my defense, I have a hard enough time making it through the posts themselves. Life is short, and MRAs are long-winded. And by the time I get to the end of a lot of MRA posts, I’ve pretty much lost my patience with their nonsense. The last thing I want to do at that moment is to read the fawning word-vomit of a bunch of irritating fucks whose comments are likely to be as bad or possibly even worse than the original post.
So today I decided to do a sort of penance for my sins — and to actually read through a week’s worth of comments on A Voice for Men to see what I could learn about the world, and (perhaps more to the point) about the sort of people who actually enjoy reading posts on that terrible site.
I tried my best to do this little experiment as scientifically as possible. But I cheated a little. I didn’t read the comments to every post. And I didn’t read every comment on the posts that I did look at. I mean, what the hell. There’s a limit to my masochism. Seriously, you try reading a week’s worth of this shit in one sitting.
Anyway, here are the Top 7 Insights I’ve learned from a week’s worth of comments at AVFM. In choosing the following, I stuck with comments that were either upvoted or unchallenged by the site’s regulars, or both.
1) Feminists literally want women to be able to kill men with no repercussions.
In the comments to an allegedly humorous post about the female “rationalization hamster,” Angelo sets us straight about the real agenda of feminists and their mangina allies:
2) Most young females are vile pigs.
This one, from a post about Men’s Rights Edmonton’s harassment of noble human rights activism towards that city’s Slut Walk, is pretty self-explanatory. Take it away, jbantifem:
3) It is “female nature” to falsely accuse men of rape. In another comment on that female “rationalization hamster” post, TheMaskAndRose praises AVFM for running articles addressing the important issue of women being dirty lying you know whats.
4) Women are “vipers” with credit cards
In the comments of a post meditating on the notion of privilege (or something, I didn’t read it), l jess warns men not to get involved with women at all. Because of that viper thing.
5) Don’t marry women because they’re selfish narcissists who won’t let you have a model train set
In the comments to a novella-length post detailing one man’s legal battles with his ex, John Durant reveals that his mother wouldn’t let him have a model train set. And he shares the lesson he took from this childhood tragedy: Avoid women at all costs.
6) Attractive women have no need nor desire for feminism. Or maybe they do? After praising the looks of an antifeminist YouTuber, Sway draws the only possible conclusion from this evidence. Or is it the only possible conclusion? I’m not sure what to believe.
7) Women have too many feelings to be engineers
In yet another comment on that “rationalization hamster post,” Roby 83 compares women — inherently emotional and opinionated — with men — more adept in “objective reasoning.”
There is perhaps a teensy bit of irony in the fact that Roby 83 has chosen to post this comment on A Voice for Men, a site run by, and overflowing with, men who think that their tantrums are rational arguments.
And I think that’s my cue to end this little experiment.
@ booburry
Um.
http://straightwhiteboystexting.tumblr.com/post/92465517302/livelifecountry-that-escalated-quickly
Bloody hell. I just sprained my eyes rolling them, again.
Also I have been savaged by the Stealth Attack Cat and have two life-threatening punctures in my knee.
Wut?
http://straightwhiteboystexting.tumblr.com/post/92234489442/abbeyxchristine-the-weird-thing-is-that-this
It’s just so specific, makes me wonder if he trolls for women with glasses so he can send this message to every one he finds.
And, finally, we have a winner.
http://straightwhiteboystexting.tumblr.com/post/92130887478/beccad18-i-just-joined-tindr-to-see-what-was
Gerbils have long tails.
Dafuq?
If he’s an optometrist trawling for business, he’s doin it rong.
I love that one about oral sex!
Of course the one talking about doing it could mean he’s going to witter on about his fantasies for hours on end. It wouldn’t surprise me.
Katz: That’s not an assault gerbil, it’s an assault hamster!
Frankly, I find your racism disappointing. A gerbil has as much right to arms as a hamster.
Katz: Gerbils have long tails.
There we go again. Sure, at first it’s “I just want to be taxonomically correct”, but all too soon you’re herding innocent gerbils into CAGES!! CAGES!!!
We haven’t forgotten what you Americans did to the guinea pigs, you know. Don’t try to deny it with your “I don’t know what you mean”, or your “That was the Aztecs, not us” or your “Have you been sniffing glue again” – WE KNOW WHAT YOU DID! Trust me, the guinea pigs remember! The gerbils remember! AND I REMEMBER!
NOT THIS TIME! I’m not going to let you get away with it this time if I have to arm EVERY SINGLE GERBIL and lead them myself In. BLOODY.. REVOLUTION!!!!
(for best effect, imagine the above comment was read out loud by Brian Blessed)
Can he be wearing his Flash Gordon costume while he reads this?
Was there any sci-fi show containing British actors where Brian Blessed didn’t have at least one part?
Brian Blessed is everywhere. My favourite will always be his turn as Squire Western. Nobody chews the scenery quite like he does.
Gary Oldman made some valiant scenery-chewing efforts, but Blessed still wins.
I’m trying to remember what I’ve seen Gary Oldman in other than Dracula. I’ve a feeling that’s all there is. Didn’t watch the third Potter film, I gave up after the second. Did have a friend who spent the whole screening, according to her, whispering to her husband, “Gary Oldman looks just like Louis in this!”
Brian Blessed smashing up the wedding breakfast in The History of Tom Jones makes me crack up every time I see it.
My favourite Brian Blessed role is King Richard from the first Black Adder. Seriously the first series was nothing compared to what followed but Blessed was simply hilarious.
SLAAAAAAAYYYY
Brian Blessed is wholly awesome. He’s just as eccentric irl, totally hilarious, dedicated mountain climber, and has an animal sanctuary kinda place in his grounds.
Gary Oldman was good at scenery chewing in The Fifth Element. Not as goodlooking as he can be, but very enjoyable as the villain.
(eccentric is ok to use, yes ? I had been going to type ‘crazy’ or ‘insane’ but then realised that that would be ableist, even though I was using it as a compliment. I have mental health issues myself, but never really thought about the thoughtless (natch) use of such language in daily conversations before I came here, and don’t want to get it wrong now I know.)
I’ve never heard anyone object to eccentric!
I saw Brian Blessed on one of Tony Robinson’s Walks Through History shows a while back. I loved it that he spoke with his own accent (slightly broadened) as Squire Western.
First thing I saw him in would have been Z Cars, though I don’t really remember it. First thing I recall was him playing Augustus in I, Claudius. He was positively restrained there, iirc.
I’m kind of surprised he bothers actually climbing the mountains, if he shouted at them they’d probably fall over.
Brian Blessed has played King Lear. I can’t quite imagine that.
And nope, if it’s British sci-fi TV, Brian Blessed has been in it.
Except Red Dwarf.
LOL! I can imagine that.
I’d love to see BB doing the mad scene in Lear. That would be special.
He was great in Henry V, Branagh’s version. Stomping around in full armour suits him very well.
And now I just have to post my favourite scene from Tom Jones again.
http://youtu.be/1AvMXmL0hl8
Brian Blessed was apparently briefly considered as Hagrid. I think they went with Robert Coletrain because Rowling liked him best and the only way the Hut on the Rock scene could have played out with Brian Blessed was for the Dursleys to get SLAAAAAIIINN.
Now I’m thinking of Blessed as Dumbledore.
Voldemort would have been knocked off in the first film.
There’s also a push from a lot of GoT fans to see him cast as Wyman Manderly.
I have an important question: why didn’t Brain Blessed appear in Red Dwarf?