April 2, 2017

The NYT columnist Frank Bruni — in an attack on Trump — attacks manliness.

Would anyone in the NYT attack femininity — in general — the way Bruni attacks masculinity in "Manhood in the Age of Trump"? It would be outright misogyny, and Bruni deserves to be called out for the misandry here.

Much of the column is about his personal struggle as a gay man to deal with his own anxieties about whether he is masculine enough.

That's personal to him, and not about Trump at all and not about all the other men who are free to experience, express, and enjoy whatever level or version of manliness they want.

Bruni begins with a personal memory from the 1970s — the Campbell's soup commercial with the macho cowboy voice singing “How do you handle a hungry man? The Manhandlers!” (Despite straining to portray the commercial as hypermasculine, Bruni chooses the verb "croon," which denotes soft, sentimental singing.)

Bruni agonizes over the image of men that bombarded him when he was an impressionable teenager: "The message was that a man worked up a sweat and then ate up a storm.... He was a force of nature with untamable appetites."
Maybe I read the tea leaves too closely and pessimistically, but then I’m a gay man whose teen years were in the late 1970s and early 1980s, when homosexuality alone was considered antithetical to true manhood and someone like me was left in a limbo, wondering what claims on masculinity he really had.
But to be a bit more objective: Campbell's was addressing women, who, you can tell, had the opinion that Campbell's soup wasn't enough of a meal to serve to an adult male. In fact, the familiar white and red cans had long been marketed as a meal for children. And by the way, the children — the "Campbell kids" — were remarkably androgynous:



Those old Manhandlers commercials were aimed at emboldening women to go ahead and open up one can, heat it up, and call it dinner. If that Frankie Laine wannabe in the commercial wasn't complaining, maybe your guy will be okay with it. Maybe he'll even laugh, sing the commercial, and add a lewd meaning to the name of the product.

Come on, Frank, we laughed at these commercials at the time, and Campbell's was in on the joke. Did you really feel these commercials were bullying you to be more manly? In the culture of the 70s, masculinity was examined, questioned, and mocked. Meathead continually critiqued Archie Bunker's blustering macho on "All in the Family" — the #1 show on TV from 1971 to 1976. Lou Reed's "Transformer" came out in 1972. David Bowie was in his prime. I know a lot of your readers were not around in the 70s, but I was, and it was no barrage of unmediated messaging that men must be sterotypically masculine.

Bruni says that as a gay teenager, he was "wondering what claims on masculinity he really had." Why did you feel you needed "claim" anything at all? It was a rich culture, and everyone made fun of commercials, especially children's soup begging to be taken seriously.
I was a competitive swimmer, and while I hated it, I didn’t dare quit, as it felt like a retort to, and inoculation against, anyone questioning my maleness. Just before college I completed an Outward Bound course in the Oregon mountains, and my outsize pride was about how classically manly the adventure had been: no showers, no toilets, harsh weather, bland food.
Bland food? "Bland" is the "crooned" of this paragraph. Since when is bland food considered "classically manly"? And also, why shouldn't young Bruni have felt proud and strong about his athletic and survivalist accomplishments? Why is that boy in the past exploited as weak and confused for the purposes of assailing a politician in the present? And why are all of the men of the present getting caught in the crossfire of an attack on the President?

Bruni proceeds to talk about how 2 of his friends say they "feel most manly" when engaging in some physical feat of strength. One remembered playing football. The other spoke of moving heavy tree limbs that had fallen on a hiking trail (which reminded me of the George W. Bush pastime, "clearing brush"). Bruni then purports to know — it's obvious — when Trump is feeling manly:
When does Trump feel the most manly? That’s pretty obvious: when he’s salivating over women and styling himself some conquistador of the flesh, as he did repeatedly with Howard Stern and on one infamous occasion with Billy Bush. When he’s belittling and emasculating rivals (“Liddle Marco,” “low-energy Jeb”), as he did throughout his campaign. When he’s vowing vengeance against the House Freedom Caucus, as he did last week. When he’s surrounding himself with generals. When he’s pledging huge increases in military spending while moving to starve wonky research and the arts.
Whatever you think about these aspects of Trump's behavior (and how Bruni puts them into words), we don't know if he really feels manly doing these things. Even Bruni seems to be implying that Trump — like Bruni's remembered version of teenage Bruni — is confused and afraid that the world might see that he is not what he thinks of a truly manly. And Bruni even takes that shot at him. Bruni bullies Trump as not masculine enough:
I think Trump protests too much, distracting us from other traits. He abhors handshakes: all those icky germs! He gilds and swirls his hair. Those white crescent moons under his eyes suggest time spent wearing goggles during artificial tanning sessions. The Marlboro Man got his sun on the range, not in the salon.
There are plenty more things about Trump that read as stereotypically feminine. Many of his hand gestures and vocal inflections and gushing descriptions of people and places feel feminine to me.

But like all of us, Trump is a mixture of traits, including traits formed within a culture that is presented and imperfectly understood in terms of masculine and feminine. What's important, I think, is for individuals to find a way to live a good and satisfying life. There are infinite possibilities, and the expression of sexuality and gender are probably going to be a part of it. I don't see how impugning masculinity is any more ethical and helpful than impugning femininity.

You may hate Trump, but don't use him as a weapon to attack masculinity. Masculinity doesn't deserve hatred. Find your own mix of masculinity and femininity and respect your own individuality and the individuality of others.

242 comments:

1 – 200 of 242   Newer›   Newest»
Brent said...

One of your top 5 ever Ann.

KJE said...

"We are a nation of men raised by women." - Chuck Panahuk, Fight Club.

Triangle Man said...

Bland food isn't manly. Being pragmatic about food taste and quality in consideration of the circumstances is. Not complaining about crappy food could be considered manly, unless the food was prepared by another man and he did a crappy job. In that case, giving him shit about it is manly.

Tarrou said...

Men are like whites. The eternal whipping boys of the chattering class. This is made all the more ironic that so many of this chattering class, like the estimable Mr. Bruni here, are themselves white men. White men who are ostentatiously signalling their solidarity with the Tribble-like profusion of "minorities" as a way of maintaining their social status over other, less popular white men.

You can always generalize, theorize, and display the most rank bigotry toward white men, because they are the majority! Of course, this isn't literally true, once you subtract out the women, the blacks, the hispanics, the asians, the american indians, the indian indians, the arabs, the persians, the slavs, the jews, the gays, the transgendered, the confused, and the chattering class themselves, there's a couple thousand bedraggled dudes working construction and fixing cars who apparently rule the world in the minds of these retarded cunts.

Lewis Wetzel said...

So Bruni felt more secure in his masculinity by voting for Hillary?

chickelit said...

Does anyone personify the pejorative term "drama queen" better that Frank Bruni?

chickelit said...

I mean, if Bruni feels free to whip out trite stereotypes, we can't we all?

tcrosse said...

Come on, Frank. If by this time in your life you're not comfortable in your own skin, don't take it out on Trump.

Heartless Aztec said...

Just so.

