khankrumthebulgar, sir, the following reply has somehow taken a giant leap from television all the way to the moon, but do try to bear with me here.

I broadly agree with what you say, in that there's nothing for men, and more specifically heterosexual men to relate to any more. In saying that, I didn't realize until a few years ago that ol' grandpa Walton, from said show, was bi-sexual. Bit of a shock, that one.

Digressing here momentarily, an expat contributor here mentioned that he used to teach english to foreign students, which immediately brought to my mind a 70/80's U.K. sit-com that you'll no doubt be blissfully unaware of, called Mind your Langauge. Whatever happened to that show's star?, I asked myself. Did a search, and he too turned out to be bi-sexual and also dead, with an open verdict as to whether in the end it was actually murder or suicide. A double whammy. Talk about real life intruding on 70's nostalgia.

To be sure, British television has certainly followed the same pattern, partly because our broadcasters have imported most of the same programmes seen in the U.S., and also our social changes have been broadly the same. The shows seen then, reflected a time where our nations still had a manufacturing base worth speaking of. The television westerns of the time harked back to an era of more traditional family values, set against the backdrop of living in, or taming, a new frontier. Today, there are no new frontiers, except for one, and that's Space of course.

I think those of us here would be in general agreement that society is anti-male to whatever degree that they perceive it to be, and many, if they choose to reflect, can point out numerous examples highlighting that very fact. That, to my mind, is taken as read. The point is, what do men and/or those sympathetic to the men's cause actually do about it?

Any really meaningful art, immitates life, and not the other way around in my own opinion.

So, if television shows broadly reflect the realities of life at the time in which they're broadcast, reflecting on this further, I really don't know just how much point there would be in expecting T.V. shows to change in order to suit straight male preferences. It's almost as if we're looking for the TV to save us. It is of course not going to save us, in fact the TV is now our enemy, and it always was. Unfortunately, it is down to each of us as men, to once again, gain strength and inspiration from deep within ourselves as individuals, to pull us out of the nosedive we find ourselves in.

I mentioned in another post, men as a group saving everyone elses arses in order to save our own. Now this is only my personal view on things and as such, has no greater merit than either anybody else's suggestions or ways of proceeding in the men's revolution as I'd term it, but the way I see things, is this;

You mentioned that feminist women, at some point in the future, will get what's coming to them. Perhaps so. I would only say that if there is anger there, that it be directed in a way that is positive and inspiring. I said before on this forum that the world is facing problems greater than any it has ever faced. In order to solve those problems and regain the respect we feel is due to us as men, we should play to our innate strengths. One of those male strengths is our willingness is to take risks, for the opportunity of gaining greater reward. Space is the last frontier. We should be pushing ourselves to our limits once more, like the can-doer's of the 50s and 60s. Modern human civilisation will very soon be facing the biggest energy crisis that it has ever seen. Thanks to the moon landings, a substance found back then called Helium 3 was discovered to be a source of almost boundless energy if harnessed correctly. The cheap oil party we're all enjoying is rapidly coming to an end and far sooner than many people think, and we desperately need a real 21st century solution as a replacement. If you remember seeing the movie Apollo 13, they were all men at mission control, working as a team, to perform miracles, for everybody's benefit. And if it wasn't for such near-sightedness, there would have been moon bases established 30 years ago, and we would have had almost free and limitless energy being beamed back to earth by now. Saving the world. That's just one example that gives the male cause a befitting nobility. Something not to seek to cause fear in feminists or other groups in society, but instead instilling a grudging admiration and possibly a degree of shame, in those who ever doubted us. In the end, shaming others has a far greater and lasting effect than direct conflict, certainly in my experience.

I'd like to clarify, that I'm NOT asking for all us men to go on an astronaut training programme! I'm simply saying that in response to feminism and the general anti-male culture in which we live in, that we try to look upwards in our general outlook and not forever stare down at the ground, if we truly want to change our own lives for the better.

I say that if you can't do what you should, just do what you can.

One of the future energy sources is Methane Hydrites in the deep oceans. So much if not released properly it could rapidly accelerate Global Warming. This source in almost limitless supply needs the technology to harness it. Oil Energy Interests, and a coalition of business interests are preventing the US from implementing common sense Energy Conservation. The Republicans are in bed with the Oil Industry who has no incentive to conserve.

Also is is becoming apparent that George Bush is a Feminist Advocate. The Republicans are not the Friends of the Men's Rights Movement.

returning to the TV theme, i've noticed a sharp decline in TV - though not as broad experience as khankrumthebulgar's, it's still a good 25+yrs.

When i was a child, i don't recall too many situations in which boys & girls were pitted against each other purposely for some adult agenda - aside from learning something, at least.

But today, you cannotescape the feminist mentality of female-supremacy. The tv is often on in the background for the kids, and that means largely children's channels. Only last night, a show called 'Billy & Mandy's Grim Adventures' was on. I didn't watch any of it, but it's still background noise to me. All i could hear was the occasional 'blah blah' for hours on end...until suddenly i heard Billy talking about oppressive patriarchal system.
I couldn’t believe my ears – I’m not sure what age groups this programme professes to educate – if any – but to hear children’s programmes talking that rubbish is just sickening. Similarly, I’ve seen/heard programmes where boys are outsmarted, out-exercised, out witted, out everythinged by their all too savvy female class mates… no matter how unrealistic it is, the people behind our television programmes insist on fantasies of female supremacy.
Mix that with the teachers who are educating our children’s generation, with their sexist comments of “girls are better/smarter/cleverer than boys” and then we wonder why so many young boys are having identity issues.

