Althouse: "These strong claims—cultural Marxism! SJW jackals! Leftist social priorities!—should strike anyone who actually watches the ad as fairly ridiculous."

January 16, 2019

"These strong claims—cultural Marxism! SJW jackals! Leftist social priorities!—should strike anyone who actually watches the ad as fairly ridiculous."

Writes Robby Soave in "The Gillette Ad Tells Men Not to Hurt People. Why Is This Offensive?/'Toxic masculinity' is sometimes a scapegoat for the left, but this particular commercial makes no grand anti-male claims" (Reason).

I agree. The ad is full of men stopping other men from doing bad things. That's one of the best things men do, and it's what the ad highlights. The ad ends with shots of beautiful boys and — in the logic of the sequence of images — they are learning — from men — how to be good men.

410 comments:

«Oldest ‹Older 201 – 400 of 410 Newer› Newest»

Jon Burack said...: news bulletin- It has just been determined that a man named Don Draper created this ad, though someone named Peggy claims she really did all the work. Draper could not be reached for comment as he has apparently run off to Kenosha with his boss's secretary. Rumor has it he is letting his beard grow so as to disguise his true identity.; 1/16/19, 11:06 AM
Anonymous said...: AA: It's just a razor ad. Why are you digging in here?

"IKYABWAI," says Althouse, in response to being criticized yet again for her credulous readings of toxic prog schmaltz.; 1/16/19, 11:06 AM
Clark said...: I would be willing to bet there were a number of executives who were deeply concerned about the response this ad would generate, but were scared out of their wits to speak up. Be better, men. Shut up. Good boys.; 1/16/19, 11:07 AM
SGT Ted said...: Ann now wants to make the argument about the men who dissent with the ads sexist message, rather than the ads sexist message.; 1/16/19, 11:08 AM
Unknown said...: Gillete - think "faggy psychology bullshit" when you see our logo; 1/16/19, 11:08 AM
n.n said...: Bad men. Bad women. It's a Choice, not a principle.; 1/16/19, 11:09 AM
Jaq said...: When I used to work for a living, on a large development team, we sometimes talked about the “Bozo bit.” When somebody does or says something so stupid that the Bozo bit is set, they are tuned out by the rest of the team forever and given meaningless work until they quit. It’s almost impossible to reset the Bozo bit.

Gillette has set the Bozo bit in a lot of men’s minds.; 1/16/19, 11:10 AM
Big Mike said...: ADDED: If the point of an advertisement, any advertisement, is to sell more product, then this ad is about as far from “effective” as you can get! As for the rest of your comment at 10:50, I assume either that you are brain-dead drunk (this early in the morning!) or deliberately trolling us troglodytes.; 1/16/19, 11:12 AM
Bad Lieutenant said...: It's just a razor ad. Why are you digging in here? Because it's effective!

1/16/19, 10:50 AM

Curious, professor. Is there any way, on any subject, in which you can be made to understand (verbally e.g. by being told "That stove is hot!" rather than touching the hot stove) that you were wrong, you have done ill, you should apologize, you should change, you should stop talking? Or is every wisp of steam that comes out of your ears unfalsifiable?

This well-worn general line of argumentation out of you is on a level with "It's just anal, Ann! Why are you clenching up? Are you some kind of square who doesn't dig buttseks?" <--PS Does this work on you?; 1/16/19, 11:13 AM
Clark said...: Lots of comments.

I think it means the ad really did work on you and you have internalized the message and can no longer feel safe and cocooned inside your old troglodyte ways. You're still fighting it, but the urge to fight is the evidence that the fight is already lost.

It's just a razor ad. Why are you digging in here? Because it's effective!

I think it might be a little simpler than that. It was controversial. It was clearly meant to be. I think some men were insulted. I think most men treated it like any other insult...with a shrug. But, now it's a topic of conversation in one of our favorite places to engage. So...we're engaging.; 1/16/19, 11:13 AM
buwaya said...: The response to insult is, historically, likely to be “toxic”.
It is not usually “internalized” without a great deal of actual violence.

On one level this is a joke.
On another it’s the sort of thing that drove the Tamils (for one example) to decades of war.
Dangerous stuff, potentially. You can do it for years, decades, until one day.
It’s hard to tell which was or will be the fatal straw, but it’s likely to come.; 1/16/19, 11:13 AM
rehajm said...: The uproar comes as Gillette battles upstarts like Harrys Razors, Dollar Shave Club, and others for millennial dollars. Gillette controlled about 70 percent of the U.S. market a decade ago. Last year, its market share dropped to below 50 percent, according to Euromonitor
Allen Adamson, co-founder of branding firm Metaforce, called the ad a "hail Mary" pass from the 117-year-old company. But he added that online buzz, whether positive or negative, rarely makes a long-term difference for a marketer since memory fades quickly.
"Getting noticed and getting buzz is no easy task, and they've managed to break through," Adamson said. "Most advertisers advertise, and no one notices because there is so much noise in the marketplace, so just getting noticed Is a big win, especially for low-interest category like a razor."
On the flip side, it probably won't sell many razors either, he said.

Yah, but they sure got us, didn't they? Jokes on us... (sarc); 1/16/19, 11:14 AM
Bad Lieutenant said...: AA: It's just a razor ad. Why are you digging in here?

"IKYABWAI," says Althouse, in response to being criticized yet again for her credulous readings of toxic prog schmaltz

Angle-Dyne, shorter and sweeter. (More of her projection on "digging in." Is that badgers or beavers?); 1/16/19, 11:14 AM
Quaestor said...: That’s 48 years ago, almost half a century. “Modern” advertising my ass.

And it was 18 years ago that The Simpsons satirized that insipid appeal to addled hipsters in Treehouse of Horror II.; 1/16/19, 11:16 AM
walk don't run said...: P&G and Gillette are in trouble with declining market share. Take this report in September last year:

"Gillette controlled about 70% of the US market a decade ago. Last year, its market share dropped to below 50%, according to Euromonitor. The company, owned by P&G, was forced to slash its razor prices by an average of 12% last year."

https://www.thestar.com.my/tech/tech-news/2018/09/27/startups-shook-up-the-sleepy-razor-market-whats-next/#21hmrKwfs3vSkXud.99

I guess Warren Buffet knew when to sell!!

I think they are desperate to turn things around and are willing to try anything including potentially alienating their biggest market. As the old saying goes, "all news is good news" and a moribund product company like Gillette is now getting lots of attention for once. The big question is whether it will reverse or accelerate its market decline. It will be interesting to watch.

Personally I am getting really tired of the continuous male bashing. No-one is perfect, men aren't perfect, women aren't perfect, neither are gays and the transgendered. So why all the male bashing? This is getting very tedious. With Gillette I think it is a cynical ploy to appear to jump on the "me to" bandwagon and in the process get some long overdue attention. They have now lost me as a customer for several of their products. It will be interesting to see if others follow suit.; 1/16/19, 11:17 AM
Kevin said...: This razor ad for women tells them when the world expects you to follow the rules, write your own.

You go girl!

Now, men listen up...; 1/16/19, 11:21 AM
Jaq said...: The reason this is an interesting topic isn’t that it’s “terrifying” or “threatening” or whatever to men, it’s that it’s a “Mars/Venus” type of thing where the two sides genuinely, apparently, see something completely different in the same ad. That’s fascinating. We have been talking about Trump based on this dynamic since he rode down the escalator.; 1/16/19, 11:22 AM
rehajm said...: I think they are desperate to turn things around and are willing to try anything including potentially alienating their biggest market.

I think when things start to go downhill it creates an environment susceptible to progressives moving in and wrecking it. Much like a bacterial infection.

Applies to pretty much anything.; 1/16/19, 11:23 AM
mccullough said...: Guys will stop buying Gillette and the women who love this ad don’t shave their legs or armpits so Gillette isn’t getting any new customers.

The ad is very effective in that it will have an effect.; 1/16/19, 11:26 AM
Anonymous said...: The tone for this ad was set at about the 5 second mark with the heavy, clear enunciation of "TOXIC MASCULINITY!". Opening with SJW approved misandry colors the entire ad with every negative imprecation the SJWs have assigned the term. Some words are worth a thousand pictures.

If you wanted to encourage men to be 'better,' you could easily imagine an ad that didn't imply so clearly at the beginning that men can only be better if they do what Leftwing Feminists demand - behave like women. If you want men to listen, you don't start with the definitive anti-male trope.

Sorry, given the amount of care that goes into such an ad, I do not believe this was a mistake. If it wasn't a mistake, the ad is male bashing.

https://theotherclub.org/2019/01/cutting-yourself.html; 1/16/19, 11:28 AM
M Jordan said...: Hombre said, "I think the fact that an intelligent woman can make such an absurd statement means that she is still being seduced by the snake."

There's a wonderful sculpture in Palanga, Lithuania depicting the woman battling the serpent. Here's a link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egl%C4%97_the_Queen_of_Serpents#/media/File:Palanga_-_Egle_the_Queen_of_Serpents.jpg; 1/16/19, 11:28 AM
dreams said...: It's obviously a bad ad and a big mistake when all the usual suspects like it.; 1/16/19, 11:30 AM
Rick said...: Ann Althouse said...
Lots of comments.