MD Greene said...

Sad!

chickelit said...

Bruni agonizes over the imagine of men that bombarded him when he was an impressionable teenager: 'The message was that a man worked up a sweat and then ate up a storm.... He was a force of nature with untamable appetites.'

I've been working two jobs lately -- my normal gig plus demolishing/refurbishing a townhouse on weekends. That physical stuff does get you dirty and make you hungrier. Today's journalism is not very manly at all. And Bruni should listen to Paglia's take on manly work.

ddh said...

Being neurotic is not manly, regardless of sexual orientation.

Fernandinande said...

NYT columnist attacks manliness.

Shocking.

And, "How do you mandle a mungry han? The Hanmandlers!"

rhhardin said...

Stanley Cavell wrote, whenever he was analyzing masculine and feminine, that he has a feminine side, but he had to because he was a Harvard professor.

Some things you can't say in academia unless you cancel them right away like that.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

The collective left are filled with bottom-less rage over the fact that THEIR Corrupt Establishment Corruption Queen didn't win. They lash out in every direction. Every new day brings a new level of neurosis.
Any scapegoat is a conduit for their rage.

rehajm said...

While his rant might be just the thing to get Trumpsads Times readers through their Sunday morning it's not likely to win any of the creative Trump bashing awards...

Is the sexual innuendo of The Manhandlers lost on Bruni or did it just not serve his purposes here?

rhhardin said...

I'd say do you make yourself out of obligations or out of needs, for masculine and feminine.

Otto said...

Believe me masculinity doesn't need your defense or is it threaten by a "fag".

Susan said...

Wow. Perhaps, if you have to go all the way back to your teenage feelings about a soup commercial to find things to project onto your target, you have the wrong target for your hate.

Search your feelings, Frank. You know it to be true. What are you really angry about?

Ambrose said...

Thank you Ann for reading the NYT op ed page so I don't have to.

rhhardin said...

Survival training is actually learning how to die. A guy needs to practice it.

AllenS said...

Quit acting like a sissy, Frank.

Dad said...

What Ambrose said.
You need a Best of Althouse tag, Ann, for posts like this one.

chickelit said...

AprilApple said...The collective left are filled with bottom-less rage over the fact that THEIR Corrupt Establishment Corruption Queen didn't win.

"Bottomless rage" is a great term because they will sink to ever lower and lower levels. I predict it will end with open advocacy of overthrow or worse.

Sprezzatura said...

I didn't see that he was attacking masculinity.

I thought he was (even using statistical data as backup) pointing out that a lot of American men are pussies who feel pressure to hide their pussiness.

That reminds me of stuff I hear on right-wing radio.

Regardless of the source, it's hard to disbelieve the conclusion, imho.

rhhardin said...

There's too much salt in Campbell's stuff, except the Cream of Potato soup is okay.

Laslo Spatula said...

The Patriarchy Men:

Patriarchy Men do Manly Things. We do not use our Brains to make Word Jello with little pieces of Fruit suspended in it, we us our Brains to tell our hands what to do...

We take things apart, and we put things together. If, after we put it together, it doesn't work, we take it apart again. We use oil and grease. We still respect the Carburetor...

When we go to the Doctor we WILL need an X-Ray, because something WILL be broken. Otherwise, doctors are for chicks and children...

Patriarchy Men have little patience for Little Men. Little Men whine and need help with their self-esteem: Patriarchy Men know that self-esteem is what they teach little girls in school because they are not good at math. Patriarchy Men know the Important Math: Horsepower, Torque and Fuck Metric...

Patriarchy Men do not complain that Other Men make them feel Inferior: That Is A Chick Thing. Chick Things are for chicks. And Little Men. Losing a fight does not make you Inferior: it just means someone kicked your ass this time. It happens. Pay Respect where respect is due. But you sure as hell don't go bitching about it...

Patriarchy Men do not necessarily agree with this whole Transgender Thing, but have more respect for a Man who wants to be a woman than a Little Man who just acts like one. Really, the main problem with Transgenders is when they are hookers that act like a woman, but then you find the balls and cock: stop that shit and Live and Let Live...

And a Patriarchy Men is not afraid to say:

"DADDY SAYS FIX ME A SANDWICH!"

I am Laslo.

Sprezzatura said...

"plus demolishing/refurbishing a townhouse on weekends."

This is the sorta thing that can bring together all sorts of dudes. Harmony = those who build stuff and those who decorate stuff.

Birkel said...

@ PB&J
"I didn't see..."

Correct. You should stay with that realization a bit longer.

chickelit said...

This is the sorta thing that can bring together all sorts of dudes. Harmony = those who build stuff and those who decorate stuff.

Fuck that. There is no power to create w/o the power to destroy.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Does Bruni have any comment on John Podesta's financial dealings with the Russians?
does it make him angry? I suspect not.

Patrick Henry was right! said...

Wonderful article Professor, you should join the USA Today list of guest editorialists.

Francisco D said...

What April Apple and Ambrose said.

Perfect!

Now I am going to forgot I ever heard of this this childish NYT twerp.

cronus titan said...

Nice post. But look at it for its comedic value. What does Bruni possibly know what it means to be an alpha male? His piece reads like a Cosmo article on what men really like. In both instances, the pieces read like they are evaluating a group in their native habitat but have no idea what they are talking about and leading to comical conclusions.

It's the same attitude that caused the NYT to assign a reporter to cover conservatives and evagelicals, like they were unknown beasts that threatened civilization -- civilization being defined, of course, as Manhattan metrosexuals.

dreams said...

Given that we seem to be fast forwarding to becoming a Muslim nation, I predict Frank Bruni and his fellow liberal sissy masochists will get their just reward. Unfortunately a lot of innocent people will suffer the consequences too.

David said...

" We still respect the Carburetor...'

i had a love-hate with the Carburetor. They suck. Literally. And flood out and cough and splutter. Kind of like a baby in diapers, cute and interesting but a mess just when you didn't want a mess. But you could fix a Carburetor. Open up the hood, expose it, sniff it, fiddle with it. Stick your finger in it just to get it started if you have to. Do not try that with a baby.

The whole Carburetor process was quite manly. Women, the smart ones, would pretend to admire your skill. making it more satisfying, in a manly way, with your pants completely buttoned up.

I like the idea of capitalizing Carburetor. Messy babies remain lower case.

Tommy Duncan said...

So I can wake up in the morning and choose my gender for the day, but only if the gender is defined in a way that meets Frank Bruni's personal dictates?

Ann, why do you read this drivel?

Curious George said...

"Much of the column is about his personal struggle as a gay man to deal with his own anxieties about whether he is masculine enough."

Let me help you Frank. No. No you are not.

Inga said...

I don't think Bruni was attacking manliness, but was instead pointing out that the idea of Trump being the epitome of masculinity is erroneous, as Trump displays the pathological side of masculinity. Emulating Trump's style of masculinity won't make you a better man, or more of a man.

