Quodlibet
Courage, Ass!
In the online Wall Street Journal of January 18, 2018, Peggy Noonan wrote an article titled "America Needs More Gentlemen," in which she said,
I used to think America needed a parent to help it behave. Now I think it needs a grandparent. Our culture has been so confused for so long on so many essentials, and has gotten so crosswise on the issue of men and women, that we need more than ever the wisdom of the aged.
Well, I'm old enough now to claim the distinction and spout off. I stand perpetually gobsmacked by the idiot cowardice of young Americans, particularly those of my sex, who passively line up to be castrated by feminists, and don't seem to have any ammunition to fight them—not even mild disdain. Here's an opinion on gentlemanliness they'll probably be scared enough of to run off and hide in the depths of their smartphones:
Practically speaking, despite the ravages of feminism, there is still only one safe way to deal with any woman—even those who think they're feminists and have been told they should feel insulted by the patriarchal attitudes behind this kind of behavior—and that way is "being a gentleman." This is how women want to be treated, even when they say they don't. It shows respect for both their persons and their womanhood, something that women who don't get it want very much unless they have been permanently damaged.
The courage required for a man to act this way is just that, to risk being attacked by a few nut-case feminists for his gentlemanliness, but even the most radical of that bunch will despise him as a boor and a lout if he treats her as she professes she wants to be treated. There's no way a man can win against a feminist, for that's how things are set up: if he acts like a gentleman, he's a typical male chauvinist; if he doesn't, he's a typical male swine.
She will admire him, though, if he bears up under the hysteria, even though the admiration is against her principles. And when she gets home, she will dislike herself for insulting him, because her religion is Niceness, and she hasn't been nice to a man who's been nice to her.
Coraggio, povero asino! and normal women will love you, or at least find you likable.
S. M. Hutchens is a senior editor and longtime writer for Touchstone.
Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95. That's only $3.34 per month!
Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives for only $19.95. That's only $1.66 per month!
bulk subscriptions
Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.
Transactions will be processed on a secure server.
more on culture from the online archives
30.6—Nov/Dec 2017
Christ, Individualism & the Meaning of Cultural Diversity by Anthony Esolen
31.2—March/April 2018
The Transmission of Christianity Is Not a New Task by Nathanael Devlin
more from the online archives
calling all readers
Please Donate
"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand
"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor
