Immediately after the war, the War Department undertook a study to determine the causes of psychiatric breakdown in American soldiers, using interviews to probe their minds. According to Adam Curtis’s BBC documentary The Century of the Self, the study was conducted under the guidance of refugee psychoanalysts from central Europe. The focus of these interviews, however, was not the soldiers’ wartime experiences but their childhoods. The stress of combat had merely triggered buried memories.
And what were the findings of the study? The problems of these broken soldiers were due, not to violence, but to the repression of violence, and of sexuality, typical of family life. Small town life in middle America, it turned out, was a breeding ground of precisely those unhealthy character traits that, under the right conditions, give rise to fascist movements.
In The Century of the Self, one Martin Bergmann, a US Army psychoanalyst from 1943 to 1945, speaks into the camera in a thick Mitteleuropa accent, recounting the train trip he took from the East Coast to the West Coast of his newly adopted country and his fascination with “what goes on in all those little towns”. His work gave him “a privileged tour into the inner soul of America”. What he found is that “the ratio between the irrational and the rational in America is very much in favor of the irrational”. It is “a much more problematic country” then you would think, given its cheerful self – image.
The problem with Americans was that they were latent Nazis. Presumably this came as a surprise to those soldiers who had lately placed their young bodies in the service of a national effort to defeat the Nazi regime.
In 1946, President Truman declared a mental health crisis in America, a watershed moment in the emergence of the therapeutic state. As Curtis put it, “the Second World War would utterly transform the way governments saw democracy, and the people they governed”. The American government, in particular, would turn to the Freud family for guidance on how to control the enemy within, convinced that “hidden under the surface of their own population were the same dangerous forces” that had led to the death camps. The inner lives of Americans were now something that needed to be managed. Anti-fascism in the United States would be a science of social adjustment working at a deep level of the psyche, modeled on the occupation government’s parallel effort in Germany.
“What is needed is a human being that can internalise democratic values,” said Bergmann, the US Army psychiatrist. “Psychoanalysis carried in it the promise that it can be done. It opened up new vistas as to how the inner structure of the human being can be changed so that he becomes a more vital, free supporter and maintainer of democracy.”
One must pause whenever the word “democracy” is used in such utterances. In fact, a central premise of midcentury social management was precisely that the free contest of responsible citizens in democratic politics does not reliably produce a properly “democratic” personality. “Changing the inner structure of the human being” so he becomes a reliable supporter of a political program — creating a New Man — was supposed to be the hallmark of totalitarianism, but evidently appeared necessary to some significant part of the American political establishment. Liberalism would have to become, not anti-totalitarian, but rather a countervailing project of man-making, no less total in its reach.
Following passage of the National Mental Health Act of 1946, its principal architects Karl and Will Menninger trained an army of hundreds of psychiatrists to fan out across America. In the late Forties, “psychological guidance centers” were set up in hundreds of towns, staffed by psychiatrists who “thought it was their job to control the hidden forces inside millions of Americans”, according to Adam Curtis. Thousands of counselors offered marriage guidance; social workers visited homes. As Robert Wallerstein of the Menninger Foundation put it in The Century of the Self, the operating assumption in these times was that “you could really change people. And you could change them almost in limitless ways.”
Freud’s daughter Anna was the guiding figure for the new para-state organs of psychological adjustment. Heir to her father’s movement, “her whole life rotated around the spreading of psychoanalysis”, according to her nephew Anton Freud. Curtis points out that this evangelising spirit marked a shift from Sigmund Freud’s efforts to understand the psyche to Anna Freud’s mission to modify the psyche. While Sigmund had a tragic view of the human being, emphasising the irreducible conflict between self and society, Anna had a reformer’s faith in the efficacy of psychoanalysis as a technology of personal and social improvement.
Let’s step back for a moment and consider the political soil in which these imported Freudian seeds would germinate. In his 1991 book, The True and Only Heaven, Christopher Lasch notes that “around the turn of the century, social reformers began to refer to themselves as progressives rather than liberals”. He quotes a work titled Liberalism in America (1919) in which Harold Stearns offered a portrait of the ideal political personality as “scientific, curious, experimental…urbane, good-natured, non-partisan, detached”. I don’t know if they had yard signs back then, but these were the traits of what H.L. Mencken called “the civilized minority”. They were tied to specific political positions, opposition to which could be taken as signs of ignorance, superstition, and intolerance.
Lasch writes that in the early decades of the 20th century, liberals convinced that the mass of their fellow citizens were impervious to reason believed they “would either have to master the new techniques of advertising and propaganda, … or seek to minimise the influence of public opinion on policy, … and see to it that policy – making was conducted exclusively by experts.”
In fact, both strategies became important. On the policy front, Woodrow Wilson addressed the growing gulf between popular preferences and progressive policy goals (recently exacerbated by an expansion of voting rights to less enlightened elements in society) by transferring political initiative and discretion from the democratically elected legislature to the bureaucracies of the nascent administrative state, where matters could safely be decided by experts. But it is the propaganda front that concerns us here, as it intersects intimately with the premises of Freudian political therapy.
The art of propaganda had taken great strides forward during the First World War, when popular fervour against “the Hun” was whipped up in the United States to support an unprecedentedly destructive war, the point of which nobody could say. Edward Bernays, one of the architects of the wartime propaganda effort, turned to advertising after the war as the logical venue for his craft (he would later put his talents in the service of the CIA). A nephew of Sigmund Freud, with whom he was intellectually close, Bernays developed his art on the premise that human beings are irrational, subject to subconscious drives that swamp any capacity for reflective deliberation.
Between the wars, liberals in the United States were watching developments in Europe with unease as fascist movements began to get traction. In the United States, there was significant sympathy with European fascist movements, not only on the anti-semitic Right but also on the New Deal Left. The putative irrationality of ordinary people was beginning to look like an ominous political fact. The premise of irrationality offered a lever of social control through the manipulation of subconscious drives, while the gathering political threat provided a reason for the principled use of this lever to steer the masses away from dangerous territory.
In this period, Walter Lippmann and H.L. Mencken were influential among liberals in their embittered view of the public as unreliable partners in the democratic project. What was wanted was democracy without a demos. This becomes less paradoxical once you understand that the term “democracy” was serving then, as it does now, as a term of approbation naming something in no way dependent upon the procedures of representative government, and a character ideal defined in explicit opposition to the deplorable masses. The mantle of “democracy” was the homespun worn by liberalism when it went about in public, seeking a wider political legitimacy than would otherwise be extended to the preoccupations of a civilised minority pursuing “experiments in living”, to use J.S. Mill’s formula.
Immediately after the Second World War, this distrust of the people among America’s Northeastern Protestant liberals got joined to an imported version brought by European émigré intellectuals who had narrowly escaped death at the hands of a Nazi murder state that enjoyed a kind of terrifying democratic mandate, in the narrow procedural sense of winning the support of a majority in its rise to power. These émigrés were therefore understandably ill-disposed to the masses, and toward democracy in its primary sense of rule by the people.
The concerns of this politicised psychoanalytic movement got grafted onto the regime of technocratic administration that liberals had been advancing in the US for half a century. The fateful consequence, clearly visible in retrospect, is that the administrative state became the therapeutic state, with the “helping professions” serving as expert handmaidens to the new regime. Flush with victory in its first ideological war, confident in the surfeit of legitimacy that comes with victory, the government took up anti-fascism as a wider mandate of moral and social transformation.
At the same time, the academic discipline of sociology took an activist turn. The American-led occupation government in Germany favoured sociology departments in universities as a vehicle of German re-education. The effort was led by scholars returning from forced exile in the United States, some of them connected to the Frankfurt School. In the US, five collaborative works, together titled Studies in Prejudice, were sponsored by the American Jewish Committee’s Department of Scientific Research. Of these, The Authoritarian Personality (1950) was the most influential. “No volume published since the war in the field of social psychology has had a greater impact on the direction of the actual empirical work being carried on in the universities today,” wrote Nathan Glazer in Commentary in 1954. The research was conducted by a group at Berkeley headed by Theodore Adorno of the Frankfurt School.
The massive study offered a set of criteria to discern personality traits said to indicate authoritarian tendencies. With the impressive machinery of social science, it ranked Americans on an “F Scale” where F stands for pre-fascist. An early version of its questionnaire to detect right-wing personality traits, deployed in California in 1947, was used in police work and in the psychological assessment of public school students.
The survey built on earlier studies conducted in Germany at the Institute for Social Research, but with a different slant. Openly Marxist in its original, Frankfurt iteration, it had placed its subjects on an authoritarian personality/revolutionary personality axis. (To the extent you are not revolutionary, you are authoritarian.) Repackaged for America, this was changed to an authoritarian personality/democratic personality axis. The shift of terms was well-attuned to the political idiom of the study’s American sponsors: in the United States, the vanguard named itself “democratic” rather than revolutionary.
Which is not to say that TAP’s adaptation of Freudo-Marxism to the American context was merely superficial. No less a figure than Peter Berger failed to see that an important shift had occurred between Reich’s The Mass Psychology of Fascism (addressed to a German audience in 1933) and The Authoritarian Personality (addressed to an American audience in 1950). Berger saw the latter as continuing the attack on the family coming from the Communist Left, which found the roots of “authoritarianism” in bourgeois-capitalist family structure. Accordingly, Berger saw the 1950 American volume as lending support to the commune movement that was gaining traction in Western Europe and America. Christopher Lasch points out that, in fact, “the general conclusions reached by Adorno and his collaborators fitted comfortably into a liberal consensus that condemned the allegedly repressive family patterns typical of working-class and lower-middle-class milieux and advocated as an alternative not ‘communes’ but the enlightened family patterns already adopted by the professional and managerial classes”. (451) These were the very patterns that would be demanded by capitalism in the coming postindustrial economy, which would accelerate an ongoing erasure of sexually differentiated forms of work.
Items contributing to the working class’s high scores on the F-scale included a belief in distinct sex roles and a “rigid” sexual morality. A woman with a “self-image of conventional femininity,” for example, was sure to develop an “underlying bitterness” which often took “deviously destructive forms”. We can note as well that, from the perspective of late capitalism, someone “clinging to femininity” is someone who has failed to become an all-purpose “human resource,” a labor unit minimally prone to pregnancy and maximally adaptable to the workplace.
Rosie the Riveter, that well-muscled emblem of the munitions economy, was one of the government’s most successful propaganda campaigns. In Norman Rockwell’s magnificently butch, 1943 image of Rosie for the cover of the Saturday Evening Post, she has her foot resting on a copy of Mein Kampf. She would become the hero of capitalism’s next stage, in which feminism plays a structural role. The type of social science pioneered by TAP would provide expert grounds for the emerging bourgeoise sexual morality, in which sexual difference itself is viewed as a hangover from a lower stage of human development.
Another trait that earned one a high rank on the F-scale was a “punitive” and “moralistic” style of child-rearing. As Lasch writes, “The Authoritarian Personality revealed more about the enlightened prejudices of the professional classes than about authoritarian prejudices among the common people” who “may have good reason to… reject a middle-class conception of easy-going parental discipline.”
Rather than consider the pros and cons of sexually conservate attitudes, the authors of TAP treated them as manifestations of a “social disease”. Lasch points out that this influential work “substituted a medical for a political idiom and relegated a broad range of controversial issues to the clinic — to ‘scientific’ study as opposed to philosophical and political debate. This procedure had the effect of making it unnecessary to discuss moral and political questions on their merits.”
Around this same time, Alfred Kinsey released the first of the Kinsey Reports on Americans’ sexual practices (1948). It was a publishing phenomenon that had no precedent for sales in the 20th century and became the focus of intense public discussion. Kinsey understood his work to be serving a “mass psychotherapeutic function”, namely, the eradication of shame. He also assimilated the nascent concept of the “authoritarian personality” to lingering sexual moralists of various stripes. Kinsey relied on his status as an entomologist (who just happened to turn his attention from beetles to humans) to claim for himself the persona of a disinterested man of science, rather than a cultural crusader.
In TAP and its antecedents we see the ground laid for a novel politico-cultural consciousness. It would become apparent only in the next cohort, the Baby Boom, perhaps because this consciousness required a generation of conditioning by government therapy and activist social science to achieve: we are groovy astronauts of the libido (as against our repressed parents). Whatever the reality of their individual mindsets, which are no doubt as various as that of any other generation, this is the official story told about the Boomers by their self-appointed spokespersons. At the same time, a new “professional managerial class” arose that would have a deep identification with expertise as title to rule and source of class solidarity
This history is important not least for helping us to see that the century-long colonisation of ordinary people’s moral judgment by psychology, dating from the rise of the social worker in the 19th century, and more broadly the idea that common sense should defer to expertise located in a scientific clerisy, got a big boost from the psycho-sexual turn that anti-fascist politics took after the Second World War. Initiatives by the federal government spawned a wider apparatus of psychological adjustment, located in schools (above all, sex education), HR departments and any institution devoted to forming and policing character according to the priorities of a vanguardist minority. Given mid-century America’s institutional investment in fighting fascism, it became invested also in construing the world in such a way as to justify that investment. The world has ever since been saturated with something like fascism, however invisible it may appear to most people — especially after our grandfathers had defeated the real thing on the battlefields of Europe.
The valour of that effort was borrowed by social engineers and attached to their own campaign. The military campaign had required a self-confident and still mostly self-governing people to risk their lives on behalf of human dignity. The domestic campaign required cultivation of a diminished picture of the human subject, now viewed as an irrational tangle of psycho-sexual compulsions. However partial and inadequate the new anthropology, it became “too big to fail”. The politics of anti-fascism have proven highly elastic, adaptable to the needs of an expanding, therapeutic para-state that has not hesitated to substitute morally cognate terms such as racism and sexism for the original. These too are expressions of dark irrationality, and cunningly increase in society precisely by appearing to decrease.
With this pocket history in hand, we can speculate as to why the no-fapping movement could cause alarm. Keeping the appetites at a high pitch of activity, stimulating desire and then satisfying it, can serve as a political soporific. Porn may function as a soma of the masses and in particular of the male— that toxic element in society that has lately attracted special interest from the organs of political therapy. Untoward eruptions of ascetic self-command are inconvenient to the governing anthropology; they would seem to cast doubt on both the need for, and the means of, social management. Reciprocally, for men and women both, the experience of self-command can create a taste for more, and possibly even lead to curiosity about a corresponding political possibility long thought obsolete — that of self-government.
This essay is the first in a series I am calling the Archedelia Project.
***
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SubscribeInteresting article. It gives a lot of support to Peter Hitchens’ various writings concerning an alleged goal of the modern Left being the ‘de-moralisation’ of society: especially via school sex education etc.