"A real man lusts. A real man rages. A real man doesn’t chip in with domestic duties. That’s not just Trump’s view — he once boasted that he’d never change a diaper — but also, apparently, the message that many young men in America today still get, according to an intriguing study released a few days ago."

There are ways in which his life, and his political career in particular, are a burlesque of manhood, “so craven and desperately needy that it has an air of danger and pathos,” said Michael Kimmel, a Stony Brook University sociologist and the author of “Angry White Men,” a 2013 book that will soon be reissued with a new preface that takes Trump into account.

Axe, as it happens, sponsored the Promundo study, which concluded that men who registered narrow, clichéd instructions about manhood were more likely to act out in self-destructive ways, such as substance abuse, and in outwardly destructive ones, such as online bullying.

Online bullying? That brings to mind a certain tweeter in chief, and so does the argument that when you feel compelled to project an unforgiving kind of masculine strength, you end up in a twisted, tortured place. You can call it the Man Box. Or, these days, the Oval Office."

David said...

Come on, Frank, we laughed at these commercials at the time, and Campbell's was in on the joke. Did you really feel these commercials were bullying you to be more manly?

I am willing to accept that he felt that way. Sadly, after all these years, all the therapy and other opportunities to put those feelings into context and perspective, he's still stuck with them.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Democrats know the election was legitimate but persist in a dangerous fraud

Democrats continue to turn a blind eye to their own party's corruption.


Joule - Democrats not interested.

"... attention to the Kremlin was bad news for Clinton. It invited scrutiny of the Clinton Foundation’s corrupt foreign dealings; the sulfurous interplay of Putin cronies, Bill Clinton’s lucrative speech racket, and Hillary’s biddable State Department that resulted in Russia’s acquisition of major U.S. uranium supplies; the embarrassing “Russian reset” whereby, during Clinton’s State Department stewardship, the supine Obama administration watched Putin capture territory in Eastern Europe and muscle into the Middle East, while arming and aligning with Iran; and the intriguing relationship between Podesta (the Clinton-campaign chairman and former Obama White House official) and Putin’s circle — specifically, a $35 million investment by a Putin-created venture capital firm, Rusano, into a small Massachusetts energy company, Joule Energy, just two months after Podesta joined Joule’s board."

Bob Boyd said...

If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be dudes with greater and lesser appetites at supper time than yourself.

Desiderata, rough draft, Max Ehrmann

ganderson said...

Be gay. I don't really care, for the most part. But while your gayness may be endlessly interesting to you, It is not to me. I dunno who first said it, but the love that dare not speak its name has become the love that never shuts up.

Fernandinande said...

In Trump's America, masculinity attacks you.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Until the left face the fact they nominated a liar, a crook, and a stooge to Putin - they will remain trapped in their endless Trump-obsession neurosis. It's not about Trump - leftists. It's about your loyal blindness to your party's corruption.

Who killed Seth Rich?

Paco Wové said...

"why do you read this drivel?"

I, for one, appreciate someone putting on the haz-mat suit and doing the necessary dirty work to let us know just how diseased our "elites" have become.


Sam L. said...

Manliness ist VERBOTEN at ze NYT.

Scott said...

So many people don't have a life outside of their heads.

gspencer said...

Here's Bruni's answer "about his personal struggle as a gay man to deal with his own anxieties about whether he is masculine enough,"

He's not.

mockturtle said...

Of course, we will look to gay men to define masculinity. It just makes sense.

Sebastian said...

"Come on, Frank, we laughed at these commercials at the time, and Campbell's was in on the joke. Did you really feel these commercials were bullying you to be more manly?" What, you expect a gay prog to have a sense of humor? About "manhood"? When in retrospect he can exploit his supposed feelings of insufficiency to hold forth on the deeper meaning of manhood in the age of Trump?

Yeah, we are all sitting around, waiting to hear from the Brunis of the MSM world to tell us how to think about masculinity.

Enjoyed the fisking, though. All that was missing was a response from a true Trumpian point of view.

Lewis Wetzel said...

Bruni seems to be the sort of unpleasant person who wants to make his neuroses the most important thing in your life.

Diogenes of Sinope said...

Bruni is controlled by the demons in his mind.

mockturtle said...

Laslo at 8:58. Wow, well said. Another classic!

Laslo Spatula said...

David said...
"But you could fix a Carburetor. Open up the hood, expose it, sniff it, fiddle with it. Stick your finger in it just to get it started if you have to. Do not try that with a baby..."

Amen.

I am Laslo.

Rance Fasoldt said...

"Gender" is a grammatical concept. The term is used these days to describe sex, because in those days we didn't want to say "sex."

Dust Bunny Queen said...

Bruni is doing way too much navel gazing. His obsession with himself has got to be so very tiresome in real life. I know it is in his writing.

Ann Althouse said...

"There's too much salt in Campbell's stuff, except the Cream of Potato soup is okay."

The salt is there. Potatoes just absorb the salt in a way that makes it hard to taste. I learned this cooking tip back in the 1960s: If you've made soup or stew that's too salty, you can fix it by adding potatoes.

ga6 said...

If Trump and I and soup frighten or distress Mr Bruni perhaps he could comment on this:

"Graphic Photos: Islamic State Throws Iraqi Man Accused of Homosexuality from Rooftop"

http://www.breitbart.com/jerusalem/2017/04/01/graphic-photos-islamic-state-throws-iraqi-man-accused-homosexuality-rooftop/

David Baker said...

Ann Althouse said... "If you've made soup or stew that's too salty, you can fix it by adding potatoes.

Just don't eat the potatoes. Or freeze the soup.

Meade said...

"respect the Carburetor..."

Lol. Now that there is some good comic writing. Manly even.

Michael K said...

Does anyone personify the pejorative term "drama queen" better that Frank Bruni?

Bingo !

donald said...

Frank needs to get his vagina tightened. It might improve his self esteem.

David Baker said...

... "or freeze the soup" before removing the potatoes.

Bob Boyd said...

Bruni could benefit from listening to Bret Easton Ellis' latest podcast.
Here's a couple snippets, but he goes on like this for about half an hour.

“Liberalism used to be about freedom, but now it’s about a kind of warped moral authority that is actually part of the moral superiority movement,”

“This faction of the Left is touchingly now known as The Resistance. Oh yes, ‘The Resistance’ - what is this resistance? There are posters all around my neighbourhood in West Hollywood urging me to ‘Resist. Resist. Resist.’
“You can dislike the fact that Trump was elected, yes, definitely, and yet still understand and accept ultimately that he was elected this time around, or you can have a complete mental and emotional collapse and let the Trump presidency define you, which I think is absurd. … If you are still losing your s– about Trump, I think you should probably go to a shrink and not let the bad man that was elected define your self-victimization and your life. You are letting him win.”

http://podcastone.com/Bret-Easton-Ellis-Podcast

Bruce Hayden said...

Agreed - another Lazlo Classic. Thanks and keep it coming.

I am trying to figure out a marketing angle here. Ann reads the NYT so that we won't have to. Should they give her a free subscription, because, occasionally, she generates clicks for them? I have been enticed, on occasion to follow her links there, and am sure I am not the only one here. Or is much of her readership (including yours truly) so appalled by much of what is there that we wouldn't subscribe, even if it were the last news outlet on the planet?

