“I don’t want to hear it is what it is/It was what it was.”—Haim
It can hardly be denied that women were second-class citizens throughout most of our country’s history. This was due largely to an economy that placed great value on the physical strength and skills of men. With the advent of the knowledge-based economy, however, things have started to change dramatically. Men whose skills are no longer much valued are feeling left behind and are angry about it. Both sexes argue that the glass is half empty–women due to the remaining vestiges of the past, and men for the present and an apparently dismal future. Who is right here?
Women are right in wanting the remaining barriers to disappear, but probably a bit too inclined to use the language of victimhood and to deny men a fair hearing in the process (right, Mr. Franken?). As for the men, the obstacles to their success are purely psychological, not legal or social, so they need to suck it up and find roles that work in the new economy instead of retreating to the gym and whining on social media. Their claims to be victims don’t warrant your sympathy.