Stupid shit you see on Facebook

I am not talking about testosterone leading to higher muscle mass making it easier for males to kill, I mean testosterone contributing to aggressive tendencies. Children are doing it, but only male children who have passed puberty and have testosterone.

See back to what you quoted: “‘Why these men’ is an interesting question. ‘Why is it mostly men’ isn’t interesting…” Testosterone seems to be a mostly necessary condition, but obviously not a sufficient one.

Yay! I’m not alone in my opinion. I put him as a write-in. Didn’t care for either big candidate or the third party, and my vote meant nothing where I was registered.

You’re right. We don’t have the best possible message for girls yet. I’d argue that the perfection message isn’t restricted to them either but it is certainly present and a problem. I’d still contend that girls are being told that being a girl is ultimately a positive thing while boys are being told that being a boy is a negative things.

I’m all for changing masculinity but it needs to be a positive change that recognizes and uses the fact that biology and our current culture both lead males to be more aggressive and more decisive in action. I see a ton of value in mentoring through mixed cooperative and competitive activities (sports of course but also Scouting type organizations and more academic things like chess, robotics and the like - basically teams). But no matter how you change your definition of masculinity I don’t expect to find a culture that doesn’t have more violence perpetrated by males.

Unless we have data that says these men have elevated levels of testosterone to every other man on the planet, than this seems highly unlikely as an explanation. It’ just a throw away comment really to say oh, well, you know, men.

I honestly don’t know why you think that girls are being told that being a girl is ultimately a positive thing. What are you basing that on? I don’t care how many commercials show-up on TV, there are fair amount of mothers out there that tell their girls that this is womanhood and it kind of sucks. Like you’re not basing this one what’s shown in media right but actual reality?

Well like a Sisyphus (or a crazy person) I posted the same pic again with an explanation that I got banned for it…and got a three-day ban this time. Fool me once shame on you, won’t get fooled again, I fought the law and the law won, etc.

Yeah, there’s at least a very strong sociological component. I personally wonder if it’s a kind of blowback from men being “in control” with a heightened sense of self importance over all these years. When that false sense of power runs up against systemic inequality, an inability to perceive reliable ways to improve one’s station in life and personal struggles, that might create a catalyst where at-risk personalities may succumb to violence.

You originally stated that it didn’t seem that it was video games or violent media that was causing the rise in school shootings because girls were exposed to that also. The point Tim (and others) were making wasn’t that American males have different testosterone than other males but that there is a difference between males and females. Thus even if they are exposed to the same media culture they might have different responses.

I am male. I have male children who are in college now. I am also a teacher and coach in high school so I interact with many kids both formally and informally (including many overheard conversations). I know nothing about any secret knowledge passed on from mothers, sisters, or girl friends. I’m basing my observations on the media I hear them talking about, how they respond to things in high school, and how they approach life after high school.

As far as I can tell everyone is told that this is ______ and it kind of sucks. It is more or less true because you can point to something that sucks in everyone’s life. I can certainly get behind the idea that being female sucks at times. But, at least where I teach, being female does not seem to suck overall. They are out and out doing better than the guys and getting better rewards (college entrance and scholarship money) when they do as well. Socially they seem to be no worse off then the guys. Actually this has changed for the better in the last 10 years or so with a shift to more groups hanging out and less talk of couples. One of the things I’ve find the most interesting is that it is the girls who express the feeling that BF stuff is silly at their age. Unlike what my wife reports from her high school time 30 years ago the current girls don’t feel stigmatized by being into STEM, computers, or nerd culture.

It is fairly likely that this is at the cost of an inward struggle to be perfect (a struggle also seen in immigrant and minority male students) but they seem to have received the message that they have power over their own lives in a way the guys have not. Instead the guys are more likely to stop trying if they fall behind or settle for a mediocre outcome. In the absence of other causes I tend to assume that it must be because the message that society is sending girls is that they can succeed on their own efforts while the message that society is sending guys is that they might never be able to succeed.

I did state those things, and they’re true, but… I just don’t see testosterone as the answer… although it could be part of the equation because the majority of men simply don’t do it. It can’t be the reason alone nor can access to these others things since women do it almost not at all and we have the same access.

I don’t think it’s ideal to base what messages girls and women are getting simply by comparing to guys. Just because one is getting a less than ideal message does not mean the other one is getting an ideal. Women might be encouraged to go out and succeed simply because failure is failure, no matter what sex you are. This demand to be hard and soft, powerful but compromising, verbal but not too verbal or men will think you are bitchy., athletic but not butch… it’s not ideal. It just moved the line to another impossible.

I don’t know what the stats are but the bully suicide thing seems to be occurring to both girls and boys, for example, and drug use and depression… not sure it’s really prone to one sex more than the other either.

Mass media is probably part of it. You can go from being a nobody to world famous in an afternoon.

Also they had other outlets if you go back far enough. You could go shoot Natives or rob banks in the times before things like the FBI. I’ve heard some people argue it’s modern living. If you’re a “failure” at what is seen as how everyone lives their lives (ie go to school, get a job, get married) then there aren’t many other options. You can’t head out West and make a go of it or anything like that.

I don’t know that I will be alive for it, but if this lack of ability for the unattached men to go prove their muster in a dangerous situation might be address when we start sending soon to be bodies, I mean courageous individuals to Mars.

Seriously, it’s sad that being a normal person isn’t seen as success anymore. I mean… it’s not really for women either, but if you’re making your way, with or without a degree or prestigious or lucrative job, there should stitll be a way to say hey, you’re doing okay and you’re contributing. That would apply to all sexes and genders though.

Hey, at least the next school shooter is depicted as white!

There’s no decision point here. He’s going to go to his school, and let’s face it, a number of these kids don’t intend to leave that school alive once they are done.

What…the…$#!$@#$

Ah, Utah finally delivering the 2018 update this video needed:

As if everything there isn’t decided behind the scenes by the old boy network. I’d challenge any state to match the level of corruption you find in the Rocky Mountains.

There’s no update needed for this timeless video:

Maybe we should all watch this when we get mad at that one part of the Bill of Rights that we don’t like.

Have you sent them a thank you card yet?

Today is a great day to delete your Facebook account! Also tomorrow! And the day after that!

So… should I make a Facebook account so I can delete it? I’ve never had one.