Masculine roles, in Europe and elsewhere

Reading this post by Dr. Helen stirred up a number of things I probably shouldn't be trying to deal with before coffee, but here we go anyway.

Christina Hoff Sommers and others have noted the changes in American schools and culture that -intentionally or otherwise- tend to feminize boys or at least deny them outlets for innate active/aggressive behavior. I think this confuses young men and women and correlates with the increased popularity of BDSM (pace Paglia, who notes that this has always enjoyed an upswing in times of confused gender roles) as well as the popularity of "gangsta" role models as an extension of pimp culture. In Europe, where the military is not as available to young men as a channel for aggression, one sees soccer hooliganism*, which in its extreme forms takes on a political aspect far out of the mainstream of European socialism. See, for example, Real Madrid's Ultras Sur for an example that conflates historical Falangism with neo-Nazi skinhead tropes; Celtic's Green Brigade and Hapoel Tel-Aviv's Ultras Hapoel for examples of Communist/anarchist imagery.

This ties in to posts I've made before arguing that the present American educational "system" -more correctly, the patchwork quilt of local school districts across these United States- with its default to college prep is bad for the country, since it presents young men not inclined to joining the clerisy with no clear options except for the military, which many young men are neither physically or temperamentally suited for. The result is hooliganism and other antisocial behavior. The question is, how do we pry the schools loose from the death grip of the teachers, administrators, and lawyers who have gotten us into this mess? Home-schooling isn't for everyone, and the Falangist part of my politics argues that there should be a minimum amount of socialization and cultural education going on in the schools - just not the socialist, equalitarian, esteem-based castrating crap we have now.

*For an interesting take on "the English disease", see John King's review of Hooligan Wars in The New Statesman.

Masculine roles, in Europe and elsewhere

Reading this post by Dr. Helen stirred up a number of things I probably shouldn't be trying to deal with before coffee, but here we go anyway.

Christina Hoff Sommers and others have noted the changes in American schools and culture that -intentionally or otherwise- tend to feminize boys or at least deny them outlets for innate active/aggressive behavior. I think this confuses young men and women and correlates with the increased popularity of BDSM (pace Paglia, who notes that this has always enjoyed an upswing in times of confused gender roles) as well as the popularity of "gangsta" role models as an extension of pimp culture. In Europe, where the military is not as available to young men as a channel for aggression, one sees soccer hooliganism*, which in its extreme forms takes on a political aspect far out of the mainstream of European socialism. See, for example, Real Madrid's Ultras Sur for an example that conflates historical Falangism with neo-Nazi skinhead tropes; Celtic's Green Brigade and Hapoel Tel-Aviv's Ultras Hapoel for examples of Communist/anarchist imagery.

This ties in to posts I've made before arguing that the present American educational "system" -more correctly, the patchwork quilt of local school districts across these United States- with its default to college prep is bad for the country, since it presents young men not inclined to joining the clerisy with no clear options except for the military, which many young men are neither physically or temperamentally suited for. The result is hooliganism and other antisocial behavior. The question is, how do we pry the schools loose from the death grip of the teachers, administrators, and lawyers who have gotten us into this mess? Home-schooling isn't for everyone, and the Falangist part of my politics argues that there should be a minimum amount of socialization and cultural education going on in the schools - just not the socialist, equalitarian, esteem-based castrating crap we have now.

*For an interesting take on "the English disease", see John King's review of Hooligan Wars in The New Statesman.

Shooter McGee's and elsewhere

No idea what kept me up until 0400 this morning. True, I ate dinner ~2230 last night, but I was home with bandages well before midnight. Any roads, I didn't get up until almost 1300, and have pretty much wasted the last couple of hours catching up on news, e-mail*, and other time-wasting flup. Told Carlos I'd go over to the house and start cataloging books so that we can start putting them on eBay, so I suppose I ought to get my ass in gear and do that. It'll also allow me to get laundry done, which would be a Good Thing.

Speaking of last night's dinner, I went over to Shooter McGee's, which I had a BOGO for, and laid waste to the clam strip appetizer (which was actually large enough to be an entree), the BBQ sandwich, and a bacon cheeseburger. I didn't eat the fries and didn't bother asking for a box. Food was pretty good; I especially liked that the BBQ wasn't slathered in sauce, which I need like a hole in the head. Service was excellent and I tipped accordingly.

So - time to shower, pack up the laundry along with Cowzilla, and get my ass over to Fox Way. I'll probably do a sandwich and load the dishwasher before I leave as well.


*None of it personal, sadly.

Shooter McGee's and elsewhere

No idea what kept me up until 0400 this morning. True, I ate dinner ~2230 last night, but I was home with bandages well before midnight. Any roads, I didn't get up until almost 1300, and have pretty much wasted the last couple of hours catching up on news, e-mail*, and other time-wasting flup. Told Carlos I'd go over to the house and start cataloging books so that we can start putting them on eBay, so I suppose I ought to get my ass in gear and do that. It'll also allow me to get laundry done, which would be a Good Thing.

Speaking of last night's dinner, I went over to Shooter McGee's, which I had a BOGO for, and laid waste to the clam strip appetizer (which was actually large enough to be an entree), the BBQ sandwich, and a bacon cheeseburger. I didn't eat the fries and didn't bother asking for a box. Food was pretty good; I especially liked that the BBQ wasn't slathered in sauce, which I need like a hole in the head. Service was excellent and I tipped accordingly.

So - time to shower, pack up the laundry along with Cowzilla, and get my ass over to Fox Way. I'll probably do a sandwich and load the dishwasher before I leave as well.


*None of it personal, sadly.