As disconcerting as it is to think about this, it is good to remember that ‘the permanent things’ (Russell Kirk) are indeed permanent: and that although the Kinsey-type de-moralisation has done and continues to do a lot of harm, it cannot really ever win. Honest young men still know that lack of self control is a vice not a virtue, although they may lack the vocabulary or the metaphysics to articulate this insight. And honest young men still know that the ‘innate desires of man’ are not wholly good, as promised by Rousseau and every liar since him: which is why they still protect their sisters from other men, and – when they are themselves grown men – their daughters.
The permanent things remain.
Great comment. Unless we’re prepared to acknowledge that darker side of all our selves (both males and females), we’re doomed to keep repeating ideological mistakes and condemning our societies to failed experiments.
This has nothing to do with lack of religion either; simply being willing to accept our humanity and find better ways to live alongside each other.
It has nothing to do with a lack of religion if there is no God and that the ground of Being and Consciousness is unconscious. As an intellectually very satisfied Catholic, I love the brevity of the remark by Fr Most.
“First they lost Christ (the Reformation); then they lost God; (atheistic materialism), then they lost their minds.
This article is painting that picture.
Yes, Catholics do seem very self-satisfied.
I was actually just referring to my formal studies in western philosophy from the pre-socratics to the modern and the solid case for theism from reason. I do expect a bigoted remark pretty much ever time however. Catholicism with its affirmation of Christ still present today in the sacraments He gave Peter and the apostles and their successors actually presumes our incompleteness and insufficiency. But if you want to call that self-satisfied then you of course are free to do so, at least ontologically.
Paul,I think the issue is that it is not only Catholics that would hold that view most Anglicans and Lutherans would agree too. However I for one am very grateful for the Catholic clarity on these things, and worried about the strange hybridization with wordly social movements that is going on in other denominations and am fearful that it is long term systemic ‘heart rot’ in a much beloved tree.
Hi Mr. Bates. It sure is a time for ecumenical cooperation alright. I am so grateful for the Natural Law philosophical tradition that is open to any person of reason. The CRT gang is great at working Christian guilt to sell disguised racism and faux community alright. Gushy calls to embrace and “include” or “equity” get swamped in a bottom line tyrannical dictatorship of sentiment. A misplaced mothering instinct. I hope we can all make a positive contribution to a saner world. There’s one hell of a mob out there. Cheers
“Socialism is only a degenerate form of Christianity. In fact, it preserves a belief in the finality of history which betrays life and nature, which substitutes ideal ends for real end to enervating both the will and the imagination.” ~ Albert Camus
Socialism is a degenerate form of Christianity in the way that feces are a generate form of filet mignon.
Socialism is a degenerate form of Christianity in the way that feces are a generate form of filet mignon.
“Socialism is only a degenerate form of Christianity. In fact, it preserves a belief in the finality of history which betrays life and nature, which substitutes ideal ends for real end to enervating both the will and the imagination.” ~ Albert Camus
Hi Mr. Bates. It sure is a time for ecumenical cooperation alright. I am so grateful for the Natural Law philosophical tradition that is open to any person of reason. The CRT gang is great at working Christian guilt to sell disguised racism and faux community alright. Gushy calls to embrace and “include” or “equity” get swamped in a bottom line tyrannical dictatorship of sentiment. A misplaced mothering instinct. I hope we can all make a positive contribution to a saner world. There’s one hell of a mob out there. Cheers
Paul,I think the issue is that it is not only Catholics that would hold that view most Anglicans and Lutherans would agree too. However I for one am very grateful for the Catholic clarity on these things, and worried about the strange hybridization with wordly social movements that is going on in other denominations and am fearful that it is long term systemic ‘heart rot’ in a much beloved tree.
Satisfied at having lost their minds.
I was actually just referring to my formal studies in western philosophy from the pre-socratics to the modern and the solid case for theism from reason. I do expect a bigoted remark pretty much ever time however. Catholicism with its affirmation of Christ still present today in the sacraments He gave Peter and the apostles and their successors actually presumes our incompleteness and insufficiency. But if you want to call that self-satisfied then you of course are free to do so, at least ontologically.
Satisfied at having lost their minds.
Yes, Catholics do seem very self-satisfied.
It has nothing to do with a lack of religion if there is no God and that the ground of Being and Consciousness is unconscious. As an intellectually very satisfied Catholic, I love the brevity of the remark by Fr Most.
“First they lost Christ (the Reformation); then they lost God; (atheistic materialism), then they lost their minds.
This article is painting that picture.
Human nature anyone?
No such thing!
Hardly anyone has improved upon Aristotle’s definition of human nature as man being a “rational animal”. The neoMarxist ideology that informs virtually all of the leftist fascism of our time is an incoherent postmodern self contradiction. We are necessarily free willed rational beings , our so-called “spiritual” nature which we can understand as active powers or principles that are not reducible to matter. Why Marx was wrong. And deadly.
No such thing!
Hardly anyone has improved upon Aristotle’s definition of human nature as man being a “rational animal”. The neoMarxist ideology that informs virtually all of the leftist fascism of our time is an incoherent postmodern self contradiction. We are necessarily free willed rational beings , our so-called “spiritual” nature which we can understand as active powers or principles that are not reducible to matter. Why Marx was wrong. And deadly.
True. And is it not better for a society to work with the grain of human nature than against it?
Great comment. Unless we’re prepared to acknowledge that darker side of all our selves (both males and females), we’re doomed to keep repeating ideological mistakes and condemning our societies to failed experiments.
This has nothing to do with lack of religion either; simply being willing to accept our humanity and find better ways to live alongside each other.
Human nature anyone?
True. And is it not better for a society to work with the grain of human nature than against it?
Interesting article. It gives a lot of support to Peter Hitchens’ various writings concerning an alleged goal of the modern Left being the ‘de-moralisation’ of society: especially via school sex education etc.
As disconcerting as it is to think about this, it is good to remember that ‘the permanent things’ (Russell Kirk) are indeed permanent: and that although the Kinsey-type de-moralisation has done and continues to do a lot of harm, it cannot really ever win. Honest young men still know that lack of self control is a vice not a virtue, although they may lack the vocabulary or the metaphysics to articulate this insight. And honest young men still know that the ‘innate desires of man’ are not wholly good, as promised by Rousseau and every liar since him: which is why they still protect their sisters from other men, and – when they are themselves grown men – their daughters.
The permanent things remain.
Wow what a read, and I almost didn’t read the article given its title. Piecing this together like here in fact explains so much, it’s an eye opener. I’m looking forward to more of this series.
Absolutely agree. I read a bit then stopped. Then I went back and read the whole thing and found it beautifully put together.
I am halfway there.
I retired exhausted and in need of the Englishman’s Crutch – a cup of tea. Lesser breeds have a w***.
Walk?
Weep
Weep
does no-one else use the audio feature
I never noticed the audio feature… thanks 😉
I never noticed the audio feature… thanks 😉
I’m having a coffee, and resting my mind a bit.
Me too.
I must get some new glasses. I read this as ‘the Englishman’s Crotch’ – though I suppose that’s mildly relevant as well.
Walk?
does no-one else use the audio feature
I’m having a coffee, and resting my mind a bit.
Me too.
I must get some new glasses. I read this as ‘the Englishman’s Crotch’ – though I suppose that’s mildly relevant as well.
I am halfway there.
I retired exhausted and in need of the Englishman’s Crutch – a cup of tea. Lesser breeds have a w***.
Totally agree. This does explain a lot. My gut feel for quite a while now is that our society seems steered from the top down with a great deal of pressure.
Natural change usually comes from the bottom up.
This does not surprise me one little bit. I am looking forward to reading more. Glad to read that there is something to my instincts.
More of this series?! This article on its own was epic in length. How can the banal topic of masturbation be so staggeringly complicated and convoluted?
The topic of the article is not masturbation. But it takes a while to realise that.
You have misunderstood. The author simply uses “No Fap November” as a hook on which to hang an analysis of the technocratic therapeutic society.
The topic of the article is not masturbation. But it takes a while to realise that.
You have misunderstood. The author simply uses “No Fap November” as a hook on which to hang an analysis of the technocratic therapeutic society.
Absolutely agree. I read a bit then stopped. Then I went back and read the whole thing and found it beautifully put together.
Totally agree. This does explain a lot. My gut feel for quite a while now is that our society seems steered from the top down with a great deal of pressure.
Natural change usually comes from the bottom up.
This does not surprise me one little bit. I am looking forward to reading more. Glad to read that there is something to my instincts.
More of this series?! This article on its own was epic in length. How can the banal topic of masturbation be so staggeringly complicated and convoluted?
Wow what a read, and I almost didn’t read the article given its title. Piecing this together like here in fact explains so much, it’s an eye opener. I’m looking forward to more of this series.
I don’t think society has come to terms with just how destructive the rise of divorce has been. It crushes the children while they are young and stops them forming happy marriages themselves when they are older. In Britain we are up to 50% of marriages ending in divorce and 50% of kids born out of wedlock. Perhaps the US is even worse. The porn-addicted generation described above are the result of this.
Our forefathers knew this and so marriages were sanctified and divorces were very difficult to obtain and unhappy couples were expected to make the best of it for the sake of the kids.
I think the acceptance of easy divorce and the abandonment of marriage in favour of shacking up are consequences of the intellectual endeavor the author describes.
It also shows the following generation that if things get tough, just quit or don’t bother trying in the first place.
Divorce is not healthy for society. Marriage is not perfect but it requires effort and work and through this comes reward for all involved.
As a child of divorce myself, your first sentence resonated with me. The underlying message children receive is indeed that nothing works so why bother? It’s a very self-defeating backdrop by which to live, and takes years if ever, to break that mould. You also learn never ever to rely on others for anything, which makes you stronger in some ways, but diminishes you in others.
Sad but true, Julian, but not in all cases. Every divorce is different, just as every marriage is different.
M. Farrows,
I regret that while a parent I divorced. I concerned myself with the effect on my children and did the best I could, under the circumstances to alleviate that. But a statement made elsewhere is pertinent: how to find the right person. I ended up divorced 3 times, because I chose someone too much like my mother in some ways, but not enough like her in others. Still, I don’t believe that is the problem people make it to be. There is the rest of society which can help raise children. Public school, but that, reading the article, which doesn’t call schools out, as I recall, were once a help, when run on a very local level. They have become supportive of the agenda the author points out, They no longer teach children self control, but that of allowing their every whim freedom.
Sad but true, Julian, but not in all cases. Every divorce is different, just as every marriage is different.
M. Farrows,
I regret that while a parent I divorced. I concerned myself with the effect on my children and did the best I could, under the circumstances to alleviate that. But a statement made elsewhere is pertinent: how to find the right person. I ended up divorced 3 times, because I chose someone too much like my mother in some ways, but not enough like her in others. Still, I don’t believe that is the problem people make it to be. There is the rest of society which can help raise children. Public school, but that, reading the article, which doesn’t call schools out, as I recall, were once a help, when run on a very local level. They have become supportive of the agenda the author points out, They no longer teach children self control, but that of allowing their every whim freedom.
As a child of divorce myself, your first sentence resonated with me. The underlying message children receive is indeed that nothing works so why bother? It’s a very self-defeating backdrop by which to live, and takes years if ever, to break that mould. You also learn never ever to rely on others for anything, which makes you stronger in some ways, but diminishes you in others.
Fine. So can we please make the distinction between divorce during the child-rearing years and divorce after that point? There’s many an unhappy life that’s salvaged through the divorce route once the children become independent, especially now we’re all living longer. Why continue in a miserable state when there’s no specific need to?
Yes I think that is a wise and humane distinction to make.
Yes, the word “humane” is used to justify other abominations, such as abortion, euthanasia and tolerating, yea, celebrating perversion.
It is not for me to judge individuals but I fail to see what is “compassionate toward humans” about divorce at any stage.
Yes, the word “humane” is used to justify other abominations, such as abortion, euthanasia and tolerating, yea, celebrating perversion.
It is not for me to judge individuals but I fail to see what is “compassionate toward humans” about divorce at any stage.
I must admit that I just love the sanity and truth of the Catholic church which I gradually came to understand as the only radically true and sane edifice extant, as one should expect given He who sustains her despite all of our human failings. She grants annulments based upon a demonstration that the prerequisite maturity and understanding required to engage in a licit marriage … an irrevocable gift of oneself… becoming one with the other.., did not prevail at the time of the marriage. As Christ said. “I tell you no divorce.” One cannot unmarry what is married. And there is a Third Person involved.
Perhaps handing down a blueprint on how to pick a compatible mate? Choose wisely in the first place and this can be avoided?
Yes I think that is a wise and humane distinction to make.
I must admit that I just love the sanity and truth of the Catholic church which I gradually came to understand as the only radically true and sane edifice extant, as one should expect given He who sustains her despite all of our human failings. She grants annulments based upon a demonstration that the prerequisite maturity and understanding required to engage in a licit marriage … an irrevocable gift of oneself… becoming one with the other.., did not prevail at the time of the marriage. As Christ said. “I tell you no divorce.” One cannot unmarry what is married. And there is a Third Person involved.
Perhaps handing down a blueprint on how to pick a compatible mate? Choose wisely in the first place and this can be avoided?
The one-parent, mother-only family has all but destroyed black inner-city communities in the USA. Today, over 75% of blacks are born out of wedlock, about 55% for Latinos and 35% for whites. Welfare programs of LBJs ‘Great Society’ ensured that black fathers were not to be in house in order to receive welfare. It is a fact, that black families in the USA were doing far better socially and economically pre-WW2 – blacks had a lower divorce rate than whites and home ownership was on the rise. Intact families matter.
A complete tragedy Cathy.
My generation put a lot of work into civil rights, passing “those N-word laws” as LBJ called them, as he relied on the opposition party to pass them when his own party would not support him. Now we are getting old, many of us have already departed in peace, thinking we did a lot of good work; and along comes some upstart and tells us our parents were well on the way to a good society and we ran off the rails and created a society of narcissists and thieves and murderers. Recently we have again been hard at work, creating a cancel culture to protect ourselves against people like you who insist on looking at reality – and now here is a site on our Internet that is out of control, no telling what evils that will unleash upon us. For almost a century, the politicians in our major cities have kept our minority friends and neighbors out of sight and out of mind in “inner-city communities” – then along comes a President from the other party and fires up the economy, creates jobs, so the minorities think they are just as good as white people. Sure is lucky we got rid of him. Creating jobs is just another name for returning to slavery. Keep up the good work; I hope you are using a false name here to make it hard to find you:-)
“[Unherd] is out of control”
How I wish that were true…
“[Unherd] is out of control”
How I wish that were true…
So true; and my (evangelical?) church is susceptible to the Marxist lie that the real problem facing black folks in America is systemic racism, rather than the engineered destruction of the nuclear family
A complete tragedy Cathy.