I think it means the ad really did work on you and you have internalized the message and can no longer feel safe and cocooned inside your old troglodyte ways. You're still fighting it, but the urge to fight is the evidence that the fight is already lost.

Every one in a while Althouse reveals she thinks about the right much the same as the rest of the left does.; 1/16/19, 11:30 AM
Seeing Red said...: As long as I've watched TV, I've seen ads "telling" women to be better. They show women setting the example of kindness and caring and being gently elegant and graceful and tactful and helpful and supportive — especially to men.

And they’re bossy, bullying, shrieking harpys and snowflakes.

So the ads didn’t work.; 1/16/19, 11:34 AM
Seeing Red said...: Seriously why do you want ads to raise children?; 1/16/19, 11:34 AM
Seeing Red said...: Lolol maybe if there weren’t so many singles mothers, there might not be such toxic masculinity.

Boys need dads, not commercials.; 1/16/19, 11:36 AM
Owen said...: rehajm: "I think when things start to go downhill it creates an environment susceptible to progressives moving in and wrecking it. Much like a bacterial infection.

Applies to pretty much anything."

Good point. We look at a corporate entity like Gillette and think of it as a timeless monolithic institution with a stable culture and steady hands on the wheel. In fact it is a Versailles with cliques and cabals and fads. New Emperor, new clothes; or some rival edges them out and the Boss is Nervous, so everything gets rearranged; or a lawsuit hits and likewise much uproar as witches are hunted and new policies set. In that maelstrom it is not hard for Progs to work their way in, at a minimum influencing things and doing a lot of occult damage, and sometimes seizing the bridge and driving the whole thing to destruction.

Pass the popcorn.; 1/16/19, 11:37 AM
Xmas said...: The basic premise of the ad is that men should stand up and confront men and boys who behave badly and that young boys will see the "right" way to live their lives.

There are several bad assumptions there, the first being that bullies will back down when confronted and bad people are inherently cowards. The second is that confrontation isn't also an act of violence. The third is that young boys won't interpret "confronting bullies" as "impinging violence upon those I disagree with".

Thinking about this, "be the best a man can be" is just a repackaging of old-style chivalry. But chivalry as a concept is dead because it requires a level of behavior on society as a whole, not just one group of people.; 1/16/19, 11:39 AM
Seeing Red said...: The complaint sounds like nothing to see here, move on.

Consumers should move on to other companies.; 1/16/19, 11:39 AM
Rick said...: Ann Althouse said...
"But....let's see a Gillette ad telling women they should do better."

As long as I've watched TV, I've seen ads "telling" women to be better. They show women setting the example of kindness and caring and being gently elegant and graceful and tactful and helpful and supportive — especially to men.

And this pisses women off such that it's a major theme in cultural critiques. But somehow a man can only reject this ad if he is a "troglodyte".; 1/16/19, 11:41 AM
gahrie said...: I think it means the ad really did work on you and you have internalized the message and can no longer feel safe and cocooned inside your old troglodyte ways. You're still fighting it, but the urge to fight is the evidence that the fight is already lost.

Hi, my name is gahrie, and I'm a recovering splooge stooge. I've been fighting my inherent toxic masculinity for three months now...; 1/16/19, 11:43 AM
Jay Elink said...: Althouse: "There are bad things some men have done, and other men have not been active enough in letting those men know that it's wrong, and that's changing."
*****************

Althouse has left out an obvious third category: the vast majority of men who routinely treat women with respect and instruct their boys to do likewise.

That's the obvious problem with the entire ad's premise, which is that MOST men---not SOME men--have done bad things.; 1/16/19, 11:43 AM
Unknown said...: The deplorables tire of being deplored.; 1/16/19, 11:44 AM
bagoh20 said...: Thousands of women falsely claimed they were sexually harassed by Brett Kavanaugh - thousands of vicious liars, and that was just against one man. Imagine how many there are across the country with other men. Where is the male version of that? Yet we are told that the female must be believed, and always trusted, and even emulated. Where is the broad rejection and scolding of that highly destructive and unjust female trend?

Men are tired of being bitched at, preached to, lied about, and suspected of all kinds of evil just because they are men. Men are dying all over this nation as cops, firemen, family protectors, etc, and they are dying around the world as soldiers taking that physical danger and responsibility for protecting almost entirely by themselves. They are losing their lives. They are risking everything, and that's on top of trying to raise and support families and support their nation and culture.

Gillette choosing to tell them that some of their sex are not perfect can be a bit grating after the nonstop guilt flinging, especially the way it is commonly and casually applied to all of them.

Gillette's message is already well ingrained in the culture, probably more than ever in history, but appreciation for men has never been lower. That's what Gillette got wrong, and they will pay for it.; 1/16/19, 11:44 AM
Unknown said...: > SJW jackals!

In this commercial

All the bad guys are white men.

All the corrective guys are black men.

Coincidence?; 1/16/19, 11:46 AM
tim maguire said...: Being bothered by the ad is evidence that the ad is accurate?

Is that the road this discussion is going down now, professor?; 1/16/19, 11:47 AM
fivewheels said...: It's just a razor ad. Why are you digging in here?

The post features the question "Why is this offensive?" We're trying to answer it for you. Questioning that response seems stupid and willful blindness.; 1/16/19, 11:47 AM
Unknown said...: > I ordered online a German-made safety razor handle and enough blades to last 5 years (for the same price as 10 Gillette blades that would have latest 2 months).

What is the link?

I will order though Althouse portal; 1/16/19, 11:48 AM
mockturtle said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 1/16/19, 11:49 AM
bagoh20 said...: "Althouse: "There are bad things some men have done, and other men have not been active enough in letting those men know that it's wrong, and that's changing.""

Men do not condone such things and never have, but what about the women doing something about the lying about sexual assault? There have been numerous clear cases of false accusations for years now, and I don't hear women making much of a deal out of it, writing about it or calling for it to stop. Have you, Althouse? I guess girls will be girls.

Imagine a women's product trying to get women's brand loyalty with such a message. How well would that sell?; 1/16/19, 11:49 AM
Seeing Red said...: Reese’s Pieces

New Coke

Kardashian Pepsi

Gillette

Stupid decisions.; 1/16/19, 11:50 AM
mockturtle said...: I think it means the ad really did work on you and you have internalized the message and can no longer feel safe and cocooned inside your old troglodyte ways.

LOL! Seriously, Ann? I guess you can play it both ways: 'I'm serious and really am an incredibly naive and deluded airhead' or 'I'm trolling my mostly male commenters'. It's a win-win, isn't it?; 1/16/19, 11:50 AM
MikeR said...: http://lileks.com/bleats/archive/19/0119/011619.html
You go James.; 1/16/19, 11:53 AM
bagoh20 said...: Gillette wasn't trolling. They believed what they said. They were just wrong, and the same is true here with Althouse.; 1/16/19, 11:53 AM
wildswan said...: My feminine intuition, antenna sensitively alert, tells me men are getting mad. People might sat to me: "don't say men; say "white men" and then say = angry, fragile, unwilling to give up privilege". Social psychology should have taught you to say that." Then I say: "all the identity groups are being defined as transgressive of white men's hegemonic self-definition or, in other words, women, POC, LGTBVC, are all variations of white men according to recent research conducted by women, POC, LGTBVC. This research shows that all other groups are just white men with a difference, e.g., women are white men who transgress by being nice."

But logically, I say, (transgressing my woman image by mentioning a subject, logic, which is white men hegemonic, so that I cannot be supposed to have ever studied let alone mastered it.),(FU), but logically, if white men are toxic, then aren't all the other groups toxic? since all the other groups are just variations on toxicity.

But no. The white-men-variants don't hold power hence they are pure. Tamika Mallory can support Louis Farrakhan without supporting anti-Semitism and misogyny, she thinks. Nation of Islam can provide support for the Women's March against Semitism and misogyny without in any way compromising it, she thinks.

Gillette can call men toxic without being biased and can expect to continue to sell to men. It thinks.

These ideas are ridiculous. But there's more than that. These ideas are ugly and demeaning, intentionally demeaning. Time is going by and people are repeating demeaning things. STOP!! IN THE NAME OF LOVE. My feminine intuition, antenna sensitively alert, tells me men are getting mad.; 1/16/19, 11:54 AM
Known Unknown said...: ": "There are bad things some men have done, and other men have not been active enough in letting those men know that it's wrong, and that's changing."

Again with the cultural amnesia. That's been changing for 70+ years. It's as if Gillette and their like-minded souls think we were all born yesterday. As if there is no history.; 1/16/19, 11:54 AM
Unknown said...: Gillete doesn't want you Gran Torino and Mule types posting here

Pajama Boy needs to shave too; 1/16/19, 11:54 AM
Jay Elink said...: Since fucking WHEN was the phrase "boys will be boys" used to justify disrespecting women and committing violence against them??

