"[Consumerism] might work with your toothpaste, but the most important things in life can’t be replaced on a whim. They require the discipline necessary to build something strong and valuable and special, the ability to stick with something through thick and thin. The shopping around mentality is devastating to true manhood."
It's illustrative for the author to share the personal experiences and thought process that led him to this conclusion. It's equally interesting to see other people reaching the same conclusion after approaching the problem from a completely different perspective.
It looks like there's another level of analysis left to be done here. If "making" is a marker of true manliness but not specific to men, then what is it that we're really saying? Making is adulthood? Making is being in touch with oneself? Making is not buying into corporate consumerism?
I'm still digging for the simple truth at the heart of both this post and the ensuing discussion.