My generation put a lot of work into civil rights, passing “those N-word laws” as LBJ called them, as he relied on the opposition party to pass them when his own party would not support him. Now we are getting old, many of us have already departed in peace, thinking we did a lot of good work; and along comes some upstart and tells us our parents were well on the way to a good society and we ran off the rails and created a society of narcissists and thieves and murderers. Recently we have again been hard at work, creating a cancel culture to protect ourselves against people like you who insist on looking at reality – and now here is a site on our Internet that is out of control, no telling what evils that will unleash upon us. For almost a century, the politicians in our major cities have kept our minority friends and neighbors out of sight and out of mind in “inner-city communities” – then along comes a President from the other party and fires up the economy, creates jobs, so the minorities think they are just as good as white people. Sure is lucky we got rid of him. Creating jobs is just another name for returning to slavery. Keep up the good work; I hope you are using a false name here to make it hard to find you:-)
So true; and my (evangelical?) church is susceptible to the Marxist lie that the real problem facing black folks in America is systemic racism, rather than the engineered destruction of the nuclear family
From personal experience, observing what happened to their school friends, divorce seems to be hugely damaging to the children and invariably so
You can go a step further now – the rates of children raised by single parents, or non-married cohabiting parents (often transitory) is increasing astronomically, where they never even know the promise of having stable, committed loving parents
God help those kids.
God help those kids.
It also shows the following generation that if things get tough, just quit or don’t bother trying in the first place.
Divorce is not healthy for society. Marriage is not perfect but it requires effort and work and through this comes reward for all involved.
Fine. So can we please make the distinction between divorce during the child-rearing years and divorce after that point? There’s many an unhappy life that’s salvaged through the divorce route once the children become independent, especially now we’re all living longer. Why continue in a miserable state when there’s no specific need to?
The one-parent, mother-only family has all but destroyed black inner-city communities in the USA. Today, over 75% of blacks are born out of wedlock, about 55% for Latinos and 35% for whites. Welfare programs of LBJs ‘Great Society’ ensured that black fathers were not to be in house in order to receive welfare. It is a fact, that black families in the USA were doing far better socially and economically pre-WW2 – blacks had a lower divorce rate than whites and home ownership was on the rise. Intact families matter.
From personal experience, observing what happened to their school friends, divorce seems to be hugely damaging to the children and invariably so
You can go a step further now – the rates of children raised by single parents, or non-married cohabiting parents (often transitory) is increasing astronomically, where they never even know the promise of having stable, committed loving parents
I don’t think society has come to terms with just how destructive the rise of divorce has been. It crushes the children while they are young and stops them forming happy marriages themselves when they are older. In Britain we are up to 50% of marriages ending in divorce and 50% of kids born out of wedlock. Perhaps the US is even worse. The porn-addicted generation described above are the result of this.
Our forefathers knew this and so marriages were sanctified and divorces were very difficult to obtain and unhappy couples were expected to make the best of it for the sake of the kids.
I think the acceptance of easy divorce and the abandonment of marriage in favour of shacking up are consequences of the intellectual endeavor the author describes.
Fascinating, well constructed etc. But I think the problem is simpler. Many men use porn due to the current lack of alternatives, i.e. the lack of a non-abusive dating market. Consequently, many men are now addicted to porn. Nobody likes being addicted, it makes you feel dirty and dishonest. Hence abstinence, duh.
Or from a different perspective. The culture says that men can’t ask for what they want, sexually or otherwise anymore. But men are also lambasted for being too meek. i.e. not asking for what they want, sexually or otherwise. The cognitive dissonance this creates is “challenging.” How about absolutely infuriating. But men aren’t allowed to be infuriated anymore though. Hmmmm.
So what to do with all this unresolved energy? On solution is Just stop “doing” sex on any level. If one stops thinking about sex, then one will stop being tormented by the lack of it. And if there is one thing guaranteed to get one thinking about sex then it’s a regular masturbation habit. Fueled by porn usually.
So if one goes no-fap, then those pesky erotic thought processes are attenuated and the cognitive dissonance will go away. Or so the theory goes.
This is difficult outside of a monastic setting. Just ask any Catholic.
I think it’s a brave attempt by disenfranchised men to take back control. Abstinence from anything that you are addicted too can lead to strong feelings of agency, dignity, mental clarity; there’s a long list actually. It’s a great trick, if you can pull it off. But I say again, ask any Catholic.
So, if like many men, realistically, your chances of finding a sexual mate are slim. And if finding that mate involves an assault course confusion, doubt and anxiety. Why bother? Total abstinence not just from masturbation, but sex as a whole. Many men are choosing this path, but as a choice rather than as a result of not feeling welcome in the sexual market place. Again many benefits can accrue, but it’s difficult outside of a monestary.
I salute the endeavour of the no-fap “movement,” just go chat to a Catholic first though, eh?
You can do it outside of a monastic setting. You just need to pray or meditate. This counteracts the constant societal engorgement of the lower energies, at least to a degree that you can live without sex and porn and…(insert more of society’s dubious ‘pleasures’ here).
The purpose of sex is reproduction. It is understandable that we think it’s about pleasure. But that comes from boredom and a lack of motivation to pursue things that matter. I’m happy these guys are working on ‘nofap.’ They may find something greater than mere abstention.
Whose purpose? The purpose of sex from the standpoint of our genes is reproduction. The purpose we are “given” in our proclivities which induce us to seek it is pleasure, generally.
If you like. But when you’ve walked that road long enough, you may come to agree with your genes. Desires indulged lead to more desire. You may be tempted to think happiness lies in their satisfaction, but it continues to elude.
Our gene’s interest and our own in the sense of our conscious selves are not always aligned. There are all kinds of genetic tendencies we learn to restrain or sublimate. I am not a hedonist by any means. But in some ways I try not to be a slave to my genetic tendencies either. I think this is a good thing. And I’ve walked my road quite some time to come to realize that (I could throw a rock and hit 70).
Our gene’s interest and our own in the sense of our conscious selves are not always aligned. There are all kinds of genetic tendencies we learn to restrain or sublimate. I am not a hedonist by any means. But in some ways I try not to be a slave to my genetic tendencies either. I think this is a good thing. And I’ve walked my road quite some time to come to realize that (I could throw a rock and hit 70).
If you like. But when you’ve walked that road long enough, you may come to agree with your genes. Desires indulged lead to more desire. You may be tempted to think happiness lies in their satisfaction, but it continues to elude.
Not only that, but. . . fatherhood is quite a satisfactory mode of being, functioning also as an “identity.”
I tried to a avoid mentioning meditation as this is usually a turn-off for most. But you are correct in that a certain level of awareness about causal emotional processes is essential, and meditation is a great way to train for this.
Unfortunately half an hour of mindfulness or body bliss practice or tantra visualization or whatever, a day isn’t enough, not long term.
The process of arousal through to ejaculation is a great way to resolve surplus sexual energy. If you choose to disengage from that process by going no-fap, you have to do something else with that energy. If not it will squirt out inappropriately, (Fnar! Fnar!) and you’ll end up getting into pointless arguments with strangers or maybe (probably) buying random shit you don’t need. This is when you really need a stable mind. Sure, sitting practice hones those skills, but the application of said skills happens “in the wild.” Practice has to come off the cushion at some point.
This is all possible away from a monastic setting, I never took robes for that reason. I never needed to, but it is much tougher. And you can traumatise yourself too, if your not careful, especially if you end up doing crazy shit. Consequences, consequences.
As to the purpose and meaning of the drive for procreation or the “generative urge,” shall we say, I don’t speculate. I just want the wasted energy expended on unrealistic sexual fantasies available for other projects; like getting enlightened of some other woo woo shit.
Go me!
Whose purpose? The purpose of sex from the standpoint of our genes is reproduction. The purpose we are “given” in our proclivities which induce us to seek it is pleasure, generally.
Not only that, but. . . fatherhood is quite a satisfactory mode of being, functioning also as an “identity.”
I tried to a avoid mentioning meditation as this is usually a turn-off for most. But you are correct in that a certain level of awareness about causal emotional processes is essential, and meditation is a great way to train for this.
Unfortunately half an hour of mindfulness or body bliss practice or tantra visualization or whatever, a day isn’t enough, not long term.
The process of arousal through to ejaculation is a great way to resolve surplus sexual energy. If you choose to disengage from that process by going no-fap, you have to do something else with that energy. If not it will squirt out inappropriately, (Fnar! Fnar!) and you’ll end up getting into pointless arguments with strangers or maybe (probably) buying random shit you don’t need. This is when you really need a stable mind. Sure, sitting practice hones those skills, but the application of said skills happens “in the wild.” Practice has to come off the cushion at some point.
This is all possible away from a monastic setting, I never took robes for that reason. I never needed to, but it is much tougher. And you can traumatise yourself too, if your not careful, especially if you end up doing crazy shit. Consequences, consequences.
As to the purpose and meaning of the drive for procreation or the “generative urge,” shall we say, I don’t speculate. I just want the wasted energy expended on unrealistic sexual fantasies available for other projects; like getting enlightened of some other woo woo shit.
Go me!
Self-denial is a great sweetener of pleasures.
Also, people seem to have forgotten the concept of “forbidden fruit”. When nothing is considered naughty, things are a lot less fun!
Also, people seem to have forgotten the concept of “forbidden fruit”. When nothing is considered naughty, things are a lot less fun!
The Author of Love does indeed want us to see that self discipline or rather grace inspired discipline is simply the path of integrity. Men and women are literally made first by and for Love , and for most the most significant dimension of this is responsible self controlled love between a man and a woman. Another forbidden truth these days as we confuse behaviors with “identities” a notion with only an obscurely, dimly understood final causality or end. Cheers I do really admire the monks and religious among us; warriors.
I’m with you, sir!
And I with you! Thank you sir. Our culture desperately needs to catch a glimpse of what Aristotle and Aquinas called final cause; that necessarily transcendent and spiritual actual “Unmoved Mover”. It really is Love and that is not a poetic indulgence. We are moved by some alpha and omega who grounds truth, beauty and love. Immanence and transcendence. Cheers
And I with you! Thank you sir. Our culture desperately needs to catch a glimpse of what Aristotle and Aquinas called final cause; that necessarily transcendent and spiritual actual “Unmoved Mover”. It really is Love and that is not a poetic indulgence. We are moved by some alpha and omega who grounds truth, beauty and love. Immanence and transcendence. Cheers
Not only that, but. . . fatherhood is quite a satisfactory mode of being, functioning also as an “identity.”
Absolutely. The cosmic identities of mother and father.
Absolutely. The cosmic identities of mother and father.
Hey Paul, thanks for your comment. Sadly I don’t subscribe to the concept of an “author of love.” I’m afraid I’m a po-faced “early” Buddhist. What happens when love, or it’s author, isn’t present? Life goes on, and everything that happens is just as causal and significant as when love is present. But we still have to deal with the consequences one way or another.
So should we wait for the arrival of love, or “grace” or “presence” before we do anything of significance? Hell no, divine grace is fickle and only shows up when you’re not looking. In the meantime, best get on with life in all its messy glory.
I’m still waiting for someone to convince me that no-fap is a bad idea. Come on, you optimists, let’s be having you!
And yes, monastics are sorely misunderstood.
Hi Howard. Thanks for the response. Love and its author is always present as BEING Himself.. the alpha and omega of all being spiritual and material. Everything is good insofar as it exists or has being and even evil is an absence of a good that should be there.
I have had some profound spiritual experiences that I will remember all my life, but my faith and reason are informed (o use a nice Platonic and Aquinian word..:-) )
by a recognition of that Final Cause discernible by reason where God is analogically understood and seen in truth, beauty and goodness . Its a synthesis, the divine milieu. In a sunset you are really looking at the beauty of God even more manifest in a child or a fireman walking into a burning building to save one of God’s precious ones.
I get what you refer to as those Aha.. moments when God is obvious and manifestly present, but that is really just a function of our attention spans. God manifests in crucifixions endured in love. Cheers
Hi Howard. Thanks for the response. Love and its author is always present as BEING Himself.. the alpha and omega of all being spiritual and material. Everything is good insofar as it exists or has being and even evil is an absence of a good that should be there.
I have had some profound spiritual experiences that I will remember all my life, but my faith and reason are informed (o use a nice Platonic and Aquinian word..:-) )
by a recognition of that Final Cause discernible by reason where God is analogically understood and seen in truth, beauty and goodness . Its a synthesis, the divine milieu. In a sunset you are really looking at the beauty of God even more manifest in a child or a fireman walking into a burning building to save one of God’s precious ones.
I get what you refer to as those Aha.. moments when God is obvious and manifestly present, but that is really just a function of our attention spans. God manifests in crucifixions endured in love. Cheers
I’m with you, sir!
Not only that, but. . . fatherhood is quite a satisfactory mode of being, functioning also as an “identity.”
Hey Paul, thanks for your comment. Sadly I don’t subscribe to the concept of an “author of love.” I’m afraid I’m a po-faced “early” Buddhist. What happens when love, or it’s author, isn’t present? Life goes on, and everything that happens is just as causal and significant as when love is present. But we still have to deal with the consequences one way or another.
So should we wait for the arrival of love, or “grace” or “presence” before we do anything of significance? Hell no, divine grace is fickle and only shows up when you’re not looking. In the meantime, best get on with life in all its messy glory.
I’m still waiting for someone to convince me that no-fap is a bad idea. Come on, you optimists, let’s be having you!
And yes, monastics are sorely misunderstood.
Gotta disagree. Any man can find a mate if he is honest about his level of attractiveness and seeks woman of similar looks and means. Those toxic women you reference, and there are many, are all seeking “high value” men, mostly out of their ballpark. Those guys who can’t find a date? They’re all looking for a supermodel or an anime pixie. It’s historical fact that old time circus freaks had remarkably affectionate and long-lived marriages largely because they approached their relationships from a position of gratitude, because, after all, the dog-faced girl was lucky to find a husband at all, and she knew it.
You’ve got a good point. I have a wonderful romantic relationship. The key is that my girl is humble and self-reflective. She is beautiful, I think. She is no dog-face! But it is deeply helpful to her own happiness that she thinks she is. I hold the diamond of her, and she of me. And to the world, we are two dull rocks. 🙂
What is the incentive for a man to settle for a mate of equal looks or means when in most markets there are a surplus of women of higher attractiveness and means? None. (I don’t mean to come across as pedantic, I just don’t want to add to the confusion young people are facing.)
Women if they are being honest don’t place so much value on physical looks; appearance would be more accurate, and even this, not so important. As for money, broke men will calculate that they just have to set the age parameter of potential matches on the app to 20-24–in other words, girls who are just beginning their careers and so don’t have a lot of money or, being largely or at least to some degree supported by relatives, don’t need it from a mate. In fact, given other factors–“feminist equality” and the fact that everyone’s broke, to name two–a man doesn’t even need to spend money on dates before “hooking up.” Some men will happily discover that young women, who are likely to be working, shopping and socializing from home and so have more money than they know what to do with (and who being women enjoy spending it) are basically happy to spend money on a man if it helps them compete for a mate.
