If the Men’s Rights movement is looking for a celebrity endorser, I think I’ve found just the guy for them: the mixed martial arts fighter, and erstwhile porn actor, War Machine, currently sitting in jail on charges of brutally beating and attempting to kill his ex-girlfriend, porn star Christy Mack.
Men’s Rights activists should be able to look past these criminal charges; after all, as they remind us all the time, women are forever falsely accusing innocent men of all sorts of terrible things.
And in so many ways War Machine is perfect for them. An MMA fighter, he’s already only one letter away from being an MRA. A misogynistic asshole with rage issues, he’ll have no trouble fitting in with the Men’s Rights crowd. And, especialy important for a movement that has a lot of trouble getting any good PR, he’s a bit more comfortable on camera than the Paul Elams and Dean Esmays of the world, with experience on television (on the reality show The Ultimate Fighter: Team Hughes vs. Team Serra), and in seven films (albeit pornographic ones).
Best of all: he’ll need no ideological education from what A Voice for Men likes to call Fuck Shit Up University. War Machine – real name Jonathan Koppenhaver – is already an outspoken proponent of many of the Men’s Rights Movement’s core beliefs.
Consider these selections from a little Men’s Rights manifesto War Machine wrote a few years ago during a previous stint behind bars, serving time for felony assault after two bloody bar fights. His rant, which a friend posted to the internet, would fit right in with the sort of stuff we’ve seen regularly posted on the Men’s Rights subreddit, or The Spearhead, or A Voice for Men. I’ve bolded some of the Men’s Rightsiest bits:
The oppression of MEN is worse than oppression of Jews in Nazi germany, worse than the slavery of Blacks in early America…
There has always been the oppressor and always the oppressed. Before, it was blatant … NOW the oppressor has learned to disguise his evil. You can see man, but you can not see MEN. How easy it is to oppress a minority that is invisible to the eye! How genius of the oppressor! And what a better target too! …
Men challenge injustice from Government, MEN fight for their Constitutional rights, that are slowly being taken away every year. …
And they don’t just oppress us by making more laws and taking away more freedom, they are far more clever than that! Ask yourself what your REAL dream was?? If you gave up on this dream, why? Because of the brainwashing of the Government, that’s why! They taught you to “play it safe.” They told us a responsible man has ONE wife, a house, good credit, good job, and kids. How are you supposed to chase your dreams while maintaining all of that!?
Men are supposed to take risks and be aggressive! What accomplishments have ever come of a man scared to risk it all!? None!? Where would the world be? Still ‘flat!’ Still ‘Earth at the center of the universe!’
If any of you have your Men’s Rights Bingo cards out, I’m guessing you might already be close to scoring a bingo. We’ve got a comparison to slavery that could have come straight from the pages of A Voice for Men, a marriage-is-death-to-male-dreams rant that could have been borrowed from any MGTOW forum, and an evo-psych-esque argument that men are the true risk-takers and the world’s real innovators.
And I don’t think War Machine would have much trouble with Paul Elam’s “Bash a Violent Bitch Month,” either.
[I]t’s Christmas day and I’m laying in my bunk wondering “Why in the hell do American men get married!?” … If your wife is being a bitch you can’t slap her, if your wife is yelling at you, God forbid you yell back … Next thing you know it will be illegal to fuck your wife! LMAO! Maybe then, MEN in this country will get the fucking hint and MOVE! This country forces you to be a bitch!
In another online posting, War Machine touched on another Men’s Rights hobbyhorse, the notion that the justice system is stacked against men:
[L]ook at the prisons, they are FULL of MEN, not women. Are men “evil” and women not? Or do the laws target and attempt to restrict NATURAL MEN’S BEHAVIOR? How many of the HEROES in American history would avoid prison if they lived today? Davey Crockett? Thomas Jefferson? David Bowie? General Grant & General Lee? Shit, George Washington. … Laws target MEN and men’s behavior. Women want to bitch and cry about their rights and equality… LMAO! MEN are the ones locked away like animals, while women run free!
Someone might have to explain to War Machine that David Bowie is not actually a famous American HERO but a famously androgynous British musician who once recorded an album called “Heroes.” (Mr. Machine may be thinking of James Bowie, a well-known 19th century American frontiersman and slave trader, and the guy the Bowie Knife is named after.)
But other than that, he seems ready to go.
There is, of course, that whole attempted murder charge to deal with.
It’s true the Men’s Rights Movement has had few problems in the past rallying behind men with histories of violence. But War Machine might be a harder sell as a Men’s Rights hero. His alleged attack on Mack left her with a cracked rib, a ruptured liver, numerous broken bones, missing teeth and her eyes swollen shut. (See here for photos of her injuries; obviously this link is NSFW and could be triggering.)
While Mr. Machine denies attacking Mack, he joked to a TV host last year that if she were to leave him “I would just kill her” and get a tattoo saying “Rest In Peace” above the tattoo of her name he has on his neck.
And several hours after allegedly trying to murder her, War Machine tweeted this lovely message about his ex:
https://twitter.com/WarMachine170/statuses/497663075831787521
War Machine does seem to be at a low point in his life. Even aside from the charges he faces, and the time he seems likely to serve, his career in porn is almost certainly over. The “Alpha Male” clothing line he helped start wants nothing to do with him. Nobody but the prison system seems to want this guy.
