October 29, 2020

"The great shame is not that Mr. Trump brought an anachronistic masculinity into the Oval Office, but that he used the Oval Office to market a very modern brand of compensatory manhood — with a twist."

"The hallmarks of contemporary ornamental masculinity — being valued as the object of the gaze, playing the perpetual child, pedestal-perching and mirror-gazing — are the very ones that women have, for half a century, struggled to dismantle as belittling, misogynist characterizations of femininity. The preoccupation with popularity, glamour, celebrity, appearance — what are these qualities but the old consumer face of the Girl? If Mr. Trump is reclaiming a traditional stereotypical sex role, it’s one that long belonged to women. Why have so many of the modern-day grunts who mourn the loss of 'old-fashioned' manhood hitched their wagon to a silk-suited flyboy? Since at least the 1990s, and at full tilt in the era of social media, men have been faced with a quandary: how to define their sex in a culture where visibility, performance and marketability are the currency. You could say that Mr. Trump has, if nothing else, found a way. But he’s done so not by defending the Greatest Generation man, but by abandoning him."


"Flyboy" is explained elsewhere in the column. It's a WWII epithet for aviators who posed in silk scarves, Faludi explains, and were disparaged as not showing true manliness.

By the way is Trump "silk-suited"? I presume his suits are wool, not silk. I looked it up and found a lot of articles about how cheap Trump's suits look! Here's an example of such an article from right before he won the 2016 election. We were told it matters because "you can tell a lot about someone by the way they dress," and Trump's baggy clothes show that "he isn't detail-oriented." The article ends: "Next Tuesday, vote with your sartorial conscience."

Now, right before the 2020 election, Susan Faludi portrays Trump as fussily "silk-suited." And you can tell a lot about him from the way he — supposedly, in her mind — dresses. Look how far she's going disparaging him as feminine! I'm sure she imagines that she is safe from accusations of sexism and homophobia. But why?! One reason is she's attacking Trump. That seems to authorize anything. But in my book, if you insult men for seeming like women, you are sexist, and if you are a feminist, you put feminism first, ahead of your desire to help one political candidate or another. 

That made me want to look up whether Susan Faludi defended Bill Clinton.
Susan Faludi, author of Backlash, the best-selling book that warned against the slippage of women's rights in America, commented on the Lewinsky affair with a touch of backlash herself. "If anything, it sounds like she put the moves on him," Faludi declared, seemingly comfortable with the idea that a man should never, ever be expected to resist sex when it's offered to him on a plate.

165 comments:

rehajm said...

In regards to crass sexuality Trump is NO different than leaders of both parties. The difference is Trump doesn't hide it.

Leland said...

Susan Faludi is just a partisan Clinton hack. Despite others pointing out her inconsistency in supporting Bill Clinton, damning Monica Lewinsky, and what she writes here about Trump; she claims it is all consistent. If Biden wins, you can expect Faludi to praise the support of Hunter Biden to feminist and to damn his niece for being a slut "sleeping her way to the bottom of [insert makeup brand here] empire" (paraphrase of what she said about Monica).

In short, Faludi is boring and predictable, and you know how our host likes a bore.

YoungHegelian said...

So, Ms Faludi is in effect calling Trump a pussy?

That's seems like a real progressive outlook, I must say.

CWJ said...

"Next Tuesday, vote with your sartorial conscience."

Return of the pants crease. The superficial is strong in this one.

Mike of Snoqualmie said...

My wife get upset when Trump criticizes a woman politician. "He's attacking a woman!" Woman politicians put themselves in the kitchen. If they can't take the heat, they need to leave. (H/T Harry Truman.) I thought feminism was "I am woman, hear me roar!" Not, "You can't criticize me, I'm a woman!"

Assistant Village Idiot said...

If Trump is doing it, it must be wrong. Let's all adjust our stereotypes to fit that.

Nonapod said...

"The hallmarks of contemporary ornamental masculinity — being valued as the object of the gaze, playing the perpetual child, pedestal-perching and mirror-gazing — are the very ones that women have, for half a century, struggled to dismantle as belittling, misogynist characterizations of femininity.

Who determined that "contemporary manhood" is being valued "as the object of the gaze" and "playing the perpetual child" and all that other nonsense? Does anyone really believe that that is what being masculine is today?

Michael said...

Trump dresses terribly in expensive Brioni suits. He obviously likes the comfort of a too large suit and baggy pants. Does not hide his fat. On the other hand he is a Manhattan big shot, a 57th street biggie as we used to call the type. Big guys with Countess Mara ties and big expensive suits always in the middle of a deal. 21Club regulars.

Joe Smith said...

Faludi blaming the victim...typical liberal female cattiness that 'she' wasn't the one chosen to service the president. I'm sure she kept her kneepads handy for Barack, too.

buwaya said...

The Democrats have mobilized everyone, the halt, the lame, the wretched and the wicked and the mad, criminals and perverts and cats and dogs and microbes. And Susan Faludi.

Mr Wibble said...

Vote for the candidate with the impressive crease in his trousers. Because it worked so well in 2008...

Drago said...

Suan Faludi!!!

LOL

We are going to keep recycling ALL the 90's Clintonite failures, aren't we?

Mr. O. Possum said...

I attended a Biden town hall a few months ago and sat on the aisle. He walked past me several times and clearly wore a bespoke suit--the kind where the jacket's sleeves have real button holes.

He is much smaller and thinner in person than one would expect. Short, too.

Definitely had plastic surgery around the eyes

Tom said...

Trump wears Brioni suits. They’re high quality wool. With his build, I’m not sure the tailor has much to work with but, even so, they’re ill fitting suits.

In the 1980s, Trump dressed well. But since starting the Apprentice, he’s almost worn the same blue suit, white French cuffed shirt, and either Red or Blue (or sometimes pink) tie, as if he’s wearing a uniform.

Brioni was the suit of choice for Pierce Brosnan’s James Bond (and Daniel Craig in Casino Royale, he’s been in Tom Ford ever since). I own a couple Brioni and Tom Ford suits and I promise mine are far better tailored than Mr Trump’s.

Sebastian said...

"he used the Oval Office to market a very modern brand of compensatory manhood — with a twist."

Compensatory manhood? WTF? Compensating for what? And why was that wrong in the oval office, apart from Orange Man Bad regardless?

"The hallmarks of contemporary ornamental masculinity — being valued as the object of the gaze, playing the perpetual child, pedestal-perching and mirror-gazing — are the very ones that women have, for half a century, struggled to dismantle as belittling, misogynist characterizations of femininity."