WHEN, Althouse?; 1/16/19, 11:57 AM
exhelodrvr1 said...: I'm OK with this as long as Playtex comes out with a bra commercial that has women being critical of women who sleep around to advance their careers.; 1/16/19, 11:57 AM
Known Unknown said...: "New Coke"

An immediate disaster followed by a mea culpa marketing masterstroke. "Coke Classic" as it came to be known outsold original pre-New Coke Coke.; 1/16/19, 11:59 AM
Unknown said...: > Playtex comes out with a bra commercial that has women being critical of women who sleep around to advance their careers.

When I want to get a head

I put on the "Kamala"; 1/16/19, 12:00 PM
Jaq said...: You're still fighting it, but the urge to fight is the evidence that the fight is already lost.

I think this is called “corn cobbing,” declaring that you have won the argument backed up only by your own belief that you have won the argument.; 1/16/19, 12:00 PM
Rocketeer said...: Literally the ONLY people I've ever heard utter the phrase "but will be boys" are women.; 1/16/19, 12:00 PM
Jaq said...: Blogger Jay Elink said...
Since fucking WHEN was the phrase "boys will be boys" used to justify disrespecting women and committing violence against them??

WHEN, Althouse?

She knows its true. She was born knowing it’s true. Who needs citations, who needs evidence? Maybe it was Mr Woodcock? Oh wait, that was a fictional character...; 1/16/19, 12:03 PM
Jay Elink said...: tim maguire said...
Being bothered by the ad is evidence that the ad is accurate?

Is that the road this discussion is going down now, professor?
**********************

That's the way the feministas "reason".

If you object to the ad's premises, YOU are one of those who abuse women. It's an airtight fallacious argument.; 1/16/19, 12:05 PM
Jaq said...: It’s become increasingly clear that there is a huge resentment on the distaff side of the human race regarding the phrase “boys will be boys” and this commercial derives from that resentment and panders to it. Like most deep resentments, it stems from a misunderstanding of the phrase and lives in the brain stem, where it is hard to reach by reason.; 1/16/19, 12:06 PM
Jim Gust said...: I am so mad about this I have quit shaving. My anger is so great that the decision is retroactive to 40 years ago. I used quantum entanglement to communicate this anger to myself in the past.

Beards are great, shaving sucks.; 1/16/19, 12:11 PM
mockturtle said...: Gillette wasn't trolling. They believed what they said.

No they don't. They are trying to sell shaving equipment in a culture that seems to be trending toward the beard.; 1/16/19, 12:13 PM
David Docetad said...: Lots of comments.

I think it means the ad really did work on you and you have internalized the message and can no longer feel safe and cocooned inside your old troglodyte ways. You're still fighting it, but the urge to fight is the evidence that the fight is already lost.

It's just a razor ad. Why are you digging in here? Because it's effective!

The only one digging a deeper hole here appears to be the hostess. (But as others have noted above, perhaps all of her comments are just trolling bait).

One thing she gets right: The add is effective! I have been meaning for a long time to stop using Gillette simply because the cartridges are way over priced, but I was lazy. The minute I saw the add I bought a new Merkur safety razor. Now that's effective advertising!; 1/16/19, 12:16 PM
Browndog said...: More to the point, where are the fucking razors?

Followed by...

It's just a razor ad.

Draw your own conclusions-; 1/16/19, 12:16 PM
JaimeRoberto said...: Gillette should have stuck with the Shaqueem Griffin commercial.; 1/16/19, 12:16 PM
Seeing Red said...: I just read beards are out. Clean shaven was coming back.; 1/16/19, 12:20 PM
mockturtle said...: Here's an idea for future Prog-aganda: Return of the eunuch! Let eunuchs take their rightful place in society with pride! And they can always get a job as punters in the NFL, as in, "The punting eunuch is coming onto the field". Oh, wait! Maybe that's the punting unit. Never mind. ;-); 1/16/19, 12:21 PM
mockturtle said...: Gillette should have stuck with the Shaqueem Griffin commercial.

Yes! That was a winner!; 1/16/19, 12:21 PM
mockturtle said...: I just read beards are out. Clean shaven was coming back.

Out with whom? We'll see after baseball season begins.; 1/16/19, 12:23 PM
Bob Boyd said...: Harry's Razors went there before Gillette:

https://www.redstate.com/streiff/2019/01/16/gillette-trashes-masculinity.-harrys-razors-says-hold-beer; 1/16/19, 12:24 PM
Browndog said...: Gillette Spokeswoman Ana Kasparian in 2016: "I have no respect for women who voted for Trump. I think so poorly of them... I think you're dumb. I think you're fu*king dumb..."

Google the video-It's exactly what you'd think a millenial-liberal scolding would look like.

But remember, it's just a razor ad.; 1/16/19, 12:27 PM
Big Mike said...: @Althouse, perhaps you need to read what James Lileks wrote about the ad.

He, in turn, references a tweet from Robert Tracinski. Tracinski and Lileks are at #4. I am at #3. Unlike SJW bullies and fake "beta" men and women who write about toxic masculinity but then marry a manly man (over to you, Meade, are you the manly man I used to think you are?) I don't plan to organize boycotts or get my five minutes of fame on social media. I just plan to stop buying their product. As mccullough wrote at 10:02, that's how we men (toxic troglodytes that we are) roll.

Back in the day Morgan Freeman pontificated that the only reason anyone opposed Barack Obama was straight up racism. Not that we were angry over paying substantially more for worse healthcare coverage. Nope, straight up racism. Did I try to organize a boycott? Did I try to get him to apologize on Twitter? Nope, I just stopped going to his movies. Still won't go.

That's how we troglodytes roll.; 1/16/19, 12:29 PM
AllenS said...: I have a Gillette MACH3 razor with 4 blades left. Once they're gone, it's I'm outta here. How's that for effective advertising?; 1/16/19, 12:31 PM
fivewheels said...: I would also just like to observe that it seems when feminists, or some other approved grievance group, are offended by something and you don't understand why, this is taken as proof that you are a horrible, horrible bigot and must be re-educated until you become more sensitive.

However, in this case, if they don't understand why men are offended, this is seen as proof that the ad is wonderful and the men are troglodytes. This is the epitome of SJW identity politics. The test is rigged, and the answers always come before the questions are asked.; 1/16/19, 12:33 PM
Jaq said...: LOL, what Gillette thinks of Trump Voters

This all comes from the quite effective lefty campaign of pressuring for seats on boards for leftist activists. A way to destroy capitalism from within, or at least to turn it into fascism.

Isn’t fascism the form of government where businesses are privately owned, but forced to do the bidding of the ruling party even if it’s against their own interests?; 1/16/19, 12:34 PM
Browndog said...: Let's not forget-

Progressives put over 40% of U.S. boys on untested, mind altering drugs to prevent them from acting like boys.; 1/16/19, 12:36 PM
Jaq said...: LOL, “I think you’re fucking dumb!”

That would be the Gillette spokesperson talking about women who voted for Trump.; 1/16/19, 12:38 PM
Anonymous said...: " And, yes, I am switching."

The question is, why limit it to Gillette Corp? They are just a subsidiary of P&G, and there are substitutes for almost every P&G product...; 1/16/19, 12:41 PM
Rick said...: at least to turn it into fascism.

I don't think that's quite right.

This is one step in a long path of "the personal is political". The goal is to normalize politics in every facet of life. The more politics is interwoven and businesses are expected to promote it the easier it is to punish dissent. The end goal is to use discrimination and threats thereof to intimidate dissenters into silence and establish complete left wing dominance.

See academia, media, and Hollywood for the instruction manual.; 1/16/19, 12:42 PM
alanc709 said...: Let's do away with men. No more loggers destroying our forests. No more men destroying the planet by getting that coal and oil out of the ground. How long would it take for society to devolve to subsistence levels of economy if that were to occur. Yet, Men are toxic. Good luck with that.; 1/16/19, 12:51 PM
Ken B said...: An ad showing colored women telling white women to stop being such a cunt wouldn't bother althouse; 1/16/19, 12:51 PM
chickelit said...: Browndog said...Let's not forget-

Progressives put over 40% of U.S. boys on untested, mind altering drugs to prevent them from acting like boys.

And then when some of those boys grow up to places up, it’s still mens’ fault. And guns.; 1/16/19, 12:56 PM
Anonymous said...: No they don't. They are trying to sell shaving equipment in a culture that seems to be trending toward the beard.

Alternatively, they are trying to bolster their personal brands before their upcoming job search. Layoffs are coming, to borrow a phrase.

Principal-agent issues can explain most weird organization behavior.; 1/16/19, 12:57 PM
chickelit said...: I thought Jordan Peterson* had most of this sorted out.

*Who by the way is not a clean shaven Gillette man.; 1/16/19, 12:58 PM
Browndog said...: Liberalism is a game of opposites-

Men are toxic!

No, that would be you sweetheart. Get yourself a butch haircut, dye it blue, put a bunch of steel sticking out of your face, then tell us how much better the world would be if you were in charge.; 1/16/19, 1:01 PM
I'm Full of Soup said...: "lots of comments here"...."means the ad worked".

