REAL TALK - Vol 1. - When Did The American Man Get So Wimpy?
Yes, you read the title right.
The American man has gone soft. THIS IS NOT ABOUT being able to fight, it’s not really about violence at all. The only place for that is when a man is protecting his family. Although, the idea of family is so convoluted now I am not even sure what it means anymore.
Image Credit
What This is About - integrity, sacrifice, pride!
Look at your granfather’s generation or even your father’s. Then look at yourself and the generations younger than you. Is it even a comparison???
I’m an American male in his mid-thirties. By no means have I ever considered myself to be a man’s man. So when I compare myself to young twenty somethings and I feel like they make me look tough I literally worry for our future.
The American male gender has gotten WIMPY.
And it most likely started with my generation!!!
My grandfather turned 90 years old earlier this year. He just started slowing down in the last couple years. Up unitl then this man was a freaking MACHINE!!!
Serve in World War II – did that.
Built a house – check.
50+ years working at Grumman – Doing everything from blasting rivets into plane panels to final inspections on the lunar space module.
(If you do not know what the lunar space module is, STOP - Slap Yourself in the Face - Now go google this historic piece of American history – Thank You!)
Hell, at 90 the dude is restoring old war planes for the museum with his fellow Grumman retirees.
He also supported and raised a family of three.
My best buddy’s Dad is 60 years old and is basically walking around on one knee. He works as a heavy machinery mechanic and the dude can barely walk!
This guy sacrificed so many opportunities over the years because number one priority was providing for his family.
Meanwhile - I sit in front of a computer all day and listen to coworkers complain like little b*tches when they have a cold and have to work. Hell, I probably do it too!
Seriously - I want to kick my own ass right now.
Sacrifice, hard work, pride, integrity.
Those are all words that define those two men.
Those are all words that seem to be dying in American society
Especially sacrifice. ME ME ME, what do I get? What is in it for me?
That seems to be the current societal theme…..wait hold on a second. I need to take a selfie!
WHY SO SOFT?
Maybe it’s all the PC nonsense they grew up with. Maybe it’s all the chemicals and hormones in the everyday food we eat. I really have no idea what it is.
However, the level of touchy feely cannot offend anyone everyone is entitled to great riches just for getting out of bed has hit CRITICAL FREAKING MASS.
Maybe it’s due to the PARTICIPATION TROPHY.
Someone get me a DeLorian so I can back in time a slap the person who started that!
I played sports growing up. My family was not involved. Dad was not my coach. Hell Dad wasn’t even around. I dealt with coaches playing favorites. I wasn’t the most talented. I took losses, I sat the bench. I did not win many trophies.
Do I feel sorry for myself or bad about it? HELL NO.
Did it suck at the time? – Yeah, it kind of did.
However, you know what happens because of those moments???
YOU BUILD CHARACTER
LEARN TO WORK HARDER THAN THE OTHER GUY IN ORDER TO SUCCEED.
APPRECIATE WHAT YOU HAVE - ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU BUST YOUR ASS FOR IT!
My life is not perfect, but most consider me successful now. NOTHING WAS HANDED TO ME.
SO MANY GUYS SIT ON THEIR ASS AND COMPLAIN THEIR LIFE DIDN’T TURN OUT HOW THEY WANTED.
Well…to quote Comedian Denis Leary
“I wanted to be center fielder for the Boston Red Sox”
“Life Sucks, get a FUCKING HELMET!”
(Are those softball helmets?.......Oops, hahahah)
I'm sure a crap storm of hate is going to rain down on me for this post. However, RELAX. There is a reason the lead tag is COMEDY. No need to climb up on the PC high chair ;-)
Here - have a participation trophy for reading this.
By the way #NSFW
Shout out to all the men (and women) who serve our country. I'm forever grateful for what you do to keep me safe. As someone who was in real danger on a historically bad day. Truly I appreciate you.
Regards,
Mitchell J
Your gramps sounds like my gramps.
Participation trophies, soft parenting, wealth, schools, digital age...So much to blame! The list goes on and it hasn't gotten any better since you wrote this, only much worse. I was never really a mans man either but I wasnt scared to go out and get dirty. Honestly though some countries are worse with major numbers of metro heterosexual men that cant change tires. We're heading that way tho! respect for having the balls to post this
Holy crap, I forgot all about this. I may need to repost this...10 months ago and barely anyone saw it!
Haha you're gonna melt them!
Just looking at the differences in careers, generations ago simply showed up at the factory, plant, mill, etc and jobs were mostly easy to be had. Now a days, you amass tens of thousands of dollars in debt and still no job.
Life back then was very singular. Wake up, go to work, come home, eat, go to bed. Now days we have handle a barrage of information, media, social bias and things they never even dreamed of back then.
Back then it was only America and the most immediate issues they had to deal with. Now a days we have the problems of the entire world crammed down our throats and there’s no end in sight.
Drugs, environmental disaster, crime, corruption, terrorism, outsourcing, income inequality…I could go on and on.
I think the people of today are way tougher than generations past. In fact, if they had to experience the shit we deal with now a days, they would go fucking nuts.
True, I can definitely see that. Then again that's also probably why we are more flakey now and don't accomplish one clear task. Too much information. Too many choices. ADD nation. Take one shot, move on.
Your grandfather couldn't make $15,000 in one blog post, could he? I think the change happened because there was a major shift in how people earn money. We went from a labor based economy largely comprised of farming and manufacturing to an economy where you can earn a substantial living with your intellect alone. I think hard work is important and people should do some labor in their life because it instills you with a good work ethic, but the times have changed, baby. Things are different now. Its easier to provide for your family if youre a wimp, so there is less pressure not to be one. Whether thats good or bad is a huge debate I cant devote my time to right now. I have something to do at 9am tomorrow, UGH. SO EARLY. Kill me now.
LOL...that exit was awesome! Agreed, the opportunity make money online did not exist.
What this new opportunity has opened up is an old opportunity. No one wants to do tradesmen type jobs anymore. Plumbers, electricians, etc. These industries are dying for people and for any young person who doesn't want to spend their life in front of a computer. They have a real opportunity now, job security with good money.
I'm preaching this to my friends younger brothers who are working dead entry level jobs. The type of people that don't want to create things or start business. These jobs are now home runs for them. Especially if they get in a union. (though I'm not really a big fan of those, its a smart play for others)
i'd be more worried this won;t get any kind of anything. But I really enjoy it. I'm not an american but you are right. Compared to grandfathers, I am weakling 101.
I think that a lot of the things that would give me pause mean so little in the grand scheme. I am scared by how little I am sometimes. So insignificant.
But we're 30, there's still time :)
Clint Eastwood was correct. But rather than just the millennials. It's the whole western world. I look at everyone around me and it's not the same as it was 40 years ago. Everyone then was more self reliant, people knew where an egg came from, knew where milk, butter and cheese came from. Sometimes you have to call a spade a spade.
Good job.
Eastwood was the man. Just saw an interview with his son. He told a story about Clint grabbing him by the throat and punching him in the face when he was a late teenager because he left his 14yr old sister behind at a party. Lesson: You don't leave your little sister at a party
If you did that now social services would take your child away!
This post has been linked to from another place on Steem.
Learn more about linkback bot v0.3
Upvote if you want the bot to continue posting linkbacks for your posts. Flag if otherwise. Built by @ontofractal