WTF? Which contemporary men, apart from prog pajama boys, play the perpetual child? And why does such masculinity, if it even exists, "belittle" femininity?

"Look how far she's going disparaging him as feminine!"

Right. Sexism is just another prog tool.

"I'm sure she imagines that she is safe from accusations of sexism and homophobia. But why?! One reason is she's attacking Trump. That seems to authorize anything."

Yes. Still abstaining?

"But in my book, if you insult men for seeming like women, you are sexist, and if you are a feminist, you put feminism first, ahead of your desire to help one political candidate or another."

No one wants to read that book, sorry. Politics always comes first, sorry. Whether you abstain or not, the real world does not fit your notions.

"If anything, it sounds like she put the moves on him," Faludi declared, seemingly comfortable with the idea that a man should never, ever be expected to resist sex when it's offered to him on a plate."

See? That was 20 years ago. And Althouse knows well what "feminists" did for Bill. But the facts didn't change her mind. She has her "book," nice and pristine. Too bad no actual feminists want to read it.

bagoh20 said...

More crap that has nothing to do with the choice before us. It's fine to talk about it for entertainment, but if you are using this stuff as an argument for electing or not, you are trying to distract people from the real issues.

Readering said...

Don't understand how Faludi can be discussing the sex appeal of someone in their seventies who has clearly been making no effort to get their weight under control. Is that ageism of me? The only sign that Trump cares about such things is the way he is keeping attractive women in his inner circle.

Richard Aubrey said...

Silk scarves came from WW I. Cockpits were open-and drafty--and surviving meant keeping your head on a swivel. Silk kept you warm and didn't chafe when worn inside whatever jacket(s) sweaters you had.
Is that mansplaiining?

bagoh20 said...

Joe Biden is corrupt, and in the pocket of China and others. He is dangerously beholden to them and the info they have on him, which would be impeachable. I suspect he chose Harris as VP precisely because it will pause Republicans from removing him. Compared to that, I don't care if Trump dresses up in a fuchsia tutu at night in the oval office and sings show tunes.

Richard Aubrey said...

Silk scarves came from WW I aviation. Cockpits were open and drafty and survival meant keeping your head turning. Silk kept you warm and didn't chafe when worn inside whatever coats and sweaters you had.

Original Mike said...

Scott Adams today (paraphrasing): 'There's no way to say this without sounding derogatory, which is not my intent, but isn't our politics today divided between women and beta-males on the democrat side versus alpha-males on the republican? I kinda think that's why black males are switching sides.'

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

NYT = corruption excusing asshole.
More bullshit to cover for the parade of corrupt democrat party dried up old family-grifting money whores that make up the elite Pelosi-Biden-Clinton-CNN-Dorsey democratic party.

bagoh20 said...

I don't think Trump looks around at the zeitgeist to decide how to dress or behave.

Tommy Duncan said...

Every one sing along now:

I feel pretty
Oh, so pretty
I feel pretty, and witty and gay
And I pity
Any guy who isn’t me today

I feel pretty
Oh, so pretty
I feel pretty, and witty and bright
And I pity
Any guy who isn’t me tonight

I feel charming
Oh, so charming
It’s alarming how charming I feel
And so pretty
That I hardly can believe I’m real

See the pretty guy in that mirror there:
Who can that attractive guy be?
Such a pretty face
Such a pretty dress
Such a pretty smile
Such a pretty me!

I feel stunning
And entrancing
Feel like running and dancing for joy
For I’m loved
By a pretty wonderful boy!

Static Ping said...

Silk scarves were used because of their utility, at least in the biplane era. At the time the only way to find the enemy was visually. Given you were stuck in an airplane seat facing front, the only way to spot the enemy (without steering the plane) was to twist your neck around to actually look for the enemy with your own eyes. Try doing that for several hours with a leather jacket tightly around your neck because it is damn cold at that altitude. Your neck will be a bloody mess. However, failure to do so was a good way to die. Silk reduces the friction dramatically.

This really isn't necessary in modern aircraft with the high speeds and sensors, but a pilot who wears a silk scarf as a call back to the early days of flying seems pretty reasonable to me.

AlbertAnonymous said...

New York Fucking Times...


Say no more.

Why do you keep subjecting yourself to this garbage?

NCMoss said...

I'm super curious what big media journalism will look like after the election is decided but I'm reasonably sure this won't be the prototype for it.

gerry said...

The hallmarks of contemporary ornamental masculinity — being valued as the object of the gaze, playing the perpetual child, pedestal-perching and mirror-gazing

Faludi is projecting for her NYT beta male readership - it makes them giggle. She's also compensating (she's certainly no Melania). It would be sad if it weren't so bitchy.

Banjo said...

Ann bought a gun. That tells you she is afraid of the left.

Ann Althouse said...

"See? That was 20 years ago. And Althouse knows well what "feminists" did for Bill. But the facts didn't change her mind."

You put it in quotes because you actually do understand what I am saying, which is that these people who only use feminism as a means to an end are not feminists at all. I don't care whether anyone "reads" what I call "my book." The phrase "in my book" means according to standards that I believe in. I don't care whether any of these people want to hear what I'm saying. I am simply calling fake feminism where I see it.

daskol said...

Great name, Susan Faludi. Best thing about her.

bagoh20 said...

I wonder how she feels about the masculinity of forced digital penetration of a woman by a man in a position of power. You know, actual pussy grabbing when they don't let you.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Althouse was analyzing the feminine characteristics of Trump’s masculinity for four years at least, long before the Thought Leaders started weighing in, unless you count the smattering of “small hands” jokes.

Ann Althouse said...

"Silk scarves came from WW I. Cockpits were open-and drafty--and surviving meant keeping your head on a swivel. Silk kept you warm and didn't chafe when worn inside whatever jacket(s) sweaters you had."

A silk scarf under a wool collar was widespread at one time. Ordinary people putting on wool coats would drape a silk scarf around their nec and cross it in front under the coat.

But the posing I'm picturing has the ends flapping around in the wind. I don't think that is functional.

William said...

Well, give her credit. She's found a fresh, new way to criticize Trump. Ornamental masculinity but in a girlish way. Is that like wearing black lace, peek-a-boo codpiece with lots of pink ribbons?

hombre said...

What will these imbeciles write about if Trump loses? It certainly won't be about the Democrats. Censorship will be at an all time high if China Joe and the DNC loonies take over.

It boggles the mind that Biden or Harris could be our President and that the Dems could take the Senate. How stupid do people have to be to let the mediaswine decide their elections?

PM said...

Which wave of feminism is she again?

tim in vermont said...

