You might want to target a
girls school which is safer because there are no beta males throwing themselves
for their rescue.
Anonymous
See the quote above? It’s not meant
to be inspirational but a horrible exposition of our modern society.
The day before the Umpqua
College shooting that took 13 people and injured 20 others, it’s believed
that the killer headed to the
anonymous forum of the university to discuss his intentions. The reaction
from several other posters, instead of trying to talk him out of hit or
alerting the authorities, was to offer their advice on how to best execute his
plan! Again, the same rhetoric that we saw after the Isla Vista shooting in
2014 came up, to go after women as they offer an easier target, but to do this,
he needed to avoid “beta males throwing themselves for their rescue.”
…No beta males throwing themselves
for their rescue…
I found this quote rather surprising
as this behavior is exactly what has been socially defined as the Beta
Male.The Beta Male, as defined by Urban
Dictionary, is “an unremarkable, careful man who avoids risk and confrontation.
Beta males lack the physical presence, charisma and confidence of the Alpha male.”
Yet with that definition, most acts of White
Knighting are usually attributed to beta males. Last I checked, throwing
yourself in harm’s way to protect others is actually the opposite of “avoids
risk and confrontation.”
Unfortunately, the extreme factions
within the Feminist movement have promoted the idea that any man stepping up
and helping women is an open act of sexist and a promotion of the patriarchy.
On the other end of the SJW spectrum, the extreme MRA’s (Men’s Rights
Activists) promote the idea that men being told to step up and defend women are
actually hurting men as it promotes the idea that a man’s life is worth less
than a woman’s.
Just to be clear, neither of these
extreme factions represents either the Feminist Movement or the Men’s Right
Movement and shouldn’t be used to diminish what both groups do to help gender
equality. Now if both movements would try to keep in check and muzzle their
more radical members that would be great.
So how can we challenge a word that
tells men not to step up? How can we promote the idea that everyone is willing
to run and hide, letting evil run rampant? How can we change a world where
everyone validates their personal Victimhood as an excuse to commit horrible
acts?
The answer is rather simple. By
letting the world know you’re not a victim. I’m not talking about walking
around with an assault rifle flung over your shoulder. In truth, I view that as
an act of promoting the notion of victimhood as you believe it will keep you
from being a victim. I am talking about having the moral fiber and the
character to do moral acts no matter what society tells you. It’s about speaking
up and standing up when they want you to sit down and be quiet. It’s about
keeping your warrior spirit alive when everyone wants you to kill it off. It’s
about wearing that White
Knight Armour proudly.
The enemy is fear. We think it
is hate; but it is fear.
Ghandi.
Recently the net went on an uproar
as a
young Muslim teen was arrested for bringing into school a homemade clock as
a teacher assumed it was a makeshift bomb. Cries of Islamophobia, racism, and
bigotry went off as everyone posted their support for the young man within the
hashtag #IStandWithAhmed. And as
outcries and condemnations of the hate many Muslims within our society have to
endure, it got me thinking of every other case of discrimination where “hate”
is blamed.
I started
considering all those other cases where the net calls out the issue of bigotry
against specific groups, but instead of simply assuming these are born out of
hate, I started to consider them from the eyes of those discriminating. The only way to understand a situation is by placing yourself on both ends of the spectrum while trying not to applaud outright or condemn outright. Why?
Because quite often those we accuse of bigotry and hatred don’t view their
own actions as being born out of hate. Some even view their actions as righteous
and necessary, viewing themselves as “the good guys.” Before you accuse them,
not only of bigotry but of delusional as well, it might be a good idea to step
into their shoes; look at things from their perspective, if for nothing else to better understand them as people, to humanize them even if they don't do the same. Maybe then we can
understand why our fight against hatred is falling miserably.
What if
the issue isn’t hate, but rather fear?
We live
within a society absolutely obsessed with protecting ourselves from threats,
where every step we take and every event brings along an endless list of things
to fear. Take a moment to look at the same events you would assume are the
result of bigotry, and look at them from the perspective of fear.
Cops fear
that the random black man is actually an armed thug.
Your
average US American fears that the border crossing Latino is actually a drug
runner or the Arab is really an ISIS terrorist.
Blacks,
Latinos and Arabs fear that cops will attack without any real provocation.
But it
goes beyond race.
