Misandry in the Least Likely of Places
By Carey Roberts (08/01/07)
Dial up your local Country and Western station and you may soon find your fingers tapping out the beat of Carrie Underwood's latest hit, Before He Cheats. Underwood suspects her boyfriend is probably cheating on her (in matters of infidelity, I guess "probably" is proof enough).
This how she extracts her revenge:
“I dug my key into the side
of his pretty little souped-up four-wheel drive,
Carved my name into his leather seats...
I took a Louisville slugger to both headlights,
slashed a hole in all four tires...”
Trashing your boyfriend’s car has little to do with sugar and spice and everything nice. But it’s the title -- Before He Cheats – that turns this song into a bitter gender tirade. Just imagine a male star reaching platinum for crooning, Before She Aborts.
For years women’s libbers have reviled misogynist societies that disrespect women. And they have a point. But why haven’t we given equal consideration to the other side of the coin – persons who evince contempt and distain for men – and then pretend it’s a joke?
The problem of misandry has reached the point of commanding scholarly attention. McGill University professors Paul Nathanson and Katherine Young have published two books that reveal male-bashing has become commonplace.
Their first book, Spreading Misandry: The Teaching of Contempt for Men in Popular Culture, examines books, TV shows, movies, greeting cards, commercials, and even comic strips.
Remember Steven Speilberg’s acclaimed movie, The Color Purple? When the movie didn’t win an Academy Award, critics cried “racism!” But how many people objected to, or even noticed the fact that all the male characters were depicted as stupid buffoons or evil tyrants?
Thoroughly documented and persuasively argued, Spreading Misandry sardonically concludes that “men are society’s official scapegoats and [should be] held responsible for all evil, including that done by the women they have deluded or intimidated.”
Last year Nathanson and Young released their second book, Legalizing Misandry: From Public Shame to Systematic Discrimination Against Men. Even bolder than their first treatment, they reveal how ideological feminists capitalize on contempt for men to reshape the law in the areas of employment, marriage, divorce, custody, sexual harassment, violence, and human rights.
It’s one thing to peruse a scholarly analysis of gender contempt. It’s quite another to experience it up close and personal, like a bare-knuckled fist shoved into the gut.
That happened last week. I came across an article that announced, “The Spirituality of Moms Outpaces that of Dads.” Based on research by a California-based new-age outfit called The Barna Group, the article purports to show that compared to women, men are spiritual dwarfs. [www.barna.org/FlexPage.aspx?Page=BarnaUpdateNarrow&BarnaUpdateID=270]
That’s right, a couple hundred years ago we were debating whether American Indians had souls. Now, it seems the spirituality of men is being called into question.
Over the last decade, we’ve watched as our churches have fallen captive to female bonding rituals, Aphrodite worship, and revisionist versions of the Ten Commandments that begin, “Adore me, the Mother. Know that I, the Mother, am immanent and transcendent.”
I’ve seen this with my own eyes, and worse.
And no surprise, men are leaving the church in droves. And now along comes the Barna Group that pompously informs us that “Men generally lag behind the spirituality of women.” Want proof? Because in a typical week, “mothers are more likely than fathers to attend church.”
Girls, how’s that for a plan – we’ll feminize the church, send the men packing, and then proclaim our moral superiority!
So Gents, switch off the mute button while I indulge in a few moments of unedited indignation. (Ladies, you’re welcome to come along for the ride.)
When you were young and a schoolyard bully insulted your courage and strength, did you turn tail and hide behind your teacher’s skirts? Presumably you confronted the tormenter and told him to lay off, in no uncertain terms – right?
Then why are you allowing ideological bullies who spout feminist mantras to kick you around? Why do you shrug your shoulders when a California guru who purports to “facilitate the spiritual transformation of America” does a shame and blame number on you?
So send an e-mail to director George Barna at tgorka@barna.org . Or call him at 805-658-8885. Get it off your chest. Do it today. (Ladies, you’re welcome to protest this moral hubris, as well.)
I guarantee you’ll recapture some of that warrior spirit. And before long we’ll turn around this torrent of misandry.
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