CitizenSmith:-

Any really meaningful art, immitates life, and not the other way around in my own opinion.

I really don't know just how much point there would be in expecting T.V. shows to change in order to suit straight male preferences.

These could almost be the words of a media apologist.

Television is a very powerful, albeit declining, medium. The outrage that people righlty feel concerning its content is not because it fails to "suit male preferences" it is because its distorted and malicious messagery is effectively saying to every man who watches it - often indirectly, but sometimes very directly indeed - I loathe you, and everything you represent.

It is saying to every woman and minority 'white males are not worthy of your respect or consideration and should be considered responsible for everything that has ever caused you grief or inconvenience'. And it is saying to every white male 'do you hear this - it is your duty to loathe yourself'.

You are wrong to suggest that mediums such as television are merely the slipstreamed bi-product of social change that merely reflects, rather than influences that change.

Every era of political extremism that has invloved singling out a particular human grouping as an object of scorn and hatred has relied very heavily upon propoganda and particularly, over the past century, the screen as being a central and key weapon in its loathsome mission. Be it the far Right, the traditional far Left or, most recently, the contemporary extreme Leftist message of political correctness and feminism.

The propoganda films and newsreels of the Russian communists and the German Nazis were central to the creation of the living hells they both realised - as are the distorted messages of today's soaps, dramas, documentaries and news programmes.

As fringe charity groups have recently been putting up billboard posters in my home city of Liverpool, using the logo of the childhood game of 'Hangman' in an effort to draw attention to the alarming rise in the numbers of young men who are taking their own lives - don't tell me that the torment that has besieged the minds and sense of self and being of those deemed at increasing risk of suicide has got nothing to do with a medium that simply 'doesn't suit their preferences'.

Peter.C

You are wrong to suggest that mediums such as television are merely the slipstreamed bi-product of social change that merely reflects, rather than influences that change.

Whilst I wholeheartedly agree with your earlier assertion that television is quite obviously demonising males and furthermore, white males even more so, by all means, tell me that you disagree with anything that I may say, as it's after all only my personal opinion, but please don't just flat out tell me that I'm wrong Peter.

I'm perfectly well aware that television has an extremely pernicious influence on society, and also of how it wishes to inculcate a mindset that is deemed acceptable to those wonderful feminists and politically correct amongst us. Now let me just state, that if you are indeed actively campaigning, and campaigning effectively, mind you, to rebalance programming output through powerful and persistent lobbying and petitioning etc, then sir, you have both my respect and also my admiration. Because, unlike many of us men that might well complain, you may well actually be (gasp) doing something about changing what's on the gogglebox, which will help to reflect males in a fairer and more respectful manner. If however, you are not doing that, then I'm prepared to take issue with you on this one Peter.

Instead of people yabbing on about what comes first, the egg or the chicken, the way that all those things that are of real concern to men, hopefully change for the better, is by those of a like mind actually networking, rather than merely gossiping on a forum. Ranting and gossiping might well feel good, and IS good to an extent, and it certainly helps clarify one's thoughts and gains insights into those of others, but in the end, nothing is achieved unless, and until, male activists are actually prepared to commit.

So in the absence of that actually occuring, I still have my own mind and I use it by switching the bloody tv off. I have therefore in one fell swoop stopped it invading my home. Problem admittedly not solved, but avoided nonetheless. If that very same tactic is good enough for the marriage strikers, then it's good enough for me.

CitizenSmith wrote:

still have my own mind and I use it by switching the bloody tv off. I have therefore in one fell swoop stopped it invading my home. Problem admittedly not solved, but avoided nonetheless.

Don't do that!

At least...not yet

Whilst you are right to turn your back on the source (the telly) of your agitation, let us not forget that that same source may actually be of use

For example, it has been well documented, and indeed proven, that various tv shows like to spew falsehoods about 'men's oppression', 'men as worthless' etc and that it is making many of us depressed

Some want to turn their backs on it

Some want to ignore it

But

Wait

Instead of ignoring the tv, we should use it as a tool to serve our own means.

What we should do, for example, is to actively watch, and encourage others to do so too.

In fact, because the tv does discriminate against men, then this should be a constant driving force to get the ball rolling.

After all, many of us are getting more and more furious whenever we hear the 'keywords' on the telly, i.e. 'patriachy', 'women's pay inequality', 'more women in parliment' etc. Our blood positively boils with rage. I'll bet that every man on this forum stops doing what they were busy with just to witness the discrimination to see how their gender will be portrayed.

I, for example, watch Question Time, not becuase I particularaly like it, but becuase I want more evidence of the hateful tactics MP's spew to the viewers at home.

In any case, the more we watch, the more we get angry. In addition, the more we get others to watch, then they too, shall get angry.

Or should that be see the light?

Men, unfortunately, need to stop and take notice. The best we 'knowers' can do is to divert other guy's attention to the discrimination at hand.

As for turning off the tv, I think I'll be watching it.

Very closely.

In 2003 I had a Job in North Texas with a now defunct Media Company. They had a Pro Business program on CNN Headline News, and provided content to the Discovery Channel's Education program. They hit a brick wall in their Pro Business market segment as the Media Industry had undergone a dramatic change post 911 here and there was a huge market contraction. It was however very constructive to see Stories many positive ones regarding Business that would never be broadcast for one reason or another. Positive News in a sea of only negative Media stories.

I was an Associate Producer on the project. It was also interesting to see how Feminists issues were discussed and how Media Celebrities were treated. It was amazing the Egos involved and the money made in the higher end of the
business.