Alright, so here's a post with some real substance. We heard a song on the radio that pretty much made me want to punch the artist in question. I already had pretty strong negative feelings toward Brad Paisley, but this... this song takes the cake, guys. Maybe this is old news to some, but have you heard "I'm Still a Guy" yet? None of the sites I found the lyrics on would let me paste the whole thing, probably because of a copyright issue, but here's a little taste:
"When you see a priceless French painting,
I see a drunk naked girl.
When you think that riding a wild bull sounds crazy
and I'd like the give it a whirl.
Well, love makes a man do some things he ain't proud of
And in a weak moment I might
Walk your sissy dog, hold your purse at the mall
But remember, I'm still a guy."
"These days there's dudes gettin' facials
Manicured, waxed and botoxed.
With deep spray-on tans and creamy lotiony hands
You can't grip a tackle box.
Yeah, with all of these men linin' up to get neutered
It's hip now to be feminized.
But I don't highlight my hair, I've still got a pair
Yeah honey, I'm still a guy."
So... my reactions to this. Wow. Um. Where to even start? The rampant sexism? The "Small-Penis Syndrome?" The blatant superiority complex?
OK. Seriously though. There are a lot of things wrong with how popular this song is and the fact that so many people (male and female, I might add) seem to be celebrating it. Just look in the comment sections when you go to see all the lyrics - because I know that now you'll have to. It's become a popular thing for straight men to affirm their masculinity in every single way they can. I don't know why they have to... but to hear them tell it, everyone's turning gay like it's some epidemic and it's this big, horrible thing not to like fishing or hunting or basically anything that is "manly" by their standards. My question is this: Who made up these standards and why do we all feel the need to follow them like sheep? What in [higher power]'s name is wrong with being different?
Maybe I'm just jealous. Because I know - this just affirms my previous thoughts - that in order to be respected as a man, if that's what I decide I want to do, I have to conform to all of this stuff that I'm not willing to do. Since when is it "weak" to do something nice for your girlfriend by holding their purse? Chivalry must truly be dead. I don't know when it became "funny" and "cool" to degrade women. (All that "make me a sammich" stuff on the internet now? WTF?) But I sure don't approve. No matter where my gender identity takes me, I will always have to remember my beginnings as a female. I may not like to think about it, but it's valuable for anyone to see both sides of the coin and be able to connect with others who are different, instead of automatically cataloging them as "weird" or "not manly enough" or what have you. Have we forgotten how to think about other people and their feelings? Oh, I forgot... real men don't have feelings.
I'm just sick of everybody hating on everybody else. Maybe I'm not helping by ripping apart this song, but... I just can't see what purpose it serves other than to hurt others. To me, that's never OK.
I'm sure I left out a bunch of things you're thinking about, so I'd love it if you'd share your thoughts, feelings and reactions about this song in the comments.
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