Lewis Wetzel said...

Blogger mockturtle said...
Of course, we will look to gay men to define masculinity. It just makes sense.


I think that "gayness" is an entirely modern invention. There have always been men engaging in homosexual acts, but they didn't identify as a different sort of person. The ancients believed a heterosexual could play the dominant role with no shame, but a man who played the submissive role bore the shame of it for life. Also, the Romans did not believe that female homosexuality was real, because sex required penetration by an erect penis. Whatever the lesbians of the pagan world were doing, it wasn't sex.
That is nothing like the "gay culture" we have now.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

If a Manhandlers commercial made Bruni feel so bad, just imagine how the dyslexic kids felt about Alphabet soup. Now there's a real nightmare in a can.

Inga said...

Laslo said...
"Patriarchy Men do not complain that Other Men make them feel Inferior: That Is A Chick Thing. Chick Things are for chicks. And Little Men. Losing a fight does not make you Inferior: it just means someone kicked your ass this time. It happens. Pay Respect where respect is due. But you sure as hell don't go bitching about it..."

Trump's whiny tweets about "so called judges" and the very mean unhelpful Freedom Caucus, a fine example of Laslo's "Little Men".

Thuglawlibrarian said...

I bet Bruni wrote the column while wearing his pussy hat.

David Baker said...

What I'd like to hear is what manly men say about Trump.

Are there any manly men at the NYT?

dreams said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Bob Boyd said...

"Are there any manly men at the NYT?"

They're in the closet.

William said...

So far as I can tell, I'm heterosexual in my orientation. Nonetheless, I've occasionally worried about my masculinity, and not without cause. I'm not so brave and try to avoid physical labor. Women worry that their ass is getting big, and men worry about their masculinity deficits.....A lot of what Bruni says about Trump could be directed at Clint Eastwood.

Meade said...

Didn't Hillary attack the BernieBros for being unmanly? Or was that feminist leader, Gloria Someone?

Inga said...

Laslo's "Patriarchy Men" would be well served by studying Trump's hand gestures and emulating them. That will surely make you more of a real man.

Sprezzatura said...

"What I'd like to hear is what manly men say about Trump."

I can answer that. He seems peevish, confident, unprincipled and, as Althouse has noted, womanly in his speaking style. He's also fat and old. OTOH, rich.

A mixed bag.

But, nobody, except Heyzeus, is perfect.

Lewis Wetzel said...

The more broken bones you've had, the more manly you are.
Unless you broke them getting beat up. Then it's the opposite.

Laslo Spatula said...

Ann Althouse said...
"... If you've made soup or stew that's too salty, you can fix it by adding potatoes."

The Patriarchy Men say:

If someone pisses in your soup adding potatoes won't help.

A lot of Little Men piss in the Soup.

I am Laslo.

Paco Wové said...

"the sort of unpleasant person who wants to make his neuroses the most important thing in your life."

In other words, the archetypal modern leftist.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Oh, and excellent post Althouse - which inspired another Laslo classic.

Michael K said...

Peanut butter can tell us what manly men think.

Carry on, dude.

Inga said...

A lot of Little Men get pissed on...Piss Gate.

David Baker said...

The better question might be: Who are the manliest men in America? Or, who is the manliest man in America?

Bob Boyd said...

And to think all of Bruni's pain and confusion could easily have been prevented if only we had adopted a system of central planning by credentialed experts in Washington. What a shame.

I blame bull-headed masculinity.

Sprezzatura said...

"The more broken bones you've had, the more manly you are.
Unless you broke them getting beat up. Then it's the opposite."

IMHO, this manly downgrade also occurs for an asshole who is breaking some pussy's bones by beating him up, unless the context is legit war and/or competitive combat.

Mark said...

Must Bruni and the rest of the left really inundate the rest of society with their pathologies?

Danno said...

Bruce Hayden said..."we wouldn't subscribe, even if it were the last news outlet on the planet?"

I think you mean the last "editorial" outlet on the planet. Every article in the NYT news typically has a leading clause to make sure you make the correct conclusion from the article.

Meade said...

"unless the context is legit war and/or competitive combat."

Says someone who apparently has never engaged in legit war and/or competitive combat.

mockturtle said...

This Progressive commercial is weird. The husband is becoming more like his mother. More like my mother

Sprezzatura said...

Meade,

I respect and honor more than myself.

Sure, doing so is the exception that proves the rule. But, it happens.


Roger Sweeny said...

I am sympathetic to Frank Bruni. This is how he felt. This is what he took from the culture of the time, what he felt the culture of the time required. Since he was a teen male, he was full of himself, and partly wrong. (I say that as someone who was a teen male, myself.)

Now is the time to be a clear-thinking adult, to see how culture is not monolithic, how lots of difference is okay. Ironically, he has chosen to be part of a culture at the NYT that requires a fairly monolithic way of looking at politics and the world.

Fernandinande said...

"It takes a big man to cry, but it takes a bigger man to laugh at that man." -- J.H.

Lewis Wetzel said...
The more broken bones you've had, the more manly you are.


My one broken bone is pretty manly because it was the result of a 130mph motorcycle accident.

A Manly Song - Arrogant Worms
"A manly song a manly song I like to sing a manly song
My manly friends all sing along as we sing our manly song

I am a manly man who lives a manly life
In my manly house with my manly wife
And two manly children
And a manly guinea pig
My cell phone's very small and my TV's pretty big.
..."

Bay Area Guy said...

Beta Males, Snowflakes and Pajama Boys - the new normal.

Thank you Mr. Bruni for self-identifying yourself on the august pages of The NY Times.

Looks like we need a few more John Wayne and Clint Eastwood types to restore a little balance.

Resist! Persist!

Dude1394 said...

This is an example of why I keep coming back to your blog professor. Well said.

Big Mike said...

I was a competitive swimmer, and while I hated it, I didn’t dare quit, as it felt like a retort to, and inoculation against, anyone questioning my maleness.

As a former swimmer myself (in high school back in the early 1960s) I call bullshit. He stayed on the swim team because we showered in a communal shower, because our skimpy suits were constructed with two layers of tricot nylon in front and one in back, and because swimmers are buff.

J Lee said...

Trump's also a germophobe which would seem to run counter to the manliness theme ... which isn't to say Trump doesn't attempt to tout masculinity. But it's such an outlandish, overblown version it's more comical than threatening, especially when combined with Trump's fear of germs -- in fact, here's a story by some guy named Frank Bruni noting Trump's fear of germs and other seemingly very non-manly obsessions with body fluid.

