Free Republic

Facing Suicide. "The world breaks everyone and afterwards many are strong at the broken places." So wrote Ernest Hemingway in Farewell To Arms (1929) Hemingway lived most of his life as an outstanding outdoorsman whose understated economical literary style was male to the core. Like his physician father before him, Hemingway died by suicide on July 2nd, 1961. "What is the sense of ruining my head" he said of the ECT treatment in his final year that left him a wreck, "and erasing my memory, which is capital, and putting me out of business? It was a brilliant cure, but...

Men and the Future of AmericaSenator Josh Hawley has struck a powerful rhetorical blow against woke communism.Senator Josh Hawley recently gave a much commented upon speech on the virtues of masculinity. It was a very fine speech; indeed, it may have been one of the most significant senatorial speeches of his generation.Hawley understands that the traditional traits of masculinity—stoicism, competitiveness, conquest, achievement and aggression—are good and necessary for a self-governing society, as long as they are channeled into behaviors, such as productive work and providing for a family, that serve the common good. He also knows that if these natural...

Amid all the election mayhem and politicized coronavirus hysteria of the past several months, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that the cultural realm, not the political arena, is where the deeper threat to our freedoms and civilization lies, because the culture is where hearts and minds are won or lost. The Left has always known this, but the Right tends to obsess over the political and scorn the cultural as trivial and unserious. If we never grasp how critical it is to engage the Left on that front, we will lose the Long Game. Let’s look...

Is robust freedom compatible with preening in front of mirrors? If men were allowed to be men, wouldn’t wild unkempt hair be much more common?

Do conservatives have more fun? Should liberals start describing themselves as humor-challenged?.. why didn’t the liberals in the Boston experiment like the nonsense humor of “Deep Thoughts” as much as the conservatives did? ... Rod Martin, the author of “The Psychology of Humor,” said the results of the Boston study might reflect another trait that has been shown to correlate with a taste for jokes: cheerfulness.... “Conservatives tend to be happier than liberals in general,” said Dr. Martin, a psychologist at the University of Western Ontario. “A conservative outlook rationalizes social inequality, accepting the world as it is, and making...

As we watch the rise of the Snowflake Generation with a mixture of bemusement and horror – you know, the young people unable to use a can opener but who are certain they’re qualified to dictate business and social policy, the generation who can work a smartphone like a brain surgeon but can’t figure out what gender they are – it should come as no surprise that manhood and masculinity have come under fire. If you’ve ever wondered what it takes to be a man, look no further than the University of Wisconsin-Madison. There you’ll find the answer: Real men...

If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you, If you can trust yourself when all RINOs doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies, Or being hated, don’t give way to hating, And your hair don’t look too good, nor talk too wise: If you can dream—and not make dreams your master; If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim; If you can meet with Hillary and Paul Ryan And...

A SLOW-TALKER AND A HOMELESS GUY WALK INTO A BAR ... April 27, 2016 Apparently, John Kasich and Ted Cruz are at their most appealing when no one is paying attention to them, which, conveniently, is most of the time. After Cruz won cranky Wisconsin last month -- only the fourth actual election he's won -- voters decided to give him a second look. But two seconds after people said, "OK, let's give this guy a try," he cratered. You might say a little of Ted Cruz goes a long way. Voters can't stand Cruz any more than his Senate...

Radioactive Jockstrap Radioactive materials were once thought to impart healing and vitalizing powers to people. Radium was infused into drinking water, baths, and even suppositories. Perhaps the scariest way it was administered was through a radioactive jockstrap for men. ”Weak Discouraged Men!” one advertisement proclaimed. ”Now Bubble Over with Joyous Vitality Through the Use of Glands and Radium.” Joyous Vitality'..and glow in the dark junk.

I was once reasonably dignified. I dressed like a gentleman and luxuriated in the cultural heritage of Western civilization. My three places of residence—my home, my office, and my mind—were free of clutter and arranged so as to allow me both to make the most of my days and to begin to venture out into intellectual life. Then I became a father.

President Barack Obama spars with Jaren Paul Suber, a 14-year-old Make-A-Wish recipient from Rowlett, Texas, in the Oval Office, March 20, 2014

According to his biographer, Robert Coram, John Boyd made “more contributions to fighter tactics, aircraft design, and the theory of air combat than any man in Air Force history.” As a fighter pilot, he was undefeated and earned the nickname “40-Second Boyd” for his ability to win any dogfight in under a minute. Unmatched in the cockpit, his mind was also without rival. He was not simply a warrior of combat, but a warrior-engineer and warrior-philosopher. When he was 33, he wrote “Aerial Attack Study,” which codified the best dogfighting tactics for the first time, became the “bible of air...

American feminists may be in for a surprise. A growing number of manly men in the country are taking back the masculinity that Betty Friedan and her ilk took from them during the beginning of the feminist movement in America.

Welcome back to our series on what weakens our integrity and how to strengthen it. Thus far we have discussed how we decide to commit a dishonest act, and how the distance between that act and its consequences can increase our ability to rationalize immorality as acceptable behavior. Today we are going to discuss another important factor that influences our comfort level with dishonest decisions: seeing other people make them. Dishonesty as a Social Contagion As psychology professor Dan Ariely explored the nature and motivations for dishonesty, he found himself wondering whether it might spread from person to person like...

Writing in the Wall Street Journal, Kay Hymowitz posits the following conclusion regarding the current culture of masculinity in the United States: Not so long ago, the average American man in his 20s had achieved most of the milestones of adulthood: a high-school diploma, financial independence, marriage and children. Today, most men in their 20s hang out in a novel sort of limbo, a hybrid state of semi-hormonal adolescence and responsible self-reliance. This “pre-adulthood” has much to recommend it, especially for the college-educated. But it’s time to state what has become obvious to legions of frustrated young women: It doesn’t...

". . . when I served as a Magistrate for the Commonwealth of Virginia, I was intrigued to find out that it was still a misdemeanor in Virginia to impugn a woman's "virtue and chastity . . ."

People do stupid things all the time and they do them in all geographic regions, but as any regular viewer of Comedy Central’s "Tosh 2.0" can tell you, there does seem to be an uncanny correlation between certain regions of the country and the kind of risk-taking behavior that could get you seriously hurt or even killed. That’s the premise of a new study out today in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science. The three authors, all from the University of Oklahoma, found that states with a “culture of honor” –- in the South, and the West, mainly --...

I say Lee Marvin hands down. He was just cool and never thought he had to prove it.

Popular Mechanics published a list of four dozen or so “Coolest Gigs on Earth.” They ought to have said “manliest.” This isn’t The Atlantic or Time. This is Popular Mechanics! The catalog is admirably inclusive, but it smacks of padding. For example, “Food Scientist” is pegged. This is a job which I’m sure is at least interesting—the guy profiled develops, among other things, blended iced coffee—but it isn’t manly. Like “Food Scientist”, “Statistician” can be interesting. But is it a manly gig? “Don’t mess with him, Jim. He’s a statistician!” Before laughing, try swapping your own title for mine. See...

One of the criticisms oft' heard from certain historians and bloggers is their disdain for what they refer to as "celebratory history" or, what one might call a "nostalgic" view or perspective of history . . .