I hate the beta male thing just as much as I hate the toxic masculinity nonsense. Stoicism - restraint - is required in a successful republic. I don’t really care much about crying in public but men - and women - who wish to govern should keep their emotions in check.
The limit is just at crying, right? Is showing enthusiasm, joy, anger, kindness, empathy, sympathy, sadness, any of the other tiny emotions we as humans feel okay to express in public or in speeches, blogs, correct? Asking for a friend.
Jason's right. Showing people that you can be even tempered in the eye of the storm - when you are feeling down because you just lost an election/a job/whatever - indicates to others that all is not lost and the person who hears you does not need to embrace a manic toxicity, even when the shit hits the fan. Maybe when the chips are down for them, they'll reflect that they don't need to impulsively embrace something that may be irresistible.
Different time, different place, and different circumstances. Also, vetting has become far more sophisticated since 1972, and Muskie would have never made the cut.
I will acknowledge that seeing a male politician cry will never be "cool", but I think we've progressed to the point that why he was crying would be a major factor as to how it is viewed by the public.
Liberals gleefully mocked Brett Kavanaugh for showing emotion at his nomination hearing. But what most people forget is that a day or two before, he had given an interview with a reporter where he's answered the charges in a very controlled way and the press attacked him for it. And then when Ms. Ford gave her presentation, everybody was saying his goose was cooked but he was able to flip the narrative by coming out and showing outrage. Granted he took it a bit too far a couple of times, but being stoic didn't cut it. The cost, of course, is that even now, leftist mock him for showing emotion at his hearing. So I really don't have much patience for them complaining about the babysitter-banger being teased for being a beta.
Let’s be totally clear: Gus Walz is NOT a politician and the response of those on the right, Ann Coulter, etc., was disgusting beyond belief. All part of this “alpha-beta male” BS. I’m the stepfather of a young adult who has ADHD, emotional, and anxiety issues, and those responses (that just like the cowards they are, they deleted once the reaction was overwhelmingly negative) tell us EVERYTHING we need to know about what you MAGA are: heartless and with a *very* dark dystopian view of a “failed nation”.
I, for one, am overjoyed to vote for a ticket that sees a better future in front of us and is willing to put in the hard work to achieve it. I’m too old to be fooled by fake optimism (turning 70 tomorrow), but I know what I see, I know what the clear choices are, and I choose NOT to let the Darkness of the MAGA vision succeed.
And what’s with these pathetic trolls paying subscription money to Chris’s columns just so they can spew laughably ridiculous lies in the comment section? Talk about pathetic!
What do we expect. Now might be a good time to resurrect the video clip from the 2016 campaign of the GOP nominee modeling appropriate behavior and showing his respect for a disabled journalist...
He mocked him in the exact same manner he mocked several other people (including Ted Cruz). But stay in your liberal bubble where you don't have to see actual reality.
You are right. Society needs to get rid of all stereotypes, and alpha and beta males should be near the top of the list. I hope that you and your wife can imbue your sons with enough self worth that they will reject the alpha male ideal. It's hard enough to get through puberty with its physical, emotional, and intellectual challenges.
T is not a good man. He has not one redeeming quality. I don’t get the alpha and beta male “tags”. But I do know a good man when I meet one. When I read about one or hear a story about a good man. Kamala had the sense to marry a good man. Minnesota elected a good man. Collectively the team making the bid for the White House are good people. That is the only gauge i need.
I'm a childless male, and due to restrictive condo regulations I'm also cat-less and dog-less. Chris, I don't envy the challenge you face, but try not to get discouraged. Your sons are in what is probably the most turbulent developmental period of their lives. They may not show any outward signs that your messages are getting through, but hopefully they are penetrating and germinating within your sons. The more they see that a beta male is actually a far more stable role-model than the alpha male, the better they'll be, even though they may still view the alpha male as "cooler". I also believe that all males will benefit from having the dorky Dad as VP. He'll be a great role-model.
2) Kamala's Popularity
I can only speak for myself, but if you asked me six months ago to rate Harris's performance as VP, I would have been very middle-of-the-road neutral. She may have been viewed negatively by a small segment of the public that focuses on these things, but by definition, she's not supposed to be hogging the spotlight. But now that she's in the spotlight, many people who may have been apprehensive about her see that she's able to walk and chew gum at the same time. It turns out that there was no "there" there regarding their concerns, so they have no problems embracing her now.
I think there’s lots to the comments that her first year as VO was….um….underwhelming… but it’s reasonable to think that she quietly did the work and became more and more a strong part of the Biden-Harris leadership team. I think she’s not the same person, in many ways, that she was before. And I’m extremely happy with who she is now.