Of course, Bruni's story was from December of 2015, when the concept of President Trump was still ludicrous, so mocking his definitely non-masculine traits instead of acting fearful towards Trump's over-the-top macho imaging was more in line with the moment at hand. What's there today was what was there 15 months ago with Trump, and was there 15, 25 and 35 years ago; it's merely Bruni's perception that's either changed or he's simply trying to wring another column out of why he doesn't like Trump, even though he was showing no signs of intimidation over his posturing in the past (although Bruni's aversion to the manliness of Chunky soup commercials -- if that's real -- reminds me of an old Mad Magazine parody on paranoia, where a man sitting in a theater knows everyone's really laughing at him while a Wile E. Coyote cartoon is playing on-screen. Sometimes a cigar's just a cigar and a soup ad is just trying to get people to buy soup).

Big Mike said...

And for what it's worth, if you wonder whether you're a manly man, you aren't.

dreams said...

Nevertheless she persisted, Frank Bruni persists.

iowan2 said...

Why can women,(females,etc) display an entire range of gender qualities, from very feminine, to womanly, to neutral, on to more masculine. But a man can be too manly?

But in the end I'm way past perturbed at people taking President Trumps words, actions, and attitudes and ascribing some negative aspect to it. Then writing 1000 words about it.
Honestly the news has become unwatchable. The leftist media whores for the Dems have way overplayed this whole fake narrative. I'm a news junkie, and I cant consume anymore of this drivel, hard to believe the masses are paying any attention.

Oh, and honest people cant fight back. WAPO is ghosting all my comments, and I assume they are doing it to all comments that point out the false narrative. Thats why it APPEARS that all the conservatives are fed up with Trump, and stopped defending him. They have been pushed down the rabbit hole.

wendybar said...

Progressives are all about hate. And anybody that isn't just like them is a target.

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

This does seem an odd line of attack. Trump is, in general, an effete product of Manhattan. Where this is not true is in his media appearances, where he takes on the exaggerated manliness of a pro-wrestler. This can be effective, as we saw in the Republican primary, but he is a physical coward, which is not what most people think of when thinking of manly men. He is more like an actor in action movies than a man of action, he projects a manly image but uses skin care products and a hair dresser.

gilbar said...

bones heal
chicks dig scars

Quaestor said...

I’m a gay man whose teen years were in the late 1970s and early 1980s, when homosexuality alone was considered antithetical to true manhood...

He names his problem clearly, and in spite of the fiction nurtured ever so forcefully over the last half-century (you'll never get invited to a fashionable dinner party without orthodoxy these days), the fact that Bruni still agonizes over it shows that the contradiction persists. Like everyone on the left, he tries to bury his self-doubt and guilt by metaphorically assassinating the President. Bruni and everyone who deems himself a part of the coastal culture axis thinks Trump is the cause of their fear when in reality their anxiety is caused by the fact that they haven't won the culture war they launched in 1960's.

Quaestor said...

...but he is a physical coward

Physical coward ARM tries to ease his self-loathing. Wretches love company, eh?

Michael K said...

"Trump is, in general, an effete product of Manhattan. "

Says the manly man who knows him personally. The exception I see is when a possible assassin leaped onto the platform in Dayton last summer, he stayed on the stage and continued the speech.

I'm sure you would do the same, right ?

Quaestor said...

Roger Sweeney wrote: Ironically, [Bruni] has chosen to be part of a culture at the NYT that requires a fairly monolithic way of looking at politics and the world.

Exsurge Domine was "fairly monolithic". Progressive orthodoxy is nothing short of North Korean in its rigidity. Many of their leaders have promised us dissenters imprisonment or death for our heresies.

mockturtle said...

Quaestor asserts: Bruni and everyone who deems himself a part of the coastal culture axis thinks Trump is the cause of their fear when in reality their anxiety is caused by the fact that they haven't won the culture war they launched in 1960's.

That and the nagging, underlying knowledge that they are wrong.

rcocean said...

What kind of moron takes life lessons from a soup commercial?

Our family mocked commercials or changed the channel.

People who write for the NYT live in bizzaro world.

PS - the only commercials i can remember from my youth are the "Go for the Gusto" beer commercials and the "I can't believe I ate the whole thing". Neither effected my world view.

rcocean said...

I'm starting to get shocked at the Establishment hatred for Trump. I've never seen ANY POTUS treated with this kind of 24/7 assault by the Press, the Courts, and Democrats in Congress.

I guess Trump really touched a nerve with his attacks on the Illegal immigration and bad trade deals. These are the 2 poliices the Establishment - both R and D - holds most dear.

mockturtle said...

Rcocean, not since Andrew Jackson has a POTUS been so vilified by the elite. And for many of the same reasons.

Sprezzatura said...

"I'm sure you would do the same, right ?"

The Bern had the same thing happen to him, though his platform invaders were called protestors rather than assassins. Bern had no Secret Service to jump on the protestors. So Bern stood by while the possible assassins took over his mic. Presumably DJT in that situation (w/o SS) would have merc'd the assassins/protestors, and then continued w/ the speech.

Got it.

Michael K said...

The protestors who took over Bernie's rally were black women. Formidable but not exactly manly and he wasn't either.

Interesting you use that incident as an example of "manliness."

Democrats repeatedly got pushed around by BLM women last year. Not exactly a profile in courage.

gspencer said...

"which reminded me of the George W. Bush pastime, "clearing brush,'"

If I remember correctly, I think the correct quote was of "cleaning bush" and Laura was central to that conversation.

Drago said...

PB: "Presumably DJT in that situation (w/o SS) would have merc'd the assassins/protestors, and then continued w/ the speech."

Lefty takes time out from praising obambi for "killing bin laden" and being "really good at killing people" to sarcastically comment on DJT and "merc'ing" someone.

Unexpectedly.

And we won't even bother bringing up Hillary's courage "under sniper fire" in Bosnia nor LBJs fake Silver Star for riding in a transport.

Think if those as combat equivalents to Obambi's Nobel and Chelseas lifetime "achievement" award or Blumenthal and Harkin.

Carry on lefty combat heroes!

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

"Trump is, in general, an effete product of Manhattan. "

As I have pointed out before, Trump was good enough at college baseball to get scouted by the Phillies and Red Sox. He chose not to sign because baseball players did not make much money in the '60's.

Pro baseball players are not generally considered "effete."

As far as the makeup goes, well, people of both sexes generally wear makeup on TV, especially these days when high def TV shows every skin flaw.

Guildofcannonballs said...

"Blogger exiledonmainstreet said...
If a Manhandlers commercial made Bruni feel so bad, just imagine how the dyslexic kids felt about Alphabet soup. Now there's a real nightmare in a can."

Bravo.

Gratitude for not being stuck in three foot deep piles of corpses and shit among the mere garbage in India can make one feel silly for entertaining even a millisecond notion of despairing your plight in Manhattan.

"You don't want to be the town drunk Eddy, not in Manhatten." - Dottie the eponymous in Mrs. Parker and the Viscious Circle

n.n said...

Manly is equal and complementary to women. Bruni as a transgender/homosexual divides his time between masculine and feminine expression with his partner. The cognitive dissonance he experiences while manageable (i.e. "stable"), is not created by society, but rather by Nature.

buwaya said...

rhhardin,

Re survival training, as being taught how to die -
This is true, and in the case of our military training this was explicit. We were told, in so many words, that it was our duty to die in battle, and that survival training (and physical training, etc) was required so as to reduce non-battle losses, come the day.

