Advice from an Old Man

It’s been a gut-wrenching week for a variety of reasons I won’t go into now, which has had me vacillating between cantankerous fist-shaking and tearful smokes in the backyard. That leaves me vulnerable to bad advice from anonymous internet cranks, such as this recent “Best of Craigslist” entry, “Advice to Young Men from an Old Man.” Several bits ring truer than they probably should: “14. Don’t be afraid to tell people to “Fuck off” when need be. It is an important skill to acquire. As they say, speak your piece, even if your voice shakes.” (For one.)

Some of the Sassy Sallys over at MeFi take issue with his advice about women, specifically this bit:

29. Don’t believe the crap about the patriarchy. More women are accepted and attend college. More degrees are awarded to women than men. Women outlive men. More men commit suicide. Men are twice as likely to be victims of violence, including murder. If you consider sexual assaults in prisons, twice as many men are raped as women (society thinks prison rape is funny). The streets are littered with homeless men, sprinkled with a few homeless women. Statically, women are happier than men. The myth that girls are being cheated by are educational system is belied by the fact that schools are bastions of femininity, mostly run by and taught by women. Girls outperform boys in school. It is the boys in school getting fucked over, and prescribed ritalin for being boys. Real wages for men are falling, while real wages for women are rising. Just because someone says something enough times, doesn’t make it true. You have nothing to feel guilty about.

You could take that one sentence by sentence, really, and some of those points I feel very strongly about. (Especially the issue of making a joke of prison rape, accepting cruelty as systemic. Our not-so-secret shame.)

Frankly, though, I don’t have the wherewithal to form a cogent response to gender equality this morning, but I still wanted you guys to see it while I go stand outside in the sleet and try to use coffee as a catalyst to turn hate to productivity.

See also: Bad News Hughes