"Compensatory manhood? WTF? Compensating for what? “

Oh we all know what she is saying, she just knows that she will bet a lot of pushback from people on her own side if she spells out what she really thinks of Mr Short Fingers.

"The hallmarks of contemporary ornamental masculinity — being valued as the object of the gaze, playing the perpetual child, pedestal-perching and mirror-gazing — are the very ones that women have, for half a century, struggled to dismantle as belittling, misogynist characterizations of femininity.”

Isn’t this stuff she should be saying to her therapist? “Why do I keep falling so hard for these assholes?” That is kind of the whole complaint of Carly Simon’s “Your So Vain”

“You walked into the party, like you were walking on to a yacht
Your hat strategicly dipped below one eye, your scarf it was apricot”

And yet Carly elbowed aside all of the girls who “dreamed that they’s be your partner” like a bridesmade after the bouquet.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Our media is poison.

Corrupt poison. and lunatic hive-minders on the left think anything negative about any democrat is "Russian disinformation"

Steven said...

Trump's suits are reportedly made by Brioni, a very expensive Italian brand. It is my understanding that they are custom. I don't know why he likes them so full-fitting, but they are certainly not "cheap suits".

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Glenn Greenwald leaves the publican he started because the others there at Intercept are censoring him from reporting anything negative about Joe Biden.


"The current iteration of The Intercept is completely unrecognizable when compared to that original vision. Rather than offering a venue for airing dissent, marginalized voices and unheard perspectives, it is rapidly becoming just another media outlet with mandated ideological and partisan loyalties, a rigid and narrow range of permitted viewpoints (ranging from establishment liberalism to soft leftism, but always anchored in ultimate support for the Democratic Party), a deep fear of offending hegemonic cultural liberalism and center-left Twitter luminaries, and an overarching need to secure the approval and admiration of the very mainstream media outlets we created The Intercept to oppose, critique and subvert. "

tim in vermont said...

Instead of trying to reform all fo the Mick Jagger types, maybe feminist women could choose the more retiring, stable, and reliable but less sexually attractve types, of which there are plenty just waiting for a smile. But who wants those? We want the hot guys to stop acting like assholes, while of course we keep throwing ourselves at them the minute they dump the last girl

“Strange game, the best move is not to play.”

All I can say is thanks God that there are lots of women out there who don’t write for prestige magazines by humble bragging about their prestige life, even if they don’t spend a huge percentage of their time making themselves attractive to men.

Tom T. said...

Womansplaining masculinity.

Trump's line of ties at Macy's ("a very disloyal company") were quite nice.

Rob said...

The persistence of homophobia among smug supposedly woke progressives is fascinating. Many insist on referring to Lindsey Graham as "Miss Lindsey," raising the questions how they know his sexuality and why they care. If they are looking for an all-purpose putdown, accusing someone of being gay is a handy go-to.

The other curious insult by the woke is to say someone is an incel. It seems like a throwback to 1960's Playboy attitudes, where the cool guys were the ones who were "getting a lot" and the dweebs were those who weren't getting any.

Michael K said...

Isn't Faludi the one who tried to make Gore look masculine with clothes that were "earth tones?"

It didn't work that time either.

Then one who needs to grow a pair is Roberts, who chickened out on Democrat election meddling.

The threat of court "packing" scared Roberts into leaving the Penn and NC cases alone.

Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...

is it a strain for these Faludi types to tease out such exotic
convoluted and esoteric critiques

...or is it a symptom of acute, chronic, systemic TDS??

ps: Trump has better hair than Pluggs-- Vote your tonsorial conscience!!

Big Mike said...

@Althouse, are you quoting Susan Faludi because you want to show us what sort of silliness your beloved Progressives are reduced to? Or because you actually think she has a point? I suspect you aren’t really that gullible.

Rabel said...

"But in my book, if you insult men for seeming like women, you are sexist, and if you are a feminist, you put feminism first, ahead of your desire to help one political candidate or another."

I thought you considered yourself a feminist. If so, then that quote doesn't match up with what you have told your readers about your voting decisions in the past.

I don't understand. Could you clarify?

tim in vermont said...

You know what a really easy way to get killed in WWII was? To be a “flyboy."

DanTheMan said...

Joe will probably win, and the stories will be the same: "Everything Trump did was wrong, and everything bad is his fault." Including, apparently, how Trump dresses.

Joe will be praised for "accomplishments" he had nothing to do with, and as we have seen, no negative reporting will be allowed.
We've already seen previews, with hard-hitting stories about Joe and ice cream, so the 'snappy dresser' stories will soon follow.

Joe Biden once said that the Dems could run Mickey Mouse against Trump and have a chance.
This was indeed a prophetic statement.

Ned Pondry said...

Original Mike:

Black males are switching sides because of Kamala Harris.

Roughcoat said...

World War I single-engine aircraft (with the engine in the nose) used castor oil as an engine coolant. In almost every instance the castor oil leaked profusely, and the pilots in their open cockpits wore silk scarves to prevent themselves from swallowing the stuff. This was actually a serious problem, because castor oil is a powerful laxative. Pilots who didn't take the proper precautionary measures got sick to their stomachs and were shitting in their pants -- not very conducive to combat efficiency when the Red Baron is on your tail. The problem was especially acute in the Sopwith Camel, but it was present in most single-engine aircraft of that period.

And THAT, gentle reader, is why pilot-aviators took to wearing silk scarves. At least in the beginning of combat aviation.

BarrySanders20 said...

"The Pulitzer prizewinning feminist Susan Faludi had a torrid relationship with her father, Steven — until he had an operation and became Stefánie."

The Times article, 2016. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/my-dad-the-woman-0nn335l5n

She dreams of being ravished by a grunt.

Larry J said...

"Next Tuesday, vote with your sartorial conscience."

Larry's Third Law is "Fashion is for suckers."

If you think the cut of a man's clothing (or crease in his pants) is an important factor to consider whether or not to vote for someone, then you're a moron.

Hippogryph said...

Remember how dumpy Pres. Trump looked at his inauguration? The yard-long tie was absurd.

As I recall, it was Pres. Obama who was the clothes horse, with his expertly fitted and tailored suits. And those sharp pants-creases, so marvelous that they won David Brooks over, almost by themselves.

Well... what's good is bad, what's bad is good, depending on what a columnist's canard is supposed to accomplish.

Rory said...

"...manhood - with a twist."

So the last drop doesn't end up in your pants.

Roughcoat said...