So, how can TRUMP be an "alpha male", with all the whinning, temper tantrums, pouting, etc. That is more the description of "Dennis the Menace" (apologies to Hank Ketchum);no a world leader
You['re raising your boys right. They're going to turn out to be thinking, feeling, caring human beings.
I think the thing about Kamala Harris is she's finally getting a chance to show who she really is, how much of a personality she has, how smart she is. We got glimpses of that before, but Vice Presidents don't get a chance to really show much of anything There was an article in the Washington Post, headlined, "The Reinvention of Kamala Harris." I think of it more as the "coming out of Kamala Harris." She's the same person she was before. Just getting a chance to show us who she is.
And there are legions of young men (and not-so-young men) who now adhere to the idea that being an emotionally-grounded husband or dad is somehow bad.
What you wrote made me very sad. Maybe a few more people should look to Joseph, father of Jesus? But then Jesus aligns more to the beta male than alpha male. It's interesting on how many people don't understand the Bible and its teachings. Jesus did cry in public, three times!
From famous fathers in the Bible:
"Surely one of the most underrated fathers in the Bible was Joseph, the foster father of Jesus Christ. He went through great difficulties to protect his wife Mary and their baby, and then saw to Jesus' education and needs as he was growing up. Joseph taught Jesus the carpentry trade. The Bible calls Joseph a righteous man, and Jesus must have loved his guardian for his quiet strength, honesty, and kindness.
Lessons to Learn From Joseph
God honors men of integrity and rewards them with his trust.
Mercy always wins.
Obedience may result in humiliation and disgrace before men, but close friendship with God.
Thank you for talking about the alpha male culture. I’ve always hated that term because it’s too defining and just wrong. I embrace my “beta male” status. It’s does lessen me as a man.
There is something to be said about a flabby, ugly, makeup wearing, orangutan haired man that superimposes his head onto what he demeans masculine men...when in reality, he is not anything more than a big fat pipsqueak. As Hakeem Jeffries said last night, he is weak. Give me Doug Emhoff any day....you are a good dad, Chris, you are influencing your sons in a more health well mentally forward way...boo to giga chad!
It’s not a honeymoon. It’s a big movement to make history and to stop Trump. It will snowball as people realize they want to be part of this whether or not they like her.
Yeah, I, for one, question the assumption that this is a “honeymoon” period.
It’s not like Trump and Vance ever stopped trying to put down both Harris and Walz, but they just haven’t found *anything* that has stuck. Will they miraculously come up with something that will work? I’m truly questioning that.
It’s going to be a tough 80+ days, and we’ve got to “run through the tape”, as they say, but I’m more confident than I’ve been in a LONG time that Trump and Vance are on their heels, flat-footed, and in disarray, and we have strength of vision and a way to combat the darkness of their dystopian view of America.
I would suggest that we inoculate the citizens against being swayed by whatever happens. Michele Obama was doing that by telling us to prepare for the attacks. We can also warn that in every conceivable situation we remind ourselves of all the disqualifications of Donald.
No matter how scared we may be because of some event, Donald is still unqualified to be president. Even if we are angry at Harris.
Chris, it sounds like you and your wife are doing a great job with your boys. I think we need to ditch the labels and every man (and woman) should focus on being the best human being they can be. Alpha, beta, "real" man all call up stereotypes that s man is supposed to live up to or avoid. If we have to have a measure, how about "gentleman"?
There are clearly a lot of broken males our there. Trump and Musk are some of the public ones. Unable to channel their anger properly, they lash out when they feel that their masculinity is threatened. When really they need mental health treatment. Both Trump and Musk have well documented histories which hint at the reason for their own pathologies. The use of the term beta is pejorative, used when they see well adjusted males like Walz, comfortable in their own skin. They may indeed be reminded just how broken they are. Without help, they will likely remain unhappy.
Elevating males like Walz as a role model will help our kids to understand just how decent people behave. As long as they have loved ones who will reinforce that too and explain why.
Thanks Chris for the great take on the beta make stereotype.
I’d rather be Emhoff than Trump any day of the week. If there is a bigger fake tough guy than Trump, I don’t know who it is.
Ron DeSantis comes to mind, but Cheetolini is definitely in the 99% quintile.
And Greg Abbott.
I hate the beta male thing just as much as I hate the toxic masculinity nonsense. Stoicism - restraint - is required in a successful republic. I don’t really care much about crying in public but men - and women - who wish to govern should keep their emotions in check.
