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.
Of course, contrapangloss! Would you like me to send her your email? I can get it via the mods email, if you do.
Are you on Ravelry? pallygirl’s on there with her gorgeous crochet work, and in the Crafty SPINSTERS group, too.
Yeah, if Pallygirl wants to leave over the stupid thing, someone should definitely let her know that that isn’t normal around here and that everyone would welcome her remaining and saying the word stupid as often as she likes.
I’ll pass it on, katz, but I think it’s a cumulative thing; the place was getting to her.
*shrug* If she needs to go, she needs to go. But it would be sad if she left over a misconception.
So does anyone want to talk about conflict resolution? I felt an anger to my friend, I told my wrath, my wrath did end and all that.
It’s more like conflict irresolution around here at the moment!
I almost wrote meowment. I must be really tired.
I think it’s a straw-breaking-camel’s-back thing, from what pallygirl said.
I kind of want a meowment option, actually. Like a video of a cat meowing in a really annoying way that can be posted as a response every time someone says something too ridiculous to be worth engaging.
OOOOH yes must have!
Or a gif. That would be a perfect gif.
A Siamese would have just the right voice for it.
Actually maybe a screaming goat would be more effective.
Imagine a Siamese and a screaming goat duet.
Since we’re all airing past silencing, I have to admit a while back thebewildness said TERF is a slur and I didn’t say anything because I knew it would turn into shitstorm if that was debated. I think the term has a historical basis and current relevance, but it has been rendered almost useless. It’s turned into the equivalent of a “burn the witch” kill shot on the internet, people use it without providing any proof or explanation. Also it weirdly casts feminists as the greatest threat to trans people everywhere, so anti-feminists love throwing it around even when it’s obvious they couldn’t give a shit about actual trans issues.
I very much support people identifying and combating transphobia, but you have to put some thought and work into that. TERF has become a pseudo-progressive scare term that seems to cause immediate mass shunning and blanket denouncements. I can’t even think of a comparable phenomenon, it’s just weird to me how people use it now.
brooked, ::applause:: I’m thinking the same way, that the term is used to close any debate and label radical feminists, at least, as the enemy – as if they’re the ones with a huge power base in society! It’s got to the point where even mentioning that yes, trans women’s life experiences, socialisation and even bodies are not identical to cis women’s, is seen as some sort of TERF statement. I wasn’t aware that equality was dependent on being identical.
I’m doing the Important Work of looking for yowling kitty gifs. No luck yet, but this one would be perfect for the reaction to sockpuppets.
http://37.media.tumblr.com/580418cd89e3a2a429772864a491578f/tumblr_n02zjiFhT31sk712fo1_400.gif
@ brooked
The perfect illustration of that was when there was a big drama on Tumblr because a food blog reblogged a recipe from someone who is considered to be a TERF. Someone said “that person whose recipe you reblogged is a TERF”, the food blog deleted and apologized, and much drama was had. Because of a recipe, not a post that was about feminism, trans people, or indeed anything other than food.
I don’t even mind using TERF (and actual TERFs are a nasty bunch I would rather not have to deal with again) because it at least distinguishes it from other radfems who aren’t transphobic. But then Ally was all like, no, it has to be TWERF because they only exclude trans women. Well, fuck! Not the ones I’ve run into, unless erasing the entire existence of a group of people is somehow not exclusionary? But, really, I’d be happy to drop TERF just as well. For one, I doubt radfems are the only feminists who are transphobic. For another, can’t we just say some transphobes happen to be feminists and that’s a problem? I mean there are racist feminists, homophobic feminists, and classist feminists, but we don’t call them POCEFs, LBGEFs, LCEFs.
So is there any way to come back from all this? As in can we fix things so good people feel welcome here again and get rid of the stuff that was preventing them from speaking freely? I don’t mean we shouldn’t call each other out when someone says something problematic, but there needs to be a common sense line. Not all insults are unwarranted or ableist or sexist or homophobic or transphobic or whatever.
Skye — honestly, I think the answer to that is that we should self-police — in the opposite direction. That is, before saying “that’s offensive” or what have you, take a second to consider if you’re always the one pointing things out. Cuz things like “crazy”? If I spot it, I point it out, but if I don’t, someone else does — I’m not the only one saying not to do that. For that matter, I assume good faith and whoops.
The difference between a variety of people going “can we not?” and one person going “you can’t ever do that”.
Idk if I’m making sense, I just got up. I’m not saying don’t speak up if you spot something offensive, I’m saying if you’re always spotting offensive things, and only you’re spotting them, maybe take a minute to ponder why that is.
In other news, we’re holding at the upper limit of axolotl temps. I’m gonna break out the digital thermometer and it just might be axolotl day!
Actually you’re making perfect sense, Argenti. I think, “I’m saying if you’re always spotting offensive things, and only you’re spotting them, maybe take a minute to ponder why that is” is really good advice. Lurkers and new commenters, take note.
daintydougal, I’m not caught up from the point last night where I turned off the computer, but I wanted to make sure to say again that I wasn’t bothered by your posting of the image, just the image itself (which may not make sense, but it’s how I think – I don’t hold you responsible for the image, you know?)
@emilygoddess
I’m surprised the title of that one isn’t Shia LaBeouf Cat. Although someone did make this…
Thanks Alex, I wasn’t sure if I was compounding the “you must self-police” problem.
Gillybeerose — makes sense to me, but I’m not daintydougal. I am, however, saddened to learn that that image isn’t the result of a ray being an oversized, weird feeling, goof. Because they’re awesome creatures, but their skin feels Really Weird. I’d probably make some absurd faces if one jumped up on me, seeing how weird it feels when they run into your arm.
Randomly, and why I’m commenting, I had a crayfish run into my foot yesterday while wading around a stream. Thought about catching it, but it didn’t seem too happy about colliding with me. Of course, there was also that the last one I’d picked up pinched me and I’d had enough pinchings for one day! (Aquatic critters, I could talk about them all day!)
Argenti, there’s a great ray and shark petting tank at the Aquarium of the Pacific, and while petting the sharks was neat, I definitely preferred playing with the rays. If you dangled your fingers in the water, splashing them gently on the surface, rays would come up and run themselves against your fingers. I strive mightily not to anthropomorphize, but that seemed clearly like a “Yes, please!!” reaction to me. I won’t even try to speculate on what the interaction felt like or ‘meant’ to them, but it seemed clear that, all other things being equal, and when left with the autonomy to decide, they chose it again and again.
It made me happy, especially as they felt like wet velveteen.
Yeah, how they feel about it isn’t something we can know, but I’ve had enough aquatic critters to tell “more” from “no” — some are more obvious about it than others (puffer fish are nicknamed aquatic puppies for a reason). But doing the same thing again? I don’t think it’s antropomorphizing to say that they’re saying “more” to that thing.
Also, it may well be axolotl day, temp is indeed holding at acceptable, if only barely, temps. I’d worry about the if only barely part if this hadn’t been the hottest week all summer. Only question is if I can get R to buy me it today or if it had to wait until next week (he owes me an axolotl for doing his web design, I tend to charge friends in aquarium related things)
I think we just need more room for respectful disagreement. Two people need to be able to hold opposing opinions without it turning into a cage match to determine the “right” position.
In particular it needs to be OK to hold a minority opinion; I know I’m not the only one who feels the need to sort of gauge the atmosphere before sharing an opinion to make sure I’ll be on the “winning” side.
AxolotiDay!
Maybe. This is exciting. If it is indeed AxolotiDay, pics soon?
… Sorry for going all Axolotl, but salamanders! That look like baby salamanders forever, because cute gills!