Modern society will kill you.
And I’m not talking about chemicals, oestrogenics, TV, over-medication, or high-fructose corn syrup. Although there’s that, too.
But even if you survive the physical toxins, there’s worse out there. Living a conventional, semi-successful American life in the 21st century can suck the life force out of you. I’ve seen it happen. I’m watching it happen. Could be, this blog is the only thing keeping it from happening to me.
We’ve all seen them. Corporate drones, sleepwalking through their days. Clocking overtime to avoid their nagging wives and angry, ungrateful children. Dark eyes. Beer guts from self-medicated evenings and weekends. Hunched shoulders from years in a lumbar-crumpling Aeron and a general lack of manly vigour.
What happened to these men?
One possibility is that office life killed them. Men are not designed to write briefs and tinker with spreadsheets, to suck up and play office politics. We are not created to sit at a desk, clack at a keyboard, and fill out cover sheets on TPS reports. Spending 8+ hours in a stale, fluorescent-lit office is antithetic to health and happiness.
Do I believe this? I think there’s truth in it, yes. But I also know a few men who work in offices, whose fires still burn bright.
The crucial difference is that they are doing real, actual work. They are in consulting. B2B sales. Politics. At the end of each (often 12+ hour) day, they can point to a result and say, “I did that! I created something, conquered someone, acted on the world rather than passively let the world act on me!” Give a man a reason to take pride in his work, and the rest will take care of itself.
The emptiness, the inner death, the quiet desperation, only strikes men who know, deep down, that what they’re doing is pointless. The majority of jobs in law, finance, government, the foreign service and academia fit this description, as do a growing proportion of jobs in the corporate world (i.e. HR and anything to do with regulatory compliance). The fraction of Americans actually producing is shrinking every day.
A healthy society would revere those who contribute to it, and shun those who do not. But like so many aspects of the 21st-century western world, our reality is the exact opposite of the natural order.
Parasitism is high-status. With a few exceptions (and fewer every year) our best and brightest are drawn to unproductive fields, and rewarded with power, wealth, prestige and babes. Blue-collar tradesmen and computer geeks – i.e., those who actually create for a living – get nothing. Women are the ultimate currency over which men compete, and what woman would rather date a plumber or a software engineer, than an ibanker, lawyer or FSO?
So there’s your explanation for the hollow look in so many men’s eyes. Either they’re working to make the world a better place by creating something others want, and getting shit on for it, or they’re tossing a fresh piece of their soul into the maw of post-modern society with every day that they spend shuffling papers, bureaucratizing, cranking gears on a giant machine that everyone knows doesn’t actually do anything.
But that’s still not the whole story.
No man wants to be a cog in a bureaucratic perpetual motion machine.
So fucking what?
No man ever wanted to work his hands into unfeeling calluses, die slowly trapped in a collapsed mine, or lead a charge through machine-gun and artillery fire onto a cold, grey beach. But men of previous generations did all of that, and more. And they sure as shit didn’t write whiney blogs about how horribly hard it is to be a twenty-five year old, upper-middle-class asshole with a sweet job, loving family, and all the time in the world to eat, drink, fuck and play sports.
Our grandfathers had much more demanding lives than almost anyone my age does. And yet, they stoically and unselfishly did what needed to be done. They did it because it was their duty. They did it because they had a loving wife and kids depending on them. They did it because they had put on a uniform and were representing a nation that they were a part of. Men are capable of incredible feats of courage and self-sacrifice, in the service of causes greater than themselves.
But those were our grandfathers. We are not them, and their world is not ours.
In the 21st century, marriage is a sham. Your family can be destroyed, at the drop of a hat, by a system that has been consciously designed to destroy you. That is, if it’s even your family. Are you going to give your life to that institution? Are you going to take it as a matter of faith that your relationship will be an outlier?
And what about that country you’re willing to die for? Do you really want to risk having your legs blown off by an IED because political correctness prevents us from actually waging and winning wars?
I didn’t think so. Making sacrifices for a higher cause is noble. But in a generation with no such purpose, there is no such virtue.
The only reasonable response to the western world of 2011 is complete and ruthless selfishness.
