I, the present writer, am not a member of the so-called “men’s rights movement.” That said, I would like to share some thoughts about this whole business of “men’s rights.”
Either you agree that the male population has “rights” or you don’t. If you don’t, you should straightly declare this. I will thank you for your candor, but then I will send you on your way because the discussion no longer concerns you.
All right, I turn to the rest of you—those who would agree, at least in principle, that men have “rights.”
Over the years, I have noticed a peculiar thing. I have met many people who mock and deride the notion of “men’s rights” whenever that notion confronts them. They are not in the least dispassionate or cool-headed about this.
I will often ask these people if they think men should have “rights” at all. They will splutter and declare that yes, of course they think that men should have rights. However, when I press them further, they will inform me that only the IDEA of men’s rights affronts them, reason being that men “have all their rights anyway” and nothing to complain about.
Men’s rights, we are to suppose, are fully intact and uncompromised—hence, there is no warrant to raise any fuss about this.
So their reaction to the phrase “men’s rights” is emotion-based, and their clear intent is to shut down further conversation on that subject. They evidently do not wish to entertain, by any stretch, the concept of “men’s rights.” More to the point, they vehemently reject the thought that “men’s rights” are somehow being violated.
One senses that it would please them greatly if all talk of “men’s rights” was banished from the public discourse. After all, if they don’t want to hear it from you, I’m guessing they don’t want to hear it from anybody, anywhere, at any time.
Of course, we understand that these people harbor no objection to “men’s rights” as such—or so they tell us. Right? They simply cannot believe “men’s rights” are in danger, and they are so sure of this that they want you to shut the hell up about it.
Mind you, I don’t say that they would take away your RIGHT to talk about “men’s rights.” I’m sure they would allow this, in principle. It’s just that they would prefer to shut you up where they can personally hear it.
For example, in the mass media—that’s one place where they could personally hear it, so I’m sure they’d rather not listen to your presumptuous twaddle about so-called “men’s rights” in the mass media. Right?
And when they meet you one-on-one, they certainly don’t need to hear your presumptuous twaddle then, either. Right? Of course not.
I mean, hey, these are good, liberal, progressive-minded people. So of COURSE they believe in free speech and all that, but for heaven’s sake don’t tax their patience with stuff like racism, fascism, or so-called “men’s rights.” They won’t sit still for that, and you can hardly blame them. Right?
And of COURSE they agree that men have “rights”! But men’s rights are self-evidently ship-shape—so if you disagree, you’d best keep that to yourself! Sure, you can whine about so-called “men’s rights” all you like, but heaven help you if they catch wind of it!
To wrap this up: it seems that men DO have rights, but those rights are allegedly doing fine and men have nothing to complain about. And yes, it seems that you DO have a right to dispute the foregoing claim but no right to do it audibly if there is any chance the claimant will hear you.
In conclusion, let me say it again: I am NOT a member of the so-called “men’s rights movement.” I say that because I think it is more important to hunt the mammoth that is feminism.
Yet in practice I find it impossible to plan the death of feminism without bumping into “men’s rights” and related topics along the way. You simply can’t avoid it—these things are far too interwoven.
So yes, I do sometimes appear to talk about “men’s rights.” However, it is more precise to say that I am discussing feminism’s crimes—specifically, feminism’s crimes against men. I mean, when you bring a criminal to justice, one thing you do is compose a list of that criminal’s offenses. Am I right?
Very well. Although I am not what is simplistically called an “MRA,” I have friends who might call themselves that. And you know what? They can rant about “so-called men’s rights” to their heart’s content. I will sit back and smile because I know that the first right of all is the right to speak up angrily if you think your rights are in jeopardy. If you lose THAT right, then all the rest aren’t worth one cold spit in a windstorm.
