Is There Anything Good About Men? (2007)

This article is full of speculation and really casts an uncritical eye towards the thinly spread facts within.

"The huge difference in reproductive success very likely contributed to some personality differences, because different traits pointed the way to success. Women did best by minimizing risks, whereas the successful men were the ones who took chances. Ambition and competitive striving probably mattered more to male success (measured in offspring) than female. Creativity was probably more necessary, to help the individual man stand out in some way." - pure speculation from Baumeister here and in a lot of this talk

The implication of this talk is really clear: that feminists should shut up about the inequalities between men and women, because men have it bad/worse, too. The thing is, a lot of contemporary feminist thought discusses precisely those issues, and sees the destruction of all baggage surrounding gender as the goal.

However, it seems like a lot of contemporary thinkers in the same vein as Baumeister here have missed that boat, and are still stuck with the view that feminism is locked in the pre-simone de beauvoir days where women had to fight to win the vote and own property. Contemporary feminists generally see the fight for lawful (de jure) equality as a more minor concern when compared with social equality. Baumeister's argument that wealth and success was created in the "men's sphere" and women were left behind, is actually more an affirmation of the contemporary feminist struggle against social inequality than anything else.

Contemporary feminist thought discusses many of the topics in Baumeister's talk. The rate of rural suicide amongst men is a problem in rural Australia, and is often bought about by same-sex attraction, loneliness, and an inability or unwillingness to seek help due to social isolation. Contemporary feminism attempts to break down the stigma related to men seeking out help in this way, of the feeling that crying is for women, of the idea that you have to be with a woman to be a success.