This weekly roundup thread is intended for all culture war posts. 'Culture war' is vaguely defined, but it basically means controversial issues that fall along set tribal lines. Arguments over culture war issues generate a lot of heat and little light, and few deeply entrenched people ever change their minds. This thread is for voicing opinions and analyzing the state of the discussion while trying to optimize for light over heat.
Optimistically, we think that engaging with people you disagree with is worth your time, and so is being nice! Pessimistically, there are many dynamics that can lead discussions on Culture War topics to become unproductive. There's a human tendency to divide along tribal lines, praising your ingroup and vilifying your outgroup - and if you think you find it easy to criticize your ingroup, then it may be that your outgroup is not who you think it is. Extremists with opposing positions can feed off each other, highlighting each other's worst points to justify their own angry rhetoric, which becomes in turn a new example of bad behavior for the other side to highlight.
We would like to avoid these negative dynamics. Accordingly, we ask that you do not use this thread for waging the Culture War. Examples of waging the Culture War:
-
Shaming.
-
Attempting to 'build consensus' or enforce ideological conformity.
-
Making sweeping generalizations to vilify a group you dislike.
-
Recruiting for a cause.
-
Posting links that could be summarized as 'Boo outgroup!' Basically, if your content is 'Can you believe what Those People did this week?' then you should either refrain from posting, or do some very patient work to contextualize and/or steel-man the relevant viewpoint.
In general, you should argue to understand, not to win. This thread is not territory to be claimed by one group or another; indeed, the aim is to have many different viewpoints represented here. Thus, we also ask that you follow some guidelines:
-
Speak plainly. Avoid sarcasm and mockery. When disagreeing with someone, state your objections explicitly.
-
Be as precise and charitable as you can. Don't paraphrase unflatteringly.
-
Don't imply that someone said something they did not say, even if you think it follows from what they said.
-
Write like everyone is reading and you want them to be included in the discussion.
On an ad hoc basis, the mods will try to compile a list of the best posts/comments from the previous week, posted in Quality Contribution threads and archived at /r/TheThread. You may nominate a comment for this list by clicking on 'report' at the bottom of the post and typing 'Actually a quality contribution' as the report reason.

Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
Ironic that a business transaction is the best way to model their actions.
The market clearing price is too high for those men to be {willing, able} to afford a woman of the same station. That's it. That's all it is.
Risk aversion is defensible if there is no directly observable benefit to taking that risk. Both that and safetyism (to name the symmetric female impulse) are parasitic at their core, but they both exist for a reason. Human instinct is often maladaptive.
{Pornography, prostitution, masturbation} are basically an AI simulation of this, which is why they're rejected in the same family of 'goonslop' (and why old men would want them restricted- especially those that showcase any "cheating" of that market dynamics- as a way to lock young men out of any other alternatives and encourage them to be appealing to women).
Yet these foolish old men, who have no other intelligence outside of instinct, don't understand that this won't fix the fact there are no women who are willing or able to afford the men either. Selfish old women approve of this posture, naturally.
So with respect to the original prompt of "why are F/m, 'help me step-bro', etc. being banned?", this is the answer to that question. Social conservatives were always feminist. One notes that the cultural Enemy of the Boomers was the last cultural movement that made young men great (and actively encouraged them to be with women) and I don't believe that to be a coincidence.
More options
Context Copy link