Blue collar
workers fear that the immigrants will steal their jobs.
Conservatives
fear that marriage between gays will damage the concept of families.
Liberals
fear that anyone who open carries will suddenly go out on a killing rampage.
Feminists
fear that men are potential rapists.
Men’s
Rights Activists fear that women can make up rape accusations.
Religious
people fear the atheist’s influence in society while the the Atheist fears the
effects of religion in society.
And the
list goes on and on.
This fear
breads the demonization those they fear while humanizing their own daemons. Cops
use excessive force against Blacks and Latinos, massive protests are called out
to stop children from crossing our borders, criminalization of the Muslim community,
discrimination against gays, etc. All of this is done under the banner of
self-defense, so calling them out as acts born out of bigotry can easily be
dismissed.
And it
becomes even easier to dismiss as those with common fears band together to pat
each other in the back and cheer each other on. What do people do with what
they fear? They attack it. We see this within every single social movement as
they call out everything they hate about everyone else under the guise of
justice, when in reality it’s little more than a support group to deal with
their fears.
I can
almost hear you quoting Yoda as you equate fear and hate. (“Fear is the path to
the dark side. Fear leads to
anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.”) But when we focus our
actions to deal with the resulting hate, we do nothing to stop the fear that
gave birth to it in the first place. We need to stop fighting the hate speech and
fight the fear speech.
This isn’t
done by calling out privilege. Calling out privilege is little more than “let
me make you feel just as bad for something you can’t control as you treat me
badly for something I can’t control.” As a tool for retribution and vengeance,
sure it works fine. That’s if your final goal is just getting even. Me? I
prefer to find solutions to the bigger problem.
We need
to condemn and challenge every single bullshit stereotype that is used to label
people. We need to call out everyone profiteering from force feeding out society
fear. We need to call out every media channel and outlet who profit from
telling us what to hate and who to fear. We need to realize that Black doesn’t
equal thugs, Latino doesn’t equal drug dealers, Muslims doesn’t equal terrorists,
White doesn’t equal privilege, Cop doesn’t equal killer, Men don’t equal
rapists, etc. We need to call out these sites and programs for what they are.
Fear
mongers profiting from us like parasites.
Fear is a
hard habit to break. Within our social setting it means trusting your fellow
man, and that’s something very hard to do when you’re constantly thinking about
how others look out only for themselves. Maybe that’s what needs to change,
maybe if we stopped focusing so much on the ME and focused more on the WE, we
wouldn’t fear so much. But till that happens, we could start with simply asking
for one thing.
Since it is so likely that children will meet cruel
enemies, let them at least have heard of brave knights and heroic courage.
C.S.
Lewis
As I have mentioned several times
before, every civilized society across the globe throughout history has members
who serve as examples of what an exemplary man is. These men dedicated their
lives to a code of self-betterment and development through service, serving as
the warrior-elite, scholars, and enforcers of justice. They served as
inspiration and example to how far a man could go when he dedicated himself to creating
a just society and promoting a good greater than themselves.
Sometimes I feel that those days are
gone, and it saddens my soul. When you look around you see a society that has
turned its back to the ideals of living the warrior’s exemplary life, as we
reduce the old warrior codes into happy quotes said by overweight old wise folk
who promote little more than helping helpless old people cross the street. Even
the words as powerful as Social Justice have been reduced to little more than a
keyboard activist providing socially acceptable cyberbully attacks with a passive-aggressive
political correctness that would make the worst Machiavellian proud. We have
turned community service into calling out “evil” in a virtual community instead
of working to achieve some good for an actual community.
Today, men are told that taking up
the role of protectors is a bad thing and, worse yet, some men happy embrace
this idea as words like service and honor have lost their importance. More
dreadful yet, we see how men, who would otherwise be given a purpose in life,
drift aimlessly unfulfilling lives as their serviceless existence ends up
having little meaning.
Others have bastardized the ideals
of the warrior; in an attempt to fill their egos as they become little more
than the oppressors the warriors of old would have fought. They strive for
recognition and glory as payment for service, seeing themselves as more
important than those they help.
Then we wonder where all the good
men have gone.
