One could argue that it is the abundance of guns thats the issue. Why not consider repealing the 2nd Amendment? Do something like what Australia did. 2nd Amendment seems to be too masculine anyway.
> It’s no longer enough to “be a man” — we no longer even know what that means.
"Toxic masculinity" is a phrase that seems to be thrown around a bit (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxic_masculinity). And it seems to be mostly applied to western (white) men. I would argue that western white males are more 'broken' compared to other males.
> Too many boys are trapped in the same suffocating, outdated model of masculinity, where manhood is measured in strength, where there is no way to be vulnerable without being emasculated, where manliness is about having power over others.
Possibly. As the author says, the lack of focus on men / boys hasn't given them a fresh way of channeling their masculinity in the 21st century.
> I would like men to use feminism as an inspiration, in the same way that feminists used the civil rights movement as theirs.
Not sure how he means it.
(Western) men are having less sex, watching more porn. The testosterone levels have plummeted. Special programs are being held for females, LGBT, etc but not for men due to unquantifiable broad points about "history of patriarchy" and "white male privilege". More broadly, the Y chromosome is kinda fizzling out (at least according to some studies, I've seen other studies that claim thats not the case). Western men are facing shortening life expectancies, high suicide rates, depression, etc. There is a complete lack of social fabric. Nothing unites them anymore (no military, religion, honor, purpose).
But isn't this the world that many intellectuals are looking for? Don't we want to remove western male dominance? Don't we want people to control their sexual promiscuity? Don't we all agree that patriarchy is bad so we have to destroy it? And that white men have had a historical advantage that should be taken away?
I was always under the impression that the thing that makes western society great is that everyone is supposed to be equal. So why tolerate excessive masculinity from western males?
Edit: case in point, this article has been insta-flagged from the front page. Shows you how much even HN cares about boys/men. And maybe that's good, western males apparently have a lot of privilege anyway.