Um. You guys. This happened.<\/p>\n
https:\/\/twitter.com\/JesseKellyDC\/status\/1345885052350164992<\/p>\n
Yes, right-wing radio host Jesse Kelly really wrote that.<\/p>\n
Here it is again:<\/p>\n
A man does not release a private conversation he has with anyone. That\u2019s part of being a man. Democrat, Republican, Trump, anti-Trump, none of that matters.<\/p>\n
You don\u2019t repeat things said to you privately. That\u2019s simple man code.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
I don\u2019t think this is just about Kelly finding a way to be angry at Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensburger for releasing the damning phone call\u2014although it is clearly about that.<\/p>\n
I think there actually is<\/em> a \u201cman code\u201d not to release the content of private conversations (although it should be noted that this hardly counts as \u201cprivate\u201d), just like there\u2019s a \u201cman code\u201d against showing any sign of vulnerability, or discussing emotions, or asking for help. The\u00a0\u201cman code\u201d Kelly mentions is real\u2014and it\u2019s toxic<\/em>.<\/p>\n
One of the reasons Trump has found purchase among so many is that he plays into a lot of ideas in our society about how men are\u00a0supposed\u00a0<\/em>to act: confident, hard-charging, brash, demanding, tough, aggressive, never showing weakness\u2014never saying \u201cI\u2019m wrong\u201d or \u201cI\u2019m sorry\u201d or \u201cI made a mistake.\u201d Constantly projecting aggressive, masculine confidence.<\/p>\n
In this context, honoring the \u201cman code\u201d can become more important than revealing others\u2019 malfeasance.\u00a0And that\u2019s a bad thing.\u00a0<\/em>All of this is a bad thing! I don\u2019t think for a moment that Trump would have gotten where he is without the aid of toxic masculinity\u2014machismo<\/em>.<\/p>\n
Again, this is bad! These ideas about masculinity are bad. Somehow, these ideas took us to a place where hiding a president\u2019s threats and attempts to overturn an election is the\u00a0manly\u00a0<\/em>thing to do. I don\u2019t like this place. And there are all sorts of other effects of these ideas\u2014reporting workplace harassment or malfeasance becomes\u00a0unmanly,\u00a0<\/em>for example.<\/p>\n
This is not great! These ideas are\u00a0bad.<\/em><\/p>\n
Reporter Jessica Huseman captured the utter absurdity of Kelly\u2019s argument in her tweet here:<\/p>\n
\nLIKE NO GIRLS ALLOWED AND NO TAPES ALLOWED MANHOOD > DEMOCRACY AND RULE OF LAW OK<\/p>\n
\u2014 Jessica Huseman (@JessicaHuseman) January 4, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n