I did not watch the ad and generally don't read your linked NYT/WAPO stories since I can imagine what the story says. So there!; 1/16/19, 1:11 PM
Browndog said...: I heard about the ad, and what it portrayed, and didn't care. Just another social justice hit job on men. So what. Dime a dozen.

Then, Althouse decided to do a "think deeply" blog about it. So, I watched, thought about it. Been pissed off ever since.; 1/16/19, 1:23 PM
Unknown said...: Everything wrong with that Gillette ad
A scene-by-scene breakdown; 1/16/19, 1:32 PM
bagoh20 said...: ""think deeply"" means you are wrong until you agree with me. If you agree there is no further thinking required.; 1/16/19, 1:36 PM
Bilwick said...: To reiterate: "I'm guessing that most men who like and approve of the ad are your stereotype low-testosterone super-"evolved" pro-feminist "liberals," who stand foursquare against any kind of bullying . . . except, except of course, when the bully is the State.

"Paraphrasing Orwell*, gentle "liberals" sleep peacefully in their beds, dreaming their coercive and statist dreams, because rough men stand ready to do violence to make their coercive and statist dreams a reality.

"*Or whoever actually said the "rough men" quote."; 1/16/19, 1:47 PM
mockturtle said...: There is bullying and there is bullying. Progs/SJWs are the biggest bullies around.; 1/16/19, 1:55 PM
Charlie Currie said...: rhhardin said...
"What the fuck did Ward Cleaver do?

You were a little hard on the Beaver last night, Ward"

Now, that's funny, right there.; 1/16/19, 1:57 PM
buwaya said...: There are millions of men in a ferocious mood, just waiting to bite something, anything.

Most desirable targets for biting, however, are out of reach, not in scope, invulnerable for various reasons. Many are not fair game.

Gillette is, as a mens products company, culturally in the male sphere, fair game.

Now it has bared its throat.; 1/16/19, 2:02 PM
dustbunny said...: I’m surprised Althouse is a fan of such obvious virtue signaling. Watching Friends has not been good for her.; 1/16/19, 2:02 PM
Jim at said...: Not sure if it's been quoted already, but Lileks said it best:

Take care of your kids, set a good example, don’t catcall - sure. Yes. Men who do these things will surely agree. Men who do not are unlikely to be moved to behave otherwise. But men who do these things already will not find the commercial supportive; they’re more likely to be irritated that someone presumes they have to be told these things.

That's what so insulting about the ad. I don't need to be lectured by a razor company on these things. And they can go to hell for assuming I do.; 1/16/19, 2:09 PM
Sausagelink said...: Because Gilette would NEVER sexualize wommen!

https://i2.wp.com/www.powerlineblog.com/ed-assets/2019/01/Screen-Shot-2019-01-16-at-7.19.26-AM.png?w=1160&ssl=1; 1/16/19, 2:12 PM
Jay Elink said...: Charlie Currie said...
rhhardin said...
"What the fuck did Ward Cleaver do?

You were a little hard on the Beaver last night, Ward"

Now, that's funny, right there.
****************

I like the Simpsons take on "I Love Lucy":

"Whack!

"Whaaaaaaaa!!"

Fred Mertz: "Oh, you hit her pretty hard there, Rick."; 1/16/19, 2:13 PM
Howard said...: Thanks Ann for confirming you are trolling your deplorable customers. Here's the deal...

White male culture dominates the planet. We are the most widely appropriated culture.

We continue to dominate. The girls and minorities want their pound of flesh. Fine, do your worst. Only weak fearful betas who Revere Macho Cuck posturing are intimidated by these silly girls.

This is why you whorship the drama Queening Trump. He makes you comfortable with your inner femininity.; 1/16/19, 2:17 PM
Michael said...: If you switch to a traditional razor i recommend you try several blades before you order too many. There is a big range of quality and you might find some blades too sharp or not sharp enough. After a couple of shaves yourface will adjust to the new blades and you will never go back to the overpriced cartridges.; 1/16/19, 2:18 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: So much manipulation and mind crime on the left. They are so preachy and full of morality, but they lie.

Bret Kavanugh's accusers - the baby talker who is too afraid to fly. Liar.
All the other bogus false allegations by leftwing liars - all liars.

No shame in lying for the great big leftwing lie. Lying liars gonna lie. No ad to cure that.; 1/16/19, 2:21 PM
Howard said...: Buwaya Put best characterizes the big mouth violent threatening macho posturing of a weak beta impotant Cuck.

Where are the strong silent types on the right? Crickets; 1/16/19, 2:21 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 1/16/19, 2:21 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: We don't worhsip Trump, Howard. You're so blinded by Hillary-lost rage, your hatred of Trump is it's own cult.
Inga is the Trump Cult Club president.; 1/16/19, 2:23 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: Howard, the ultimate beta, hath spoken. Dominant white males - submit!; 1/16/19, 2:24 PM
Ignorance is Bliss said...: Howard said...

Where are the strong silent types on the right? Crickets

We are, by definition, silent; 1/16/19, 2:27 PM
Ignorance is Bliss said...: We are, by definition, silent

crap.; 1/16/19, 2:28 PM
Howard said...: you got me on that one ignorance is bliss because after over 500 comments on the same stupid idiotic topic you guys are deafeningly silent it's so loud and proud and out there dot-dot. You go girl; 1/16/19, 2:31 PM
Howard said...: Poor old April Apple just think it is so sad that she is but one fabulous orgasm away from being a real woman instead of a dried-up hacking cat lady; 1/16/19, 2:33 PM
Anonymous said...: The Toxic Mission to Reengineer Men
https://www.mindingthecampus.org/2019/01/15/the-toxic-mission-to-reengineer-men/

For those, apparently including Ann Althouse, who don't grok "toxic masculinity."; 1/16/19, 2:48 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: I might be a dried up hacking cat lady - but you're still a beta.

No shame in that, Howard. Let you beta male freak flag fly.; 1/16/19, 2:56 PM
lurkingwithintent said...: The first irritating thing about the ad is that it implies that most of the men listening or watching the ad need a bit of help being decent. The second thing about the ad is that it is hypocritical on the part of a company that objectifies women in this way: https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2019/01/gillettes-razor-and-occams.php; 1/16/19, 3:31 PM
Char Char Binks, Esq. said...: "Guys will stop buying Gillette and the women who love this ad don’t shave their legs or armpits so Gillette isn’t getting any new customers."

I disagree. Women will keep buying Gillette, and other P&G items. After all, they weep at ham-fisted virtue signaling as long as it has enough artistry to keep them from laughing, or gagging, and to tug at the heartstrings.

Woke white men, minority men, and many middle-of-the-road white men who don't care, or whose brand loyalty is strong enough to override their objections will also keep buying. A significant number of white men will find other options.

I'm sure Gillette had already crunched the numbers, and they made their bet accordingly.; 1/16/19, 3:43 PM
mockturtle said...: Meade sounds like a sensible guy with balls. Which goes to show that what women say they want and what they really want are not congruent.; 1/16/19, 3:52 PM
Cassandra said...: Ann, my reaction to the commercial was somewhere between the outrage (which did seem a bit much to me) and yours (which did seem to miss a little of what understandably bothered so many folks).

FWIW, I showed it to my husband and he agreed with you about the second half showing *men*, standing up for the standards of behavior we grew up with (and taught our sons). I missed the racial aspect (white men being corrected by Men of Ethnicity), but that really irritated my husband.

And the first half was really a bit overwrought. The MeToo reference irritated and alienated me.

I don't quite get the strength of the reaction, and frankly it bothers me to see people so caught up in whether men are being dissed that they end up sounding as though there's something wrong or wimpy in doing the right thing. OTOH, most men DO the right thing most of the time, and it's really obnoxious for a vendor to group shame all men (or white men) for the actions of an increasingly dwindling few.

No one wants to be preached at, especially by a vendor who's asking for their money. I felt that way when Target got all preachy about letting men into women's bathrooms, and though I wouldn't call myself super angry about it, I have avoided spending my money at Target every since.; 1/16/19, 4:01 PM
Cassandra said...: ... or even, "ever" since :p; 1/16/19, 4:03 PM
chickelit said...: Is anyone at Gillette Inc. manning up to this PR blunder? It would be amusing to see him or her pull a Channing Dungey.; 1/16/19, 4:07 PM
Sebastian said...: "other men have not been active enough in letting those men know that it's wrong, and that's changing"

OK, so the ad is lecturing us after all. Even if we are not all personally toxic, we are enabling toxicity. Unlike women, who never did.

But what do you mean not active enough? Most of us conservative men have been very active decrying the demise of the culture, attacking the outrageous behavior of the Kennedys and the Clintons and the Hollywood types. Most of us have boycotted the toxic products of toxic prog men for a long time. In our own camp, we tend to clean house pretty quick. Many women, by contrast, protected and celebrated the toxic Kennedys and Clintons. The lefty a**holes stay in power thanks to the votes of single women. Hollywood keeps going thanks to libs drinking the cultural Koolaid. They are the real enablers.