I neglected to say that, while in flight, the WW1 pilot aviators wore the scarves up over their mouths. I trust that was obvious from the context of what I said. Wearing the scarves had nothing to do with current fashion, or for that matter with trying to keep warm. It was all about preventing onesself from swallowing copious amounts of castor oil that was spraying, constantly and copiously, back into his face.

NorthOfTheOneOhOne said...

"Flyboy" is explained elsewhere in the column. It's a WWII epithet for aviators who posed in silk scarves, Faludi explains, and were disparaged as not showing true manliness.

I'd love to send that bitch back in time have her explain that to Francis "Gabby" Gabreski! 28 victories, top US fighter pilot in the ETO!

Unknown said...

I have mentioned before personal experience with the hackery and disqualifying dishonesty of Ms. Faludi. Fof a college paper, I took friends with me to the library, opened a copy of "Backlash", asked the frined to randomly choose references in the Bibliography, and checked them in context. That included contacting authors of cited works. Long story short: our 2 dozen plus items were wrongly cited as Backlash support over 70% of the time. Proof right in front of your very nose.

Hackery by a disgraced and bitter feminist mouthpiece.

Roughcoat said...

Now ask me why WW1 pilot-aviators wore silk scarves instead of scarves made of wool or cotton.

You can probably guess the answer.

Big Mike said...

There's no way to say this without sounding derogatory, which is not my intent, but isn't our politics today divided between women and beta-males on the democrat side versus alpha-males on the republican?

@Original, alpha males, and the women who love us. I trust Scott would regard this as a friendly amendment.

madAsHell said...

he used the Oval Office to market a very modern brand of compensatory manhood — with a twist.

Compensatory manhood?? With a Twist?? This is just confused drivel. Click-bait.

Imagine my surprise, she's not married.

Mikey NTH said...

My grandfather was in the Royal Flying Corps in WWI, and yes he wore a silk scarf for the warmth, not for fashion. Faludi has no clue about what she is speaking of when she brings in aviators from either world war.

Iman said...

Philadelphia: the City of Brotherly Looting

Drago said...

When you are a democratical VP, the women let you stick your fingers where you'd like regardless of how you are dressed, except for some women, who complain publicly and then are ignored by "principled" democraticals.

PubliusFlavius said...

Maria Bartiromo and James Freeman: Reviving America's Economy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcmaQota774

Excellent wide ranging interview by Sundheim primarily focused on the milieu surrounding DJT.

Big Mike said...

You put it in quotes because you actually do understand what I am saying, which is that these people who only use feminism as a means to an end are not feminists at all.

@Althouse, gotta hand it to you, when you’re right, you are right. My main complaint with you is that at times you seem to fall for the schtick from women who are masking their insecurities and unwillingness to compete behind the shield of feminism.

Drago said...

How would Faludi characterize Hunter's open kimono/naked bit with underage girls?

Is that "anachronistic masculinity"?

It can't be because just today Dementia Joe called crackhead son Hunter "the smartest guy I know".

Yes indeed, Hunter is the "smartest guy" Dementia Joe knows.

Fauci hardest hit.

Matt said...

I went to an Indian wedding. The traditional dress for an Indian male guest at an Indian wedding seems to be a silk "suit." They look great on Indians and weird on white people.

I asked my friend if the silk suits were comfortable. He said they weren't - they get very hot. I was very grateful for my wool suit.

Iman said...

Rev. Jim Jones preaching live from Coconut Creek FL...

madAsHell said...

as if he’s wearing a uniform.

I've noticed that as well, but I think there's also a I'm-on-the-clock mentality.

Funny, I don't immediately recall pictures of his golf attire, but I'm sure the pictures exist.

LA_Bob said...

I suspect most women are attracted to men who "charm" them -- make them feel like they are the most important people in the world. And they protect the men who do that -- Kennedy, Clinton, Warren Beatty (at least per Carly Simon), others. Looks help immensely, and so does power, but charm seems to be critical.

Many men have learned to pay lip service to "feminism" as a way to charm the "fake feminists" (as well as some real ones). Think Charley Rose, Bill Clinton (again), Barack "Sweetheart" Obama, others. Interesting that some women fall for this as easily as, "I love you, baby".

I'm sure the younger Trump knew very well how to charm women (he said they let you grab them by the pussy). The older Trump has different interests, mostly related to getting things done. He doesn't try to be charming (except to his constituency), and it oddly makes "feminist" women really mad. Sensing his soft side (as Althouse has) but not receiving the "benefit" of it, they deride him as a girly man who just plays tough guy for show.

Jupiter said...

Somebody mercy-fuck this bitch Faludi.

Sebastian said...

"I am simply calling fake feminism where I see it."

I sympathize, seriously. I used the quotes to reflect your view.

But what you call fake feminism is the real thing. It was never about equality or principle or the liberation of women as such. It was always a particular kind of political project, and it has long been completely subsumed under general progressivism. Calling it fake by your principles has no meaning to them, nor to us bystanders.

By the way, just out of curiosity, if you're inclined to answer, has any fake feminist ever called you fake for not falling in line with your prog sisters?

Tina Trent said...

Remember when Susan Faludi and her glossy hair wrote that book about how she was the real victim of 9/11 because the terrorist attacks purportedly gave people permission to reject feminism because something something about Islam being associated with western feminists?

She even claimed to have anticipated the attack. In a dream. She's such a narcissistic imbecile, she makes Naomi Wolf's glossy hair seem smart.

Kevin said...

"Next Tuesday, vote with your sartorial conscience."

Shorter NYT: Hell no, we're not having a policy discussion on these pages!

Narr said...

I was remarking just the other day on Trump's uniform--the solid suit, white shirt, and big tie. It has to be a cultivated choice, IMO. I'm not an expert, but it looks like his idea of informal is simply not wearing the tie.

He's an odd duck, Trump-- no hobbies, no pets, no interest in rich-guy pastimes like flying airplanes or captaining a yacht.

Narr
I voted for him an hour ago

JZ said...

Come on, Ann! Are you trolling me? I read this blog post despite knowing better. Susan Faludi. Seriously?

bagoh20 said...

I just figured out why the media wants Joe to win so bad. They plan on going on vacation for four years.

traditionalguy said...

Males with courage to defend the weak can be criticized as caring and loving people. Greater love has no man, etc.. Trump has that Courageous heart like John Wayne played in his movies. And that is actual masculinity. When necessary it can revert to “no Lives Matter” until our enemies have surrendered.

c365 said...

Boy, that's terrible. Trump has nothing to do with masculinity, love him or hate him.

