Insecure male Bigots Who Support War and Buy SUVs

[aric]

Link

Masculinity Challenged, Men Prefer War and SUVs

By LiveScience Staff

posted: 02 August 2005
03:58 pm ET


Men whose masculinity is challenged become more inclined to support war or buy an SUV, a new study finds.

Their attitudes against gays change, too.

Cornell University researcher Robb Willer used a survey to sample undergraduates. Participants were randomly assigned feedback that indicated their responses were either masculine of feminine.

The women had no discernable reaction to either type of feedback in a follow-up survey.

But the guys' reactions were "strongly affected," Willer said today.

"I found that if you made men more insecure about their masculinity, they displayed more homophobic attitudes, tended to support the Iraq war more and would be more willing to purchase an SUV over another type of vehicle," said Willer said. "There were no increases [in desire] for other types of cars."

Those who had their masculinity threatened also said they felt more ashamed, guilty, upset and hostile than those whose masculinity was confirmed, he said.

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So, that's why some people supported the War in Iraq!

;D

Seriously though, it's nice to have some statistical corroboration with an idea that's been around for a long time.

- Aric

[Vorchia]

How's a suv going to make a guy feel more masculine?? If it had said 'fancy sports car' (ferrari etc) or for more normal fancy cars, expensive trademarks like Rover it'd make sense but a suv? I'll never understand guys.

Oh by the way, how do you feel about hummers? I personally think they're hideous and extremely impractical. Like, where do you park a half-cube of metal and plastic like that in any normal city?? Its hard enough to find a normal sized and legal parking spot, let go an extra wide one (or two normal ones side by side) that could hold a hummer. Why do people BUY those things?? lol How do you even SURVIVE your hummer in busy traffic? Sure on a lone country road you'll have all the space such a beast needs. But imagine you have to maneuver one such vehicle through oh say, New York City during rush hour?

[aric]

vorchia said:

How's a suv going to make a guy feel more masculine?? If it had said 'fancy sports car' (ferrari etc) or for more normal fancy cars, expensive trademarks like Rover it'd make sense but a suv? I'll never understand guys.

An SUV has an outdoors mystique to it. It's not some prissy Porsche or your dad's Crown Victoria. It's supposed to be a rugged working machine. Of course, few SUVs actually fulfill this role, but the image is more than enough to make up for a psychologically defenestrated man.

vorchia said:

Oh by the way, how do you feel about hummers? I personally think they're hideous and extremely impractical.

I like the first generation of hummers. Those were the actual utility trucks the military drives. The H2 is simply a glorified SUV. The H3 is... well, I don't know what that mutant is.

vorchia said:

Like, where do you park a half-cube of metal and plastic like that in any normal city?? Its hard enough to find a normal sized and legal parking spot, let go an extra wide one (or two normal ones side by side) that could hold a hummer. Why do people BUY those things?? lol How do you even SURVIVE your hummer in busy traffic? Sure on a lone country road you'll have all the space such a beast needs. But imagine you have to maneuver one such vehicle through oh say, New York City during rush hour?

Yah. I once saw either an H1 or H2 in Chinatown while I was driving back from Costco. The thing couldn't stay inside the narrow lanes of the streets of China town. It spilled over into the next lane. Fortunately for that schmuck, the roads weren't busy and the lanes widened up after a couple hundred feet.

Heh. At another board I attend, one of the administrators got into an accident with an H2. That guy is a bus driver. He was dropping off some kids when a H2 hit the bus from behind. The bus suffered some minor damage. The H2 crumpled up like a soda can.

It probably would have been different, not to mention perhaps more tragic, if the guy had been driving a H1.

- Aric

[Christopher]

Interesting, and would explain a few things. But that can't always be the case for people who support the war, are homophobic, or want an SUV can it?

I'm all for bringing democracy to Iraq, and come close to being a homophobe, but I'm not insecure about my masculinity. (I don't want an SUV)

[aric]

chrisindixie said:

Interesting, and would explain a few things. But that can't always be the case for people who support the war, are homophobic, or want an SUV can it?

Nah. It's the other way around. It's not "people who support war, are homophobic, and want an SUV are insecure in their masculinity." It's "people who are insecure in their masculinity suddenly support war, become homophobes, and want SUVs."

- Aric

[RedFeather]

Yeah, I would say that while that isn't true of all, it's true of many. A lot of guys have serious issues regarding the masculinity thing.

[Stouthorn]

Don't forget that concern for the environment is girly, so SUV's are the perfect man-vehicle. Trees are gay, anyway.

[SilvanoshiS]

That comment made me die a little inside, even if it was scarcastic...

[Stouthorn]

lol

[SilvanoshiS]

Yay for driving up post count

[Stouthorn]

lol

(that's 2)