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Well, actually blame it on capitalism. Bear with me here. Going back over the last 15 years or so, I've seen and been dismayed at a trend in commercials (yes commercials) that always subtly belittles men. More specifically, white men (surely I'll get flamed for this one). The overwhelming trend is to have the white woman look strong, unyielding, cock-sure, always a winner, while the white man is the opposite. While not as pronounced, African American males are almost always cool under fire, hip, funny, and almost always come out on top when placed next to white men.
Before you gasp, I only ask that you start watching commercials with a new eye. If you have to, take stats so that your untrustworthy opinion won't sneak in.
So why do these commercials carry these messages? Well, anything that in any way smacks, or even whiffs of racism or sexism is immediately pounced on and crushed by well meaning groups, and so they should. But this has left us with a campaign that then picks on the only group who are without representation on the national scene.
What organization is going to come out in defense of white men when they are depicted in a commercial that has 3 white criminals sitting in a truck looking into a Brinks protected home, and decrying how tough it is to be a crook? Why are there no black criminals in that truck? How about the white guy at the car rental counter who can't understand the African American man when he opens his mouth and "I wanna ROCK" comes out? Who comes out and complains about his portrayal? Certainly not womens groups. The white female looks good as she asks the clueless white guy to stand aside and then opens her mouth wide and converses with the black male by speaking in his loud rock langage. They easily connect and converse, while the weasley looking white guy only shuffles off to the side in foreign-tongued limp-dicked confusion.
I could go on and on. The parade of similarly themed commercials is endless and they all share the same subtle message. Maybe this is all some sort of karmic payback for the god awful way black men used to be depicted in Hollywood????
But don't take my word. Again, start closely watching tv commercials and start seeing these trends emerge, and then imagine yourself the young white kid who is watching, and "learning" how he fits into society.
Sure, more products are sold, the economy rolls along, we feel good that sexism and racism are finally meeting their just end, but left in the dust is a generation of young white males who just don't feel like they fit in. Maybe not all, the strong rise to the top, but enough to have started an alarming trend.
Can't companies sell products without having to belittle anyone?