If anything, his personality is a New York salesman. But that's an insult to all the great sales marketing people out there who understand their customer and offer value to them. Trump might indeed offer something of value, but his approach is like a salesman in a monopoly industry from the 50s.

tcrosse said...

But the posing I'm picturing has the ends flapping around in the wind. I don't think that is functional

It didn’t work for Isadora Duncan.

MacMacConnell said...

WWII US Army Air Corpse A-2 flight jackets don't have insulation and the collar is leather. The original really good one were horse hide. They don't even have hand warming pockets.

A-1 US Navy flight jackets have the same collar, but with an mouton collar the can be snapped on. The jacket has a bi-swing back. I guess for swimming in it.

FYI, what most call bomber jacket are flight jackets. Bomber jacket are huge cumbersome shearling coats.

Isadora Duncan silk scarf caused her death while riding in an open wheeled auto . I imagine most WWII pilots who died while wearing silk scarf were shot down.

Trump wears Italian Brioni suits. Full retail $6,000 to $17,000 depending on of the rack or made to measure. Trump is big, he wears his suits to be comfortable.



Lloyd W. Robertson said...

I'm still amazed at how they throw a lot of shit around, hoping some of it sticks to Trump. If he was a chiseler in business, that means he's the kind of person who ... you name it. Silk-suited flyboy, only he doesn't wear silk suits, he was always convinced his brother's career as a pilot was a waste of time, and he may have made comments that John McCain was a sucker for serving in the military, and a loser for being taken prisoner in Vietnam. My son said something recently about how maybe Trump is hitting the cocaine, as if to balance Biden's obvious dementia. I didn't argue but: Trump says he has never drunk alcohol, and he probably regarded his brother the drunk as a loser. He seems sufficiently high on life--his life--that I don't think he would need cocaine. And of course there is no proof of anything like that.

The haters can't get to a realistic assessment of Trump. They are obsessed with a straw person of their nightmares. This all shows that Trump must threaten their sense of being privileged somehow.

Narayanan said...

In Atlas Shrugged Dagny (fully clothed) has an "Orgasm" after a long interval when Rearden (fully clothed) tells her don't expect to win when negotiating with me.

I see Trump as sort of combination Rearden / Wynand 'alt' - sans acquaintance with Francisco or Roark

Skeptical Voter said...

In 2016 Faludi actually said "Vote your sartorial conscience"! Whoo hah, that's some stuipid line. I was suppposed to vote for somebody who looked like 60 pounds of spuds in a 40 pound bag burlap pantsuit whose handlers had to toss her in the back of a van?

As Slow Joe would say, "Come on man---or maybe Susan you are a lying dog faced pony soldier".

The Vault Dweller said...

This is bad writing. It sounds like someone who has fairly ordinary thoughts trying to pretend they are sophisticated. I bet the author has an inferiority complex and is desperate to feel that other people feel she is smart.

Howard said...

Trump's not even a flyboy or a wizzo. All feminists are fake feminists, real feminists are misogynists.

Sebastian said...

"no interest in rich-guy pastimes"

Hmm. Marrying three pretty hot women doesn't count?

But Trump is his own pastime: he loves performing Trump.

Gk1 said...

"Our politics today divided between women and beta-males on the democrat side versus alpha-males on the republican? I kinda think that's why black males are switching sides.'"

Original Mike this is so spot on. I see it in the hispanic tradesmen in the field I work with. Besides being busier the last 3 years than they have ever been, until covid, they have no respect for a doddering old white man and his concubine.

It's a cultural thing. They know when their grandparents have lost a step and know when to take the keys away from the trailer. Either they will vote for trump or just stay home but they aren't voting for Biden.

Todd said...

Richard Aubrey said...

Silk scarves came from WW I. Cockpits were open-and drafty--and surviving meant keeping your head on a swivel. Silk kept you warm and didn't chafe when worn inside whatever jacket(s) sweaters you had.
Is that mansplaiining?

10/29/20, 12:59 PM


Why yes, yes it is. Good of you to have noticed in the end but too little too late. Off to re-education camp for you!

Drago said...

The Vault Dweller: "This is bad writing. It sounds like someone who has fairly ordinary thoughts trying to pretend they are sophisticated."

With almost Tom Wolfe-ian precision, you have perfectly captured LLR-lefty Chuck's abject adoration of Faludi and indeed, every lesser light of the left.

Sadly cultish.

pacwest said...

I've seen Trump at some pretty cold outdoor venues wearing his suit. Underalls underneath? Nevermind. I just grossed myself out.

SGT Ted said...

I thought we weren't supposed to shame people based on gender stereotypes anymore.

Roughcoat said...

Trump strikes me as one of those rare individuals who is, as the saying goes, "comfortable in his own skin." Comfortable with who he is. Reagan was like that, supremely so. John Wayne's friends said the same about him.

It is a quality I admire in a man.

Spiros said...

Doesn't Trump wear makeup?

Matt said...

Why are people w/o dicks allowed to comment on masculinity?

I don't have a uterus so I can't talk about abortion, for instance. So this authoress needs to f off.

Iman said...

Isn't Faludi the one who tried to make Gore look masculine with clothes that were "earth tones?"

It didn't work that time either.


I think that was Naomi Wolf, not Faludi. And it didn’t work, as it couldn’t camouflage the lisping...

tim in vermont said...

"nd he may have made comments that John McCain was a sucker for serving in the military”

The “sucker” comment came out in Woodward’s book. It had to do with the US being suckers for paying for the defense of South Korea, a rich nation. They changed that to the “military” being suckers, and then changed the ‘military’ to say he meant ordinary soldiers. Really he was criticizing Congress. The military doesn’t make these kinds of decisions, as MacArthur found out.

Rick said...

Glenn Greenwald leaves the publican he started because the others there at Intercept are censoring him from reporting anything negative about Joe Biden.

"The current iteration of The Intercept is ...always anchored in ultimate support for the Democratic Party), a deep fear of offending hegemonic cultural liberalism and center-left Twitter luminaries, and an overarching need to secure the approval and admiration of the very mainstream media outlets we created The Intercept to oppose, critique and subvert. "


The best things about Greenwald's departure are:

(1) It shows the hive-mind refuses to co-exist even with independent left wingers. All must submit.

(1) Everyone enforcing the hive-mind will pay the price because he's the only known contributor.

Good times.

SGT Ted said...

"...and if you are a feminist, you put feminism first, ahead of your desire to help one political candidate or another."

That's never been the case with modern feminism from the 1970s on. It has been a creature of the political left since then. The mask came off over Bill Clintons blow jobs.

tim in vermont said...

Faludi is basically, once again, confirming that rhhardin is right about women.

