Dickline - Jon Stewart Not Me

Modern society is facing a problem that many fail to acknowledge. It is not just about a significant number of men struggling with confidence, jobs, or relationships. It is about a system that is failing an entire generation. The world has changed dramatically, but many of the expectations placed on people, discussing men here, have not. This disconnect between old ideals and new realities has created a culture of confusion, insecurity, and misplaced blame. While people often look for individuals or groups to hold responsible, the real problem lies in a system that has been designed to keep people distracted, divided, and dependent.

A major issue is that many men still cling to outdated ideas of masculinity. The belief that they must be the sole providers, the unshakable pillars of strength, or that their worth is solely tied to financial success is deeply flawed. These expectations are not only unrealistic in today’s world but also self-destructive. Society has changed. Relationships are now built on partnership rather than rigid roles, and emotional intelligence is just as important as financial stability. Yet, some men struggle to adapt, feeling entitled to certain roles or resentful when reality does not align with their adopted outdated worldview. Instead of evolving, some retreat into bitterness, blaming women or society rather than acknowledging their own need for growth.

A significant number of young men today feel lost, not because they are inherently weak or lazy, but because they have been raised in a world that no longer offers them a clear path forward. Traditional career paths have collapsed, wages have stagnated, and job security has become a thing of the past. Society still expects men to be confident providers, yet it has removed many of the opportunities that once allowed them to build that confidence in the first place and likewise for women entering the workforce. Without stability, it is difficult to develop the kind of self-assurance that past generations took for granted. As a result, many men turn to online influencers and so called "gurus" who offer simplistic solutions to complex problems. Some of these figures exploit male insecurity, blaming women, immigrants, or vague conspiracies rather than addressing the systemic issues that have led to this crisis.

That said, women are absolutely right to call out the misogyny of these men. Many of them have become bitter, resentful, and regressive, directing their frustration at the wrong targets. These men are, in fact, weak and lacking confidence. Women’s criticism is valid. However, where women often fall short is in their compassion and understanding, probably out of frustration. Instead of seeing these men as products of a failed system, they see them as the inherent problem itself. The issue isn’t whether women’s judgment is fair, it mostly is, women shouldn't simply emotionally accommodate these men rather hold them accountable but whether that judgment helps to create solutions. Shaming these men without addressing the root causes of their struggles just reinforces their resentment and makes the problem worse.

One of the most powerful forces behind this crisis is the role of corporations and consumer culture. Companies no longer just sell products; they sell identities, lifestyles, and validation. People are bombarded with messages telling them who they should be, what they should desire, and what will make them happy. Men are told to be confident, not as a universally valuable trait, but as an expectation tied to their gender rather than their individuality. At the same time, they are encouraged to be more emotionally aware, not because emotional intelligence is a universally valuable trait in an individual, but because men are traditionally perceived as emotionally detached and must overcome it, while women are told they must be flawless and ruthless. Instead of encouraging individuals to cultivate good traits that are valuable for everyone in a modern society, they simply replace old stereotypes with new ones. Men and women are still being separated into predefined roles, just with updated labels. Both suffer under a system that dictates how they should behave. But all of these ideas serve one purpose: to make people feel inadequate so they will keep consuming. The moment people feel truly satisfied with themselves and be who they want to be, the entire system of advertising and marketing collapses. This is why corporations continuously manufacture insecurity, because a confident, self-sufficient population is bad for business. But it would be too simplistic to just blame the people leading these corporations. If you read their biographies, you’ll see that many of them live in an insulated world, detached from the struggles of everyday people. They build emotional barriers to hide their own insecurities, and many were raised in privilege that they have no real interest in giving up. They are not necessarily evil masterminds, but rather people who have been shaped by a system that incentivizes their behavior.

This problem isn’t just about corporations, though. It’s about the way society engages with media. The issue isn’t that movies or Hollywood portray outdated stereotypes. The issue is that society treats media as reality instead of entertainment. Movies are art, not truth. They are dramatized, exaggerated, and often biased takes on the world. But people take them too seriously, absorbing their messages without questioning them. America, in particular, has turned pop culture into a machine that shapes people’s identities so they can be easily marketed to. Individuals are unpredictable and hard to sell things to. Groups, on the other hand, are much easier to manipulate. This is why corporations push people into categories. It simplifies advertising and keeps people consuming.

The real damage starts young. Kids are constantly exposed to soft propaganda in movies, TV shows, comics, and books, but no one teaches them how to think critically about it. Parents, instead of discussing media with their children, either dismiss it as “kid stuff” or simply don’t have the time to engage. This is where things go wrong. Parents should be talking to their kids about what they watch, helping them analyze and question it. They should ask things like: "What did you think about that movie? Do you agree with how the characters were portrayed? Why do you think the story was told that way?" By doing this, parents can help children develop critical thinking skills early on, rather than letting corporations shape their worldview unchecked.

Hollywood should keep doing whatever it wants. Censorship isn’t the answer. The real solution is changing how society engages with media. If a movie promotes regressive ideas, criticize it, don’t ban it. Encourage discussion, not suppression. Media is a reflection of the times, and it’s one of the best ways to understand history. If we erase every offensive movie, how will future generations understand how flawed society once was? They might read about it in articles, but movies communicate emotions in a way no textbook ever could. Instead of banning problematic media, we should use it as a tool for introspection and growth.

Another issue that needs to be addressed is the rise of parasocial relationships and fandom culture. Actors, musicians, and public figures, the foot soldiers of a system that constantly sells you things, are just artists. Appreciate their work, but do not idolize them. Most of them either directly support the system or remain complacent in its exploitation. They are no heroes, nor are they villains, they are simply talented individuals working complacently within a broken system. In reality, most actors do not create anything substantial, they are simply the face of a project that relies on the efforts of directors, screenwriters, editors, and production crews. It is fine to admire the characters they play for a short time, but making their persona part of your identity is harmful. These celebrities do not know you, and they do not care about you beyond their public image. They may be kind or empathetic, but that does not mean they are actively working to change anything. Let that sink in. They do not know you, and you may not know them. The sooner people detach themselves from worshiping celebrities, the more they can focus on real issues that matter.

At the core of all this is democracy, or rather, people’s failure to actively participate in it. We take democracy for granted, expecting it to fix itself, and then blame it when things go wrong. Corporations and elites don’t control everything because they are powerful; they control everything because we let them. If people really wanted change, they would fight for it, no matter how difficult it is. But human nature is reactive, not proactive. We only act when things become unbearable. History shows this over and over. People ignore problems until they’re on the verge of collapse. And by then, it’s often too late.

We can’t completely change human nature, but we can resist it. We can start thinking critically before disaster forces us to. The solution isn’t just individual, it’s collective. People need to stop blaming external forces and start demanding better from themselves and their communities. That means engaging with democracy, questioning media narratives, and resisting corporate manipulation. If society wants a better future, it has to start shaping it now, not when it's already falling apart.