The only thing that's changing is that progs have turned the attack on masculinity into a culture war maneuver, the better to manipulate women's feelings.

Althouse is right that they may already be winning. She has the tears to prove it.; 1/16/19, 4:30 PM
buwaya said...: Howard raises an interesting point -

Why bother with this stuff if you are at the top of the heap anyway?

It makes no great difference to me personally, in the narrowest (the very narrowest) sense. I have made my pile and we are headed off into the sunset, or probably the sunrise, depending on your POV.

One important personal reason to care, which may not occur to people without a real stake in this game, is if you have sons, as I do. You create a stake in the future and throw them into the great struggle, and you want them to win. Anyone getting in their way, you hate. They are your team, your closest kin, you would kill and die for them without a thought.

Over the years, I have acquired a long, long list of people and institutions and cultural trends to hate. They hurt my team.

And that is without even beginning to engage the idea of the man of the world, the man who thinks of something beyond his immediate interests. Of other men's sons. In that sense I have had, and still have, many, many sons. I have taught dozens on dozens.; 1/16/19, 4:35 PM
Unknown said...: It's just a razor ad. Why are you digging in here? Because it's effective!

Why are we digging in here?? We're not dug in here. At this point, we've got concentric rings of entrenchments because this is hardly the only assault we're facing. This is just another in a long line of attacks that, unfortunately, have been slowly and surely beating us back.

Under such a never-ending onslaught from nearly every quarter, the siren's song of apathy beckons. It's an act of sheer willpower to remain engaged, for my sons if for no other reason. Contemporary American maleness It's a pinch of "all evil needs to succeed is for good men to do nothing" and a dash of "first they came for the x and I said nothing".; 1/16/19, 4:40 PM
Matt Sablan said...: I don't think razors should dig.; 1/16/19, 5:00 PM
Danno said...: Hawkeyedjp said..."When I purchase a razor, I want only a razor. Do not sell me your proper social virtues along with it. You don't know anything about changing mens' attitudes about anything except shaving products. This is utter, complete waste; without value; worthless."

I agree totally and won't buy anything Gillette, much less P&G, in the future.

Even Chuck appears to be in agreement.; 1/16/19, 5:07 PM
chuck said...: When I want advice on manliness, I watch Popeye Cartoons.; 1/16/19, 5:07 PM
Jaq said...: I think what Althouse hates about the “boys will be boys” saying isn’t that it gives boys permissions that it doesn’t give to girls, which is what I first thought, It’s the idea that boys can’t be changed. The whole feminist project is about undoing millions of years of evolution and saying “boys will be boys” is a slap in the face to them.

Sorry, boys will be boys.; 1/16/19, 5:09 PM
Rusty said...: It's funny when Howard acts like he has a pair. You can almost hear his voice go up an octive.
Bill Burr, the comedian , has a whole schtick on men and women and violence.
The reson men make more than women? Because were supposed to take the bullet. We're supposed to stand on th deck of a sinking ship as you gals sail away to safety.
No I didn't see the add.
Meade.
The're metrosexuals. They don't have nuts. They're girlfriends keep em in their purses.; 1/16/19, 5:09 PM
Jaq said...: Howard is a corncobber. He just comes on and declares himself the victor. It’s his pattern. The only evidence he has is that he is sure that it is true.; 1/16/19, 5:17 PM
Jaq said...: Has anybody ever seen Howard successfully recapitulate an argument that he rejects, in his own words? It’s almost as if he. doesn’t understand any of the stuff he’s criticizing. It’s almost as if his whole shtick, besides the corncobbing, is to “reject first, ask rhetorical questions later.”; 1/16/19, 5:22 PM
Otto said...: Poor Ann, you have been played the fool.
From Legal Insurrection:
The director behind Gillette’s controversial new ad is a woman whose past work includes an ode to female genitals and a short film that explores ‘toxic masculinity’ featuring a protagonist whose life crumbles when he becomes addicted to steroids.

The Gillette ad, called ‘We Believe: The Best Men Can Be’, takes aim at bullying and sexual harassment and has been viewed more than four million times on YouTube around the world, although it is only being shown fully in the U.S.

But while it has amassed 85,000 likes, it has also racked up 347,000 dislikes with some of the 98,657 comments below accusing it of being ‘anti-male and anti-white’ and of ‘spreading pure propaganda and indoctrination.’

Kim Gehrig, the director of the new ad, is an Australian mother-of-two who lives in London, England, and has a lengthy history of taking aim at social ills through her work.

The commission for Gehrig was itself consciously social activism on the part of P&G, who found her through Free the Bid, a non-profit which tries to raise the profile of female and non-white advertising directors.

Somesuch’s portfolio shows that it shares Gehrig’s socially active approach, with notable campaigns that include Audi’s feminist 2017 Super Bowl commercial and an ad for feminine hygiene brand Libresse – which is sold as Bodyform in the UK – that offered a no-holds barred look at menstruation – including shots of blood and period sex.; 1/16/19, 5:29 PM
Meade said...: "Meade sounds like a sensible guy with balls."

Yes, well, balls will be balls.; 1/16/19, 5:55 PM
Lawrence Person said...: I don't want to see an ad by Gillette, or any consumer products company, about "social issues." If you want to sell me razors, tell or show me why your razors are better. I don't want Gillette to be on any side of any social issue, because they're either:

A.) Pandering to me with platitudes ("Gillette: We're strongly against eating puppies!")
B.) Lying to me.
C.) Waging Social Justice War in an effort to virtue signal your liberalism to like-minded elites.

Screw you in each and every single case.; 1/16/19, 6:10 PM
bagoh20 said...: ""other men have not been active enough in letting those men know that it's wrong, and that's changing"

Who was it that voted for Bill Clinton and/or his enabling wife after they knew what kind of man he had been for years?

If you voted for him, you are the problem, not the rest of us, so climb back down from that high horse before you hurt yourself.; 1/16/19, 6:15 PM
bagoh20 said...: If you made the best product, you wouldn't risk this kind of thing to sell it. You would go with your quality first, second, and third. Distracting with talk about social justice tells me your stuff must suck.; 1/16/19, 6:19 PM
Michael said...: Instead of marching in funny hats women should really take charge and for a solid week prove their equality by answering all police calls,fighting every fire,fixing every power outage, driving everry big rig, performing every heart transplant, reading everry biopsie, paving every road, washing every window in every hi-rise office, climbing every utility pole, digging every ditch,; 1/16/19, 6:21 PM
bagoh20 said...: ""Meade sounds like a sensible guy with balls."

No sensible guy would get rid of them.

BTW, shaved or natural?; 1/16/19, 6:21 PM
Jives said...: As a gay man, who loves Althouse I'm a little surprised at her obtuseness on this one. Our current (media) culture is remarkably contemptuous of men and masculinity. They can do nothing but praise the Benevolent Mother and despise the Tyrannical Father. Ignoring the Tyrannical Mother and the Benevolent Father.

yeah, and sorry but Shouting Thomas has a point about the hags and fags in the marketing department. Make no mistake, they have nothing but contempt for the hetero male. This is THEIR prescription.; 1/16/19, 6:40 PM
Inga...Allie Oop said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 1/16/19, 7:04 PM
Inga...Allie Oop said...: Hahahaha at you Trumpists. Still going ape shit over a schmaltzy razor ad that gives mild advice to men. What a bunch of snowflakes you are. Oh the outrage!; 1/16/19, 7:05 PM
Drago said...: Inga: "Hahahaha at you Trumpists. Still going ape shit over a schmaltzy razor ad that gives mild advice to men."

The -OMG Donald Trump had 2 scoops of ice cream!!- / OMG Burgers for Football Players!!- crew chimes in.

Discuss.; 1/16/19, 7:18 PM
Drago said...: Inga, still upset that the left finally had to abandon her beloved and continuously praised anti-semitic/destroy Israel Womens March.; 1/16/19, 7:20 PM
Inga...Allie Oop said...: “STOP!! IN THE NAME OF LOVE. My feminine intuition, antenna sensitively alert, tells me men are getting mad.”

Oooooo be scared, be very very scared!; 1/16/19, 7:30 PM
Inga...Allie Oop said...: “The -OMG Donald Trump had 2 scoops of ice cream!!- / OMG Burgers for Football Players!!- crew chimes in.

Discuss.”

FYI Drago, I don’t give a rat’s ass what Trump ate or what he serves to guests of the White House. There are much bigger fish to fry.; 1/16/19, 7:32 PM
Inga...Allie Oop said...: “The swj feminazi Gillette girls really got to you cucks. You so weak and insecure Althouse keeps feeding you triggers just so we can watch you squirm and whine.

That's entertainment!”

Hahahaha, I’ve been laughing reading this thread for the entire time I’ve been reading it. Hilarious overreaction by men whose masculinity is so easily threatened.; 1/16/19, 7:37 PM
Jaq said...: Still going ape shit over a schmaltzy razor ad that gives mild advice to men. . - A. Woman

It’s interesting to try to understand why a company that markets to men would start nagging men. Understandably it’s popular with women, but it doesn’t explain it. It’s not going "ape shit.” That’s your characterization based on your flawed perception of how men think. There is something going on here that is interesting to try to understand. Who was the genius that said “let’s make an ad that women are guaranteed to like and that men will perceive as ex-wife type nagging”?