This does not preclude having friends and family for whom you would fight and die, if that’s what you want. It doesn’t preclude military service, charity, or shovelling your neighbour’s driveway. But every kind gesture, every decent act that you perform, should only be done if you can search your soul and conclude that it’s what you want to do.
Once upon a time, there was a social contract that imposed certain duties on our society’s young men in exchange for certain rights. That contract was breached a long time ago, but we are still being asked to uphold our end. We are told to work crappy and/or soul-destroying jobs to pay for social security, welfare, and never-ending wars. We are told to treat all women with unwavering respect, no matter how fat, brash and entitled they are.
There is only one possible response a man can give to this world: The middle finger. Live your own life, find your own happiness. Fuck the obligations, and fuck anyone who calls on you to “Man Up.” Pursuing marriage and a career under the outdated assumption that the virtuous are rewarded is a fool’s errand. You will wind up an empty, hollow, disillusioned shell of a man.
Instead, Nut Up. Make yourself better and learn game until you’re getting laid like tile. Embrace your parasitical job if you’ve got one and Go Galt if you don’t. Disconnect from the anesthetising morphine drip of mainstream news media and live in the intellectual world of the Alt-Right Blogosphere and Google Books.
Perhaps, one day, some worthy cause will present itself, and our lives will take on a meaning they currently lack. Until then, it’s your life.
Frost writes at Freedom Twenty-Five.
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Yes, the corporate and to a larger extent bureaucratic world requires a man to set aside notions of honor, truth, fairness in favor of a PC version of accepting the inefficiency, lack of real production, and kowtowing to fat, middle-aged women. Not to mention that to advance required becoming a weaselling back-stabbing prick.
Not for me, and I did exactly what this article called for: looked for an easy, well-paying job where I didn’t have to contribute beyond the minimum.
How many thousands of other Men have done this, at the cost of removing from society the potential and drive?
A quote from Norman Mailor:
“Women love everything about the corporate workplace, they love the carpets, the meetings. For men, every day they have to show up is a little death.”
If all of the old social contracts have been broken, then ALL of the old social contracts are broken. It’s not a bad thing and it works both ways. That means those old stale rules involving marriage, the economy, religion, nationalism, following the laws, having children, civic responsibilities, etc. etc.
I say figure out for yourself just how far you’re willing to risk pushing it and how far you’re willing to be a slave to a system that does not reciprocate your loyalties to dead ideas. Then go from there. Personally I see endless opportunities to have fun and lead an interesting life on my terms.
Free your mind and your balls will follow.
The corporate, sterile office environment. while glorifying the feminine dynamic,also whittles away the last vestiges of masculinity, even amongst the higher-ranking types.
One thing the corporate schema does is reward the “marriage dynamic” in that much of the way man is expected to behave under the fluorescents is also the way he’s expected to be behave once he gets home after a long day of pushing pencils. For the married corporate robots, there is very little culture shock, but for the single man, it’s a major adjustment each morning he walks into the office.
The price that modern man paid for complete intellectual freedom was nihilism. It’s only now that liberalism (classical and modern) is in full bloom and has ravaged the spirituality of the West that we begin to realize that we lost so much in the Enlightenment and modernity in general.
Yes, you’re “free” on paper, but what value is that “freedom” that most moderns really care about (the freedom to fuck, acquire and consume, not true liberties like our bill of rights) to a middle age or elderly man? What does the sexual revolution offer a middle age beta male? Nothing. What does modern dating offer him? Nothing over what he once had.
In short, modernity is nothing more than a combination of unleashing the will to power of the alpha male and sexuality of women.
If men want to fix our society, they’ll have to go back before the WWII generation and even before the Enlightenment.
In 2010 I worked a political job straight out of college, against my better judgment. I quit in November and this article explains why.
My thoughts: unless you are casting the votes or is an elected official who is in charge, you are working a pointless ass-kissing job. It makes me cringe to think of all the passive aggressive fuckwit nerds I had to deal with who would make you look like shit through gossip and take credit for things they didn’t do. This is called “playing politics” and this is why a certain type is drawn to this industry – playing these stupid games is the endgame. You knew deep down that outside of this job if they pulled this shit they would get their asses beat.