Sprezzatura said...

"He chose not to sign because baseball players did not make much money in the '60's."

And the bone spurs in his heels.



Ha.

Michelle Dulak Thomson said...

ARM, if that hair has ever been within spitting range of a hair dresser, I'll eat my nonexistent hat. It looks like he dyes it himself, and probably cuts it himself too.

LordSomber said...

I've seen so many "(Fill in the blank) in the Age of Trump" or "(Fill in the blank) in the Trump's America" stories in newspapers that it has become sport to count them all.
The writer (or editor) thinks they're being clever tying Trump's name to any story, but it just reveals their own neuroses to the public.

Anonymous said...

Tarrou: ...signalling their solidarity with the Tribble-like profusion of "minorities" as a way of maintaining their social status over other, less popular white men.

"Tribble like profusion of 'minorities'". That's excellent.

You can always generalize, theorize, and display the most rank bigotry toward white men, because they are the majority! Of course, this isn't literally true, once you subtract out the women, the blacks, the hispanics, the asians, the american indians, the indian indians, the arabs, the persians, the slavs, the jews, the gays, the transgendered, the confused, and the chattering class themselves, there's a couple thousand bedraggled dudes working construction and fixing cars who apparently rule the world in the minds of these retarded cunts.

I like this part, too. (Though most slav guys I know proudly consider themselves part of the bedraggled world-rulers.)

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Well, PB, at least he hasn't lied about being in Vietnam, like certain liberal darlings have:

" In May 2010, The New York Times reported that Blumenthal said in a 2008 speech, “We have learned something important since the days that I served in Vietnam.”

But as the Times reported, Blumenthal did not actually serve in Vietnam as he suggests there. Instead, he received five military deferments from 1965 to 1970. The Times also noted that Blumenthal took repeated steps to avoid going to Vietnam."

MayBee said...

Imagine a teenager feeling uncomfortable in his or her own skin. It hardly seems possible (eye roll).

Rusty said...

Meade said...
"respect the Carburetor..."

"Lol. Now that there is some good comic writing. Manly even. "

I got fuel injection. Respect the throttle body.

Sprezzatura said...

Ok exile,

let's not elect Sid as POTUS. And maybe you can restrain yourself from rolling out that DJT/MLB story in the future as proof of DJT's manliness, since it conflicts w/ the excuse he made up to avoid service, which isn't manly.

mockturtle said...

If a Manhandlers commercial made Bruni feel so bad, just imagine how the dyslexic kids felt about Alphabet soup. Now there's a real nightmare in a can.

LOL! Good one, Exiled! :-D

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

PB, we almost did elect John Kerry, whose lies about his service ("Christmas in Cambodia!") were exposed by the men who served with him.

William said...

I've heard doubts expressed about the manliness of Lindsay Graham, Michelle Bachmann's husband, and now Donald Trump. Why is it that only Republican figures and Tom Cruise get such scrutiny? If applied to other figures in public life it would be construed as homophobia......What's up with Clint Eastwood--killing all those men and sleeping with all those women. What's he trying to hide? Overcompensate much? I fear that Clint's troubled soul will never know peace until he allows Frank Bruni to suck his cock.

DanTheMan said...

>> "respect the Carburetor..."

Damn straight, Laslo!

> I got fuel injection. Respect the throttle body.

I think you've missed the point. You can FIX a carb. You can take it apart, dunk it, clean the jets, check the float and needle valves, and when you put it back on it works.
I can still rebuild a Holley double pumper with my eyes closed. Hell, your grandmother could rebuild a Holley.

Fuel Injection? Whadddya gonna do if it fails? Flash the ROM to change the PWM settings?

Carbs are manly. FI is for computer geeks... when they aren't playing on their Xbox.

Sprezzatura said...

"we almost did elect John Kerry"

Those were the good old days for us Rs. Other than that, when was the last time the R POTUS candidate got more votes than the D? Almost three decades?

Laslo Spatula said...

DanTheMan said...
"You can FIX a carb."

Yes: indeed.

I am Laslo.

Anonymous said...

mockturtle: Quaestor asserts: "Bruni and everyone who deems himself a part of the coastal culture axis thinks Trump is the cause of their fear when in reality their anxiety is caused by the fact that they haven't won the culture war they launched in 1960's."

That and the nagging, underlying knowledge that they are wrong.


And that nagging feeling is really what it's all about, isn't it? From one perspective, they did win the culture war, to the extent that any "culture war" is ever won. To a very large degree, they've got everything they ever thought they wanted.

Thought they wanted. Only to find that the existential discontent is still there, because it isn't caused by whatever it is they're throwing tantrums about. But they're in way too deep, and no longer possess the necessary cultural or psychological tools, to re-evaluate their premises. So the pointless and destructive culture-trench-warfare must go on.

Meade said...

“I would rather obey a dandy TrumpLion, much more manly than myself, than two hundred girly DemocRats of my own species." -- Meadtaire

Bill said...

An excessive self-consciousness is among the crosses gay men carry.

God bless Frank, but I liked him better when he was writing about baby vegetables.

Mr. Majestyk said...

Please, exiled, do not mention Se. blumenthal's lies about serving in Vietnam. It is liable to lead toma discussion about certain "demoralizing" Trump tweets . . .

JAORE said...

"What's important, I think, is for individuals to find a way to live a good and satisfying life."

Bingo.

As an alternative you can spend your life searching, with an ever-finer comb, for evidence that you have been put upon your entire life.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Other than that, when was the last time the R POTUS candidate got more votes than the D? Almost three decades?

4/2/17, 12:27 PM

Who cares? Your response is to whine, once again, about the popular vote? For the one-thousandth time, the electoral college is what matters.

Now, quick, bring up some other irrelevancy. You're good at that.

hstad said...

Blogger Lewis Wetzel said...
The more broken bones you've had, the more manly you are.
Unless you broke them getting beat up. Then it's the opposite.

4/2/17, 9:57 AM

Sorry Lewis, if you've never been beaten up, then you've never risked anything. Anyone who claims that "getting beat up" is not manly doesn't know the old proverb, "...there is always a bigger fish in the ocean..." Of course with your arguement, Lewis, you must be the biggest "fish in the ocean."

Yancey Ward said...

That was a hilarious essay. Nothing, literally nothing, says manliness more than histrionic neuroses.

Michael K said...

since it conflicts w/ the excuse he made up to avoid service, which isn't manly.

I don't know if he had heel spurs but heel bone spurs are still disqualifying and often associated with plantar fasciitis.

I am grateful to the medical experts around here among the lefties.

Mr. Groovington said...

"Carbs are manly. FI is for computer geeks... when they aren't playing on their Xbox"

Climbing to altitude in Bolivia or Kashmir on an enduro, carbs show their stupidity. You can be a man without being a primitive. Carbs are for those who mistake a tool for a job.

Drago said...