It is more accurate to say that any man can find a date by spending enough time “on the apps,” because “it’s a numbers game.” Yes, there will always be men who are slower to figure this out. But if they don’t become demoralized first they’ll figure it out. Just keep “swiping,” no reason not to aim high.
Ironically, single professional women are encouraged by every online “therapist” to spend time on the very same dating apps that afford men an unlimited menu of easy, commitment-free sex with women who calculate, whether or not they are aware of it, that their best strategy in current conditions is to have sex first and hope for commitment later. After all, they know the market is competitive and they will just be “ghosted” if they don’t have sex.
No wonder that so many men and women “drop out” and find consolation in this or that drug or fantasy.
Men looking for a committed relationship are advised to become active in a church–preferably Catholic.
I find that Catholic moral law perfectly expresses our actual human nature. Men and women are only intelligible with reference to one another. We are called to be stewards of love and life. With permanent commitments of course; the gift of self to one’s spouse and becoming one.. materially evident in the eyes of a child. 🙂
I find that Catholic moral law perfectly expresses our actual human nature. Men and women are only intelligible with reference to one another. We are called to be stewards of love and life. With permanent commitments of course; the gift of self to one’s spouse and becoming one.. materially evident in the eyes of a child. 🙂
Hey Laura, maybe maybe not. I’m super hot, apparently; got money, good job, all my own teeth etc. But can’t get a date on Tinder, Bumble etc. I think I’d do better shouting into a cardboard box for the good it does. For men, this is a really common experience apparently.
Outcomes on these apps are wildly asymmetric depending on gender and demographic. What you say makes perfect common sense. Unfortunately the modern dating market is not sane or rational. It full of people chasing impossible dreams.
Now, I am that impossible dream. Apparently. I have been called a “bronzed god,” “perfect in every way,” and my personal favourite, last week in the pub, some women bumps into me, looks me up and down and and says “F*ck me no! I can’t be dealing with that tonight!” “That” being me, thanks babe Then she ran, yes ran away.
I have all the bits that women say they want. But when they do actually meet one such as I, they look terrified, hide behind their friends, pot plants, their hair etc. They like to look though, all night long, but then disappear with some nondescript dork who been hiding at the back. Probably an old friend who she gives charity f**ks to when she realises she doesn’t have to balls to talk to someone new, especially some bloke who looks like he just stepped out of an aftershave advert.
I sit at the very top of the “high value” pyramid. It’s rather lonely, but I have an excellent view and it’s a sh*t show right down to the very bottom.
No-fap has a lot going for it, even for a “bronzed god.” We’re all f*cked.
You’ve got a good point. I have a wonderful romantic relationship. The key is that my girl is humble and self-reflective. She is beautiful, I think. She is no dog-face! But it is deeply helpful to her own happiness that she thinks she is. I hold the diamond of her, and she of me. And to the world, we are two dull rocks. 🙂
What is the incentive for a man to settle for a mate of equal looks or means when in most markets there are a surplus of women of higher attractiveness and means? None. (I don’t mean to come across as pedantic, I just don’t want to add to the confusion young people are facing.)
Women if they are being honest don’t place so much value on physical looks; appearance would be more accurate, and even this, not so important. As for money, broke men will calculate that they just have to set the age parameter of potential matches on the app to 20-24–in other words, girls who are just beginning their careers and so don’t have a lot of money or, being largely or at least to some degree supported by relatives, don’t need it from a mate. In fact, given other factors–“feminist equality” and the fact that everyone’s broke, to name two–a man doesn’t even need to spend money on dates before “hooking up.” Some men will happily discover that young women, who are likely to be working, shopping and socializing from home and so have more money than they know what to do with (and who being women enjoy spending it) are basically happy to spend money on a man if it helps them compete for a mate.
It is more accurate to say that any man can find a date by spending enough time “on the apps,” because “it’s a numbers game.” Yes, there will always be men who are slower to figure this out. But if they don’t become demoralized first they’ll figure it out. Just keep “swiping,” no reason not to aim high.
Ironically, single professional women are encouraged by every online “therapist” to spend time on the very same dating apps that afford men an unlimited menu of easy, commitment-free sex with women who calculate, whether or not they are aware of it, that their best strategy in current conditions is to have sex first and hope for commitment later. After all, they know the market is competitive and they will just be “ghosted” if they don’t have sex.
No wonder that so many men and women “drop out” and find consolation in this or that drug or fantasy.
Men looking for a committed relationship are advised to become active in a church–preferably Catholic.
Hey Laura, maybe maybe not. I’m super hot, apparently; got money, good job, all my own teeth etc. But can’t get a date on Tinder, Bumble etc. I think I’d do better shouting into a cardboard box for the good it does. For men, this is a really common experience apparently.
Outcomes on these apps are wildly asymmetric depending on gender and demographic. What you say makes perfect common sense. Unfortunately the modern dating market is not sane or rational. It full of people chasing impossible dreams.
Now, I am that impossible dream. Apparently. I have been called a “bronzed god,” “perfect in every way,” and my personal favourite, last week in the pub, some women bumps into me, looks me up and down and and says “F*ck me no! I can’t be dealing with that tonight!” “That” being me, thanks babe Then she ran, yes ran away.
I have all the bits that women say they want. But when they do actually meet one such as I, they look terrified, hide behind their friends, pot plants, their hair etc. They like to look though, all night long, but then disappear with some nondescript dork who been hiding at the back. Probably an old friend who she gives charity f**ks to when she realises she doesn’t have to balls to talk to someone new, especially some bloke who looks like he just stepped out of an aftershave advert.
I sit at the very top of the “high value” pyramid. It’s rather lonely, but I have an excellent view and it’s a sh*t show right down to the very bottom.
No-fap has a lot going for it, even for a “bronzed god.” We’re all f*cked.
That phrase “the sexual marketplace” explains so much.
Thanks for the great comment.
With respect, an even simpler explanation lies in a factual description of why modern men develop their addictions. The vast majority of male porn addicts develop their habit in early teen years, simply because they get a mobile phone. Average age of first access to porn is 11-12. This is irrespective of their later relationship status, and your thesis that this relates to adult singleness is untrue and irrelevant.
The desire of many men to develop self-control is because they hate being addicts. Men everywhere are increasingly aware of the powerlessness addiction affords, and they want regain control.
This ‘no-fap’ phenomenon is particularly true of the generations who, as teens, were raised in the internet era, where high-octane porn plus mobile phones means their saturation levels defy anything comparable in history. As they reach adulthood, or have dated a while, and discover the infinite disconnect between porn and real sex, they grasp for a different narrative. If we can’t stop their addictions forming, we should at least support their efforts for gaining agency..
Hi Marshall, porn is ubiquitous, and let’s face it, really really good. I remember the 80s, when porn was proper seedy, black and white, and hidden under your dad’s side of the marital bed. Accessing porn was like a military operation. So how do we counter this, when actual sex is so completely different. I don’t think we can unless we state the obvious. That porn is not sex, it’s a consciousness hack that is very very effective. But it’s really not sex.
Fighting porn is like fighting cocaine, got to reach the user. But porn is the perfect capitalist commodity, so good luck with that. I wonder how much money porn makes? Just a thought.
That is what no-fap tries to do, to tell the truth about what porn actually is. We might look into using shame, an old technique to reduce undesirable activity. If you look online, you’ll see this being done. A porn-consumer is called a “coomer.”
That makes me a coomer then. Seriously? Can we not find something a bit snappier, like pornonaught for example?
Begging your pardon, good sir, but the object of derision rarely gets to choose how he is named! ;^)
But since the name you choose seems to imply a willingness to move away from that material, I’m gonna deliver my 2 cents: Consumption of the material heightens thoughts of pleasure in the use of bodies. Over time, the body cannot help but become an idol in the mind of the man consuming. And here is why our enemies smile when we consume pornography: the man who believes in the body can imagine its pain as well as it’s pleasure. And so threats of torture to his own flesh will work on him more quickly than other men, because he has overdeveloped his imagination in regard to its usage.
Such a man will more quickly deliver up the location where the grandmothers and children are hiding. That is how I see it. I could be wrong, of course, but the precautionary principle applies because we’re talking about situations both exceedingly rare, but also exceedingly dire should they come.
Begging your pardon, good sir, but the object of derision rarely gets to choose how he is named! ;^)
But since the name you choose seems to imply a willingness to move away from that material, I’m gonna deliver my 2 cents: Consumption of the material heightens thoughts of pleasure in the use of bodies. Over time, the body cannot help but become an idol in the mind of the man consuming. And here is why our enemies smile when we consume pornography: the man who believes in the body can imagine its pain as well as it’s pleasure. And so threats of torture to his own flesh will work on him more quickly than other men, because he has overdeveloped his imagination in regard to its usage.
Such a man will more quickly deliver up the location where the grandmothers and children are hiding. That is how I see it. I could be wrong, of course, but the precautionary principle applies because we’re talking about situations both exceedingly rare, but also exceedingly dire should they come.
That makes me a coomer then. Seriously? Can we not find something a bit snappier, like pornonaught for example?
That is what no-fap tries to do, to tell the truth about what porn actually is. We might look into using shame, an old technique to reduce undesirable activity. If you look online, you’ll see this being done. A porn-consumer is called a “coomer.”
Hi Marshall, porn is ubiquitous, and let’s face it, really really good. I remember the 80s, when porn was proper seedy, black and white, and hidden under your dad’s side of the marital bed. Accessing porn was like a military operation. So how do we counter this, when actual sex is so completely different. I don’t think we can unless we state the obvious. That porn is not sex, it’s a consciousness hack that is very very effective. But it’s really not sex.
Fighting porn is like fighting cocaine, got to reach the user. But porn is the perfect capitalist commodity, so good luck with that. I wonder how much money porn makes? Just a thought.
First I have to congratulate all the contributors to this discussion – as a new reader I am gratified by the quality and courtesy on display.
An earlier comment mentioned ‘human nature’. This is the key to me – if we see the two words as two sides of a coin rather than a single expression.
We are human, born of nature. Nature came first, and underpins every aspect of our existence. Instinct first. Emotion next. Intelligence last. And that’s how we respond to life. Instinct trumps emotion trumps intelligence. That’s why the news always leads with fight or flight, followed by sex, then sadness or joy. Intelligent reflection is not news.
The human is defined not by what we share with the rest of nature but by how we are different. Self awareness, self-reflection, our conscious awareness of our own mortality, and yes, arguably most important, self control.
In this context it’s a fair to suggest that we are at our most human when we choose intellectually to do things we don’t want to. Or refrain from activities we want to do for their emotional or sensual reward.
There’s a long history of this, and like every approach it is vulnerable to absolutism. Everything in moderation is still the best maxim I have found.
But I have to say, if the internet was around when I was a teenager, I’d have been all over the porn. It’s how we manage our way out of these challenges that defines us. And there will never be a policy, strategy or law that can fix that. Life is a personal struggle. All we can do is try, with a little help from our friends.
You can do it outside of a monastic setting. You just need to pray or meditate. This counteracts the constant societal engorgement of the lower energies, at least to a degree that you can live without sex and porn and…(insert more of society’s dubious ‘pleasures’ here).
The purpose of sex is reproduction. It is understandable that we think it’s about pleasure. But that comes from boredom and a lack of motivation to pursue things that matter. I’m happy these guys are working on ‘nofap.’ They may find something greater than mere abstention.
Self-denial is a great sweetener of pleasures.
The Author of Love does indeed want us to see that self discipline or rather grace inspired discipline is simply the path of integrity. Men and women are literally made first by and for Love , and for most the most significant dimension of this is responsible self controlled love between a man and a woman. Another forbidden truth these days as we confuse behaviors with “identities” a notion with only an obscurely, dimly understood final causality or end. Cheers I do really admire the monks and religious among us; warriors.
Gotta disagree. Any man can find a mate if he is honest about his level of attractiveness and seeks woman of similar looks and means. Those toxic women you reference, and there are many, are all seeking “high value” men, mostly out of their ballpark. Those guys who can’t find a date? They’re all looking for a supermodel or an anime pixie. It’s historical fact that old time circus freaks had remarkably affectionate and long-lived marriages largely because they approached their relationships from a position of gratitude, because, after all, the dog-faced girl was lucky to find a husband at all, and she knew it.
That phrase “the sexual marketplace” explains so much.
Thanks for the great comment.
With respect, an even simpler explanation lies in a factual description of why modern men develop their addictions. The vast majority of male porn addicts develop their habit in early teen years, simply because they get a mobile phone. Average age of first access to porn is 11-12. This is irrespective of their later relationship status, and your thesis that this relates to adult singleness is untrue and irrelevant.
The desire of many men to develop self-control is because they hate being addicts. Men everywhere are increasingly aware of the powerlessness addiction affords, and they want regain control.
This ‘no-fap’ phenomenon is particularly true of the generations who, as teens, were raised in the internet era, where high-octane porn plus mobile phones means their saturation levels defy anything comparable in history. As they reach adulthood, or have dated a while, and discover the infinite disconnect between porn and real sex, they grasp for a different narrative. If we can’t stop their addictions forming, we should at least support their efforts for gaining agency..
First I have to congratulate all the contributors to this discussion – as a new reader I am gratified by the quality and courtesy on display.
An earlier comment mentioned ‘human nature’. This is the key to me – if we see the two words as two sides of a coin rather than a single expression.
We are human, born of nature. Nature came first, and underpins every aspect of our existence. Instinct first. Emotion next. Intelligence last. And that’s how we respond to life. Instinct trumps emotion trumps intelligence. That’s why the news always leads with fight or flight, followed by sex, then sadness or joy. Intelligent reflection is not news.
The human is defined not by what we share with the rest of nature but by how we are different. Self awareness, self-reflection, our conscious awareness of our own mortality, and yes, arguably most important, self control.
In this context it’s a fair to suggest that we are at our most human when we choose intellectually to do things we don’t want to. Or refrain from activities we want to do for their emotional or sensual reward.
There’s a long history of this, and like every approach it is vulnerable to absolutism. Everything in moderation is still the best maxim I have found.
But I have to say, if the internet was around when I was a teenager, I’d have been all over the porn. It’s how we manage our way out of these challenges that defines us. And there will never be a policy, strategy or law that can fix that. Life is a personal struggle. All we can do is try, with a little help from our friends.
Fascinating, well constructed etc. But I think the problem is simpler. Many men use porn due to the current lack of alternatives, i.e. the lack of a non-abusive dating market. Consequently, many men are now addicted to porn. Nobody likes being addicted, it makes you feel dirty and dishonest. Hence abstinence, duh.
Or from a different perspective. The culture says that men can’t ask for what they want, sexually or otherwise anymore. But men are also lambasted for being too meek. i.e. not asking for what they want, sexually or otherwise. The cognitive dissonance this creates is “challenging.” How about absolutely infuriating. But men aren’t allowed to be infuriated anymore though. Hmmmm.
