Why can’t we expect more from men?
Re The male brain and how it works . . . or doesn’t, May 15 I was shocked at Jim Coyle’s attempt to “explain” away the despicable acts of the men who participated in the #FHRITP episodes. There is little difference between “explaining” and “excusing.”
Most of us know why men commit violence against women, sexual assault and harassment: because they can get away with it, have done so since the beginning of time and will continue to do.
For Coyle to “explain” to readers why this occurred is an arrogant and condescending way of making excuses for the perpetrators. It is this kind of article that perpetuates this behaviour.
It’s as though men cannot help what they do, because the poor things have no control over their behaviours and are driven by external forces like clubs, alcohol, peer pressure, cultural times, their immaturity, prevailing norms and thinking it’s funny. Isn’t it time we stop explaining away men’s bad behaviours and start asking them to be accountable and act like mature, respectful, responsible human beings? Or is it just beyond them to act better?
Maybe Coyle thinks it’s beyond them because, gosh darnit, they have all these really hard things to deal with, like alcohol, peer pressure, testosterone and the like. I think they can do better and until society demands more from them and starts to routinely hold them accountable, they will continue to do what they can get away with.
Shame on Jim Coyle for not expecting more of them and trying to let them off the hook by “explaining” away their behaviours and giving them a break. Karen Peters, Port Perry, Ont.
Jim Coyle has given us eight “explanations” for male bad behaviour and asked us naively not to consider them “excuses.”
As a society we have to find ways to help those without self-control to mitigate their behaviour before it gets more dangerous. Perhaps losing your job or being publicly shamed seems harsh treatment for a bunch of yahoos at a soccer game but sometimes explanations are just not sufficient excuse. Paul Darby, Pickering