Hillary still bears the mental scars from her experience under fire.

Thank goodness video exists of this harrowing event where the entire party (including Sinbad) was shown casually loitering in the open on the tarmac.

I am only surprised that Hillary wasn't awarded a Medal of Honor for her leadership under fire. I mean, Meg Ryan got one, right?

gadfly said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

It did so happen, Drago! Here's a picture of that harrowing event!

http://michellemalkin.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/1bosn006.jpg

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

exiledonmainstreet said...
As I have pointed out before, Trump was good enough at college baseball


It was high school not college. It is true that young men place a lot of emphasis on sporting prowess as a sign of manliness, although not so much baseball as football or hockey. My son played high school baseball and it was considered less manly at his school than lacrosse. Still beat out tennis though.

I am not sure this is a big factor for mature people. Pro sports stars, in general, seem spoiled and emotionally arrested, not especially manly characteristics, as I would think of them in my mature years.

Thuglawlibrarian said...

Good Lord, it was an ad campaign for a can of soup 40 years ago!

Whatever that has to do with the current occupant of the Oval Office is a f#cking mystery to me. At least in a rational sane world which obviously doesn't include the NYT.

Get over it.

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

hstad said...
Sorry Lewis, if you've never been beaten up, then you've never risked anything. Anyone who claims that "getting beat up" is not manly doesn't know the old proverb, "...there is always a bigger fish in the ocean..."


Having lost a few street fights, once badly, I fully endorse this sentiment. There is always someone more crazy. Young men need to learn their limits and failure is the only way to get there.

mockturtle said...

ARM speculates: Young men need to learn their limits and failure is the only way to get there.

Another way is to acquire some bigger, stronger friends.

Yancey Ward said...

"I am only surprised that Hillary wasn't awarded a Medal of Honor for her leadership under fire. I mean, Meg Ryan got one, right?"

I would be willing to give Hillary! a medal if someone had accidentally fragged her.

William said...

I'd like to work out my sexual insecurities by sleeping with a lot of supermodels.

Michael K said...

Young male elephants need older males to show them how to be mature. If there are no older male elephants around the young makes often become rogues.

It's actually a pretty good analogy. Plus, of course, rogue elephants get shot.

tcrosse said...

Rather than trying to be Manly, I think it's more important to be a Mensch.

Night Owl said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
MayBee said...

How do we think most teenage girls feel comparing themselves to Gigi Hadid?

MayBee said...

Or Beyonce. Is Beyonce what it means to be womanly?

Michael said...

I don't think young guys fight anymore. The advantage to fighting, character-wise, is you learn that it hurts to be hit and that it does not necessarily turn out as planned or hoped.

ccscientist said...

It is manly to be able to endure hardship. Gay men do not necessarily go all the way toward feminine sensitivity so of course he could do outward bound or swimming.
Women in general, and I am sure there are exceptions, are averse to dirt, noise, germs, cold, hot, and bad smells. Men tolerate such things much more easily.
I would also point out that women enforce some of the codes of masculinity: they do not reward boyfriends/husbands who whine, who are sensitive, who cry. They will tell him to get over it. The patriarchy (ie, behavior codes) is enforced by women, not just men.

Night Owl said...

"What's important, I think, is for individuals to find a way to live a good and satisfying life."

Based on nothing more than observing the world around me, I reach this conclusion: The current fad of "social justice warrior" leftism, with its aura of self-satisfied self-righteousness is very attractive to individuals who have self-esteem issues. People who are not happy with who they are -- some who outright hate themselves-- are looking for someone to blame, and they can find that in modern leftist dogma. Duh, you say? So obvious it's not worth stating? I disagree. We've reached a point where plain, straight-forward speaking is needed.

Look at the college campus protesters; these kids are so insecure, so emotionally stunted that they demand safe spaces and trigger warnings so they can shield themselves--not from sticks and stones that might breaks their bones-- but from words that always hurt them. And these Ivy league brats will someday be put into positions of power based on their "credentials", if we allow it. That's a scary thought for anyone who plans to still be around in 10 or more years.

The mass mental breakdown we are witnessing from the left is not because of Trump-- we would be seeing this insanity even if Jeb! had won. Losing the election popped their safe, smug bubble, and that's too much for the insecure ones to handle. They need to seek therapy, but probably won't because they don't think they have a problem. The older ones will just continue to write angry, whiny op-ed pieces that will whip up the young ones to scream hysterically at conservatives who dare cross their paths, and will incite violence from the most unhinged ones. For too many leftists, their only problem is the fact that people who disagree with them are allowed to exist.

TL;DR: Moderates, independents and most right-wingers are able to find a way to live a good and satisfying life; today's SJW left-wingers, not so much. And I am not a psychiatrist, I merely play one in blog comment sections.


(Sorry for the deletion above. I had to make an edit.)

wholelottasplainin said...

If Bruni needs Manliness therapy, I suggest he be given the Clockwork Orange treatment: have his eyelids frozen open and force him to watch an endless loop of the Village People's "YMCA" video.

Plenty of manliness on display there.

Inga said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Inga said...

"Moderates, independents and most right-wingers are able to find a way to live a good and satisfying life; today's SJW left-wingers, not so much. And I am not a psychiatrist, I merely play one in blog comment sections."

Yes indeed, you apparently aren't well versed in the human psyche. Over generalizations about the happiness quotient among those on the right and those on the left are just silly.

Inga said...

"Rather than trying to be Manly, I think it's more important to be a Mensch."

I agree!

mockturtle said...

tcrosse opines: Rather than trying to be Manly, I think it's more important to be a Mensch.

I would assert that a mensch is a manly man.

robother said...

All this Macho Manliness BS anxiety seems to trace back more to the gay community (tops vs. bottoms in John B.s terms) pre and post Stonewall. Probably no coincidence that the exaggerated male role models Hollywood began pitching post WWII arose out of the stable of a gay agent's clients (Rock and Rory and Tab et al) and then the body-building culture of Muscle Beach.

My father's generation, the guys who actually fought and won WWII, were plenty tough, but not in the macho way so many Hollywood heroes were. My dad had contempt for John Wayne: Jimmy Stewart and Cary Cooper were more his types.

Warren Fahy said...

Good post.

I'm Full of Soup said...


Inga: who has claimed Trump is the epitome of masculinity?

And AJ's law : Liberals are insane.

Night Owl said...

"Yes indeed, you apparently aren't well versed in the human psyche. Over generalizations about the happiness quotient among those on the right and those on the left are just silly."

All that may be true... but is stating the obvious an over-generalization? It seems pretty obvious -- indeed an understatement-- to say that leftists today are very unhappy about many, many things-- not the least of which is the election result-- while right-wingers and others are quite happy that we don't have to say "President Clinton".

Fernandinande said...

Michael K said...
Young male elephants need older males to show them how to be mature.


Not really. The presence of older male elephants keeps the younger ones from going into "musth".

"The killing ceased after six older male elephants were introduced from the relatively normal Kruger Park population. The deviant behaviour of the young Pilanesberg males was rectified by the consequent reduction in musth."

