Hacker News Reader

Comment by DiabloD3 | Hacker News Reader

Of all the years I have been part of the HN community, I think that this is the first time something has hit the front page that truly made me go "wtf am I reading?"

View on HN

There has been an uptick in neo-reactionary sentiment all through Silicon Valley. The title is a bit... strong, but this isn't a fringe thing. For example, a talk at Startup School is explicitly mentioned.

The author calls it "a startup school", but if you read the Times article it's actually YC.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/29/us/silicon-valley-roused-b...

"Startup School" is a regular event put on by YC http://startupschool.org/

In my opinion, the article is quick in lumping all kinds of groups together. Mens Rights Activists are right next to some weird Monarchy believers. As someone who follows the ideas of the former group more closely, I do not see them (except for a few fringe ones) jumping to any kind of conclusions a'la 'Monarchy!!'

I do think that what passes 'the so-called left' is in a situation where a couple of people are becoming very fearful. Because everything regarding feminism has been WAY overdone. And now actually borders on autocratic behavior.

Feminism and its very successful movement shows more and more how it is rotten to its very core. It has become an ideology that:

- dehumanizes men

- abuses and twists taboos for political gain of a few

- created a new power hierarchy that is aptly described by the term 'oppression olympics'

And I think the end of feminism is a major shift that's going to happen very soon.

If you are not completely closed to reasonable arguments, I would recommend checking websites such as 'avoiceformen.com'. Again in my opinion, they have very reasonable positions on a core, if not the core issue of society - the relation between the male and female gender.

In some sense, I believe that people who go crazy nut rightwing might overcompensate for an ideology that turns out to be as destructive as their ideas - feminism.

edit: formatting

This is a good case for why MRAs are lumped in there. You're both myopic about a social dichotomy (men vs women or gifted rulers vs plebs), lack empathy for the other side of the dichotomy, and go through logical gymnastics to reach a conclusion that a power struggle must occur to benefit your side of the dichotomy. The internet is a great venue for this sort of dynamic.

I would add that the MRAs are very much of a piece with the protofascist right in a number of ways, including hearkening back to a mythical better time, wanting to "restore" that better time, a fondness for dominance and obedience, and an extraordinary ability to blame all their problems on "those people". The main difference seems to be that the MRAs want to blame women and feminists, whereas the protofacists tend to blame brown people and the left. In both cases, though, it seems to me to be about pushing for their dominance.

For those interested in the roots of MRA craziness, there's a great book called, "Why Does He Do That?" It's written by a guy who has run a program for abusive men for 15 years and is a great examination of the attitudes and behaviors that underlie abusive behavior. He doesn't mention the Internet in it at all, but over and over I was struck by the parallels between that and various aspects of Internet culture, including the MRAs and the anonymous trolls.

Myopic about a social dichotomy? How do I lack empathy for the other side? Why do you even note 'gifted rulers vs. plebs' - I singled out the MRM, what the heck do they have to do with that?

No power struggle?! Feminism is arguably the most successful (bullshit) religion in the west.

http://wehuntedthemammoth.com/2013/10/18/paul-elam-of-a-voic...

Regardless of your thoughts on feminism, describing the content on avoiceformen as being 'very reasonable' is absurd.

... so? What's so unreasonable about AVFM? Paul Elam's mocking Jezebel and their gang, and rightly so.

They even reposted the same text on AVFM:

http://www.avoiceformen.com/mens-rights/domestic-violence-in...

Thank you for proving my point, downvoter :D

Reply on news.ycombinator.com