But before you lose all hope, know
that they are still around. The biggest challenge these men face isn’t leading
a warrior’s life, but finding room for a warrior’s life in a society that
refuses to recognize the need for these exemplary men. So, instead of listening
to a world that ignores the need for their help, these men simply help, and
create the space for other likeminded men to help. You see them teaching other
young men the importance of strength, both mental and physical. You see them
promoting the ideals of discipline and virtue. And more importantly, you see
them setting the example, as they apply these lessons to their own lives. You
can find them as the volunteer coach at your local schools, as the martial arts
instructor at your local community center, or the volunteer mentor at your
local resource center.
Some have gone even further and
created a much needed social justice service that can only be handled by these
old school warriors. The following are just three organizations created by
these exemplary men, just to give you an example of what good men can create
when given the opportunity and how we still need men to pick up the mantle of
Warrior in a world that is still dangerous.
Brothers
for Sisters
Many Russian cities at night are a dangerous place for
anyone, much more so for young women who are viewed as easy targets by the less
savory elements within the criminal elements. So what is a young man to do when
faced with the reality that his friends’ lives are at risk every night they
head home? He and his friends started taking turns walking the young women
home. And that’s when it hit him, how many more women have this same problem?
How many more men would be willing to help out? So, the call went out for young
men willing to walk women home safe late at night and young women needing an
escort to reach their home safely.
Next thing you know, the Brothers for Sisters are born.
All brothers are required to pass a rigorous selection
process, involving several interviews and background checks coordinated with
the local authorities, as many of the brothers are off duty police men
themselves. All candidates and members are required to be reasonably fit, and
aren’t allowed to smoke, drink, or swear. All volunteers are discouraged from
accepting invitations from the ladies they are helping out, even for something
as simple as tea or coffee, as it might give an improper message.
What started as a couple of guys making sure their friend
got home safe has grown into an entire social movement.
(I mentioned this group previously,
but have been unable to find more information about them. If you know anything
else about them, let me know as I would love to know more about them.)
B.A.C.A.
Some men volunteer to be strong, some men train to be strong,
and some become strong as life gives them little choice. This last group is
viewed with distrust and even fear by many within society, as they are men who
have often been forced to make do what it takes to survive, and not all these actions
are socially acceptable. So what do you do when you are strong and feared?
You go and help out little kids who need a strong and
intimidating man to protect them from the monsters of the world.
Bikers Against Child Abuse
(B.A.C.A.) is an organization of volunteer bikers who provide a sense of safety
to kids who have been victims of child abuse. If ever the child feels
threatened, scared, or simply wants someone to be there, they simply have to
call, and a couple of riders will come by. They are there to provide a safe
environment, a place for the child to feel secure. This might be to scare of
the abuser, to walk with the kid to school, or simply to stand guard all night
in front of the house to scare off nightmares.
Not everyone is accepted within the BACA. These men train
for their duty, as many are actual social workers and all are required to pass
a string of background checks although having a criminal record doesn’t disqualify
you as a candidate. Each candidate is evaluated and required to training
courses to deal with the emotional strain of their duty as the mission they
have taken up isn’t an easy one. Below is a short vid explaining who they are.
(I have spoken about BACA and my absolute respect for the
group before.
If some of the members who left messages would contact me and let me know who
to contact for more information, as I would love to make a more in depth post
about them.)
Safe
Passage
Many times the inner cities have been compared to warzones
and quite often they are not that far off. Many of those who grew up within
that environment want nothing more than to help change it into a better place.
They know from personal experience how something as mundane as a child walking
to school and back is a perilous journey.
Plenty of young men within these communities chose military
service as a way to find purpose and meaning in a world that keeps telling them
they will achieve little simply because of where they were born. Yet, when
their tours are done, these men are left again without the very sense of
purpose that allowed them to be more. So, instead of getting lost in a
meaningless life, a group of these veterans joined together to provide the next
generation of students a safe passage between the kid’s homes and schools.
Leave No
Veteran Behind (LNVB) approached the Chicago school system to see if
veterans could help out the kids by standing guard, positively engaging with the
youth and maintaining the peace in street corners previously known for repeated
violent incidents. So was born Safe
Passage, as now over 400 veterans within the program with about 130
veterans patrolling the streets at any given time. Below is a short video
explaining how the program came to be.
The days of the Warrior are far from
gone. Neither are gone the days of men doing what’s right because it’s the
right thing to do. All you have to do is find your purpose. The space needed to
manifest it will find you.
