GenZ More Likely Than Boomers To Believe Feminism Harmful

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https://www.theguardian.com/news/2024/feb/01/gen-z-boys-and-men-more-likely-than-baby-boomers-to-believe-feminism-harmful-says-poll

I can't say I blame them, considering that a lot of feminism propagated on social media is of the radical sort and is a often a codeword for misandry.

Us boomers have seen the opportunities created and lives made better for the women we care about by feminism.

Interesting.

Feminism has always been counter-cultural. I don't subscribe to the current waves personally. But I don't believe it to be outright harmful. That said, I'm one of the younger millennials, not Gen Z.

Hegel proposed the law of negation of negation.

In this incident, feminists initially played a righteous role in opposing oppression; after a long period of development, it exposed its inherent unequal undertones, triggering a movement against its oppression.

Two different takes on feminism have brought the world into an era of true equality, which is great.

Let's face it: the human condition is a fraught experience.

I find that fellow-humans who exhibit significant levels of self-awarness, the courage to honestly explore themselves and the world around them, a value system that prioritizes human flourishing, and the requist intellect to facilitate these areas, populate a rather small territory at the thin edge of any given Bell Curve.

All of us struggle in the darkness to varying extents based on factors beyond our control.

The greater majority more so.

In accordence with the depth of this darkness, people are driven by fear and a desperate pursuit of survival.

This is the cradle of all evil, and in this dystopian landscape--internal as well as external--domination feels safe, and anythjng not like us feels threatening.

Other sexes, other races, other beliefs, other ages.

They are not us, and we fear them.

We fear how they might deprive us of power, freedom, assets, anything that accrues to our own dominance, and thus our own survival.

So we use whatever weapons we have at hand to keep these threats at bay.

Our weapons run along a continuum including shaming, social punishment, legislation, violence, and finally destruction.

Our aggresion escalates in response to our perception of threat.

I don't think this will ever change.

There may be times of relative progress, but the pendulum is always swinging.

Push, and push back.

With regard to sexism, it's not surprising (albeit disappointing) that males who feel socially threatened will embrace violence.

Superior physical power has historically been the primary male asset.

It has defined the hierarchy among males, and the dominance of adult men over others.

In a modern world where power is linked to education, politics, money, etc., this innate advantage can feel nerfed.

Breaking the social contract with unabashed hatred, misogyny, and violence can feel like an act of emancipation.

But, of course, it's just more destructive wrestling in the darkness.

In the end, no matter how good it feels to the frustrated, it is unlikely to achieve the respect and--dare I say it?--love, that they crave.

As to feminism, that is an empty vessel of a word, filled with varying and poorly defined concepts.

I wonder what we would find if we had each poll participant write a short essay on what feminism means to them.

I've heard a lot of explanations about the sad plight of men today. They don't ring true to me.

In my opinion, most people's problems are based in ignorance, emotional damage, and toxic socio-economic systems, not sex.

It's just easier to hate girls than to overcome cognitive limitations, work on personal trauma issues, or change systems.

Not to say that there aren't plenty of flawed women.

Take it from me: we are all foolish, and the lion's share of humanity of any sex (or gender) is even worse.

Be the kind of person you want to attract.

Build your own world within whatever craziness is going on in the time you were born into.

I have lived a long time as an unabashedly cis woman.

I have achieved hard things and survived hard things.

I value being a generative force in the world.

I am naturally wired both to fight and to nurture.

I love strong men, and if I had a love language, it would be *protection.*

I would love to treat the man I love like a god damned king.

But, I hate being abused, limited, chained, debased, denied, and silenced.

All too often this is what I have experienced from men who feel threatened, usually because of their own emotional damage.

This is greatly influenced by trauma in my own childhood which leaves me attracted to /attractive to, people who aren't good for me.

This is in no way my fault, but to the extent that I am able, it falls to me to heal those toxic filters--for my own good--if I want to achieve my relationship goals.

It's not enough to see the problem with the other person.

This is a complex topic for another essay, but is also a huge factor in the problems of human interaction.

I've burnt a lot of years, and I am not normative in a variety of cohorts which makes the statistical liklihood of me finding the relationship I want, rather slim.

But, trapped as I am within all the factors that I cannot choose, what can I do but try?

I have to be who I am, and use whatever resources are at my command to build, and rebuild, in search of what I want.

I can't give anyone else a map. We all live within ineluctable constraints including intellect, emotional health, experience, and access to resources.

And, indeed, we can't even chose what we really want.

Don't be swayed or daunted by polls or the "wisdom of the day."

I have lived long enough to see "experts" say a lot of utter nonsense that is then rejected by the next batch of "experts."

To the extend you are able, strive to understand yourself.

Find a vision of what a good life means to you, without regard for the instant political trends.

Develop yourself in the direction of that vision.

As you do that, remember that you have to sift a lot of dirt to find gold.

The more non-average you are, the thinner your wedge of that Bell Curve.

That doesn't imply bad or good.

Just that finding those "nuggets" of deep friendship, mutual understanding, or romance takes proportionally more sifting.

Like a good gold-miner, get yourself to places that are more likely to yield ore.

Keep working on being the kind of person you want to attract.

Take heart. Have courage. Believe.

Your expectations have a profound effect on your outcomes.

Social attitudes swing back and forth, the world will always be crazy.

Forget the polls and the fads of the day.

Understand yourself. Have compassion for and faith in who you are, and strive for what you want.

If you want good-hearted people to flourish, I'm on your side.

The article for those who don’t want to follow the link:

There’s a gender divide in Gen Z opinions according to research from the poll:

^ That relates to this recent article:
https://www.businessinsider.com/gen-z-g ... 024-1?IR=T

Gen-Z-ers have greater gender gap in political opinions than any generation researched before them.
According to this article, young men and women in America today seem to experience completely different realities, both hostile towards them, but not relating to each other at all.

Wow, that article is fascinating. There needs to be more understanding and support for the challenges both men and women face. It’s especially disturbing to me that only half of Gen Z men support the #MeToo movement. It’s done a lot of good for a lot of people.

People often have trouble empathizing with problems they haven’t experienced though.

I think many decent men can't even imagine what it's all about - while the undecent ones have other reasons not to support the movement.

Being non-vulnerable and in a different culture, I didn't understand metoo. There's a lot I've learned here on WP and I would love to tell all the women here that life does not need to be like that.

I think we know that it doesn’t need to be like that, but it doesn’t change the reality of past nonconsensual experiences. I don’t think all men are abusers or anything remotely close to that. However, I’m a bit more cautious when it comes to who I trust these days.