Old guys and hot microphones
Some Facebook friends were having a discussion of a recording of Donald Trump’s private conversation in 2005. A Texas resident (and Hillary supporter, as it happens) opened with “The only thing I find remarkable about the debate about Mr. Trump’s audio and video recordings from the last few years is that so many men claim to be surprised about it.” A liberal New Yorker male feminist immediately attacked her with “Wow, L. That’s really sexist.” The funniest part of the discussion was a link to this Bill Burr video about old people out of sync with modern political views.
Most of the comments were actually by men saying that they would never do or say anything bad. Or maybe they did a few decades ago, before they became enlightened by Obama and Hillary, but nowhere near as bad as stuff that Donald Trump does and says. None of these guys judging the Donald had stacks of cash, private jets, two Sikorsky S-76 helicopters, celebrity, rich friends, or a circle of attractive young women anxious to join that party, but they were confident that they would behave well if they did. It was sort of an inverse Ring of Gyges fable.
In response to “Private guy talk. Pretty tame stuff. Of course, I lived in a fraternity house at a major university for two years,” here’s one salaryman’s condemnation of the billionaire:
The fact that it doesn’t bother you is a significant part of the problem. Sounds like you’ve been enculturated, perhaps through your fraternity experience or elsewhere, that this sort of thing is okay in a fraternity or anywhere else, for that matter. I reject that notion wholesale. I support your freedom of speech to say this sort of thing, but I am also free to observe that it is clearly demeaning to women and wouldn’t want my daughters exposed to it in any context, particularly in a business setting where it undermines their rights and opportunities. In shorthand, a clear indicator of what many describe as ‘Rape Culture.’
I would also add that what might seem okay in an all teen male fraternity environment is hopefully something that adult men can grow beyond as they mature and are socialized to interact with women on a more equal socio-economic basis. To see it in a middle age adult in a business setting is, candidly, disgusting, and would be grounds for immediate dismissal from any company I would respect.
Thankfully, none of my friends or the groups I’ve had the good fortune to frequent over the last thirty plus years are even a tiny fraction so crass or insensitive to women. Though I think this presidential race is certainly demonstrating that many seem to think as you do, but clearly, even more are as opposed to such behavior as I am. Maybe you could look beyond your current haunts for better, more forward looking role models? Come visit!
I think the way all of this is playing out is an illustration of the genius of Max Weber, who wouldn’t have been at all surprised to see how people whose paychecks depending on keeping a position within a bureaucracy will adjust their speech and, eventually, their thought processes.
Related:
- Bill Burr on ordinary people judging celebrities (about halfway through)
- Prince and Donald Trump
