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Culture War Roundup for the week of November 3, 2025

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Dude. I would enjoy living a luxurious life with minimal effort if that option were provided to me.

I believe you and thanks for the counter input, but this is such a vastly different way of thinking than any other man I’ve ever talked to. I have never encountered any situation that would lead me to believe that this goal is equally shared among men as it is among women. I hate to be a Redditor, but do you have any kind of evidence that men and women are both equally interested in being financially supported by the other sex? I think that might be the closest likely study question, but if you have something that is pretty specific about just lives of indolence, that would be interesting also. You could potentially shift my opinion of WEIRD men even lower than it already is!

Most men don’t want to be fuckboys, let alone a fuckboy forever.

Well, except the many examples of all the guys who do end up living lives of vast indolence and luxury, and acquire equally vast harems of women.

We’re in something of a harem lull so maybe it seems like this is not a great strategy that the average man would enjoy, but give it some time and I think our billionaires will get back around to it. Elon is blazing the trail for them.

do you have any kind of evidence that men and women are both equally interested in being financially supported by the other sex?

I think the reason men don't want to be financially supported by women is that they don't want to be dependent on women. This is wholly separate from the question of whether men would want a life of effortless luxury if it were presented to them with literally no strings attached, or with strings they'd find more acceptable to their pride.

I would certainly like a life of effortless luxury. This isn't to say I want to laze around on a sofa all day, but I would love the security of an unlimited bank account to fall back on while I got on with the activities I'm actually interested in, which I'll enjoy more if I'm not doing them for profit. (I love writing, teaching, public speaking, even acting - and all of them become more of a slog if my next meal depends on them than if I'm doing them for the fun of it.)

I'm not looking to marry some wealthy heiress to support me, but this is because I think such an option, even if it were especially available to me, would have a variety of hidden downsides, from ethical objections to deceiving someone into believing I love her for personal gain, to discomfort with the idea of dependency. The chief appeal of effortless financial independence would be the personal freedom it brings, and being on a wealthy wife's leash would cancel it out entirely.

I believe you and thanks for the counter input, but this is such a vastly different way of thinking than any other man I’ve ever talked to. I have never encountered any situation that would lead me to believe that this goal is equally shared among men as it is among women.

Not sure what kind of men you’re talking to, but plenty of men fantasise about winning the lottery, or making it big with cryptocurrency/investment/gambling, and living in luxury without having to work for the rest of their lives.

What man doesn’t want money for nothing and their chicks for free?

I believe you and thanks for the counter input, but this is such a vastly different way of thinking than any other man I’ve ever talked to. I have never encountered any situation that would lead me to believe that this goal is equally shared among men as it is among women. I hate to be a Redditor, but do you have any kind of evidence that men and women are both equally interested in being financially supported by the other sex?

No. In fact I’m saying the exact ‘opposite’ of this. What I’m saying is what’s different in what you wrote is that if a person just walked up and offered me that kind of lifestyle on a silver platter with no strings attached to it, you’d have to be a fool not to take it. If I come across $100 bill on the sidewalk with absolutely nobody around, I don’t say to myself “well I didn’t work for this,” and pass it up. But I’m not going to steal it out of somebody’s pocket.

Men and women are absolutely not equally interested in the finances of the other, except in men’s cases they’d probably want to know if the woman has any outstanding debts. No man I know has ever specifically desired a financially independent woman. I have never once heard that from a single male individual in my entire life. Incidentally however if she is financially independent, it’s a cool thing to know I suppose. But ‘no’ man I’ve ever known has said he’s attracted to such women. It has no effect. Men like women for women. Not women as a proxy for a flashy lifestyle. Men are very much attracted to ladies. It’s what made things like the Rita Hayworth scene in Shawshank so iconic. Women sell themselves short and vastly underestimate just how much a nice and pleasant demeanor is attractive to men. Physical beauty is cheap to men because men find the vast majority of women attractive. But several men I’ve met have said they’ve lost interest in women as soon as they opened their mouth, due to their attitudes.

Well, except the many examples of all the guys who do end up living lives of vast indolence and luxury, and acquire equally vast harems of women.

And as I expressed, yes, if you offered that to men on a silver platter for free and expect nothing in return, perhaps a large proportion of men would take it. Most men though are not working to acquire riches for bitches. Somali warlords could do that without any of what Elon has if they wanted to.