So what to do with all this unresolved energy? On solution is Just stop “doing” sex on any level. If one stops thinking about sex, then one will stop being tormented by the lack of it. And if there is one thing guaranteed to get one thinking about sex then it’s a regular masturbation habit. Fueled by porn usually.
So if one goes no-fap, then those pesky erotic thought processes are attenuated and the cognitive dissonance will go away. Or so the theory goes.
This is difficult outside of a monastic setting. Just ask any Catholic.
I think it’s a brave attempt by disenfranchised men to take back control. Abstinence from anything that you are addicted too can lead to strong feelings of agency, dignity, mental clarity; there’s a long list actually. It’s a great trick, if you can pull it off. But I say again, ask any Catholic.
So, if like many men, realistically, your chances of finding a sexual mate are slim. And if finding that mate involves an assault course confusion, doubt and anxiety. Why bother? Total abstinence not just from masturbation, but sex as a whole. Many men are choosing this path, but as a choice rather than as a result of not feeling welcome in the sexual market place. Again many benefits can accrue, but it’s difficult outside of a monestary.
I salute the endeavour of the no-fap “movement,” just go chat to a Catholic first though, eh?
Since most governments are incapable of doing something so simple as ensuring delivery of the mail on time, I’m always a little reluctant to credit them with organising an epoch spanning psy-op. Nevertheless, I think it’s clear there are subversive forces at work.. always have been.. always will be. But the explanation is no doubt simpler.
Most people prefer the lane of least resistance. Most people have animal urges that need to be restrained for the good of the community.
These two factors, taken together, will always lead us inexorably to where we are now. The left (in the Rousseauian mold) will always want to break down every taboo and release their animal passions. Those of us with a functioning brain will want to stop them.
Unfortunately, if you’ve ever had a toddler tugging at your sleeve asking for a sweet… there comes a point when your patience wears thin, you take the lane of least resistance, and hand over the sweet.
The modern Conservative is the lazy, demoralised father, handing over sweets for a quiet life, then complaining about the medical bills for dentistry and diabetes. We are where we are because Conservatives have failed to hold the line… and the continue to fail. Their cowardice is as much to blame as the left’s degeneracy.
“The modern Conservative is the lazy, demoralised father” ?? What on earth are you talking about? Do you mean Tory, or something else? And what about women?
Also, you do realise your email address is showing in the ‘edit’ line?
I mean precisely what I say. And I include women in the metaphor… and yes.. my email address is showing in the edit.. I don’t know why.. feel free to email me if you wish! 🙂
I certainly won’t be emailing you, but i’d advise you get in touch with Unherd to prevent the email address from being used by those with less benign intentions.
I’d also advise that making sweeping statements which includes whole groups of diverse people doesn’t lend weight to any point you might be making.
It is not a sweeping statement. It is an accurate description of all conservative minded people as a collective. They have failed to hold the line. That this is true appears to me to be self evident.
In that case, use lowercase for “conservative” as in your latest reply. By using uppercase, you obfuscated your point, since Conservative is a political party. That’s what i was trying to clarify with you. It needn’t have taken three attempts to do so.
But since your clarification, your point is still a sweeping generalisation, and is very far from being self evident.
I may be totally wrong here, and I’m sure that I’ll be corrected if I am, but I took it that when Fletcher Christian says “The modern Conservative is the lazy, demoralised father,” he was using a metaphor, and he did mean the Conservative Party in government now.
Correct – thank you!
Correct – thank you!
It is self evident in that nothing has been conserved and therefore conservatives are failures. Certainly in the moral or social spheres. Nearly all institutions, no matter how old, have been conserved in name only and actively work to undermine and usurp the old moral and social order.
I may be totally wrong here, and I’m sure that I’ll be corrected if I am, but I took it that when Fletcher Christian says “The modern Conservative is the lazy, demoralised father,” he was using a metaphor, and he did mean the Conservative Party in government now.
It is self evident in that nothing has been conserved and therefore conservatives are failures. Certainly in the moral or social spheres. Nearly all institutions, no matter how old, have been conserved in name only and actively work to undermine and usurp the old moral and social order.
I view myself as a classic liberal which is one who at least in claimed aspirations seldom fully realized sees the divine milieu of Teilhard de Chardin in which we participate.
And as called by conscience or the radical goodness of being as divinely given, forever calling us back to the course of life.
In that case, use lowercase for “conservative” as in your latest reply. By using uppercase, you obfuscated your point, since Conservative is a political party. That’s what i was trying to clarify with you. It needn’t have taken three attempts to do so.
But since your clarification, your point is still a sweeping generalisation, and is very far from being self evident.
I view myself as a classic liberal which is one who at least in claimed aspirations seldom fully realized sees the divine milieu of Teilhard de Chardin in which we participate.
And as called by conscience or the radical goodness of being as divinely given, forever calling us back to the course of life.
It is not a sweeping statement. It is an accurate description of all conservative minded people as a collective. They have failed to hold the line. That this is true appears to me to be self evident.
I certainly won’t be emailing you, but i’d advise you get in touch with Unherd to prevent the email address from being used by those with less benign intentions.
I’d also advise that making sweeping statements which includes whole groups of diverse people doesn’t lend weight to any point you might be making.
I mean precisely what I say. And I include women in the metaphor… and yes.. my email address is showing in the edit.. I don’t know why.. feel free to email me if you wish! 🙂
Same here on the psyop theory. I thought it was interesting that now we have yet another sort of “fascist” in the form of anyone who deliberately abstains from sex and masturbation. Sounds just like Brave New World.;
I edited this just to see if my email shows up too.
What is ironically interesting is that fascism is the alignment of the political powers with the corporate and economic powers and it is radically clear that the fascism is overwhelmingly on the narcissistic hedonistic left. In Canada we can be imprisoned for insisting that our son or daughter is actually a son and daughter while Disney makes Groomer films for teachers to use on the poor little souls. Meanwhile the body manifests the type of soul one is.
What is ironically interesting is that fascism is the alignment of the political powers with the corporate and economic powers and it is radically clear that the fascism is overwhelmingly on the narcissistic hedonistic left. In Canada we can be imprisoned for insisting that our son or daughter is actually a son and daughter while Disney makes Groomer films for teachers to use on the poor little souls. Meanwhile the body manifests the type of soul one is.
The modern conservative lives in a country where the majority rules – perhaps with a little restraint from a written Constitution in some countries. Conservatives largely failed to win elections in the USA this year, for various reasons mostly related to lies told in the campaigns and reinforced by the news industry and the unsociable media. It should have been easy for us to win, just run against the disastrous results of the last two years, but we got bogged down in the details and the socialists escaped responsibility and fooled enough of the people, enough of the time. A particularly interesting example is the continuing success of the left in telling us that former President Trump and all his friends are racists – even though he had more support among minorities after 4 years of service than he did the first time; our minority friends and neighbors could see the results, not just promises, but white voters believed what they saw in the news. Millions of conservative voters are not demoralized, but many politicians have a problem with that. Time will, as it always does, tell.
“The modern Conservative is the lazy, demoralised father” ?? What on earth are you talking about? Do you mean Tory, or something else? And what about women?
Also, you do realise your email address is showing in the ‘edit’ line?
Same here on the psyop theory. I thought it was interesting that now we have yet another sort of “fascist” in the form of anyone who deliberately abstains from sex and masturbation. Sounds just like Brave New World.;
I edited this just to see if my email shows up too.
The modern conservative lives in a country where the majority rules – perhaps with a little restraint from a written Constitution in some countries. Conservatives largely failed to win elections in the USA this year, for various reasons mostly related to lies told in the campaigns and reinforced by the news industry and the unsociable media. It should have been easy for us to win, just run against the disastrous results of the last two years, but we got bogged down in the details and the socialists escaped responsibility and fooled enough of the people, enough of the time. A particularly interesting example is the continuing success of the left in telling us that former President Trump and all his friends are racists – even though he had more support among minorities after 4 years of service than he did the first time; our minority friends and neighbors could see the results, not just promises, but white voters believed what they saw in the news. Millions of conservative voters are not demoralized, but many politicians have a problem with that. Time will, as it always does, tell.
Since most governments are incapable of doing something so simple as ensuring delivery of the mail on time, I’m always a little reluctant to credit them with organising an epoch spanning psy-op. Nevertheless, I think it’s clear there are subversive forces at work.. always have been.. always will be. But the explanation is no doubt simpler.
Most people prefer the lane of least resistance. Most people have animal urges that need to be restrained for the good of the community.
These two factors, taken together, will always lead us inexorably to where we are now. The left (in the Rousseauian mold) will always want to break down every taboo and release their animal passions. Those of us with a functioning brain will want to stop them.
Unfortunately, if you’ve ever had a toddler tugging at your sleeve asking for a sweet… there comes a point when your patience wears thin, you take the lane of least resistance, and hand over the sweet.
The modern Conservative is the lazy, demoralised father, handing over sweets for a quiet life, then complaining about the medical bills for dentistry and diabetes. We are where we are because Conservatives have failed to hold the line… and the continue to fail. Their cowardice is as much to blame as the left’s degeneracy.
An excellent piece: writing such as this is the reason I subscribe to UnHerd. I’ll also look the author up on Substack. Wonderful to find such an interesting, engaging, extended read: bravo, and thank you.
Likewise, Richard – this legal of analysis has generally only come from the great social thinkers (including the current ones following Leo Strauss et al.
The destruction of “Bourgeois values” has been at the center of Reich and the Frankfurt School and their progeny, and “German Nihilism” since Rousseau first used the word Bourgeois and excoriated it, and found all evil commencing with private property (in the Social Contract ).
I too am going to hunt this author down, and hope that UnHerd has the sense to keep publishing his work!!
Great comment. I prefer Aristotle’s four types of causes.. the efficient, material, formal and final… to the marketplace and its reductionist analogy. Aristotle would describe a red rubber ball as efficiently formed in a mold, formed in a spherical shape of the material we call rubber and most importantly ..its ultimate sine qua non.. cause… the joy of a child. Joy is a deep cause and blows materialism away.
Great comment. I prefer Aristotle’s four types of causes.. the efficient, material, formal and final… to the marketplace and its reductionist analogy. Aristotle would describe a red rubber ball as efficiently formed in a mold, formed in a spherical shape of the material we call rubber and most importantly ..its ultimate sine qua non.. cause… the joy of a child. Joy is a deep cause and blows materialism away.
Likewise, Richard – this legal of analysis has generally only come from the great social thinkers (including the current ones following Leo Strauss et al.
The destruction of “Bourgeois values” has been at the center of Reich and the Frankfurt School and their progeny, and “German Nihilism” since Rousseau first used the word Bourgeois and excoriated it, and found all evil commencing with private property (in the Social Contract ).
I too am going to hunt this author down, and hope that UnHerd has the sense to keep publishing his work!!
An excellent piece: writing such as this is the reason I subscribe to UnHerd. I’ll also look the author up on Substack. Wonderful to find such an interesting, engaging, extended read: bravo, and thank you.
Well, at least the eye-sight of these men will remain good into their old-age.
If they don’t die of prostate cancer first! Not “clearing one’s cache” has an effect on the prostate.
How Does Sex Affect Your Prostate? – Ben’s Natural Health (bensnaturalhealth.com)
It wasn’t that long ago that some boarding schools (mainly Catholic) used to make adolescents wear boxing gloves at night to prevent the SIN of self-abuse!
Malicious rumours we also circulated by the staff saying that self-abuse caused blindness!
If all else failed there was always Bromide in the tea!
Boxing gloves should be used to get boys to box – use up surplus physical energy which otherwise leads them to all manner of things which land them in the courts.
We had bromide tea at Pirbright!
I can think of one or two commentators on UnHerd who could DO with a good dose of Bromide!
I can think of one or two commentators on UnHerd who could DO with a good dose of Bromide!
Boxing gloves should be used to get boys to box – use up surplus physical energy which otherwise leads them to all manner of things which land them in the courts.
We had bromide tea at Pirbright!
That’s a lot of action.
It wasn’t that long ago that some boarding schools (mainly Catholic) used to make adolescents wear boxing gloves at night to prevent the SIN of self-abuse!
Malicious rumours we also circulated by the staff saying that self-abuse caused blindness!
If all else failed there was always Bromide in the tea!
That’s a lot of action.
Isn’t the caption photograph from CLOCKWORK ORANGE?
Yes. Malcolm MacDowell, I believe.
Yes. Malcolm MacDowell, I believe.
If they don’t die of prostate cancer first! Not “clearing one’s cache” has an effect on the prostate.
How Does Sex Affect Your Prostate? – Ben’s Natural Health (bensnaturalhealth.com)
Isn’t the caption photograph from CLOCKWORK ORANGE?
Well, at least the eye-sight of these men will remain good into their old-age.
Thank goodness sesquipedalianism eschews obfuscation.
Have an upvote to counter the downvote given by some humourless oik.
I eschew long words simply because I can’t spell them.
Have an upvote to counter the downvote given by some humourless oik.
I eschew long words simply because I can’t spell them.
Thank goodness sesquipedalianism eschews obfuscation.
Well, that was definitely worth the read. It managed to inspire something akin to a sense of civilizational or existential dread in me. A number of disparate threads seem to get weaved together for me. If even half of it is true then it goes a long way to explaining our current cultural and spiritual malaise.
Well, that was definitely worth the read. It managed to inspire something akin to a sense of civilizational or existential dread in me. A number of disparate threads seem to get weaved together for me. If even half of it is true then it goes a long way to explaining our current cultural and spiritual malaise.
Wow! Just clicked on one of the links in the essay. Was completely gobsmacked to see a p0rn site moralize against young men trying to give up masturbation. When p0rn distributors are in a position to judge and lecture others on abstaining from unwholesome activities, you know something must be going horribly wrong with our society.
They are, and there is.
They are, and there is.
Wow! Just clicked on one of the links in the essay. Was completely gobsmacked to see a p0rn site moralize against young men trying to give up masturbation. When p0rn distributors are in a position to judge and lecture others on abstaining from unwholesome activities, you know something must be going horribly wrong with our society.
Very interesting. A lot to unpick, and I also wish the title better reflected the content of the article. The fascination with improving ‘people’ (others) drove the push for religious conversion, ideas of civilised versus savage, led to ideas of eugenics and breeding, it drives medical intervention, and psychological intervention, and improvement through education. And from psychology, it embedded the idea that what you buy makes you better. It’s a continual stream of expert interventions to ‘tame the brutes’.
Very interesting. A lot to unpick, and I also wish the title better reflected the content of the article. The fascination with improving ‘people’ (others) drove the push for religious conversion, ideas of civilised versus savage, led to ideas of eugenics and breeding, it drives medical intervention, and psychological intervention, and improvement through education. And from psychology, it embedded the idea that what you buy makes you better. It’s a continual stream of expert interventions to ‘tame the brutes’.
The psychologists and psychiatrists were the real fascists. Foisting their half baked theories on to the rest of the world as science. Thomas Ssasz was correct. Wikipedia has a very good summary about him.
