Real Men

What makes a real man? Where has the art of manliness gone? I would postulate that manliness is getting lost with all the other skills that have been fading away over the past several decades. To name a few: spelling, handwriting, etiquette, respect, and many more. When did people stop caring about what was happening in places other than their own sphere of influence, which despite the internet has grown increasingly smaller. Why is manliness associated with sexism and bigotry? To embrace who you are is only okay if who you are is a gender neutral, morally flexible, doer of much, master of nothing, acutely unaware of anything beyond your Starbucks kind of person. And I use the word "person" carefully because that's probably offensive to some group that doesn't like species segregation. After all, aren't we all just blobs of biological conglomeration floating around in the good vibe ether? Like it or not, there are biological differences between species and between genders. To vilify and emasculate the male gender will break down society in a way humans cannot yet understand. There are always balances, yins and yangs, pushes and pulls. To promote one over the other without realizing their complimentary nature leads to disaster.

Men have a responsibility to rise to their gender. Nut up or shut up. Be competent at a lot of things. Be diverse in your learning. Acknowledge the beauty of both a revving engine and a flower in their own rights. Draw moral lines and dare anyone to cross them. Stand up for something even if you know you are going to get knocked down. Learn to try and fail and try again. Don't be afraid to get hit in the jaw... just make sure you have the balls to hit back just as hard.

This quote taken from a novel does a good job of summing up skills that every man should have. Think about it and if you can't do all that, maybe there are some skills to learn.
"A [man] should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, and die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."