Economic Bad Times and The Man Gene

Since my disclosure of The Man Gene and my inclination to bring it up everytime there’s something in the news that seems to have been caused by The Man Gene (click here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here), I’ve received various reactions. Some think I’m kidding. (I’m not.) Some think I’m brilliant. (Not that either.) Some, usually women, view The Man Gene theory as incendiary. (Possible.) Some, usually men, find it helpful in battling against The Man Gene’s proclivities. (Hope so.)

The Man Gene routinely impacts the workplace and employment law, since male employees — from executives to managers and supervisors to rank-and-file workers — step over the sexual harassment line and get themselves and their employers in trouble almost every day. They can’t help themselves when the Gene exerts its power. They take risks that, in their right mind, they would never take.

As it turns out, at least according to Slate Magazine, The Man Gene has a beneficial role to play when the economy heads south, where it’s headed now. “Who in the world would be benefited?” is a fair question. Prostitutes. High-end sex workers. Expensive call girls. Their business is booming. There are still a lot of rich men. Some of them, however, are feeling vulnerable. They need help, and in addition to the private chefs, yoga teachers, therapists, and wellness gurus they ordinarily rely on, The Man Gene beckons them to reach for another kind of therapy: sex. Men who use prostitutes even in good times are doubling their visits now that economic bad times have hit. That’s The Man Gene at work.

The problem caused by The Man Gene makes men a pitiful lot, even more so in economic bad times. Feeling trapped, facing failure, men are led by the Gene to sex — the more expensive, the better. They can’t face their wives and kids who’ll remind them of their plight. They can “face” their prostitutes who will, according to one high-end sex worker, make them feel like men — “make them feel like they could go back out there with their head up.”  Interestingly, according to Slate, 40% of high-end sex transactions don’t involve sex. Those men just need to be with a hot woman who’ll tell them they’re still big shots.

You see how nuanced The Man Gene is? How complicated? How devious? How derisive? Some of you, women probably, have become angry and think this entire post is a crock. You can think that. It’s a free country. Although some of the above is tongue in cheek, as true with every post on The Man Gene, the chasm between men and women is real and isn’t funny. Whether you like it or not, The Man Gene has a lot to do with that chasm. I think it’s better to talk about it than around it.

1. 

   LKS says:

   October 7, 2008 at 12:20 pm

   As a female, I do agree with what you are saying. You are not trying to create an excuse that explains away men’s bad behavior. You are simply trying to show the difference between how men and women relate to things.

   You are correct that there is a HUGE chasm. And it is not funny; but you do put a humorous spin on it
2. 

   John Phillips says:

   October 9, 2008 at 9:55 am

   Thanks for cutting me some slack. I’m afraid the chasm will always be there, but it shouldn’t hurt to talk about it.