The reduction of mankind from free willed rational being called by Love to love his neighbor as himself, to the Nietzschean mobile slab of meat in the battle of the will for power in the narcissistic hedonistic realm of mindless matter in meaningless motion.
The reduction of mankind from free willed rational being called by Love to love his neighbor as himself, to the Nietzschean mobile slab of meat in the battle of the will for power in the narcissistic hedonistic realm of mindless matter in meaningless motion.
The psychologists and psychiatrists were the real fascists. Foisting their half baked theories on to the rest of the world as science. Thomas Ssasz was correct. Wikipedia has a very good summary about him.
So, bread and circuses to pacify the plebs for the sake of the Elite/Establishment…. means that not eating bread or watching TV is a revolutionary act?
People who don’t follow the herd have always seemed suspicious to the Powers That Be, and at times of (Establishment) crisis the merest hint of departure from the norm is a red flag.
Meanwhile, in the real world, people just choose to do what seems sensible.
So, bread and circuses to pacify the plebs for the sake of the Elite/Establishment…. means that not eating bread or watching TV is a revolutionary act?
People who don’t follow the herd have always seemed suspicious to the Powers That Be, and at times of (Establishment) crisis the merest hint of departure from the norm is a red flag.
Meanwhile, in the real world, people just choose to do what seems sensible.
Christianity taught us that, to improve the world, we must improve ourselves. Post-modern ideology teaches us that we must improve other people. It’s a road that will always lead to the gates of the Gulag.
Christianity taught us that, to improve the world, we must improve ourselves. Post-modern ideology teaches us that we must improve other people. It’s a road that will always lead to the gates of the Gulag.
Interesting.
An emasculated society was the goal, and that is where we have, by and large, ended up.
Very difficult at this point not to think conspiratorially.
Looking around, the evidence: the results as well as the pretty overt social engineering seems to be everywhere.
However – this does fall into confirmation bias territory. Whats needed is some facts and evidence that might serve to refute the thesis…
…Maybe something like the MSM getting behind a prominent and popular person whilst they champion masculinity, or perhaps even a nod – however little – to masculine positivity in the west’s education system. Maybe a manly leader or politician not being the constant focus of opprobrium from the media and other elites. Maybe a little easing off from ever popular conflation of masculinity with toxicity.
No such luck. I will though, however desperately, continue to look for evidence that would show my conspiracy theory for the nonsense it surely is.
Interesting.
An emasculated society was the goal, and that is where we have, by and large, ended up.
Very difficult at this point not to think conspiratorially.
Looking around, the evidence: the results as well as the pretty overt social engineering seems to be everywhere.
However – this does fall into confirmation bias territory. Whats needed is some facts and evidence that might serve to refute the thesis…
…Maybe something like the MSM getting behind a prominent and popular person whilst they champion masculinity, or perhaps even a nod – however little – to masculine positivity in the west’s education system. Maybe a manly leader or politician not being the constant focus of opprobrium from the media and other elites. Maybe a little easing off from ever popular conflation of masculinity with toxicity.
No such luck. I will though, however desperately, continue to look for evidence that would show my conspiracy theory for the nonsense it surely is.
It´s curious how the US elite that has brought us the overthrow of governments around the world, endless wars and huge investment in nuclear arms sees a Fascist threat in small towns where violence and crime are low.
Considering the biggest support for the Nazis came from rural Lutherans while Berlin with its hedonism and BDSM subculture was one of the most important bulwarks of resistance to Nazis probably gave some support here to their thinking. Add to that the other big supporting group for Nazis were in sciences/academia and medicine, as well as progressive liberals in America themselves being racists of the Eugenicist type probably gave another push to the heavy atonement towards anti-racism amongst the progressive liberal elite to never veer that way again.
Having said that, I believe, with or without realising it, what they’ve done is a Faustian bargain. Had Nazis not prevailed, Germany may have easily turned Communist as there was heavy support for extreme left, and incidentally many former Communists became Nazis in the end. Therefore the revolutionary vs. authoritarian axis is really a false dichotomy. Deliberately supporting hard-left measures and policies (and people) as a counter measure to a potential danger of fascism will ultimately foster more discord, societal break down and chaos. Those hard lefties can easily switch side to become true fascists, or vice versa if US ever goes towards a Weimar style crisis point.
What was needed was to support a strong centre made of moderates. If this article is to be believed, American elites may have committed too much for too long to accept a major mistake at this point. What I wonder though is how Orwell so crisply saw where this was headed 80 years ago.
The National Socialists in Germany were largely indistinguishable from the Communists in their utopian phantasms of the glorious Third Reich.
Hegel seems to be a problem and our forgetfulness of Aristotle and Aquinas. Final causality. The transcendent end and purpose that grounds our participated finite being in the eternal. Our innate teleological calling of which evolution is but the material substrate not the meaning.
This is an exciting and thought-provoking take. I’m happy to have something to chew over for a few days! The popular imagination really needs an upgrade when thinking about that era. The blase attitude towards inflation, just to pick one sub-topic, indicates a complete memory-holing of the disheartening effect that can have on a society.
The National Socialists in Germany were largely indistinguishable from the Communists in their utopian phantasms of the glorious Third Reich.
Hegel seems to be a problem and our forgetfulness of Aristotle and Aquinas. Final causality. The transcendent end and purpose that grounds our participated finite being in the eternal. Our innate teleological calling of which evolution is but the material substrate not the meaning.
This is an exciting and thought-provoking take. I’m happy to have something to chew over for a few days! The popular imagination really needs an upgrade when thinking about that era. The blase attitude towards inflation, just to pick one sub-topic, indicates a complete memory-holing of the disheartening effect that can have on a society.
Considering the biggest support for the Nazis came from rural Lutherans while Berlin with its hedonism and BDSM subculture was one of the most important bulwarks of resistance to Nazis probably gave some support here to their thinking. Add to that the other big supporting group for Nazis were in sciences/academia and medicine, as well as progressive liberals in America themselves being racists of the Eugenicist type probably gave another push to the heavy atonement towards anti-racism amongst the progressive liberal elite to never veer that way again.
Having said that, I believe, with or without realising it, what they’ve done is a Faustian bargain. Had Nazis not prevailed, Germany may have easily turned Communist as there was heavy support for extreme left, and incidentally many former Communists became Nazis in the end. Therefore the revolutionary vs. authoritarian axis is really a false dichotomy. Deliberately supporting hard-left measures and policies (and people) as a counter measure to a potential danger of fascism will ultimately foster more discord, societal break down and chaos. Those hard lefties can easily switch side to become true fascists, or vice versa if US ever goes towards a Weimar style crisis point.
What was needed was to support a strong centre made of moderates. If this article is to be believed, American elites may have committed too much for too long to accept a major mistake at this point. What I wonder though is how Orwell so crisply saw where this was headed 80 years ago.
It´s curious how the US elite that has brought us the overthrow of governments around the world, endless wars and huge investment in nuclear arms sees a Fascist threat in small towns where violence and crime are low.
Brilliant, as usual Dr. Crawford. Perusing the internet as we all do regularly feels like scrolling through the radio dial back in the 70s or 80s out in some remote part of the country. Mostly noise and occasionally a few moments of bliss as you hit a signal. Then its gone again as the atmospheric conditions fluctuate. But just enough of a thrill to keep you obsessively engaged. This article was like suddenly hearing a Beethoven symphony in full. It’s all downhill from here so I’m turning off the computer and going to do something productive now.
Brilliant, as usual Dr. Crawford. Perusing the internet as we all do regularly feels like scrolling through the radio dial back in the 70s or 80s out in some remote part of the country. Mostly noise and occasionally a few moments of bliss as you hit a signal. Then its gone again as the atmospheric conditions fluctuate. But just enough of a thrill to keep you obsessively engaged. This article was like suddenly hearing a Beethoven symphony in full. It’s all downhill from here so I’m turning off the computer and going to do something productive now.
Bloody brilliant. I’m a Catholic male and big fan of Aristotelian realism.. .final causality… meaning moved by Aquinas’ “actus purus”, Love. So as in all appetites, good in themselves, we must use our rational free wills to determine and pursue the objective good for self and others.
The scholarship and deep insight behind this gift of thought is simply terrific and indeed stunning. This has to be shared. We are caused by and for necessarily transcendent Love and created for love fully chosen. This article aptly traces the road not taken. I very much look forward to further immersion into this post Freudian rebellion against neoMarxist state absolutism by technotyrants patting or our heads while assuring us women are not real. This article sure makes my new paid subscription look like a very good investment in hope.
Bloody brilliant. I’m a Catholic male and big fan of Aristotelian realism.. .final causality… meaning moved by Aquinas’ “actus purus”, Love. So as in all appetites, good in themselves, we must use our rational free wills to determine and pursue the objective good for self and others.
The scholarship and deep insight behind this gift of thought is simply terrific and indeed stunning. This has to be shared. We are caused by and for necessarily transcendent Love and created for love fully chosen. This article aptly traces the road not taken. I very much look forward to further immersion into this post Freudian rebellion against neoMarxist state absolutism by technotyrants patting or our heads while assuring us women are not real. This article sure makes my new paid subscription look like a very good investment in hope.
I’m puzzled why “[author’s name] ?writes…” remains in an Unherd header on the mobile app, not for the first time. Is there a doubt about it?
Not an essay, methinks, that could’ve been produced by ChatGPT, although it should’ve been proof-read before publication.
The thesis has an extraordinary reach, back through the annals of the 20th century post-Freud to bring into focus some of the key aspects of where we are right now. A valuable piece therefore, although as others have commented, to begin with it seems unpromising, if not off-putting.
I’m puzzled why “[author’s name] ?writes…” remains in an Unherd header on the mobile app, not for the first time. Is there a doubt about it?
Not an essay, methinks, that could’ve been produced by ChatGPT, although it should’ve been proof-read before publication.
The thesis has an extraordinary reach, back through the annals of the 20th century post-Freud to bring into focus some of the key aspects of where we are right now. A valuable piece therefore, although as others have commented, to begin with it seems unpromising, if not off-putting.
Just when you thought it was safe to cum out of the cupboard !!!
I love a tossed away line.
I love a tossed away line.
Just when you thought it was safe to cum out of the cupboard !!!
Very interesting essay, covering themes that have appeared in books such as Liberal Fascism by Jonah Goldberg, and many of Roger Scruton’s works too.
One observation I would make is that it is surely easy to understand at least one good reason why progressive feminists might be threatened by the emergence of a thing like the NoFap movement amongst young men.
I agree that at first sight you’d think they’d be happy that a source of potential violence towards women might be self-regulated away by men themselves, but on closer inspection it is also clear that if it were to succeed at scale, then an important source of feminine power – namely the right and disposition to withhold sex from men and control the terms upon which it is granted – diminishes in power.
In fact, given that sexual violence is something only a very small minority of men do but sexual longing is something almost all men do, feminists might even see NoFap as a regressive and unwelcome emergence on the whole.
De Beauvoir’s neoMarxist feminism is a materialist reductionist exercise, the central problem of which is its denial of the radically spiritual nature of men and women and of existence, grounded in the necessarily transcendent as the classical metaphysical demonstrations of the existence of God successfully show.
And the impossible attempt to clutch at “What is a woman” as Ms… at war with Mrs. and Miss, is precisely that rejection of our very ontic reality.
A man is only intelligible if somewhere out there there is such a thing as a woman. It is no accident that our fascist , narcissistic, hedonistic anything but liberal left cannot answer the question posed by the Daily Wire movie…. “What is a woman?”. It is fascinating to watch the highly educated stupid people squirm and run from Matt Walsh’s question.
Welcome to the post Christian era. Intelligibility is only to be found in reason if , as C S Lewis learned from G K Chesterton, REASON is at the ground of being. Subatomic particles are not the ordering bits.. they are the ordered bits and its no surprise that our free wills which cannot be reduced to the material or neurological enable us to use our rational powers to apprehend equally non material universals like the number 3, mathematics and logical propositions.
Philosophical materialism is at the core of this otherwise excellent article…and we are not unintelligible materialist entities.
We are created by the Final Cause of Aristotle and Aquinas.. Who is Love Himself. Our material Alpha at the Big Bang is presented with the Omega of our rational and free incorporated spiritual souls.
This is the buried treasure of the west. The answer is… religious.
Thank you. I don’t entirely agree, but it’s an excellent comment.
“When men stop believing in God they do not believe in nothing, they believe in anything.” – G K Chesterton.
Thank you. I don’t entirely agree, but it’s an excellent comment.
“When men stop believing in God they do not believe in nothing, they believe in anything.” – G K Chesterton.
De Beauvoir’s neoMarxist feminism is a materialist reductionist exercise, the central problem of which is its denial of the radically spiritual nature of men and women and of existence, grounded in the necessarily transcendent as the classical metaphysical demonstrations of the existence of God successfully show.
And the impossible attempt to clutch at “What is a woman” as Ms… at war with Mrs. and Miss, is precisely that rejection of our very ontic reality.
A man is only intelligible if somewhere out there there is such a thing as a woman. It is no accident that our fascist , narcissistic, hedonistic anything but liberal left cannot answer the question posed by the Daily Wire movie…. “What is a woman?”. It is fascinating to watch the highly educated stupid people squirm and run from Matt Walsh’s question.
Welcome to the post Christian era. Intelligibility is only to be found in reason if , as C S Lewis learned from G K Chesterton, REASON is at the ground of being. Subatomic particles are not the ordering bits.. they are the ordered bits and its no surprise that our free wills which cannot be reduced to the material or neurological enable us to use our rational powers to apprehend equally non material universals like the number 3, mathematics and logical propositions.
Philosophical materialism is at the core of this otherwise excellent article…and we are not unintelligible materialist entities.
We are created by the Final Cause of Aristotle and Aquinas.. Who is Love Himself. Our material Alpha at the Big Bang is presented with the Omega of our rational and free incorporated spiritual souls.
This is the buried treasure of the west. The answer is… religious.
Very interesting essay, covering themes that have appeared in books such as Liberal Fascism by Jonah Goldberg, and many of Roger Scruton’s works too.
One observation I would make is that it is surely easy to understand at least one good reason why progressive feminists might be threatened by the emergence of a thing like the NoFap movement amongst young men.
I agree that at first sight you’d think they’d be happy that a source of potential violence towards women might be self-regulated away by men themselves, but on closer inspection it is also clear that if it were to succeed at scale, then an important source of feminine power – namely the right and disposition to withhold sex from men and control the terms upon which it is granted – diminishes in power.
In fact, given that sexual violence is something only a very small minority of men do but sexual longing is something almost all men do, feminists might even see NoFap as a regressive and unwelcome emergence on the whole.
Thank you for some real big picture thinking. Could it be that power, in all its myriad variations, is the primal human motivation: and that civilisation is just a system of checks and balances on power; and that successful civilisations have devised some solution to “who guards these guards?”.
