What is "Manly"?

[MamaJunebug]

In brief: It occurred to me some time ago that very few of the headships who are leading this anti-choice, anti-woman, anti-child campaign of theonomy and dominionism are not very manly.

Of course our opinions will vary all over the place, but to me, manly includes but isn't limited to:

self-possessed

quiet

confident

alert

aware

matter-of-fact

on-task

humorous

self-effacing

clean but not preening

My The Spousal Unit has most of those qualities. So does my seriously obese single neighbor and my atheist neighbor; so did my dad and so do my brothers-in-law and most of my sons and sons-in-law.

On the other hand, I don't see many of the qualities in Kevin Swanson, Doug Phillips, Scott Brown, Joe Morecraft, Mike Pearl, certainly not the Bayly Brothers.... I could go on.

To me, the men I named are too thin (except for Joe), too well put together, too self-promoting, too humorless. They make me think of guys I knew in my late teens and 20s who were so intent upon promoting themselves - often at the expense of others, especially in their peer group - that I never thought of them as men, but overgrown boys.

Am I making any sense? Here we go: If we were casting a dominionist, we'd get Tom Cruise. If we were casting a manly man, we'd want George Clooney. KWIM?

[Marian the Librarian]

In brief: It occurred to me some time ago that very few of the headships who are leading this anti-choice, anti-woman, anti-child campaign of theonomy and dominionism are not very manly.

Of course our opinions will vary all over the place, but to me, manly includes but isn't limited to:

self-possessed

quiet

confident

alert

aware

matter-of-fact

on-task

humorous

self-effacing

clean but not preening

My The Spousal Unit has most of those qualities. So does my seriously obese single neighbor and my atheist neighbor; so did my dad and so do my brothers-in-law and most of my sons and sons-in-law.

On the other hand, I don't see many of the qualities in Kevin Swanson, Doug Phillips, Scott Brown, Joe Morecraft, Mike Pearl, certainly not the Bayly Brothers.... I could go on.

To me, the men I named are too thin (except for Joe), too well put together, too self-promoting, too humorless. They make me think of guys I knew in my late teens and 20s who were so intent upon promoting themselves - often at the expense of others, especially in their peer group - that I never thought of them as men, but overgrown boys.

Am I making any sense? Here we go: If we were casting a dominionist, we'd get Tom Cruise. If we were casting a manly man, we'd want George Clooney. KWIM?

Funny, when I look at the names I've highlighted above, I think "closeted gay."

[ladypuglover]

In brief: It occurred to me some time ago that very few of the headships who are leading this anti-choice, anti-woman, anti-child campaign of theonomy and dominionism are not very manly.

Of course our opinions will vary all over the place, but to me, manly includes but isn't limited to:

self-possessed

quiet

confident

alert

aware

matter-of-fact

on-task

humorous

self-effacing

clean but not preening

My The Spousal Unit has most of those qualities. So does my seriously obese single neighbor and my atheist neighbor; so did my dad and so do my brothers-in-law and most of my sons and sons-in-law.

On the other hand, I don't see many of the qualities in Kevin Swanson, Doug Phillips, Scott Brown, Joe Morecraft, Mike Pearl, certainly not the Bayly Brothers.... I could go on.

To me, the men I named are too thin (except for Joe), too well put together, too self-promoting, too humorless. They make me think of guys I knew in my late teens and 20s who were so intent upon promoting themselves - often at the expense of others, especially in their peer group - that I never thought of them as men, but overgrown boys.

Am I making any sense? Here we go: If we were casting a dominionist, we'd get Tom Cruise. If we were casting a manly man, we'd want George Clooney. KWIM?

Add

Comfortable in own skin to wear a tu-tu for his daughter

Loving

High morals

A gentle side like helping mama ducks cross the street (but only if they want him to)

Respects all woman, even the ones who are not his taste for a bed partner.

Encourages others

Truthful but knows when to tell a tiny white lie.

Is proud of the women and men in his life.

Willing to cry when the time calls for it. Like when your little brother comes home after serving 18 months in the sandbox.