Liberals are cracking down on masculinity once again! All you men out there who prefer dogs as pets, you will soon be shown the light by the political left: You’re only indulging in rigid, socially constructed gender stereotypes and perpetuating “toxic masculinity” by owning a dog, and should become a “cat man,” instead.
In an article fittingly titled “All hail the rise of cat men, an antidote to toxic masculinity,” ABC Australia profiles men with their pet kittens, posing for photos with the felines and gushing over their relationships. Feminists and academics fawn over the alleged upswing in male cat owners, too.
“An online movement of men is shrugging off the stereotype that ‘cats are for girls’ and flaunting their affinity for kitties,” captions ABC Australia, above author Hayley Gleeson’s featured post. “And they’re giving others permission to embrace a gentler, more thoughtful kind of masculinity.”
Ugh.
“The rise of ‘cat men’, as they’ve been dubbed, can mostly be observed on social media, where countless pages exist to document the relationship men of all ages and backgrounds have with their cats,” writes Gleeson.
According to the piece, “experts” say the rise in “cat men” “represents a shift towards a more positive, inclusive masculinity — one which is sorely needed, especially given the impact a more aggressive masculinity — evident in, for example, violence against women — is having on society.”
So, in other words, traditional masculinity is the root cause of all the evils of the world and cats will help end that evil, or something. (But feminist don’t hate men.)
“Others might be surprised to learn how common the cat man actually is. Indeed, recent Roy Morgan research shows there are 2.3 million ‘cat people’ — those who have cats but not dogs — in Australia, one million of whom are men,” she adds.
Gleeson also argues that “cat men” earn more and are less likely to view homosexuality as immoral: “The report also found Aussie cat men earn more, on average, than non-cat men; are 29 per cent less likely than the average man to believe ‘homosexuality is immoral.'”
The author notes that the supposed rise in “cat men” has even led to an official “It’s Okay to be a Cat Guy” Facebook page (which looks like a total parody account). Here’s the “Mission” section of the page:
For too long, there’s been a stereotype about cat guys. Unmanly. More soft than rugged. More feminine than masculine.
And there have been hundreds of books and movies about the relationship between a man and his dog. The trusty companion. The sidekick. Man’s best friend.
But there’s another male/animal relationship that’s never been shown.
Until now.
It’s time to show the world that IT’S OKAY TO BE A CAT GUY.
The group even sells t-shirts that say “It’s Okay to be a Cat Guy” to reassure the male cat owners.
Academic elite Dr. Heather Fraser of Flinders University also sees the good in pushing “cat men,” as these men “challenge” gender stereotypes.
“There are aspects of orthodox masculinity that get in the way of or prohibit … many men from being able to talk in the same kind of ways about their feelings about animals as women,” said Dr. Fraser. “So I think it’s quite an interesting cultural shift to see especially young men … taking on cat love and presenting it in ways [on social media] that challenge the stereotype that they’re effeminate.”
It’s of course completely fine to have a cat while male, if you’re into that sort of thing. But liberals pushing “cat men” as a way to strip men of traditional masculinity is both ridiculous and sick.
H/T Red Alert Politics