The limit is just at crying, right? Is showing enthusiasm, joy, anger, kindness, empathy, sympathy, sadness, any of the other tiny emotions we as humans feel okay to express in public or in speeches, blogs, correct? Asking for a friend.
I think it should be restrained. Trump is a walking glandular reaction to everything around him. I find it detestable.
Jason's right. Showing people that you can be even tempered in the eye of the storm - when you are feeling down because you just lost an election/a job/whatever - indicates to others that all is not lost and the person who hears you does not need to embrace a manic toxicity, even when the shit hits the fan. Maybe when the chips are down for them, they'll reflect that they don't need to impulsively embrace something that may be irresistible.
Ask Ed Muskie how well crying works for politicians.
Different time, different place, and different circumstances. Also, vetting has become far more sophisticated since 1972, and Muskie would have never made the cut.
I will acknowledge that seeing a male politician cry will never be "cool", but I think we've progressed to the point that why he was crying would be a major factor as to how it is viewed by the public.
Liberals gleefully mocked Brett Kavanaugh for showing emotion at his nomination hearing. But what most people forget is that a day or two before, he had given an interview with a reporter where he's answered the charges in a very controlled way and the press attacked him for it. And then when Ms. Ford gave her presentation, everybody was saying his goose was cooked but he was able to flip the narrative by coming out and showing outrage. Granted he took it a bit too far a couple of times, but being stoic didn't cut it. The cost, of course, is that even now, leftist mock him for showing emotion at his hearing. So I really don't have much patience for them complaining about the babysitter-banger being teased for being a beta.
Liberals mocked Kavanaugh because his show of emotion seemed performative, he was far from a victim.
Let’s be totally clear: Gus Walz is NOT a politician and the response of those on the right, Ann Coulter, etc., was disgusting beyond belief. All part of this “alpha-beta male” BS. I’m the stepfather of a young adult who has ADHD, emotional, and anxiety issues, and those responses (that just like the cowards they are, they deleted once the reaction was overwhelmingly negative) tell us EVERYTHING we need to know about what you MAGA are: heartless and with a *very* dark dystopian view of a “failed nation”.
I, for one, am overjoyed to vote for a ticket that sees a better future in front of us and is willing to put in the hard work to achieve it. I’m too old to be fooled by fake optimism (turning 70 tomorrow), but I know what I see, I know what the clear choices are, and I choose NOT to let the Darkness of the MAGA vision succeed.
And what’s with these pathetic trolls paying subscription money to Chris’s columns just so they can spew laughably ridiculous lies in the comment section? Talk about pathetic!
Isn’t “beta male” an example of toxic masculinity?
The insult surely is.
What do we expect. Now might be a good time to resurrect the video clip from the 2016 campaign of the GOP nominee modeling appropriate behavior and showing his respect for a disabled journalist...
This myth again? He wasn't mocking him for being disabled.
That lie again? He most certainly was.
He mocked him in the exact same manner he mocked several other people (including Ted Cruz). But stay in your liberal bubble where you don't have to see actual reality.
What an utterly untrue -- and non-sensical response. Like most MAGAts you forget that the video evidence is out there.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PX9reO3QnUA
Yes, indeed it is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsaB3ynIZH4
You are right. Society needs to get rid of all stereotypes, and alpha and beta males should be near the top of the list. I hope that you and your wife can imbue your sons with enough self worth that they will reject the alpha male ideal. It's hard enough to get through puberty with its physical, emotional, and intellectual challenges.
T is not a good man. He has not one redeeming quality. I don’t get the alpha and beta male “tags”. But I do know a good man when I meet one. When I read about one or hear a story about a good man. Kamala had the sense to marry a good man. Minnesota elected a good man. Collectively the team making the bid for the White House are good people. That is the only gauge i need.
1) On Toxic Masculinity
I'm a childless male, and due to restrictive condo regulations I'm also cat-less and dog-less. Chris, I don't envy the challenge you face, but try not to get discouraged. Your sons are in what is probably the most turbulent developmental period of their lives. They may not show any outward signs that your messages are getting through, but hopefully they are penetrating and germinating within your sons. The more they see that a beta male is actually a far more stable role-model than the alpha male, the better they'll be, even though they may still view the alpha male as "cooler". I also believe that all males will benefit from having the dorky Dad as VP. He'll be a great role-model.
2) Kamala's Popularity
I can only speak for myself, but if you asked me six months ago to rate Harris's performance as VP, I would have been very middle-of-the-road neutral. She may have been viewed negatively by a small segment of the public that focuses on these things, but by definition, she's not supposed to be hogging the spotlight. But now that she's in the spotlight, many people who may have been apprehensive about her see that she's able to walk and chew gum at the same time. It turns out that there was no "there" there regarding their concerns, so they have no problems embracing her now.