This will be interesting. I don’t think that reaching a foot to the left or right for a different brand of razor is going “ape shit” either. It’s more a communication of mild displeasure that is incredibly simple to express. Creating a new habit of buying a different brand

The phrase “toxic masculinity” isn’t really that “mild” though.; 1/16/19, 7:43 PM
Jaq said...: Hilarious overreaction by men whose masculinity is so easily threatened.

Now you are just projecting your wishes that our toxic masculinity should be threatened. Women have a difficult time understanding men, which is pretty funny because we are simple creatures. If I do an inventory of my emotions, threats to my masculinity doesn’t really register. It’s just a line you use because you think it sounds good. And actual cucks like Howard, who gave his balls away in a pathetic attempt to ingratiate himself with women, apparently, is just trolling, and he knows it, probably, unless he really did give his balls away.

Having raised a couple of millennials, I see some relationships among their friends up close, and the girls don’t seem all that thrilled with the Nancy boys and video game addicts.; 1/16/19, 7:49 PM
rcocean said...: Reading at the comments, I'm amazed at the lack of curiosity.

This ad - like all TV ads -cost $millions. Super-smart creative Ad types and film-makers poured over every image, every word, of this almost 2 minute commercial for months.

So, what is Gillette's market for this ad? Why did they make it this particular way? What are they trying to accomplish?

Certainly, not to get more Men to buy their razors. All just to create buzz? Maybe change the image of the brand? Get more women to use their razors? Do women buy men's razors? They buy everything else for the family.

Interesting to know the answers.; 1/16/19, 7:51 PM
Chris Lopes said...: It's not so much the message as the messenger. A razor company does not have the moral authority to be lecturing its customers about what it means to be a man. That's what dads are for.; 1/16/19, 7:55 PM
rcocean said...: And its interesting how each scene is set up:

-two scenes a white guy is going to harass a white women and a black guy stops him.

- but in the "Boys will by boys" scene its 9 white guys and one black guy.

- when the women in the boardroom is "mansplained" its all white males in suits.

- its a black guy laying down the law: "men need to make other men better"

- its the black gangs making peace, and its a black guy telling his daughter to "be strong".

You could analyze the propaganda all day.; 1/16/19, 7:56 PM
Jaq said...: You know who would have made a good target audience for this ad? Democrats who have participated in a conspiracy of silence from three decades on you know who. Powerful Democrats who looked the other way as mega donor Harvey Wienstein plied his peccadilloes, Democrats who tolerate Bob Menendendez’s continues presence in the Senate.

Democrats like Inga, for example.; 1/16/19, 7:57 PM
rcocean said...: When we see all the old-timey "We can't laugh it off anymore" scenes:

Everyone seems to be white. Audience, and performers.

I didn't see any Jewish comedians either.; 1/16/19, 7:59 PM
Rabel said...: I am sorely disappointed in the crowd here at Althouse. Many of you are acting in a distinctly ungentlemanly manner towards the Professor and it needs to stop.

Sure, sure, she's completely wrong about the ad but - don't you guys know any women? There's a time to argue and there's a time to abide. And when they box themselves into a corner like this it's usually best to back away and let them have an easy way out. Let the girl win sometimes.

And anyway, I think it's kind of cute when she gets all feisty and excitable and starts calling names. I can imagine that little bob cut just swishing away like Laslo's girl as she goes Jerry Lee on her Apple.

It's worth the price of admission for sure.; 1/16/19, 8:10 PM
DEEBEE said...: Would an ad asking blacks not to mug people be offensive, Robby? Yes some men are rubes but to just focus on the negative associated with any group is some sort of a -ist. But then assuming a Prog can understand tha make my Hope unreal-ist; 1/16/19, 8:17 PM
JPS said...: Prof. Althouse writes:

"you have internalized the message and can no longer feel safe and cocooned inside your old troglodyte ways."

This is very Michelle Obama.

Gillette will demand that you come out of your isolation, that you move out of your comfort zones. That you push yourselves to be better. And that you engage. Gillette will never allow you to go back to your lives as usual, uninvolved, uninformed.; 1/16/19, 8:20 PM
bagoh20 said...: We need dangerous men, and I'm glad we have the most dangerous, and I hope that never changes, because if it does, that means someone else will have them.

https://youtu.be/V0PaMy0mZrw; 1/16/19, 8:25 PM
Drago said...: Infa: "FYI Drago, I don’t give a rat’s ass what Trump ate or what he serves to guests of the White House."

Another sad attempt to rewrite history, and over such small things which triggered Team Left so.

LOL

Too funny.; 1/16/19, 8:39 PM
Seeing Red said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 1/16/19, 8:40 PM
Inga...Allie Oop said...: “Sure, sure, she's completely wrong about the ad but - don't you guys know any women? There's a time to argue and there's a time to abide. And when they box themselves into a corner like this it's usually best to back away and let them have an easy way out. Let the girl win sometimes.

And anyway, I think it's kind of cute when she gets all feisty and excitable and starts calling names. I can imagine that little bob cut just swishing away like Laslo's girl as she goes Jerry Lee on her Apple.”

What a way to cut Althouse down to “girl size”. FYI, she a grown woman 68 years old.; 1/16/19, 8:41 PM
chickelit said...: @Rabel: Perhaps Althouse is just trying to say that the Gillette ad is how men get more "hot pants" on women.

Let Jimmy Castor retell the ancient story; 1/16/19, 8:41 PM
Drago said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 1/16/19, 8:44 PM
Drago said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 1/16/19, 8:44 PM
Drago said...: Inga wants to pretend that just yesterday, yesterday(!), Team Left didnt pronounce fast food racist!!

Because of course they did. Of course.

Inga, do continue to regale us with stories of how the Womens March, which you passionately defended, is such a fantastic organization.....even though its headed up by jew-hating anti-semitic destroy-Israel haters!

LOL

Ill bet you regret going "all in" on those typical lefty lunatics, dont you?; 1/16/19, 8:45 PM
FIDO said...: 1) Did they show Colin Powell as one of the interlocutors? Did they have images of Gary Cooper in 'High Noon' protecting the little guy? Did they have long montages of Firemen, Police, EMTs, Doctors and other men doing wonderful thing THAT THEY DO EVERY FRIGGING DAY

No. They visualize lots of groups of kids and men, either engaging in bad behavior, whole boardrooms, large frat parties, lines of grillers passively watching (and silence means assent as you recall from the Christine Blasey Ford political witch hunt).

GROUPS of bad acting men...being lectured to by a single Woke POC.

Men have had MILLENIUM of teaching, wisdom, philosophy, military wisdom, Commandments, religions, all designed to train men to be good, if not great.

The law you taught, the philosophical tools you use to dissect ideas, the frivolous words that you love looking up in the OED, the Art and Music you admire, the buildings and courts and roads; EVERYTHING that makes your life special and good was invented by men. You think some hausfrau like yourself invented 'ouroboros' while she was wiping bottoms and shelling peas?

And now you applaud like a trained seal at an ad telling men 'you are doing it all wrong', in an era where violent crime is down, rape is down by HALF, when the weakest and stupidest are given far more consideration then they deserve.

We are doing it wrong.

Yeah...this is another power grab by the Left and we have had decades of abuse of moral precepts by atheists against Christians, civility bullshit by Leftists against conservatives, double standards by women against men. This is Chivalry Bullshit: make men listen to women like Ana Kasparian, and ideas like 'Toxic Masculinity'.

We can see manipulation and a power grab when we see it...and we no longer respect women enough to automatically defer to their messaging.

Besides, this was poorly done. It says loads that it has got your panties in a twist...but all the men here are telling you it is bullshit.

But do you, for a moment, listen?

Feh.; 1/16/19, 8:49 PM
Penguins loose said...: Ann says:

“We see many good men letting other men know — as one very attractive man lets another man know — ‘That's not cool’."

“And in the end you see some beautiful young boys who are benefiting from the good examples.”

“It makes the argument: Don't say that! It's idiotic! And it does it with humor that should overcome your resistance... unless you want to be one of the "boys" that the really attractive men in the ad are obviously much smarter and handsomer than.”

Maybe it is just that we men are immune to the beautiful boy and attractive men images that seem to work so well.; 1/16/19, 8:50 PM
mockturtle said...: I still think she's trolling. And it worked. Over 360 comments. ;-); 1/16/19, 8:51 PM
FIDO said...: I found myself in substantial agreement with what seems to have been a large majority of your readers, Althouse, and I am frankly surprised at the absence of your customary critical senses in this case.

***

Her cruel neutrality is only to be used AGAINST men and not FOR men who aren't Democrat and pretty.; 1/16/19, 8:53 PM
Rosa Marie Yoder said...: I have three adult sons. White. Heterosexual. Christian. I am deeply offended that this is how Ann views my sons. But it's to be expected after decades in those ivory towers.