Iman said...

My son said something recently about how maybe Trump is hitting the cocaine, as if to balance Biden's obvious dementia.

Unclear on the concept, Lloyd, but you tell your son if he brings that up again, you’re gonna rub his nose in it!

Spiros said...

Nothing new here. Elvis wore lame suits, eye make up and dyed his hair. Little Richard had elaborate hair styles and was strikingly narcissistic. And what about Liberace or Billy Fury? These guys were "sissies" and nothing like the "authentic, middle-class" men that bought their records. So what?

What about the hyper masculinity of skin-head culture and punk music? Was that a backlash against the emasculation of men? Did the punks really hate the gays and liberated women?

Rusty said...

Not looking upthread, but did Howard write this? Reads like some squishy shit that he'd contribute.

Temujin said...

Here's the thing about Trump. I watched a bit of his speech this afternoon- outside in Tampa, FL. It's 85° down here today. He stood in the bright sun and heat as Melania spoke for about 20 minutes, or maybe 15. It must have seemed long to Trump as he was in the heat. By the way, Melania never broke a sweat. Then Trump began. He spoke for at least an hour, in his blue suit, white shirt, tie, and a Maga hat- which was his only relief from the direct heat. He dresses as an old school business person is taught to dress for work. Suit & tie everyday. No matter what. He never removed his coat or tie. Everyone around him was in shorts and t-shirts. It's hot! But Trump just did his thing. His suit looked frumpy after awhile. I'll bet he has a handful of suits that he wears to each of these events- and he's doing a lot of events. These suits are getting wear.

I suspect the last thing on his mind is how his suit looks after an hour in the heat of Tampa, or the cold rain of East Lansing.

Biden also came out today. He spoke in Miami, which was probably even a bit warmer. Biden took off his tie and jacket to speak. And he seemed in full access of his bizarre lies about Trump taking away everyone's health care, and how the world will end from covid unless he gets into office.

Original Mike said...

"Black males are switching sides because of Kamala Harris."

That's believable.

Original Mike said...

"@Original, alpha males, and the women who love us."

That works for me!

tim in vermont said...

The hallmarks of contemporary ornamental masculinity — being valued as the object of the gaze, playing the perpetual child, pedestal-perching and mirror-gazing — are the very ones that women have, for half a century, struggled to dismantle as belittling, misogynist characterizations of femininity.

I swear this part was inspired by Your So Vain, because after the hat and apricot scarf he has “one eye on the mirror as you watch yourself go by.”

Fiction is a powerful force in the perception of reality, and that song has been pounding itself into our brains for almost 50 years now. Until this day, and I have read books about WWII, novels set in it, seen movies on it and about it, an I never knew that fighter pilots were considered less than manly. I think every single person who served in theater received a Bronze Star, even if they drove a supply truck or worked in the canteen. They all earned it too.

Joe Smith said...

@Chuck

"Pant legs for an elephant."

To mask his enormous schlong and coconut-sized brass balls.

Either way, much better than O's mom-jeans...

Paul said...

And Dollar Bill Clinton getting blow jobs in the WH by the intern(s)? Any shame there?

n.n said...

We need more men and women to embrace their masculine and feminine gender, respectively. Neither the male nor female sex are a deficit. Men and women are equal in rights and complementary in Nature.

Birkel said...

No, DanTheMan.
Biden will not win.
Persistence can be a virtue.
But foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of your mind.

n.n said...

At worst, Trump's wife doesn't mind his fashion sense. At best, she likes it, and his presentation. I wonder if he kneeled when he proposed marriage. Men and women are equal in rights and complementary in Nature and nature.

virgil xenophon said...

"...She's such a narcissistic imbecile, she makes Naomi Wolf's glossy hair seem smart." Tina Trent@2:06 is a thread winnah!

Unknown said...

When I want to know how to be Manly

I don't ask go to centuries of Heroic Literature

I dial up Faludi!

n.n said...

I think the expression that best characterizes this caliber of reporting, is that they are "just phoning it in" NOW. Collateral damage, or woke and drowsy?

Leora said...

I always thought WWI fighter pilots were the epitome of masculinity. That's what I learned from the movies.

Leora said...

I always thought WWI fighter pilots were the epitome of masculinity. That's the way it was in the movies.

AllenS said...

Since the weather has really cooled down, I'm a man who puts on a pair of coveralls and steel toe boots when I leave the house. I doubt if Susan Faludi would like the look, and that's a good thing as far as I'm concerned.

Fernandinande said...

After reading two sentences I (correctly) guessed that was written by a woman.

Lurker21 said...


This sounds very anachronistic. Trump is a larger than life character and likes to be the alpha dog, but he doesn't go in for the traditionally trappings of masculinity. He's not playing touch football or yachting like the Kennedys, or riding horses and chopping wood like Reagan, or trying desperately to prove he's a tough guy like the Bushes. Yes, he's not in the style of WWII masculinity. Few men today are, but he doesn't pretend to be.

I don't see the mirror-gazing either. Trump's thing is he's always in motion, always performing. I doubt he has the time or takes the time to stare at himself in the mirror. He doesn't need to. He gets gratification not at looking at himself but from other people looking at him. That's similar for other who are successful at business, showbiz, and politics.

Anonymous said...

"Flyboy" is explained elsewhere in the column. It's a WWII epithet for aviators who posed in silk scarves, Faludi explains, and were disparaged as not showing true manliness.

As the son of a World War II flyboy, I take exception to this casual defamation. It may have been a disparaging term, but only from a place of seething envy. Squids and ground-pounders resented the fact that my dad and his comrades got to come back to base in England after each combat mission, eat a hot meal, have a pint or five at the pub with plenty of admiring female companionship, and sleep in a warm bed each night.

But that doesn't mean they lacked manliness, not by a mile. They risked their necks daily and had astronomically high casualties, especially early in the war. Dad flew his single-engine fighter on missions across the North Sea in winter some twenty or thirty times, knowing that if he were shot down or simply had an engine failure, he would be dead within fifteen minutes of hitting the water. They were told that no rescue would even be attempted in the event of a ditching. He was hit by gunfire twice, and himself shot down and killed 3 Nazis. He was the bravest and most manly of men, and I wish he were still alive to spit in this horrid woman's eye for her slander.

Every miserably cold, wet grunt that ever spit out this word while my old man flew over his muddy foxhole would have traded places with him at the snap of a finger, were it possible, and not thought himself lacking in the smallest particle of manliness for having done so.

glam1931 said...

Has it not occurred to anyone that you might not want to wear a tightly tailored wool suit over a thick Kevlar vest?