And that's why "The killing stopped literally overnight." which wouldn't happen if they were learning new behaviors.

Fernandinande said...

"The killing stopped literally overnight."

mockturtle said...

Fernandinande: I looked up 'musth' and couldn't find anything. I'm not trying to be a smart-ass [this time]. What does it mean?

Trumpit said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Fernandinande said...

mockturtle said...
Fernandinande: I looked up 'musth' and couldn't find anything. I'm not trying to be a smart-ass [this time]. What does it mean?


Basically the male version of going into heat; from my 2nd link: "When a bull elephant is in what’s known as the musth stage, they have testosterone levels that spike to 30-60 times higher than normal. They become incredibly aggressive with each other and with anything else thats[sic] in it’s way."

The "delinquent young male elephants without older males" story doesn't really imply anything about humans: they weren't learning how to behave, their hormones just changed.

If you want animal analogies to human behaviors, try chimps and baboons rather than elephants.

Strong male leaders in action:
"Chimps beat up, murder and then cannibalise their former tyrant"

"The Baboon Troop that Mellowed Out After the Alpha Males Died"

Inga said...

"Yes indeed, you apparently aren't well versed in the human psyche. Over generalizations about the happiness quotient among those on the right and those on the left are just silly."
------------
"All that may be true... but is stating the obvious an over-generalization? It seems pretty obvious -- indeed an understatement-- to say that leftists today are very unhappy about many, many things-- not the least of which is the election result-- "
-----------
It's only "obvious" to those who want to believe it is so. It's not. While I'm as interested in politics and current events as the next person, man and woman live by more than politics alone. Happiness and satisfaction with one's life, be they on either end of the political spectrum or the middle, in general isn't ruled only by what is happening in the political realm.

Trumpit said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
William said...

I've led a good and satisfying life. No complaints, but if I had it all to do over again and if given the choice, I would prefer to lead the vain, unsatisfying life of a billionaire who lived in a penthouse and worked out his insecurities by screwing supermodels. The rewards of a good and satisfying life are somewhat overrated in my estimation.

Inga said...

": who has claimed Trump is the epitome of masculinity?

And AJ's law : Liberals are insane."

Plenty of you Trumpists, where have you been, under a rock?

Inga's Law: "Conservatives are more insane."

William said...

I don't think I'd want to live Trumpit's life. Way too much hatred. Bad for the digestion.

Quaestor said...

Inga's Law: "Conservatives are more insane."

Textbook paranoia. Congrats.

Quaestor said...

"Rather than trying to be Manly, I think it's more important to be a Mensch."

Inga: I agree!

Yeah, more than one person here doesn't grok Yiddish.

Inga said...

"And AJ's law : Liberals are insane."

"Textbook paranoia. Congrats."

AJ thanks you for your contribution.

Inga said...

I am a German speaker and a Yiddish speaker. So I know what being a "mensch" means, unlike you.

rhhardin said...

Campbell had stock symbol CPB in the 60s. It seems to be true today too, if Yahoo finance is to be trusted.

Their chart only goes back to the 80s, when it was worth nothing. They must have struck soup in Alaska.

They had a comprehensive drilling program.

Birkel said...

@ Ings

A helpful Inga to English dictionary would say "plenty = things I imagined true".

You are welcome.

rhhardin said...

Brassed Off En Aranjuez Con Tu Amor for Trumpette. (youtube)

Twelve said...

Who cares what a homo thinks?

Birkel said...

ThreeHeaded Throop:

Be a good Liberal Moby and go elsewhere.

Mr. Groovington said...

I mostly lurk here, so should mostly stfu, but I find Inga, ARM and Chuck to be entertaining and high value opposition here. They're fun. We could go down to the pub from here. Then I read a moron like Trumpit, above, and I want to smack the idiot hard.

mockturtle said...

Fernandinande, thank you. That's interesting!

mockturtle said...

"The Baboon Troop that Mellowed Out After the Alpha Males Died"

When I raised chickens, I unwisely kept two roosters, initially. One a barred-rock [Louie] and the other a buff Orpington [Mac]. Louie was aggressive, the 'leader of the pack' but too ornery. Not only did he attack the hens brutally but he attacked me on occasion. I finally killed Louie [a traumatic experience for me and, presumably, for him]. Mac took over the leadership role and the hens loved him. He was an effective rooster but more mellow. The flock prospered.

Night Owl said...

"It's only "obvious" to those who want to believe it is so. It's not. While I'm as interested in politics and current events as the next person, man and woman live by more than politics alone. Happiness and satisfaction with one's life, be they on either end of the political spectrum or the middle, in general isn't ruled only by what is happening in the political realm."

Please repeat what you just said above to the angry left-wing op-ed writers calling on us to "resist!", and the angry left-wing talking-heads on TV talking about impeaching a man based on rumors and innuendo, and especially the angry, scared and hysterical left-wing campus protesters who are sending people to the hospital. Tell them they shouldn't be angry about President Trump. The country needs that message to get out, and it needs to come from the sane left-leaning folks like yourself. Tell them. Please... I suggest having a bodyguard by your side when you do it.

Inga said...

Blogger sodal ye said...
"I mostly lurk here, so should mostly stfu, but I find Inga, ARM and Chuck to be entertaining and high value opposition here. They're fun. We could go down to the pub from here."

Well thank you sodal ye! Such a good comment should be repeated, lol. I have plenty of family and friends across the political spectrum. Most folks behave ever so much better in person than online.

hombre said...

Is it possible for the NYT to get any sillier?

Birkel said...

@ Inga

You mean they don't lie about having a family member to fit every Leftist Collectivist argument, in person as they do online?

Inga said...

Night Owl, we don't know that it's "rumor and innuendo". Obviously there is more to it than that for the FBI and other Fed Agencies to be investigating. There must be probable cause for a FISA warrant. If they were caught with indirect methods, well they'll get their turn to explain themselves under oath. As far as resistance goes, it didn't seem to hurt conservatives in Congress for all the Obama years. There is nothing hysterical about investigating. Why would I tell any person right or left not to be angry about Trump, thereis much to be angry about. But being angry at what Russia did to this country and possible collusion by the Trump team shouldn't make ones entire life an unhappy angry one. As I said above, there is more to life and the pursuit of happiness that politics and current events.

Inga said...

Sorry Burpel, I don't have time to beat you up now. I'm off to have dinner with some conservatives. Somehow I think we'll all get to the time our food is served without having killed each other.

And Burpel, I'm sorry if you don't have a family. That must be sad.

Birkel said...

@ Inga

You have always been a liar. And since that is obvious, I count every statement you make a lie. That is convenient.

Birkel said...

@ Inga

Why did you quit using #55?

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

"Well thank you sodal ye! Such a good comment should be repeated, lol"

One lurker doesn't believe Inga is a liar and fool. Inga's so tickled and flattered by the rare compliment she gets here that she has to repeat it.

If Althouse put up one of her polls on the question, I doubt most readers would be as generous as sodal ye.

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