Thankful that I'll have left this Earth by the time the full consequence of Ann-like thinking takes hold...; 1/16/19, 8:58 PM
iowan2 said...: I stole this from a thread on another site.
The ad was not targeted to men. Vast majority of men are honorable, and don't need to change, the skeezy ones won't change.
This was written for women, to get them to join the feminist scold gang, to inform them that the guy she loves? He's just as bad as all of them.
This is a recruiting video.

I could never figure out the incentive. Now I see it.; 1/16/19, 9:01 PM
FIDO said...: The point of encouraging men to be better men is understood. It's still reeks of preach.

The message is not the point: it is a Feminist delivering a hand handed and inaccurate message of who men are. So the question isn't about the message, it is doubting the intent and sincerity of those trying to put MORE screws into men.; 1/16/19, 9:02 PM
DeepRunner said...: Risking offending your core constituency is just stupid. . SJ dubs don't get it. And Gillette doesn't get it, either. People don't by razors because a company is socially-aware. They buy the because they work/fill a need. Tell whatever footy pJama boy who came up with this idea to either get out of his parents' basement, or go back to school, or both.; 1/16/19, 9:03 PM
JeanE said...: Ann says she's seen many ads that "show women setting the example of kindness and caring and being gently elegant and graceful and tactful and helpful and supportive — especially to men.". That's true- media typically depicts women behaving admirably, but this commercial depicts many men either behaving badly or tolerating bad behavior, and only a few doing "the right thing". Here's the commercial I would have made.
A woman with a little boy is stranded on the side of a highway with a flat tire- a man pulls up behind her and volunteers to change the tire, and her son watches him as he works. Next and grandfather with his grandson looks out the window and smiles at a teenage boy shoveling snow from his sidewalk. Then a soldier pulls out his wallet and gazes at pictures of his wife and kids.Add in a few more scenes of men using their strength and skills to help others, and ends with a boy offering to help, just like the grown men. The commercial ends with The Best Men Can Be. My commercial shows young boys watching men doing the right thing, but it doesn't suggest that admirable behavior is unusual.; 1/16/19, 9:03 PM
W.Cook said...: Instapundit nails the reason why this ad is terrible:

Now try this: Ad tells black people not to steal. Why is this offensive?

Or maybe: Ad tells women not to lie. Why is this offensive?

Or, so that the Reason folks will really get it: Ad tells pot smokers not to become drug-crazed mass killers. Why is this offensive?; 1/16/19, 9:09 PM
chickelit said...: Imagine director Kim Gehrig channeling Lorena Bobbitt and threatening to "throw another shrimp on the barbie."; 1/16/19, 9:12 PM
chickelit said...: Just imagine how woke the upcoming Superbowl ads are going to be.; 1/16/19, 9:14 PM
FIDO said...: I think it means the ad really did work on you and you have internalized the message and can no longer feel safe and cocooned inside your old troglodyte ways. You're still fighting it, but the urge to fight is the evidence that the fight is already lost.

It's just a razor ad. Why are you digging in here? Because it's effective!

Standard Academic Bullshit. Someone (usually the professor) says something outrageous and untrue and the class reacts strongly to a falsehood. Then they spend the next half an hour arguing in post modern fashion, using the standard tactic 'if subpoint x is not 100% proven false, than you must accept that it is likely that Thesis Y is potentially true, no matter all the other evidence against.'

But please note:

We started with Althouse unable to understand for a moment why the rest of humanity was not weeping at the beauty of this ad. HER ignorance. HER lack of empathy. HER inability to see this in any other way. EVEN after it is explained.

When initially contradicted, she doubles down and goes 'tell me EXACTLY what verb or adjective stated that EXACT idea' which is ridiculous because it is VISUAL IMPRESSIONS being made, not legal documents. She attempts to shift the debate to an unprovable one. Because she can't bear contradiction on any of her video feelings.

So people in very simple sentences outlined exactly what was so offensive in this ad. MANY MANY PEOPLE (including much smarter, or at least more empathic and logical women than Althouse).

Since Althouse refuses to a) change her mind, or b) concede a point, or c) grant others differences of opinion, now she is trying to move the debate to 'well, see how angry you are. It MUST be true and you are fighting against inevitablity'.

To which I say, yet again, no...Men have shown for Five Thousand Years that they have worked very hard to be better men.

One, these people have no right to lecture. Two, they arrogantly throw gender wide blame to ALL men for everything. Three, they use politically tone deaf images and phrases to try to move men.

But you don't listen and aren't open minded. You're haughty.

So I am outlining why is it fruitless to actually debate or try to explain things to Althouse.

I remember, back when I was a kid, I was reading a commentary on 'Batman: Year One'. It was noted by the author that the side characters, Gordan, Selena Kyle, Harvey Dent, Alfred, were much more interesting than the titular character, but Batman was the excuse to actually be there to see the much more interesting things.

I understood that thesis then, but it is in bold display here.; 1/16/19, 9:36 PM
walter said...: This is not who we are.
We need to raise awareness, start the conversation...
(Insert year here); 1/16/19, 9:57 PM
walter said...: Here are some touching visuals of young boys turn to camera, regarding what kind of pizza they want. Cry if you feel it.; 1/16/19, 10:05 PM
Not Sure said...: Blogger Seeing Red said...
I just read beards are out. Clean shaven was coming back.

Exactly why this is part of a brilliant ad campaign.

Step 1: Establish yourself as the choice of social justice hipsters

Step 2: Roll out new ad featuring unshaven toxic males, ending with a close-up of Harvey Weinstein's jowly stubble

Step 3: Get 100% of the new clean-shaven hipster demo

Coming soon.; 1/16/19, 10:08 PM
Whirred Whacks said...: The Gillette ad was created by feminist Kim Gehrig. Here is the ad she created a while back for a feminine hygiene product for the Swedish company Libresse: Viva la Vulva Well worth watching!; 1/16/19, 10:40 PM
Gk1 said...: I'm thinking an even more effective ad campaign would be if Geico started using old Tex Avery cartoons showing women drivers from 1949. Imagine how provocative that would be?!? There is no such thing as bad publicity, right?; 1/16/19, 10:55 PM
walter said...: No offense, but that was posted previously.
Ann is milking this one, as she sometimes does.; 1/16/19, 10:58 PM
FIDO said...: Asking a Feminist to market to men is as stupid as asking a Lesbian about how to please one's husband.; 1/16/19, 11:08 PM
Ken B said...: Mockturtle
I don’t think she’s trolling. I do think Hardin is a lot smarter than we give him credit for.; 1/16/19, 11:41 PM
Anonymous said...: Repulsive hag Inga now knows which brand of razor she should use to castrate her rapist grandsons.; 1/17/19, 12:00 AM
Fen said...: FIDO: "So I am outlining why is it fruitless to actually debate or try to explain things to Althouse."

Ah but if only you had the context some of us oldtimers have. Put in the context of The Great Meltdown, this is all rather amusing, if not tiresome.

See, long ago, Ann attempted to troll her Male commentariot and the backlash was so brutal she had to close comments down for a few weeks. Worse, Meade located the Althouse loyalists huddled together as refugees on some other blog and for reasons unknown decided to troll them further.

It was quite embarrassing and unfortunate. But we were left with one bright truth: Ann and Meade have a great deal of pent up contempt for the people who became her regulars. People that admired her and thought she was a decent person.

So be amused at this latest passive aggressive swipe on her part.; 1/17/19, 1:54 AM
Fen said...: BTW, if you've ever speculated that Inga et al might be sockpuppet accounts for Ann and Meade to anonymously abuse their guests without consequence... you win a set of steak knives! Congratulations.; 1/17/19, 1:58 AM
rcocean said...: Thanks Whirred Wacks. I was able to look up Kim Gehrig and it looks like she's just what you'd expect.

Australian/English Left-wing, hates Trump, etc.

Very feminist, hires women directors, foul-mouthed (aren't they always?)

Gillette is owned by P&G and is the art is part of their campaign to be "socially conscious" aka change society to the Left.; 1/17/19, 4:50 AM
Jaq said...: I do think Hardin is a lot smarter than we give him credit for.

He couldn’t be. If he was that smart, we would have a new unified field theory by now.; 1/17/19, 6:35 AM
Jaq said...: Bubba could have benefitted from a talk like this as a young man, but his hero was Democrat icon JFK, so it just didn’t happen.; 1/17/19, 6:40 AM
Jaq said...: We're glad you liked it, Brian! This can't end with just conversation, we've committed $1 million dollars per year for at least the next three years to nonprofit organizations doing the most exciting and impactful work designed to help men achieve their personal best. - Gillette

So they are using our razor money to fund radical feminists to nag us. Great. I wonder if any of it is going to the National Association of Gals (NAG); 1/17/19, 7:04 AM
Cassandra said...: Tim in Vermont wrote:

The reason this is an interesting topic isn’t that it’s “terrifying” or “threatening” or whatever to men, it’s that it’s a “Mars/Venus” type of thing where the two sides genuinely, apparently, see something completely different in the same ad. That’s fascinating. We have been talking about Trump based on this dynamic since he rode down the escalator.