Narayanan said...

Unknown said...
I attended a Biden town hall a few months ago and sat on the aisle.
...
He is much smaller and thinner in person than one would expect. Short, too.

Definitely had plastic surgery around the eyes
-------------==============
looks slanty eyed to me - "Chinese cosmetic surgeon" - from Manchuria??!!

Balfegor said...

Re: Unknown:

Biden is a bit of a fop himself, or used to be. I think you're right that his suits are custom (made to measure if not bespoke), but he also goes in for braces, contrast collars and cuffs on his shirts, cufflinks, pocket squares, and other fussy sartorial details.

walter said...

Now do push up contest Boldfinger.

Narayanan said...

AlbertAnonymous said...
New York Fucking Times...

Say no more.

Why do you keep subjecting yourself to this garbage?
-------------===============

Visualizing Professora as Mike Rowe :
He is known for his work on
the series Dirty Jobs (Discovery Channel)
and the series Somebody's Gotta Do It (originally developed for CNN.)

+ I used to hear Sanitation Engineering is well paying?!

Iman said...

Biden also came out today. He spoke in Miami, which was probably even a bit warmer. Biden took off his tie and jacket to speak.

As I’d mentioned up thread, with his shirtsleeves, aviator sunglasses and angry oldmenz ranting, he looked like the Reverend Jim Jones pleading with his hesitant followers/children to just drink the fucking kool-aid already.

Michael K said...

Wearing the scarves had nothing to do with current fashion, or for that matter with trying to keep warm. It was all about preventing onesself from swallowing copious amounts of castor oil that was spraying, constantly and copiously, back into his face.

Roughcoat, I didn't realize that rotary engines used castor oil as lubricant until reading Andrew Wareham's series on the WWI RFC. Love his books.

FullMoon said...

Iman said...

Biden also came out today. He spoke in Miami, which was probably even a bit warmer. Biden took off his tie and jacket to speak.

As I’d mentioned up thread, with his shirtsleeves, aviator sunglasses and angry oldmenz ranting, he looked like the Reverend Jim Jones pleading with his hesitant followers/children to just drink the fucking kool-aid already.

Watched someof it FOLKS!blah blah FOLKS! same ol' same ol'FOLKS!!

Was kinda weird. Read the prompter word for word but was not smooth at all.

Megaera said...

Anyone remember O's first inaugural ball? The one where he showed up in a tux, but with white tei and an actual full-dress white shirt and white vest? It may have made Susan Faludi wet herself, but I thought it made him and his staff look like fashion idiots. Never seen it mentioned anywhere, so the adulation factor must have been pretty low.

Jon Ericson said...

Feminism Today (I can tell by the hair dye.)

Megaera said...

Sorry. Make that "tie", not "tei". Headdesk.

rhhardin said...

It's a stereotypically bubble-headed female analysis of Trump, aimed at women.

Guys notice the zingers, not the suits. Smart, quick-witted, funny, effective.

rhhardin said...

I just bought a wool scarf, as it happens. There's a bike-riders' gap between neck and overcoat that leads to a chest wind.

rhhardin said...

I used clip-on sunglasses (polarized) when I aviated.

MacMacConnell said...

Skookum John

I can relate. My father flew a P-38 in the Pacific, jets in Korea and very early in Nam. Anyone who ever met WWII pilots know what noble masculinity is.

My father was shot down over Manila, spent 6 months with the guerrillas hit and running from the Japanese till he was picked up. He was ordered to go home, but unlike John Kerry he refused. I grew up never knowing this till 1990 when I met his crew chief at a squadron reunion. The man had tears in his eyes as he told me, he thought my dad was a god.

I was blessed to have know WWII pilots growing up on Air Force bases, many with fingers burnt off or face scared.

Father teach you to be a man, mothers teach you to be a human being. My parents taught me that.

MacMacConnell said...

Skookum John

I can relate. My father flew a P-38 in the Pacific, jets in Korea and very early in Nam. Anyone who ever met WWII pilots know what noble masculinity is.

My father was shot down over Manila, spent 6 months with the guerrillas hit and running from the Japanese till he was picked up. He was ordered to go home, but unlike John Kerry he refused. I grew up never knowing this till 1990 when I met his crew chief at a squadron reunion. The man had tears in his eyes as he told me, he thought my dad was a god.

I was blessed to have know WWII pilots growing up on Air Force bases, many with fingers burnt off or face scared.

Father teach you to be a man, mothers teach you to be a human being. My parents taught me that.

Mike Petrik said...

All these no-nothings criticizing Trump for wearing suits too large are betraying their ignorance. One reason we are living in an age hostile to suit-wearing is that women and men who want to be women have succeeded in getting guys to dress like women, with tailored clothing fitted for discomfort to the point that trousers are even fitted at the hips! A gentleman has his suits tailored for comfort.



Narayanan said...

Lloyd W. Robertson said...
I'm still amazed at how they throw a lot of shit around, hoping some of it sticks to Trump. If he was a chiseler in business, that means he's the kind of person who ... you name it.
... he may have made comments that John McCain was a sucker for serving in the military,

-----------==============
Trump more likely to have thought : the military was a sucker for accepting John McCain into service / keeping him on.

BUMBLE BEE said...

Faludi knows a "real man" how? Daddy ain't one any more?

Michelle Dulak Thomson said...

Michael K., the "earth tones" Gore advisor was Naomi Wolf. Though the mix-up is understandable.

DanTheMan said...

>>No, DanTheMan.
>>Biden will not win.
>>Persistence can be a virtue.
>>But foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of your mind.

Emerson insults aside, I hope you are correct, but stand by my prediction.
I believe if only real votes were counted, Trump would win.
But the D Fraud machine took the day off last time, and they won't be making that mistake this time.
We are told that "election day" will drag on for at least a month, that Biden should never concede no matter what, and that the rules are being changed all over the country to make sure "late" ballots can be counted. They also tell us they will use the military to evict Trump from the White House, as if this is just something that happens from time to time.

The D's are telling us they are going to steal the election, by any means necessary.
I believe them.
And CNN, NBC, CBS, ABC, the WaPo and the NYT will break their necks looking the other way. Twitter will shut down Trump's account the minute Biden declares himself the winner, and Facebook will block any mention of a contrary point of view.

ccscientist said...

I'm tired of feminist women trying to analyze manhood. Faludi doesn't have a clue. What Trump supporters like about Trump is 1) he fights back against lies 2) he gets stuff done. Both of those are very masculine traits. He also bangs some very hot women.

madAsHell said...

