Men face numerous issues: Violence against men is often accepted, forced conscription, high suicide rates, our life expectancy lags way behind women, and so forth. These subjects have been discussed to death, to the point where saying any new can seem impossible, yet precious little is being done to alleviate these issues. It can often seem that as long as women are doing better, everything is fine. Nothing else needs to change. And so perhaps the biggest problem faced by men at large is the belittling of serious issues. Throughout history, better conditions have always been something people have had to fight for, and so I guess the duty lies on those of us who are able, to do what we can for the men in our lives and perhaps even beyond. And to convince others who are able to do the same. I don't know if this place has died, so this is just in case it hasn't.
When I tentatively suggested dropping out of uni, my parents laughed at the idea. Whenever they would teach me something, they would get offended if I did not succeed within a few tries. They always insist that I should just try harder, and get mad whenever I try to take a break. Those in my writing group are nice, but would they still be if my writing was trash? If I showed up and wasted their time with garbage, if I deluded myself into thinking I was better than I am, or simply did not align with them politically? I only got together with my study group because we figured that it would be a good constellation for studying and get a good semester project going without burning ourselves out in the process. My brothers seem to lose respect for me whenever we do something together and I don't live up to their expectations as the oldest. When I do something with friends, they are either impressed at the speed at which I learn, or we do something they find as natural as breathing where I struggle. And then they wonder if there is something wrong with me. And so I wonder: If I let myself be incompetent, would anybody care? Interfacing with the world is a choice I make, because I care too much about my parents and siblings to leave them and only live in the moment for myself. But if I one day woke up were no longer competent, would anybody care about me? Hope this fit. Figured I would try a mental health post, as I imagine I am not the only one wondering about this.
I am reading a book about poisons throughout history, and it mentions that throughout the 1800's women were stereotyped as devious people who would murder men using poisons for their own gain, while it was socially acceptable for men to beat their wives and be unfaithful. This struck me as weird, both because the book has not commented on gender issues up until this point, and because it sounds completely wild that men could essentially treat their wives like property with zero repercussions. Still, this book was written by a historian and it is a perspective that I have heard from feminists as well. I was wondering if I could get some nuance on it here.
thestrugglingstudent 1y ago • 100%
It's kinda hard, because if all you have experienced are the shallow women who only care about looks, money, and status, being told you are wrong will just make you feel invalidated. I don't think it's much different from women who assume that all men are misogynistic rapists due to having been traumatized by them. It is a way to tie your experiences and identity into the ideologies you support.
thestrugglingstudent 1y ago • 100%
I grew up being taught that feminism is simply wanting men and women to be equal. Only as an adult, have I found that was not the case. But if you either stay in your echo camber, or simply don't really participate in debates about feminism, it is very possible to never change your mind.
thestrugglingstudent 1y ago • 100%
It depends. Some simply believe that wanting equality = being feminist. In that case it isn't really a red flag. Otherwise, ask yourself if you want to spend your time with people you disagree with. Personally, I don't think political disagreements are a dealbreaker and can occasionally find a civil argument fun, but at the same time I wouldn't want to date someone who refuses to listen to me, or attacks me for my beliefs. Just being identifying as a feminist is definitely not enough to disqualify someone.
thestrugglingstudent 1y ago • 100%
If the problem is structural barriers, then people need to speak up about it. Otherwise nothing will change.
thestrugglingstudent 1y ago • 100%
That is a fair point. If the wages are that bad, I wouldn't want anyone to work those jobs. Maybe we should look towards therapists or psychologists then... Better wages, dominated by women, and clearly in high demand.
thestrugglingstudent 1y ago • 100%
Conditions and money is for sure a big part of it, but even with things as they are, way fewer men than women still choose these career paths. Surely there is a reason for that?
thestrugglingstudent 1y ago • 100%
To start, I think that there is a certain feeling if you are a boy/man that somehow, these jobs are not for you. Inviting guest speakers, for example male kindergarten teachers, to high schools where they would speak about their experiences and why they chose that job could be a first step in making it sound more approachable.
Jobs in which you directly care for other people, like teachers and nurses, have traditionally been dominated by women. However, several parts of the world seem to experience a shortage of workers in these areas. The usual left wing answer to this problem is to argue for better wages and working conditions. I was thinking that we could brainstorm solutions for the gendered aspects as well. Since the majority of people working in these fields are women, it stands to reason that men are a potentially untapped source of labor. In addition, the successful push for more women in STEM has shown that it is possible to make certain fields more attractive for a specific gender through political means. Getting more men into these fields would obviously be good for society, as these are critical areas that need to be staffed properly. It would potentially be good for men as well: * These are the kinds of jobs that provide people with a sense of meaning and purpose in their life, something I believe is an increasing problem for many men. * Men have an increasingly hard time finding success in classical education. This could serve as an alternative career path for those whose strengths do not lie in academia. * Young boys struggle a lot in school, and male teachers might have a different perspective on this that female ones. * It would provide children with more male role models, showing them the breath of what men are capable off. Now, I know that this is a small space without much political pull, consisting of people from different parts of the world. But if we want to differentiate ourselves from menslib on reddit and mensliberation on here, I think it would be prudent to not only address inequalities, but also brainstorm solutions. So imagine for a moment that you have a seat in your government, or are an advisor for someone with political power. What would you suggest in order to convince men to join women dominated fields?
thestrugglingstudent 1y ago • 100%
Feminism is a political ideology, and in order to understand what a political ideology entails, you need to look at how it is applied to the real world. 'Real' communism is supposed to bring about a utopia in which resources are fairly distributed and everyone works as best they can to aid one another. In reality, communism has resulted in mass murder, famine and some of the most cruel dictatorships the modern world has seen.
'Real' capitalism is supposed to ensure that everyone produces what they are best at producing, and market forces should ensure that we get the best quality and cheapest products we can have while also making everyone richer. In reality, capitalism results in the aggregation of wealth and power, misleading advertising, horrible working conditions for the poor, and rising inequality.
In the same vein, 'real' feminism might be supposed to create equality by tearing down the societal structures that keeps people down, ultimately helping everyone. But in reality, it simply empowers women at any cost, resulting in the marginalization and silencing of men.
A communist might genuinely want the best for the world and envision a utopia, but that doesn't change how the ideology is applied. And ultimately, that is the measure of what the ideology truly is. The actions of the leaders are the determinant, not the opinions of random followers.
As it stands, right now feminism is applied in a way that either ignores or silences men. and thus, it is anti-male.
thestrugglingstudent 1y ago • 95%
thestrugglingstudent 1y ago • 90%
thestrugglingstudent 1y ago • 100%
It seems that the community once concentrated at LWMA is now fractured. Some are here, some stayed and I suspect that some will follow thetinmen in his boycott. I am not much of an activist myself. Growing up, I was quite lonely and occassionally bullied for not fitting in with the main group, and so I have operated under the assumption that I don't want that to happen again. Thus, I have largely kept thoughts of advocating for mens rights or not being a feminist to myself. So this community has been a breath of fresh air to me, seeing that I am not alone in my thoughts and seeing people argue for helping men without devolving into conservative talking points. So how do we assure this community is not lost and broken?
I remember this was linked on the LeftWingMaleAdvocates subreddit before it was privated. I do not know who made it, but it is an archive of all posts and comments submitted there. The association with the red pill is unfortunate, but this seems like the best way to read the old posts now. Edit: Seems like the subreddit is back up. [https://www.reddit.com/r/LeftWingMaleAdvocates/](https://www.reddit.com/r/LeftWingMaleAdvocates/)