In other words: Men’s Rights activists, this is your chance! War Machine may not be the, er, hero you want. But he’s certainly the hero you deserve.
Oh, I guess it must be a day ending in “y”.
I guess this POS didn’t count on some men having the dream of putting away scum like him. There is nothing natural about his behavior.
This creep doesn’t get to decide who history’s (or today’s) heroes are for everyone, and mine are ALL the men and women who have worked tirelessly throughout history trying to make this world a better place serving, making, and creating to achieve that goal; not the hyper aggressive land stealers, rapists, warmongers, and those who enslaved along with all the greedy scumbags.
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This guy was an MMA fighter/ adult movie actor. How is any of that playing it safe. Did he used to be a librarian? What on earth was he talking about?
Gilshalos: I will. I’m going to pass on a message through someone I know when he’s back in town next week and I’ll be sure ti mention it. There’s also an option to send hugs through the Give Forward link and attach a message. With all of the horrible shit being spewed about this, its uplifting to see some genuine support for her.
This article was posted and it’s a great read http://thoughtcatalog.com/harris-omalley/2014/08/why-you-should-care-about-the-beating-of-christy-mack/
This hits on two fronts: The dehumanization of sex workers and the victim blaming of DV victims. Christy is getting both right now and its disgusting. And triggering as fuck.
As to the why Dawkins is attempting yet another self-pedicure via teeth, my guess would be 100% pure petulance. He really doesn’t like being told to knock it off.
He is master of the nonpology though:
“My phraseology may have been tactlessly vulnerable to misunderstanding, but I can’t help feeling that at least half the problem lies in a wanton eagerness to misunderstand.”
So so many nasty fools.
Dude really needs an editor, as well as a conscience.
His problem is that he refuses to understand that his words have wider consequences than his intentions. Any criticism of the context of his words is taken to be criticism of the logic he uses.
I dunno, I remember when Pat Condell was celebrated for speaking out forcefully against religion, particularly Islam. That was before he kept speaking and people realized he was against Islam not because of a general secularist ideal, but because of racism.
Seems to me that people like these get famous for having the nerve to speak bluntly and harshly, and having the personality that keeps them speaking out. Which is great when you agree with what they’re saying, but is insufferable when you don’t. Dawkins reacts to valid feminist complaints the same way he reacts to invalid religious complaints.
This piece of shit needs to be in prison. He’s just an all around terrible human being. I dunno if he’ll ever “come around” or “learn” anything from this but when I learned of his MRA leanings last night, boy was I seething. I also predicted that David would post something about it. And he did! Not that it’s anything to celebrate, but it does feel kind of good to rail against this human monstrosity.
FUTURE MOST TERRIFYING GYM IN THE WORLD.
I do hope he and his buddies call it ALPHA MALE SHIT GYM so the right people know to stay away.
Also, fuck Dawkins. I’m tired of his smarter-than thou, smarminess. He’s an asshole and an eyesore to atheists like me.
Most people do not conflate masculinity with violence and rape.
Praise jeebus.
We could aim for maximum inclusivity and agree to praise Bootsy instead.
Add me to the atheists who agree with you. And fuck Condell too: he’s just a plain racist.
@damselindetech:
I honestly don’t know. If he hadn’t capitalized “ONE wife,” then I guess he could be arguing that societal pressure to settle down and take on a bunch of responsibilities got in the way of his dreams. That’s… misguided, but much more reasonable.
With the capitalization, I can only imagine part of his dream is a harem, a dream that apparently every single man has.
I am sorry, I must abstain from the cult of Bootsy. I follow another cat. ShopKat.
Every time Dawkins says something awful I wonder how many other atheists are sitting there feeling like they’re at a wedding and that one embarrassing uncle that every family seems to have has just made a pass at all 5 bridesmaids, threw up on the flowers and then passed out face-down in the punchbowl.
Who is this ShopKat rival of Booty? I am open to polytheism as long as it involves cats.
There’s no reason why the Cult of Bootsy can’t have other deities and patron saints!
Cassie, good to see more like-minded atheists! Not ALL atheists! hehehehe
Nobody deserves a physical attack, and given his MMA fighter background, he would have known he was easily able to do terrible injuries to another person. Where is the MMA in all of this, how can they ethically justify creating “stars” like this who don’t have the psychological ability to control their physical side? They mold people like him, they have culpability in this.
And this would be a fine time for an MRA to fucking own their shit. No, owning your shit does NOT mean blaming a woman for her own abuse.
Hells bells, he ruptured her liver, among other injuries. He laid into her like she was a punching bag.
@ cassandrakitty – “and then passed out face-down in the punchbowl.”
And how is it that they never manage to drown themselves? HOW?
Also, All praise Bootsy and ShopKat! And Maru!
I just hope we don’t have a repeat of the “you can’t tell men not to hit women, that’s patronizing” bullshit in this thread, because the thickness of my patience could be measured in nanoparticles right now.
Also praise Saint Hana of the Tailchasing.
Good too see you too, Redpoppy! NAAALT!
BTW, Cassie is the Feline Ruler (Black Bombay) of the apartment, and I am only her chief of staff and most humble servant, may I be found worthy.
You are being highly illogical cassandrakitty. The dawkingsbot would not approve. *beep beep boop*