The answer fortunately is no. Indeed the hatred, hell and violence all around us that denies that women, boys and girls are real is indeed the profound collapse entailed in the pursuit of the material, finite and passing over the true, the good and the beautiful. The transcendentals that speak to our spirit and freedom. The call to love in a cosmos created by and for Love. That is what classical liberalism is all about. Natural law. The preamble to the US constitution outlines this necessarily divine ground of being in BEING. There is no other cosmos; no other life.
The answer fortunately is no. Indeed the hatred, hell and violence all around us that denies that women, boys and girls are real is indeed the profound collapse entailed in the pursuit of the material, finite and passing over the true, the good and the beautiful. The transcendentals that speak to our spirit and freedom. The call to love in a cosmos created by and for Love. That is what classical liberalism is all about. Natural law. The preamble to the US constitution outlines this necessarily divine ground of being in BEING. There is no other cosmos; no other life.
Thank you for some real big picture thinking. Could it be that power, in all its myriad variations, is the primal human motivation: and that civilisation is just a system of checks and balances on power; and that successful civilisations have devised some solution to “who guards these guards?”.
“Since most governments are incapable of doing something so simple as ensuring delivery of the mail on time, I’m always a little reluctant to credit them with organising an epoch spanning psy-op.”
Totally agree with this comment.
I am mystified by the praise heaped on this essay. I found it to be scholarly, well-written, comprehensive and … incoherent. I am old enough to have lived through most of its history, and somehow all of the devious secret plans of the administrative state aimed at my sexuality as an index of where I lie on the fascist/democratic spectrum either missed the mark or operated on such a subtle, subliminal level that no trace of them can be found anywhere! Great plan that!
Agree. Way too deterministic. But this is par for the course in the academy these days…..it keeps people in well paid work if one can join up historical dots with some kind of interpretation, in the knowledge that nothing is actually provable.
I agree. But equally the author offers several examples from the post-war world that echo the way the modern state seeks to/has delegitimise/d the family and its instinctive morality through social engineering. It can still be successful even though it hasn’t universally succeeded.
This is our modern curse. The only possible answer is a spiritual/ religious answer. And such answers lie buried in our history and that which truly caused the west to soar. We have lowered the term of our existence to the finite and temporal; ignoring that we are unavoidably grounded in BEING. Love really is the call, an eternal call, not Hegel’s utopia.
Agree. Way too deterministic. But this is par for the course in the academy these days…..it keeps people in well paid work if one can join up historical dots with some kind of interpretation, in the knowledge that nothing is actually provable.
I agree. But equally the author offers several examples from the post-war world that echo the way the modern state seeks to/has delegitimise/d the family and its instinctive morality through social engineering. It can still be successful even though it hasn’t universally succeeded.
This is our modern curse. The only possible answer is a spiritual/ religious answer. And such answers lie buried in our history and that which truly caused the west to soar. We have lowered the term of our existence to the finite and temporal; ignoring that we are unavoidably grounded in BEING. Love really is the call, an eternal call, not Hegel’s utopia.
“Since most governments are incapable of doing something so simple as ensuring delivery of the mail on time, I’m always a little reluctant to credit them with organising an epoch spanning psy-op.”
Totally agree with this comment.
I am mystified by the praise heaped on this essay. I found it to be scholarly, well-written, comprehensive and … incoherent. I am old enough to have lived through most of its history, and somehow all of the devious secret plans of the administrative state aimed at my sexuality as an index of where I lie on the fascist/democratic spectrum either missed the mark or operated on such a subtle, subliminal level that no trace of them can be found anywhere! Great plan that!
This explains a lot. It needs a more serious title. Truly remarkable.
This explains a lot. It needs a more serious title. Truly remarkable.
This is why I come to Unherd.
This is why I come to Unherd.
This is an outstanding essay.
This is an outstanding essay.
Some of this reminds me of what Winston was told by a member of the ‘inner party’ in Orwell’s 1984: ‘We create human nature ‘.
Some of this reminds me of what Winston was told by a member of the ‘inner party’ in Orwell’s 1984: ‘We create human nature ‘.
The big problem with Trotsky based neo liberalism is the fact China will not copy it nor islam and putin is pushing the line the days of western hegemony are over, the increasing feminised western world is destroying itself and letting in mass immigration from all over the world leading to fragmentation of family life and also communities in the not too distant future the west will lose the will to defend itself.
The big problem with Trotsky based neo liberalism is the fact China will not copy it nor islam and putin is pushing the line the days of western hegemony are over, the increasing feminised western world is destroying itself and letting in mass immigration from all over the world leading to fragmentation of family life and also communities in the not too distant future the west will lose the will to defend itself.
Fascinating.
Worth checking-out is Jassner’s ‘Aftermath’, the story of the Allies, and especially the Americans, rebuilding of Germany after WW2. Many of the attributes of the psycho-social revolution were employed there, precisely to change the mindset of a ‘fascist’ populace.
Fascinating.
Worth checking-out is Jassner’s ‘Aftermath’, the story of the Allies, and especially the Americans, rebuilding of Germany after WW2. Many of the attributes of the psycho-social revolution were employed there, precisely to change the mindset of a ‘fascist’ populace.
we are ruled my MasturbaTories..
we are ruled my MasturbaTories..
Really interesting article, and scary to see the next phase of the psy-op is playing out in schools right now as described at length here
: https://caroldansereau.substack.com/p/the-anti-science-disaster-of-gender
Really interesting article, and scary to see the next phase of the psy-op is playing out in schools right now as described at length here
: https://caroldansereau.substack.com/p/the-anti-science-disaster-of-gender
Fantastic stuff
Fantastic stuff
I am only halfway through, but I concur with other posters who say the headline does this long and thoughtful article a disservice.
Good work, Matthew.
I am only halfway through, but I concur with other posters who say the headline does this long and thoughtful article a disservice.
Good work, Matthew.
This article took me two goes but was well worth it in the end. Are we all just Guinea pigs for some vast out of control social experiment?
This article took me two goes but was well worth it in the end. Are we all just Guinea pigs for some vast out of control social experiment?
“these young men are displaying disturbing fascist tendencies.”
How dare these young men not condone state-approval explotation! Next they’ll be coming for us! They’ll even say we deserve it, the gall!
The pornographer cries in pain as he hijacks the biological compulsions of the impressionable and exploits and proftis from the vulnerable (and often underage).
Exactly.
Exactly.
“these young men are displaying disturbing fascist tendencies.”
How dare these young men not condone state-approval explotation! Next they’ll be coming for us! They’ll even say we deserve it, the gall!
The pornographer cries in pain as he hijacks the biological compulsions of the impressionable and exploits and proftis from the vulnerable (and often underage).
Verbose but a great read.
The story of the misguided attempt to immunise society against Fascism by disrupting the disciplined family should be more widely told.
Taking a break from masturbating is a fairly cringeworthy example of “untoward eruptions of ascetic self-command”, but the article gives a very good explanation for why such a puzzlingly disproportionate amount of venom is reserved for it.
Verbose but a great read.
The story of the misguided attempt to immunise society against Fascism by disrupting the disciplined family should be more widely told.
Taking a break from masturbating is a fairly cringeworthy example of “untoward eruptions of ascetic self-command”, but the article gives a very good explanation for why such a puzzlingly disproportionate amount of venom is reserved for it.
I lived long enough to read an article entitled ‘The politics of masturbation’. How the world has changed and yet according to Albert Ellis I shouldn’t ‘musturbate’ rather I should get on with my life, accepting what is, not what was or what might be.
I lived long enough to read an article entitled ‘The politics of masturbation’. How the world has changed and yet according to Albert Ellis I shouldn’t ‘musturbate’ rather I should get on with my life, accepting what is, not what was or what might be.
The title sucked me in. Maybe I’m a fool for clickbait but, when I saw the pic of Alex the Droog, I just HAD to read the article [and listen to Martin Buchanan reading it at the same time].
I was unaware of US government involvement in the management of mass psychology, and the dangers of it are apparent. But I can’t ignore my gut-level reaction that at least some of its basic premises are true. The idea of allowing, even encouraging, all manner of sexual and violent self-expression seems at best a project for the far future when societal conflicts have been permanently and peacefully resolved. Yet my own experience growing up seems to fit the Reichian model to a T. My middle-class parents raised my siblings and me with a minimum of force and plenty of encouragement of our athletic, academic and artistic passions, but our parents’ liberalism stopped short of sexual self-expression, and I am beset to this day with sexual shame. My brothers and I were given free rein to sow our wild oats, but our sisters were expected to remain virgins until marriage.
Further, I can’t help but feel that authoritarianism is in fact tied to sexual conservatism and repression; it just seems instinctively true. We’ll see how the series develops, but I also can’t help but see its implications for present-day America.
It’s actually just the natural response of a free willed rational, hence responsible being. The attempt to separate our very being and its sexual expression from its natural and beautiful meaning and purpose.. life.. children, is the sick delusion of our narcissistic hedonism .. and we are paying the price for this. Women have never been more unhappy. Nor men.
We can all at times be open to seeing love, truth and beauty, the very ordering and transcendent principles of the order of matter.. including our material dimensions including the sexual.
We in the west have neglected and forgotten what is truest about us which is our radical contingency to Love and BEING. It is reason that is authoritive not authoritarianism. Reason must align with REASON. God.
Did you ever think that maybe we should feel shame when we use our sexual faculties, and the bodies of other for trivial entertainment, detached from a loving relationship? Maybe our conscience is telling us something that’s true?
Having sex with someone you don’t care about, and don’t plan to have around for very long is using them in the deepest way a person can be used.
It’s actually just the natural response of a free willed rational, hence responsible being. The attempt to separate our very being and its sexual expression from its natural and beautiful meaning and purpose.. life.. children, is the sick delusion of our narcissistic hedonism .. and we are paying the price for this. Women have never been more unhappy. Nor men.
We can all at times be open to seeing love, truth and beauty, the very ordering and transcendent principles of the order of matter.. including our material dimensions including the sexual.
We in the west have neglected and forgotten what is truest about us which is our radical contingency to Love and BEING. It is reason that is authoritive not authoritarianism. Reason must align with REASON. God.
Did you ever think that maybe we should feel shame when we use our sexual faculties, and the bodies of other for trivial entertainment, detached from a loving relationship? Maybe our conscience is telling us something that’s true?
Having sex with someone you don’t care about, and don’t plan to have around for very long is using them in the deepest way a person can be used.
The title sucked me in. Maybe I’m a fool for clickbait but, when I saw the pic of Alex the Droog, I just HAD to read the article [and listen to Martin Buchanan reading it at the same time].
I was unaware of US government involvement in the management of mass psychology, and the dangers of it are apparent. But I can’t ignore my gut-level reaction that at least some of its basic premises are true. The idea of allowing, even encouraging, all manner of sexual and violent self-expression seems at best a project for the far future when societal conflicts have been permanently and peacefully resolved. Yet my own experience growing up seems to fit the Reichian model to a T. My middle-class parents raised my siblings and me with a minimum of force and plenty of encouragement of our athletic, academic and artistic passions, but our parents’ liberalism stopped short of sexual self-expression, and I am beset to this day with sexual shame. My brothers and I were given free rein to sow our wild oats, but our sisters were expected to remain virgins until marriage.
Further, I can’t help but feel that authoritarianism is in fact tied to sexual conservatism and repression; it just seems instinctively true. We’ll see how the series develops, but I also can’t help but see its implications for present-day America.
This article on ‘defamilialization’, ‘post-maternalism’, and ‘postfamilialism’ expands this very important discussion.
https://mercatornet.com/defamilialisation-an-ideology-that-shapes-our-lives/19930/
Mercatornet is a wonderful site.
Mercatornet is a wonderful site.
This article on ‘defamilialization’, ‘post-maternalism’, and ‘postfamilialism’ expands this very important discussion.
https://mercatornet.com/defamilialisation-an-ideology-that-shapes-our-lives/19930/
Recent research tells of male sperm counts (fertility) dropping by 50% since the the 1950’s. It’s not clear why this is – environment (toxins?) or behavior (fapping?)….I wonder if this plays into the discussion somehow
Recent research tells of male sperm counts (fertility) dropping by 50% since the the 1950’s. It’s not clear why this is – environment (toxins?) or behavior (fapping?)….I wonder if this plays into the discussion somehow
Great article!
Great article!
In the cinema world we seem to be in the midst of what I’ve been calling the “masturbation era”. I think it started around 2011. Lena Dunham’s “Girls” was one of the first I noticed, but it’s a rare film these days that’s targeted for millenials and younger that doesn’t have at least one masturbation scene along with a couple of pretty explicit bathroom scenes. This sort of stuff must figure into this theory somehow.
It’s kind of interesting to track these cinema “periods”. The preceding one was the “hydraulic sex” scene – where same time of movies always had to have at least two or three essential soft-core porn scenes where the camera is about a foot away from the “stars” and there’s lots of hydraulic sounds and energy. Before that era it was the vomit era. Most dramas had at least one gratuitous scene of explicit vomiting. Trey Parker made fun of this in “Team America” by having a three or four minute puppet vomit scene that was so funny I nearly choked laughing. He also had a hydraulic sex scene – at the cusp of eras, I guess.
In the cinema world we seem to be in the midst of what I’ve been calling the “masturbation era”. I think it started around 2011. Lena Dunham’s “Girls” was one of the first I noticed, but it’s a rare film these days that’s targeted for millenials and younger that doesn’t have at least one masturbation scene along with a couple of pretty explicit bathroom scenes. This sort of stuff must figure into this theory somehow.
It’s kind of interesting to track these cinema “periods”. The preceding one was the “hydraulic sex” scene – where same time of movies always had to have at least two or three essential soft-core porn scenes where the camera is about a foot away from the “stars” and there’s lots of hydraulic sounds and energy. Before that era it was the vomit era. Most dramas had at least one gratuitous scene of explicit vomiting. Trey Parker made fun of this in “Team America” by having a three or four minute puppet vomit scene that was so funny I nearly choked laughing. He also had a hydraulic sex scene – at the cusp of eras, I guess.
“‘The first effect of not believing in God is to believe in anything’
Emile Cammaerts Chesterton: The Laughing Prophet (1937)
Oh no!!! Not that old chesnut again? When will people realise that quoting it adds nothing to the debate? It’s not funny, clever or true.
Judging by the idiocy the “nones” among the young in the US will accept, it’s spot on. Woke ideology is nothing but a puritanical religion without God, forgiveness, or mercy.
Well said Snapper .;-)
I agree with your last sentence, and I am an atheist.
Well said Snapper .;-)
I agree with your last sentence, and I am an atheist.
It sure seems to encompass the phenomenon of “useful idiots” that Marx so relied upon as they believed self satisfying smug things while ignoring the magnificence of what lies before us and in which we participate. Being itself.
