I was at a restaurant the other night, a very nice restaurant; a restaurant at which you would not expect to see a urinal with a plastic bag over it with a huge, handmade, ugly sign. It was like a scar on this otherwise upscale, gorgeously appointed facility.
Once I got over that shock, I was blown away by the sign. It basically said, “Broken: Please do not use.” And then a plastic bag over it. Now does this strike you as strange, or is it just me?
I thought, “Are men really this stupid?” They’ve got a plastic bag over a broken urinal, number one. Number two, they’ve got a sign, “It’s broken.” Number three, “It’s broken,” plastic bag, “Please do not use.” The other thing, which is not germane to this discussion, but when a urinal or any other appliance breaks in a public bathroom, why don’t they just turn off the water? You say, there’s no place to turn it off. Exactly.
But I ramble. This thing got me thinking again about one of my pet peeves. It’s what I call the “buffoonification of the American male.” Just look at the commercials. We are beer-guzzling, pizza-eating buffoons. We’re stupid, lazy, and slow. We disrespect our wives and are obsessed to the point of idol-worship with sports and things that blow up.
Ok, I like sports, I like pizza, I like all that stuff. But the bottom line is, I am not an idiot. I am not stupid, so don’t treat me that way. And if you’re a man that has bought into this whole idea that “I’ve just gotta have sex, cause I’m a man. I just gotta have my way, cause I’m a man. I just have to buy toys I can’t afford cause I’m a man. I just have to show my wife who’s boss and scream at her and cuss at her cause I’m a man.” Then, you are stupid.
A real man takes care of his children. A real man provides, protects, and promotes those closest to him. A real man steps up and takes personal responsibility for his life. A real man doesn’t often show up on TV. So be careful how you take your cues.