Hi XXXX. This is Carroll contacting you on behalf of the Texas Black Democrats PAC.

Our efforts have resulted in turning out more than 200,000 inactive Black democratic voters that did not vote in 2016, and we have more than 600,000 that have not voted as of today. We are on the verge of making history by turning Texas Blue and helping Biden secure victory and we cannot do it without your help. We need help and support to reach and stimulate participation by the inactive Black voters.


Fascinating. I haven't lived in Texas since 1987.

In 1982, I moved into an apartment just off Park Lane by White Rock Creek. I happened to share a surname with the previous apartment tenant with a sketchy credit history......and here we are!!

boatbuilder said...

Skookum John: Well said.

God Bless your dad. (And the bitter grunts!)

Fernandinande said...

Trump's baggy clothes show that "he isn't detail-oriented."

Only if Trump was born under a "water sign"; otherwise it means he's excitable and impulsive.

Hanoi Paris Hilton said...

Many aircraft engines in WW1 were not-so-different from automotive engines of the day, and used ordinary petroleum-based oils as their crankcase lubricant. However by virtue of extreme mechanical simplicity, light weight, and phenomenal cooling efficiency, some of the smaller high performance fighter planes like the Sopwith Camel and the Red Baron's Fokker triplane had air-cooled rotary engines, in which the propeller was bolted to the crankcase + cylinder assembly, which actually rotated with the propeller. They were two cycle engines (unlike similar-appearing radial engines still widely in aviation service), and were lubricated by a oil-mix fuel (like chainsaws and most boat outboards even today); and apparently castor oil was preferred. It was only partially burned and was a component of the engine exhaust... The alternate story to the silk scarves was that blackberry wine was the most effective anti-diarrheal and the pilots themselves were, accordingly, rather well lubricated.

Hanoi Paris Hilton said...

Many aircraft engines in WW1 were not-so-different from automotive engines of the day, and used ordinary petroleum-based oils as their crankcase lubricant. However by virtue of extreme mechanical simplicity, light weight, and phenomenal cooling efficiency, some of the smaller high performance fighter planes like the Sopwith Camel and the Red Baron's Fokker triplane had air-cooled rotary engines, in which the propeller was bolted to the crankcase + cylinder assembly, which actually rotated with the propeller. They were two cycle engines (unlike similar-appearing radial engines still widely in aviation service), and were lubricated by a oil-mix fuel (like chainsaws and most boat outboards even today); and apparently castor oil was preferred. It was only partially burned and was a component of the engine exhaust... The alternate story to the silk scarves was that blackberry wine was the most effective anti-diarrheal and the pilots themselves were, accordingly, rather well lubricated.

Skeptical Voter said...

Oh nonsense. A doofus like Susan Faludi wants "masculinity" shaped to her specifications. It comes in all flavors and types buttercup. Trump is brash; Trump is loud, and Trump is frequently obnoxious. Faludi is whiney--and equally obnoxious. Get over it Ms. Faludi.

Richard Aubrey said...

RAF Bomber Command lost about 45% of their aircrew. One pilot said his crew had enough experience that nobody puked in fear before taking off. He thought the fear/puke smell later on came from a gland just above the hairline in back.
Imagine coming from behind the hangar, wiping the mouth and emitting good cheer in Edwardian accents.
The EighthAir Force--bombers--required 25 missions before you rotated home. Casualty rate averaged 3% per mission. That meant you had a 25% chance of surviving.
My father was in the Infantry, was in combat for 195 days and his company had a smaller KIA rate than that.

BudBrown said...

I like this stupid post. Its had me perusing the past for an hour. Cassius Clay and Broadway Joe came to mind. Curious how she came up with fly boy. Any way, somebody should mention the Right Stuff scene where the new test pilot Quaid is exclaiming he's so good they'll have his photo on the wall behind the bar in no time. Hot dog comes to mind.

Iman said...

I’ll never forget the look on the faces of my 7 and 9 year old (at the time) sons when our neighbor - a WWII flier - explained why they called it a “poop suit”.

ken in tx said...

Trivia: wizzo--weapons systems officer, AKA GIB, Guy In Back. In 2 seater fighters.

Caster oil as engine oil is the basis for the modern brand name engine oil Castrol, which is not actually caster oil.

C R Krieger said...

As a one time flyboy, I resent the deprecation. I guess it is this year's Deplorables and Irredeemables and President Obama’s Bitter Clingers.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Faludi was the same hack who advised Al Gore to wear earth tones in 2000 so he would come across as more manly than GW. Thatworked out well for him. The feminist author of "Backlash" is, of course, just the person to dish out expert advice about masculinity.

After that, you'd think she'd hesitate to offer sartorial opinions regarding presidential candidates.

5M - Eckstine said...

Is a Hip Hop artist who endorses Biden really hip? Only if AOC approved. The Dems will be out in force to neuter black music culture from being too masculine.

Birkel said...

DanTheMan,
I will see you next Wednesday.
And you will happily admit I was correct.

Kane said...


You are projecting. I did not read that article as belittling Trump's femininity. (Though I take that you agree with Faludi that Trump has that stereotypical feminine quality) She is belittling those qualities themselves, which she implies were imputed to women unfairly in the past, whether it is a woman or a man who actually exibit today.

Ann Althouse said...

" She is belittling those qualities themselves, which she implies were imputed to women unfairly in the past, whether it is a woman or a man who actually exibit today."

I realize this and talk about it in more detail in the podcast. I could write some additional paragraphs to explain why the argument you suggest doesn't work on me. It's why she thinks she's getting away with it.

Ann Althouse said...

Turn the tables on the question.

Take something about traditional masculinity, say, the practice of keeping silent about your suffering and just getting things done that need to be done.

Let's say you insulted a woman for having that quality that traditional men have but that more advanced men these days have struggled to cast off, because they've advanced and are now open about noticing how they feel and talking about it. To be parallel, when you insult the woman, you specifically say it's how men used to be and that they — at least the best among them — have moved beyond that behavior.

Would that be sexist against men? Yes!!

Ann Althouse said...

If you want more along that line, the newest podcast starts onto that topic at 45:05.

DEEBEE said...

Fascinating, that a putatively sophisticated and interesting women cannot understand why the deplorsbles accept the effeminate Trump. Suzy — BECAUSE HE TRIES REAL HARD TO KEEP HIS WORD, mostly. An unheard of thing from any politician.

hstad said...

Susan Faludi is just another NY Times 'hack writer' who believes she's so much smarter than Trump. Yet, Mr. Trump is a Billionaire President and Faludi is sitting at her computer throwing a tantrum.