I agree with Kevin completely, especially about that
"greatest generation" nonsense. The "greatest generation" was
mainly a bunch of 18 to 25 year olds just like any other 18
to 25 year olds; they were called on to do some things and
they acquitted themselves reasonably under the circumstances,
by and large. That's fine but it's not some
never-to-be-repeated greatness.
Mark
On 3/27/08, Kevin Burton Smith <
kvnsmith@thrillingdetective.com> wrote:
>
>
> Mario wrote:
>
> > On the fate of the American male, there have
been some serious
> > sociological studies resulting in books. The
conclusion was that there
> > has been a loss of masculinity and a loss of
self-esteem among
> > American males, that men are disoriented, they
no longer know how or
> > where to fit. Also, that they have become more
like women but that
> > women don't necessarily like that. Complicated
stuff...
>
> Those serious sociological studies are usually
trotted out by guys out
> to prove that all the other guys -- but not them,
nosireebob, no
> fucking way -- are wimps.
>
> And almost every generation finds a previous one
more to their liking.
>
> > In any case, it's considerably more complicated
than saying that men
> > have become pussywhipped (or more so than they
were before, in the
> > dark ages of the fifties). It's a societal
thing, not a merely
> > individual phenomenon. On a time scale that
makes any sense, this is
> > an alarming change, if indeed it is real. The
people who have studied
> > it say it is.
>
> The people who study stuff... right.
>
> > What would Shell Scott think of all
this?
>
> He'd say, "Merio, baby, why are you so down on
chicks? Swing with it,
> man -- you gotta dig them as they are, not as you'd
like them to be.
> Now, what time's happy hour?"
>
> > > Yes, you're right and I was exaggerating
of course, but still I
> > don't think Dick Powell was very impressive
even by the standards of
> > the time.
>
> And yet, he was probably in better physical shape
than most, having
> been for many years a professional dancer. And thank
God we were never
> subjected to a shirtless Rooster Cogburn.
>
> All this talk about vanishing masculinity (and the
ongoing derision of
> many female HB writers that pops up regularly on
this list) seems to
> indicate a lot of male insecurity out there, and
becomes a sort of
> self-fulfilling prophecy.
>
> But this notion that some golden make-believe era
(the thirties? the
> forties, maybe?) was the epitome of masculinity is
just plain silly.
> It's all bullshit derived from old movies and
revisionist history.
> This "greatest generation" stuff is a crock; a salve
for baby boomer
> guilt and insecurity.
>
> Each era gets the men (and women) it deserves, but
rarely the ones it
> needs. Men (and women) will be as "tough" as they
need to be, and
> lesser men (and women) will still turn "the cult of
masculinity" into
> a fetish, and talk endlessly about the good old days
of pseudo uber-
> males like John Wayne and Ernest Hemingway. Borrowed
flight jackets do
> not a war hero make.
>
> But I must admit, I do miss chest hair. Most actors
today look like
> Ken with their shirts off.
>
> Pass the quiche...
>
> Kevin Burton Smith
> The Thrilling Detective Web Site
> Celebrating 10 Years of P.I. Thrills
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been
removed]
>
>
>
-- Mark R. Harris 2122 W. Russet Court #8 Appleton WI 54914 (920) 470-9855 brokerharris@gmail.com
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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