Best comment out of nearly 400 on this post. And it only underscores how hard men and women have to work to understand each other (heck, I often have to work hard to understand other *women* :p).

One of the saddest things about these debates - at least to me - is that so many men and women take careless generalizations and backlash from the opposite sex to heart...

...and they're not the ones the backlash was aimed at.; 1/17/19, 8:18 AM
FIDO said...: Bubba could have benefitted from a talk like this as a young man, but his hero was Democrat icon JFK, so it just didn’t happen.

IIRC, Bubba, Rapist, Groper, Pedophile and Misogynist Extraordinaire was raised by a single mom.

But boys raised by solely women tend to be toxic. Stats don't lie.

Men could be better...if women stayed married.

They refuse. Reap, Sow.; 1/17/19, 8:23 AM
FIDO said...: Angle-Dyne, Samurai Buzzard said...
AA: It's just a razor ad. Why are you digging in here?

"IKYABWAI," says Althouse, in response to being criticized yet again for her credulous readings of toxic prog schmaltz.

Have you ever noticed that Althouse ONLY gets sweaty panties over prog ads and videos. Never for Conservative ones.; 1/17/19, 8:27 AM
daskol said...: Nothing is more offensive to me, as far as societal issues go, than using the phrase "boys will be boys" as a pejorative.

Browndog for the win. “Toxic masculinity” is a smokescreen. This is the message. Boys can’t be boys anymore in a new woke age, they need to be some new kind of boy. That’s a deeper rejection of masculinity than a tired sjw cliche, and from a Cialdini/persuasion perspective the bigger fail as an ad: if boys can’t be boys, what are they aupposed to be? Better boys? If that more or less boy? What does boy even mean: a better boy is less of a boy, more of a man? That belies the pictures of beautiful boys at the end.

This ad will have a greater cultural impact than it would have as a better constructed ad, but it’s going to hurt Gillette’s brand a lot.

Howard is a kind of an asshole a lot, but he seems to have nailed Althouse’s motivation in here as evidenced by her frequent contributions. Queruslism at best, if not outright trolling. Funny, though.; 1/17/19, 8:47 AM
daskol said...: As a man, or as a remembering boy, there’s nothing in here to belong to. Bad ad. Good provocation.; 1/17/19, 8:50 AM
Laslo Spatula said...: I imagine that the people who support this ad 'helping' men to do the right thing overlaps greatly with the people who believe a woman should be able to kill her unborn child whenever that child is inconvenient.

Being lectured about a man's personal responsibility by the people who believe women cannot be responsible for their own sexual actions is grating.

Abortion = Toxic Femininity.

I am Laslo.; 1/17/19, 9:08 AM
Cassandra said...: Being lectured about a man's personal responsibility by the people who believe women cannot be responsible for their own sexual actions is grating.

Laslo, you ignorant manslut :p

Der Bu$Hitler (or his speechwriter, Michael Gerson) used to talk about the "soft bigotry of low expectations" wrt race. I love that phrase, and it aptly describes the way some feminists talk about women. We're supposedly equal to men in every way, yet we cannot and should not be expected to adhere to the same standards (whether physically, in the military, or sexually, as in popular culture and the now-antiquated notion of self restraint).

They talk about benevolent sexism, but it doesn't seem to occur to them that expecting less of women is not exactly a recipe for success if you actually believe women have an important role in modern culture and society.

People generally conform to what is demanded/expected of them. Lower the standards, and things go sideways. That applies regardless of whether we identify as male, female, or one or more of the other 9674 genders.; 1/17/19, 9:37 AM
Meade said...: “Abortion = Toxic Femininity”

True Toxic Masculinity = Kermit Gosnell; 1/17/19, 9:42 AM
Laslo Spatula said...: "True Toxic Masculinity = Kermit Gosnell"

Damned straight, sir.

I am Laslo; 1/17/19, 9:44 AM
Meade said...: Non-toxic feminism = the radical notion that women are people.

Toxic feminism = the radical notion that live human beings, in utero, are not people.; 1/17/19, 9:55 AM
Anonymous said...: @Meade, @Lazlo
What, exactly, qualifies Kermit Gosnell as a man? Equating toxic masculinity with Kermit Gosnell trivializes the word toxic and ascribes evil to masculinity.; 1/17/19, 10:21 AM
Char Char Binks, Esq. said...: The black man who said "not cool" to the white man who was attracted to a woman PUT HIS HANDS ON HIM to physically stop him. Reverse the races and see what happens.

Also, I'd guess three quarters of the people shown at 1:11 are now in prison.; 1/17/19, 10:35 AM
Cassandra said...: I'm not sure being equated with Gosnell trivializes the word "toxic" (unless you think there's nothing horrific or shocking in what Gosnell did). If anything, "toxic" isn't strong enough.

A better question might be, did Gosnell do what he did because he's a man? I'm not convinced that's the case, either.

As much as one might dislike the term 'toxic masculinity' (and its proponents), it's a useful modifier to just plain "masculinity". If all masculinity is toxic, you don't need a modifier.

Toxic masculinity (or femininity) is masculinity or femininity that treats people of the opposite sex - or even their own sex - as no more than an object. It's destructive behavior, expressed as exaggerated masculinity or femininity. Women are just as capable of using our natural advantages to hurt others as men are.

It just looks different from the outside.; 1/17/19, 10:37 AM
Anonymous said...: @Cassandra
If anything, "toxic" isn't strong enough.
Yes.

did Gosnell do what he did because he's a man?
Did Planned Parenthood dismember babies and sell the parts because it's a womens organization? I don't see maonsterhood as sexed.

If all masculinity is toxic, you don't need a modifier.
Yes, that's the goal, not needing a modifier.; 1/17/19, 10:55 AM
David Docetad said...: I've read pretty much every comment, and one of the most interesting (most offensive too) things about the ad has not been mentioned I think. There are various scenes of a fake sitcom where on stage a white man gleefully fondles the rear end of a very attractive young black woman dressed up as a housekeeper. He does this twice in two separate scenes. All the while the camera is cutting back to the live sitcom audience, all white, uproariously laughing. (It looks like the ad director is going for a 1950's vibe, but there are three manspreading white boys on the couch with a modern remote control.) What's the message here, Althouse?; 1/17/19, 11:00 AM
Static Ping said...: One phenomenon at work here is the dual meaning of "toxic masculinity." We see this sort of thing on a regular basis from radical activists of all sorts where they have a radical and, coincidentally, unpopular definition among themselves, but for public consumption it has a more innocuous meaning that is generally inoffensive. They switch between the two meanings as suits their purposes.

We see this with the definition of "feminism." The public claim is it means equality of men and women. When the radicals are among themselves it morphs into heterosexuality is rape and all women must be lesbians. When people start pointing out the radical definition, the activists then argue that these people are actually opposed to the public definition and therefore hate women.

As for "toxic masculinity", we get the following:

PUBLIC: It refers to the bad behaviors associated with men, such as sexual abuse and domestic violence, that should be curbed.
RADICAL: All men are awful simply because they are men.

We can see what is behind the curtain now.; 1/17/19, 11:01 AM
Cassandra said...: ...one of the most interesting (most offensive too) things about the ad has not been mentioned I think. There are various scenes of a fake sitcom where on stage a white man gleefully fondles the rear end of a very attractive young black woman dressed up as a housekeeper. He does this twice in two separate scenes.

I found it interesting that the racial overtones of this ad bugged my husband far more than the sly suggestions that there's something wrong with plain ole masculinity. It was interesting that the race aspect didn't bother me as much (for reasons I'll get into shortly).

The 50s vibe was odd there, particularly as we never saw overtly sexual behavior on TV back then. They didn't even show double or queen beds for married couples - too sexy!!!

The racial aspects of the ad reminded me of an incident that caused us to put our oldest son in private school a few decades ago. A boy on our street was suspended from school for carrying a pocketknife (of the kind we all had as kids) in his pocket at school. He was in our son's Scout troop.

He didn't threaten anyone with it. He didn't cause any disruption at all. He only got caught because it fell out of his pocket at recess and someone told on him.

We were stunned when he was suspended. My theory was that it was "safe" for the school to make an example of a white boy who didn't have a history of aggression or bullying or fighting. They were making a statement. The middle school had a lot of race related fights, and sadly it wasn't white students picking on blacks, but the other way 'round.

My (perhaps naive/overly generous) take on the ad was that they were showing POC as the heroes, standing up for treating women better, precisely because in black and Hispanic popular culture, you don't see that often. Rap is notorious for truly ugly/misogynistic behavior, and then there's the whole machismo stereotype. Had they shown black men being sexually aggressive, they would have been called racists. So black men were the heroes.

We pulled our son from public school b/c I had very little interest in seeing my son held to a FAR higher standard of behavior to help the school deflect accusations of racism every time a kid who was *actually* causing trouble was disciplined. One of the greatest things about being in the military was seeing so many black parents who were incredibly strict with their kids (as we were).

Popular culture, however, isn't like that.; 1/17/19, 11:19 AM