It was unbelievable to me at first the amount of waste that is prevelant within that system, and the only experience I have is with state government. I can only imagine what it’s like at the federal level.
Anyway, I quit and at 26 I’m glad I learned my lesson. Now I’m about to get back into acting…something I actually enjoy doing.
Let me put in a plug for the field of medicine. The work is meaningful and the money is good (at least for now).Right now foreigners take most of these jobs because Americans don’t want to put in the work in highschool and college.
“The crucial difference is that they are doing real, actual work. They are in consulting. B2B sales. Politics.”
Whaa?
Sales is “real work”? Sales is how alphas and women profit off the creativity and brainwork of betas. Politics? Am I missing something here?
These jobs are probably more fulfilling than submissive beta drone work, but I wouldn’t call them “real work” any more than TPS reporting.
Our system is self-congratulatory feudalism with hot showers and TV.
I pretty much see it as Mike T said above:
“In short, modernity is nothing more than a combination of unleashing the will to power of the alpha male and sexuality of women.”
It is rather ironic…only now that complete intellectual freedom has trickled down to the common man has it become obvious that modernity is a big shit sandwich.
Bon Jovi? Sorry man, but that makes me think of middle aged women.
This is my submission for Alt-Right anthem:
My mother was a WITCH
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJZo2OKmshU
Damn, you are young. And you taste in music weakens your argument. Seriously, sales and politics are worthwhile? Then eBay should be a dream gig.
There are 2 types of citizens in the U.S. – flesh & blood people, and corporations. Thanks to the Supreme Court, corporate citizens have freedoms that are not enjoyed by mere flesh & blood citizens. If you are a corporate American, you can blow your wad in 2008, forced Uncle Sam to hand over $700 billion in less time it takes a flesh & blood American to get a mortgage. Then, when you record record profits in 2010, you bitch about how “uncooperative” the White House is. A corporate American can arm twist the government for favorable tax laws and regulations, easy bankruptcy to walk away from debts, and you can take that extra cash and hire people overseas. If a flesh & blood American is not willing to work at the wage of a Chinese or Mexican worker, well, they just don’t realize we compete in a global marketplace, and should be left to rot.
C’mon, you know you want to comment on this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rbMHLDY1pA
I think we should take over the political system.
For fun.
Nice piece, but but I agree with Bill. Sales/consulting may be a lot of things, but one thing they are not is “real work”.
Good point about the useful jobs being marginalized and relatively trivial ones being lucrative.My major was initially in Electrically engineering ,I had the aptitude but alas not the discipline(in engineering both are a must)so I ended up with Business Admin with a minor in IT.Currently I work in the business conference(events industry).Let me tell you ,there is a LOT of money in this field.Considerably more than electrical engineering.Yet I feel like somewhat of poser ,lets face it no one really NEEDS conferences of this sort.I just do it for the money (I just stumbled into this profession) to be honest and when I see my superiors taking this job oh so seriously and praising my performance and dedication,I chuckle AND die a little inside.
The Old Dudes had to travel thousands of miles to slay enemies with incredible feats of courage and self-sacrifice, in the service of causes greater than themselves.
Today’s Tyler Slacker only has to walk out his front door – provided he’s not yet tired of WoW.
Them homies seem to be doin’ OK…
You guys dissing “sales” jobs, I suspect, are thinking about car salesman and door to door vacuum cleaner reps.
Frost wrote “B2B” Sales. That’s business-to-business sales. That is a different animal altogether. There is a fundamental difference here, in B2B, you are selling a good or service to another business who will use that good or service to better their own business.
It is a satisfying and rewarding job with a real sense of accomplishment to complete the sales cycle in B2B sales.
In fact…compared to Mr. Herb Cubicle, them Holmes and Bruthus be doin’ so good, I see more n’ more of ‘em evry day – and they pretty loud about it too.
Maybe it’s THEY who deserve to inherit Ameriqua.
Frost, I follow you blog regularly and I think this is your best post yet. Keep this up.
I disagree.
It’s one thing to say to the lionized G.I. Generation “take it easy”
…but it’s a thoughtless mockery to tell the generation that’s done nothing but hide in its parents’ basement to “keep on HIDING – all is lost.”
