Edward Keenan asks, “How do we get men to grow up?” (“Too few good men,” Cover Story, Nov. 12.) Worry not, my friend. One thing will do it if nothing else does: shame. I’m queer and athletic and sensitive and grunge-rock and, dammit, I’m proud to say I can build a shelf, I can dream in Western cowboy, I work in a warehouse, I go to the theatre — yes, with my own money. See, from the cave man to the rave man, the gone-off-to-war and the sleep-in-some-more man — we’ve been approaching a new decade which will stamp us in time as the new renaissance men. Thanks for the timely article.  MARK NIMEROSKI

Why do males refuse to “grow up,” pursue education and productive careers and assume responsibility? Could it be because female-dominated teaching professions ensure preferential treatment for girls? Is it linked to university quotas that lower standards to enforce equal female participation in engineering programs, yet do nothing to redress the imbalance in female enrolment in medicine and law? Later in life, biased family law ensures that any divorce means financial ruin and estrangement from children for males. With such incentives, it’s a real mystery why men don’t persevere.  RON BANERJEE

Keenan makes excellent points and then undermines it all by dropping the F-Bomb — that’s right, “frat boy.” A modern fraternity is one of the few institutions available to young men who want to become the type of men that Keenan says are so lacking in our society. If you really want an alternative to the Tucker Maxes of the world, as we do, then you would be supporting us instead of tearing down those who are working towards the goal. ELDERBROTHER
(via eyeweekly.com)

 
» Send letters to letters@eyeweekly.com or 625 Church St, 6th fl, Toronto, M4Y 2G1. Names withheld on request, but name, address and daytime phone number must be included. All letters become property of EYE WEEKLY for purposes of publication in print, online or in any other form.