I think there’s lots to the comments that her first year as VO was….um….underwhelming… but it’s reasonable to think that she quietly did the work and became more and more a strong part of the Biden-Harris leadership team. I think she’s not the same person, in many ways, that she was before. And I’m extremely happy with who she is now.
So, how can TRUMP be an "alpha male", with all the whinning, temper tantrums, pouting, etc. That is more the description of "Dennis the Menace" (apologies to Hank Ketchum);no a world leader
Trump is not an alpha male. He’s an alpha male Wanne be.
💯
You['re raising your boys right. They're going to turn out to be thinking, feeling, caring human beings.
I think the thing about Kamala Harris is she's finally getting a chance to show who she really is, how much of a personality she has, how smart she is. We got glimpses of that before, but Vice Presidents don't get a chance to really show much of anything There was an article in the Washington Post, headlined, "The Reinvention of Kamala Harris." I think of it more as the "coming out of Kamala Harris." She's the same person she was before. Just getting a chance to show us who she is.
And there are legions of young men (and not-so-young men) who now adhere to the idea that being an emotionally-grounded husband or dad is somehow bad.
What you wrote made me very sad. Maybe a few more people should look to Joseph, father of Jesus? But then Jesus aligns more to the beta male than alpha male. It's interesting on how many people don't understand the Bible and its teachings. Jesus did cry in public, three times!
From famous fathers in the Bible:
"Surely one of the most underrated fathers in the Bible was Joseph, the foster father of Jesus Christ. He went through great difficulties to protect his wife Mary and their baby, and then saw to Jesus' education and needs as he was growing up. Joseph taught Jesus the carpentry trade. The Bible calls Joseph a righteous man, and Jesus must have loved his guardian for his quiet strength, honesty, and kindness.
Lessons to Learn From Joseph
God honors men of integrity and rewards them with his trust.
Mercy always wins.
Obedience may result in humiliation and disgrace before men, but close friendship with God.
Thank you for talking about the alpha male culture. I’ve always hated that term because it’s too defining and just wrong. I embrace my “beta male” status. It’s does lessen me as a man.
There is something to be said about a flabby, ugly, makeup wearing, orangutan haired man that superimposes his head onto what he demeans masculine men...when in reality, he is not anything more than a big fat pipsqueak. As Hakeem Jeffries said last night, he is weak. Give me Doug Emhoff any day....you are a good dad, Chris, you are influencing your sons in a more health well mentally forward way...boo to giga chad!
It’s not a honeymoon. It’s a big movement to make history and to stop Trump. It will snowball as people realize they want to be part of this whether or not they like her.
Yeah, I, for one, question the assumption that this is a “honeymoon” period.
It’s not like Trump and Vance ever stopped trying to put down both Harris and Walz, but they just haven’t found *anything* that has stuck. Will they miraculously come up with something that will work? I’m truly questioning that.
It’s going to be a tough 80+ days, and we’ve got to “run through the tape”, as they say, but I’m more confident than I’ve been in a LONG time that Trump and Vance are on their heels, flat-footed, and in disarray, and we have strength of vision and a way to combat the darkness of their dystopian view of America.
I’m not as worried about the Republican’s making something stick as an unexpected event. Terrorist attack, for example.
True, but there’s nothing we can do about that.
I would suggest that we inoculate the citizens against being swayed by whatever happens. Michele Obama was doing that by telling us to prepare for the attacks. We can also warn that in every conceivable situation we remind ourselves of all the disqualifications of Donald.
No matter how scared we may be because of some event, Donald is still unqualified to be president. Even if we are angry at Harris.
The exposition on alpha vs beta was great Chris, you're being a great dad!
Chris, it sounds like you and your wife are doing a great job with your boys. I think we need to ditch the labels and every man (and woman) should focus on being the best human being they can be. Alpha, beta, "real" man all call up stereotypes that s man is supposed to live up to or avoid. If we have to have a measure, how about "gentleman"?
There are clearly a lot of broken males our there. Trump and Musk are some of the public ones. Unable to channel their anger properly, they lash out when they feel that their masculinity is threatened. When really they need mental health treatment. Both Trump and Musk have well documented histories which hint at the reason for their own pathologies. The use of the term beta is pejorative, used when they see well adjusted males like Walz, comfortable in their own skin. They may indeed be reminded just how broken they are. Without help, they will likely remain unhappy.
Elevating males like Walz as a role model will help our kids to understand just how decent people behave. As long as they have loved ones who will reinforce that too and explain why.