Would you please stop sucking the cock of those who delivered us in this mess?
Ah, Mr Gx Genius Junior blames those with cocks.
Great – have your Jared Generation man the ramparts and take it back from the old timers.
Oh, irl – not on GameBoy
Much thanks for all the feedback, and Ferdinand for posting this.
Sales is definitely real work, as Dave says, and it’s absolutely necessary for the real economy unless it’s tainted by some other nexus of parasitism. Selling software to the public service =/= selling software to a private law office. Same argument applies for consulting.
Politics is zero-sum and thus not “real” work, but the guys I know working on the hill live and breath to destroy their opponents. Whether this benefits society or not, it’s something a man’s soul can thrive on.
Reece – congrats! Start a blog.
Great points/quote from Unmarried Man, Private Man, Mike T and Lovecraft.
Zinko, that’s exactly the point I’m making in my post (and blog). It’s a great time to be alive for men who can see the world for what it is and react accordingly, and a shitty time for the men who can’t. A small percentage of men have opened their eyes to “this” world, and an even smaller percentage will actually put the knowledge to use. Those men have the potential to be kings among men.
Cheers,
Frost
“There is a fundamental difference here, in B2B, you are selling a good or service to another business who will use that good or service to better their own business.
It is a satisfying and rewarding job with a real sense of accomplishment to complete the sales cycle in B2B sales.”
Much agree. I work in ad sales, so I know a lot is on the line to produce results when some other business (whether it’s MegaCorp or a Mom-&-Pop small biz livelihood) relying on you.
Speaking of politics, it’s those Best Kings who accomplish the most from praising their praisers.
Apropos of nothing, Newt boned his high school geometry teacher … and married her! Then divorced her when her ho-ha stopped working.
http://www.esquire.com/print-this/newt-gingrich-0910?page=all
PURE alpha.
To appease the kiddies, I suspect msm (like Esquire) will condemn N-Gin in the same breath it will praise Tommy Lee for his record of sexual conquest – in and out of marriages.
Damn! No wonder I love my govie job with some autonomy. Less money, but little BS and great vacation and actual sick leave. Who could want for more under the current situation?
This almost brought tears to my eyes!
Newt is hardly Alpha. Who the fuck gets married 3 times and chooses Catholicism!
“PURE alpha.”
The “manosphere” is all about lionizing the most repellent behavior while denigrating anything that is decent. Then they sit back and complain about the downfall of civilization as if they had nothing to do with it.
You americans are really goat f—ers. Who the bloody hell works for a passion, except a few outliers. You work in order to survive, provide for a family. Get a balance man. The real issue is that most of you are not married (not your fault though). Writing from India, I remember what my friend told me — Get married, settle down, your restlessness will decrease. The girls may all be Maryln Monroes, but the men are no less, each one is a Tom Cruise who wants nothing less than a 9 or a 10. Get real buddy, your grandfather would have died to have the job you have. Earn a living, but have your passions. Or let me curse you — May you live in interesting times. KC. Now I understand why in my country, marriage is considered a panacea for many ills. Count your blessings, but once in a while just freak out and enjoy. Honestly, your country and society needs to encourage marriage and promote the conditions which make it possible.
Americans need a good dose of traditional Christianity and their men to grow a pair and face their demons.
Hah! The army of pussy-whipped “patriarchs” is too funny.
Having worked with salesmen and value-transferrers of sorts, most of what they do for a living is talking the talk (though this is hardly surprising). Politics is real work? What are politicians then, professional liars?
Dali,
I think I agree with you that the vast majority of politicians today are parasites, enables of parasites, and even parasites on the parasites.
But even in an ideal world, there would still be a need for (hopefully limited) government, democratic or otherwise. And so the officials (elected or otherwise) responsible for discharging and administering the the functions of government would be doing productive work. And ideally these would only be absolutely necessary things like, national defense, basic law enforcement, and a court system.
A dumbass ex-Atheist.
Ayn Rand meets John Wayne!
Fuck society!@@!
Women dig FSOs? Who knew?
I just discovered In Mala Fide and holy shit, it’s a breath of fresh air! When have you been all my life?
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