And the poor soul who devotes all of life to scraping and clawing and stowing so called “earthly treasure”.
I’ve heard people describe GK as the most intelligent man of the 20th century and having read a little bit of his genius and elan, I find that judgment very plausible.
To know one’s final cause , end and means is to know what is by definition , essential. Cheers
Judging by the idiocy the “nones” among the young in the US will accept, it’s spot on. Woke ideology is nothing but a puritanical religion without God, forgiveness, or mercy.
It sure seems to encompass the phenomenon of “useful idiots” that Marx so relied upon as they believed self satisfying smug things while ignoring the magnificence of what lies before us and in which we participate. Being itself.
And the poor soul who devotes all of life to scraping and clawing and stowing so called “earthly treasure”.
I’ve heard people describe GK as the most intelligent man of the 20th century and having read a little bit of his genius and elan, I find that judgment very plausible.
To know one’s final cause , end and means is to know what is by definition , essential. Cheers
Oh no!!! Not that old chesnut again? When will people realise that quoting it adds nothing to the debate? It’s not funny, clever or true.
“‘The first effect of not believing in God is to believe in anything’
Emile Cammaerts Chesterton: The Laughing Prophet (1937)
I fully understand why some would remove the demos from democracy. Judging by our politicians, who puts them there? The fickle, the undereducated and the indifferent. It would seem our elected onanists are not intent on spilling their seed, rather on creating stony ground.
I fully understand why some would remove the demos from democracy. Judging by our politicians, who puts them there? The fickle, the undereducated and the indifferent. It would seem our elected onanists are not intent on spilling their seed, rather on creating stony ground.
As a follower of Jesus Christ and a believer in the Bible being His word and way to us, it is not difficult to understand from Genesis 1 – 3 God’s original intent for us. That is to be son’s and daughters of God, a bride for His Son and a dwelling place for His Holy Spirit. In simplistic terms FAMILY.
God Most High’s favorite name is mentioned by His “Only Begotten Son” Jesus Christ over 100 times in the gospel of John alone, That favorite name? FATHER.
So it should surprise no true follower of the Lord at all that the enemy and the active ‘antichrist’ (who deny the existence let alone the resurrection of Christ) would singularly target God’s original plan and design that our original mother and father rebelled against. Sexual immorality and it’s accompanying addictions has led to the destruction of every civilization since “the days of Noah” and it is not by accident that the Lord said that things would be like those days before He returns!
As a follower of Jesus Christ and a believer in the Bible being His word and way to us, it is not difficult to understand from Genesis 1 – 3 God’s original intent for us. That is to be son’s and daughters of God, a bride for His Son and a dwelling place for His Holy Spirit. In simplistic terms FAMILY.
God Most High’s favorite name is mentioned by His “Only Begotten Son” Jesus Christ over 100 times in the gospel of John alone, That favorite name? FATHER.
So it should surprise no true follower of the Lord at all that the enemy and the active ‘antichrist’ (who deny the existence let alone the resurrection of Christ) would singularly target God’s original plan and design that our original mother and father rebelled against. Sexual immorality and it’s accompanying addictions has led to the destruction of every civilization since “the days of Noah” and it is not by accident that the Lord said that things would be like those days before He returns!
Mr. Crawford misses one important point. The works of psychologists, especially the theoretical kind, and especially the “mittleuropa” types, have been treated as purveyers of comical hogwash by the people of the US for many decades. Their works were common topics of Johnny Carson monolouges and I can remember little kids dressed up (by their Moms no doubt) as Freud for Halloween. The New Yorker magazine had their famous comics selection fully populated be just this sort of thing.
And as we are seeing in terms of the reactions to the Covid and Net Zero propaganda…let’s just say that Americans are not very big on cooperating. There are some real benefits in being contrary, cynical and argumentative. Like a natural immune reaction to propaganda.
In terms of popular sentiment the Kinsey reports were, I feel certain, far more influential as kindling for the sexual revolution than any government effort; block-headed and tin-eared as such efforts always are. Think of how eye opening Kinsey was for so many American women and men who had been keeping what were generally refered to as “terrible”, “lonely”, “guilty” secrets for so long, never knowing how common they were.
Even the life and work of Pablo Picasso or Peggy Lee or Elvis left a far stronger impression. When the Pill came along the revolution was primed to explode. Teenage horniness provided the match and Bam! KaBoom! Love was everywhere.
Mr. Crawford misses one important point. The works of psychologists, especially the theoretical kind, and especially the “mittleuropa” types, have been treated as purveyers of comical hogwash by the people of the US for many decades. Their works were common topics of Johnny Carson monolouges and I can remember little kids dressed up (by their Moms no doubt) as Freud for Halloween. The New Yorker magazine had their famous comics selection fully populated be just this sort of thing.
And as we are seeing in terms of the reactions to the Covid and Net Zero propaganda…let’s just say that Americans are not very big on cooperating. There are some real benefits in being contrary, cynical and argumentative. Like a natural immune reaction to propaganda.
In terms of popular sentiment the Kinsey reports were, I feel certain, far more influential as kindling for the sexual revolution than any government effort; block-headed and tin-eared as such efforts always are. Think of how eye opening Kinsey was for so many American women and men who had been keeping what were generally refered to as “terrible”, “lonely”, “guilty” secrets for so long, never knowing how common they were.
Even the life and work of Pablo Picasso or Peggy Lee or Elvis left a far stronger impression. When the Pill came along the revolution was primed to explode. Teenage horniness provided the match and Bam! KaBoom! Love was everywhere.
This is the best analysis I have read of why progressives attempt to normalize all forms of sexual activity, and especially why they promote the idea that individuals should not try to control their “psycho-sexual compulsions”.
When people do not control themselves in their personal lives and focus obsessively on sexual gratification, they become easier to control politically. Abdicating self-control in the personal sphere paves the way for abdicating free will and agency in other areas of life. Or as Matthew Crawford succinctly puts it: “Keeping the appetites at a high pitch of activity, stimulating desire and then satisfying it, can serve as a political soporific”.
This is the best analysis I have read of why progressives attempt to normalize all forms of sexual activity, and especially why they promote the idea that individuals should not try to control their “psycho-sexual compulsions”.
When people do not control themselves in their personal lives and focus obsessively on sexual gratification, they become easier to control politically. Abdicating self-control in the personal sphere paves the way for abdicating free will and agency in other areas of life. Or as Matthew Crawford succinctly puts it: “Keeping the appetites at a high pitch of activity, stimulating desire and then satisfying it, can serve as a political soporific”.
One of the best things I’ve read on UnHerd to date (despite a slightly unfortunate opening paragraph headline which doesn’t do justice to the weight of the piece). Lays out very clearly how a progressive-minded elite have spent the 20th century trying to manage the unruly herd (with some success). I hadn’t appreciated the scale of the role played by WW2-era emigrés in this process (in both Germany and in the US).
It would seem to confirm many of the darker suspicions of the American paleoconservatives
One of the best things I’ve read on UnHerd to date (despite a slightly unfortunate opening paragraph headline which doesn’t do justice to the weight of the piece). Lays out very clearly how a progressive-minded elite have spent the 20th century trying to manage the unruly herd (with some success). I hadn’t appreciated the scale of the role played by WW2-era emigrés in this process (in both Germany and in the US).
It would seem to confirm many of the darker suspicions of the American paleoconservatives
Interesting article but one just needs to travel a bit around the world to see how systematically we are engineered in the west. It is quite remarkable.
It is so obvious to everybody else but us. How we really create the “human nature” and think we are so smart.
If we can engineer society, others can come here and also re-engineer us. Think about that while you also think why the Russia can interfere but we have difficulties in interfering their political systems?
Just think!
Interesting article but one just needs to travel a bit around the world to see how systematically we are engineered in the west. It is quite remarkable.
It is so obvious to everybody else but us. How we really create the “human nature” and think we are so smart.
If we can engineer society, others can come here and also re-engineer us. Think about that while you also think why the Russia can interfere but we have difficulties in interfering their political systems?
Just think!
It’s part of satans plan for the end of days. Go out with a bang, taking 999 out of 1000 souls down with him.
Fascist tendencies? Why, that’s absurd. These people are clearly RACIST!!
I just finished reading Andrew Skull’s Desperate Remedies. It should probably come as no surprise, but the Meninger brothers absolutely hated each other. Skull reports lots of sexual shananigens there. Walt’s psychoanalyst recommended he have an affair, which he did, and (shockingly) that led to a divorce. The institute was unhappy, the workers there underpaid and discontended.
Freud was a ____.
Marx was a ____.
And the Frankfurt school was started by them too.
Freud was a ____.
Marx was a ____.
And the Frankfurt school was started by them too.
Hey, I just came by to make sure that there are no comments mentioning Jews. Ok, now you can may commence with your free speech.
Hey, I just came by to make sure that there are no comments mentioning Jews. Ok, now you can may commence with your free speech.
All of this talk of Catholics and Americans being latent fascists is fine. As long as we never mention any influence that Jews might have had in any of this.
All of this talk of Catholics and Americans being latent fascists is fine. As long as we never mention any influence that Jews might have had in any of this.
This article is the perfect example of an educated nitwit making BS sound smart with lots of names and references to movements, lacing his gibberish with historical credence. Bottom line is saying that it’s not about religion doesn’t change the fact that there is a constant war between God and Satan. God and Christianity is the good and the anti-Christians are on the side of the Devil. It’s really that simple.
This article is the perfect example of an educated nitwit making BS sound smart with lots of names and references to movements, lacing his gibberish with historical credence. Bottom line is saying that it’s not about religion doesn’t change the fact that there is a constant war between God and Satan. God and Christianity is the good and the anti-Christians are on the side of the Devil. It’s really that simple.
Things were much better during the PAX ROMANA.
Just pop in the brothel (the so called LUPANARE from Lupus=Wolf)*
next time you visit Pompeii.
(*an amusing although completely incorrect association, sadly.)
I suspect the oldest profession will finally die off within the span of conceivable future human development. Not because of any mass adoption of celibacy by men, but through technology. It’ll either be that sex robots become so lifelike that they become an adequate substitute, or that direct artificial neural connection replaces the need for physical sex in recreational terms well enough to make human prostitutes look too expensive by comparison.
It’s a bit amazing when you think about it, if this happens. A practice that has existed unbroken since the dawn of human life might become redundant in our lifetimes.
If ‘that’ happens WE will be next for the scrapyard!
Frankly I am always astonished that we haven’t got AI robots mining the Selby Coalfield and similar tasks, such as driving trains etc.
If ‘that’ happens WE will be next for the scrapyard!
Frankly I am always astonished that we haven’t got AI robots mining the Selby Coalfield and similar tasks, such as driving trains etc.
Sure, as long as you don’t view slaves and prostitutes as actual people.
I suspect the oldest profession will finally die off within the span of conceivable future human development. Not because of any mass adoption of celibacy by men, but through technology. It’ll either be that sex robots become so lifelike that they become an adequate substitute, or that direct artificial neural connection replaces the need for physical sex in recreational terms well enough to make human prostitutes look too expensive by comparison.
It’s a bit amazing when you think about it, if this happens. A practice that has existed unbroken since the dawn of human life might become redundant in our lifetimes.
Sure, as long as you don’t view slaves and prostitutes as actual people.
Things were much better during the PAX ROMANA.
Just pop in the brothel (the so called LUPANARE from Lupus=Wolf)*
next time you visit Pompeii.
(*an amusing although completely incorrect association, sadly.)
Nice word salad. Many conflated points intended to obfuscate from the actual progenitors of our decaying morality. The truth is that above any form of scrutiny exists an activist class(race) that has for centuries promoted sexual deviancy, pornography, atheism, abortion, usury, feminism, marxism and anti-Christianity. Their well-engrained victimhood status belies their control of banking, media, academia and government. Without these people, nobody would really be pushing for all of the degeneracy that is destroying formerly Christian nations. All of this talk of Nazis and fascism, alongside Christianity is one of their favorite tactics. It makes sense that they would want to destroy Christian nations since they were in fact the ones that killed Christ.
Nice word salad. Many conflated points intended to obfuscate from the actual progenitors of our decaying morality. The truth is that above any form of scrutiny exists an activist class(race) that has for centuries promoted sexual deviancy, pornography, atheism, abortion, usury, feminism, marxism and anti-Christianity. Their well-engrained victimhood status belies their control of banking, media, academia and government. Without these people, nobody would really be pushing for all of the degeneracy that is destroying formerly Christian nations. All of this talk of Nazis and fascism, alongside Christianity is one of their favorite tactics. It makes sense that they would want to destroy Christian nations since they were in fact the ones that killed Christ.
Many conflated points intended to obfuscate from the actual progenitors of our decaying morality. The truth is that above any form of scrutiny exists an activist class(race) that has for centuries promoted sexual deviancy, pornography, atheism, abortion, usury, feminism, marxism and anti-Christianity. Their well-engrained victimhood status belies their control of banking, media, academia and government. Without these people, nobody would really be pushing for any of the various forms of degeneracy that are destroying formerly Christian nations. All of this talk of Nazis and fascism, alongside Christianity is one of their favorite rhetorical tactics. It makes sense that they would want to destroy Christian nations since they were in fact the ones that killed Christ.
Many conflated points intended to obfuscate from the actual progenitors of our decaying morality. The truth is that above any form of scrutiny exists an activist class(race) that has for centuries promoted sexual deviancy, pornography, atheism, abortion, usury, feminism, marxism and anti-Christianity. Their well-engrained victimhood status belies their control of banking, media, academia and government. Without these people, nobody would really be pushing for any of the various forms of degeneracy that are destroying formerly Christian nations. All of this talk of Nazis and fascism, alongside Christianity is one of their favorite rhetorical tactics. It makes sense that they would want to destroy Christian nations since they were in fact the ones that killed Christ.
Many conflated points here intended to obfuscate from the actual progenitors of our decaying morality. The truth is that above any form of scrutiny exists an activist group that has for centuries promoted sexual deviancy, pornography, atheism, abortion, usury, feminism, marxism and anti-Christianity. Their well-engrained victimhood status belies their control of banking, media, academia and government. Without these people, nobody would really be pushing for all of the degeneracy that is destroying formerly Christian nations. All of this talk of Nazis and fascism, alongside Christianity is one of their favorite tactics. It makes sense that they would want to destroy Christian nations since they were in fact the ones that crucified Christ.
Many conflated points here intended to obfuscate from the actual progenitors of our decaying morality. The truth is that above any form of scrutiny exists an activist group that has for centuries promoted sexual deviancy, pornography, atheism, abortion, usury, feminism, marxism and anti-Christianity. Their well-engrained victimhood status belies their control of banking, media, academia and government. Without these people, nobody would really be pushing for all of the degeneracy that is destroying formerly Christian nations. All of this talk of Nazis and fascism, alongside Christianity is one of their favorite tactics. It makes sense that they would want to destroy Christian nations since they were in fact the ones that crucified Christ.