The bulk of the article I found frustrating, as I felt it focused on vagueries in what masculinity is. The last paragraph finally gave something useful to grab onto:
“If you look at the problems young men are facing: Lack of economic opportunity is one of them, lack of growth and wages is one of them. But you also have isolation and loneliness and suicidal ideation and these deaths of despair that are happening and plaguing particularly the white men community. And I can’t imagine another group of people in this country having [problems] like that where it wouldn’t be talked about all the time.”
After really thinking critically about these points, I was able to see things with being frustrated about. Here in Pennsylvania, there are quite a number of places where I can see how focusing on these issues could bring major improvement.
The bonus is I feel these things are part of the Democratic platform, it’s just the current messaging doesn’t speak well to the type of voters who are suffering from these issues.
They’re largely economic and healthcare issues, things that have been hammered by Republicans for the last few decades. Messages about climate change jobs (renewables, etc) and expanded healthcare or Medicare for All feel largely targeted to those already on board the Democratic platform.
Change it to focusing on how the Republicans have left them empty handed to give everything to the wealthy, how business and billionaire taxation is going to give it back to them, how free or subsidized schooling will get them in demand jobs, and how we will get doctors to come to rural areas again. It’s already there, just the messaging isn’t targeted to people turned off the current political scene.
I do feel like some of this has been tried in the past, so some of you may feel this didn’t work before, but we’ve also had a bit of Overton shift since then as well, climate has become more front and center, education wasn’t seen so broadly as a controversial thing, and whether the goals of the messaging were actually accomplished or not (they obviously were not), the overall situation was still better in reality.
The bulk of the article I found frustrating, as I felt it focused on vagueries in what masculinity is. The last paragraph finally gave something useful to grab onto:
After really thinking critically about these points, I was able to see things with being frustrated about. Here in Pennsylvania, there are quite a number of places where I can see how focusing on these issues could bring major improvement.
The bonus is I feel these things are part of the Democratic platform, it’s just the current messaging doesn’t speak well to the type of voters who are suffering from these issues.
They’re largely economic and healthcare issues, things that have been hammered by Republicans for the last few decades. Messages about climate change jobs (renewables, etc) and expanded healthcare or Medicare for All feel largely targeted to those already on board the Democratic platform.
Change it to focusing on how the Republicans have left them empty handed to give everything to the wealthy, how business and billionaire taxation is going to give it back to them, how free or subsidized schooling will get them in demand jobs, and how we will get doctors to come to rural areas again. It’s already there, just the messaging isn’t targeted to people turned off the current political scene.
I do feel like some of this has been tried in the past, so some of you may feel this didn’t work before, but we’ve also had a bit of Overton shift since then as well, climate has become more front and center, education wasn’t seen so broadly as a controversial thing, and whether the goals of the messaging were actually accomplished or not (they obviously were not), the overall situation was still better in reality.
Thank you for your insight. I agree with you on all of it.