I think renewed interest because of its plot points in Materialists. https://www.gq.com/story/materialists-leg-lengthening
I forgot it was in Gattaca right? That was an outstanding movie, should watch again.
There has been a weird emphasis on height even greater than in the past, maybe from online dating?
Short kings have been featured in SNL. https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2Wc-nLNHtl/?hl=en
I’m shorter than Frank, and I never thought it was that much of an impediment, but I wonder if culture has moved to prioritize it even more in dating and careers? Frank had a wife, so it’s interesting how it persists.
I must point this out. Many here on HN are getting too comfortable with being judgemental against men.
So let me say this unambiguously - The therapists are not there to clean up the mess that the society insists on inflicting. The first line of defense is to prevent that mess in the first place. Let me demonstrate this with an exaggerated example. Would you say that the solution for SA against women is for them to consult therapists/psychologists after the fact, rather than implementing preventive community measures against SA? Therapy is only for those who couldn't be protected by the preventive measures - in either case.
I'm not seriously affected by such videos, because I have reasons. But I also have reasons to call out such dismissive hand waving. And one of those reasons is the damage to the society it inflicts, exemplified by the article that this discussion itself is based on. The often superfluous advise to 'consult a therapist' is an attempt to lay the blame on men with some imagined mental disorder and thus maintain the status quo that leads to scary and painful situations like men allowing their legs to be broken. For that matter, are there enough therapists and psychologists around to deal with so many cases? Is the treatment cheap enough for normal people to afford at all?
To be clear, sexism and judgement are not directed only against men. Women and children are also frequently targeted by sexist bullying. I have seen a documentary on women being shamed into doing something similarly horrific, and wondered why anyone would fill them with such insecurity. I have read in horror, the stories of teenagers being bullied into killing themselves. I really do have empathy for all of them. But the solution is clear and the same - It must be addressed by holding the perpetrators accountable. But when it comes to the same against men, the society overwhelmingly tends to take a very dismissive, unsympathetic and outright hostile stance, choosing to blame men instead of introspecting. The casual double standards at display is deeply unsettling. But such selective protections won't harm just the ones being left out. It will bleed over to those who're being protected as well. And I can see clear indications of an entire generation suffering emotionally for it - no exceptions by gender.
What I said was: You can choose not to watch the videos. Social media is optional.
> I have seen a documentary on women being shamed into doing something similarly horrific, and wondered why anyone would fill them with such insecurity. I have read in horror, the stories of teenagers being bullied into killing themselves.
Women should also log off. Parents need to moderate kids access to social media also.
> Therapists can give you tools and strategies to avoid watching social media videos.
Suggestion of therapy is widely misused these days to deflect attention and accountability from the fundamental issue - sexist rhetoric, misandry especially.
> What I said was: You can choose not to watch the videos. Social media is optional.
Social media is not optional in practice. It won't stop affecting you just because you abandon it. Others in your circle are influenced by them. The rhetoric is already instigating incidence of DV, assaults, false accusations and public humiliation. It's no longer just 'annoying'. Inaction, passive measures and shifting the responsibility on to potential victims (like therapy) are not going to cut it anymore.
The minimum remedy is a mass campaign that treats them like propaganda inciting violence. Those responsible for it must be called out and held accountable (somehow, this is non-controversial when it's about misogyny). Moral-shaming ad campaigns must be expanded to cover all forms of sexism (consistency and integrity aren't exactly their forte). But I doubt even that will stop it. Many corporate, mainstream media, international institutions and governments actively promote it. They wont abandon the malevolence without massive repercussions.
> Women should also log off. Parents need to moderate kids access to social media also.
While I agree, that ship has sailed long ago, I'm afraid. Social media has invaded the foundations of real-life social networks. Network effects and peer pressure make it nearly impossible to dislodge it from there. A lot of innocent lives will be ruined or lost if you wait for that to happen - if ever.
"Just"
Man it took me like 15 years to get my pharmaceutical. In terms of quality of life improvement the only thing I regret was not driving a bulldozer through the doctors office 14 years ago and demanding them at gun point. Instead I was forced through a dance of dumb shit like you suggest to prove I actually have a problem. If 10 dipshits promoting stupid wellness shit, and 1 bottle of my meds were in a house fire, I would save my meds.
I would tell you to go to therapy, but basic human decency has to be learned at a much younger age and I dont think you have a chance sadly.
And while at it, not everything can be treated with gym or hobbies. They work well for mild to medium severity depressions. But even getting up from bed is nearly impossible for people with high severity depressions, much less attend a gym or go fishing. The doctors usually prescribe the medications till they can manage to do start them. And then there are other conditions for which a healthy lifestyle is simply not the appropriate or effective treatment.
There exists alternatives to some drugs in some scenarios, best investigated with a medical professional and not an internet commenter.
There also exists alternatives to implying people are less than because they found a pharmaceutical method to improve their lives.
Any non-western country? Bold statement. I can tell you that there are non-western countries where height matters more than any Western country.
> or how most westerners are very uncomfortable with "skin lightening" as a beauty thing
I'm not sure I catch the meaning (due to cultural differences). Could you elaborate?
Wrong assumption. Men who wants to be taller are doing it to have more success in dating, because women are heavily biased towards taller men.
> There were the kids at school who taunted him for his height; a longtime online fan of his artwork who remarked, on meeting him, that Frank was “shorter than I expected”; or the guys who randomly shoved him in the street a few years ago, tearing out his headphones. They wouldn’t have done that to a taller man, he reasons.
Software engineers paying 75K to get 3 inches taller - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32860250 - Sept 2022 (207 comments)
I wish I was a little bit taller - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32852962 - Sept 2022 (95 comments)
Radical surgery permanently extends your legs - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22654609 - March 2020 (65 comments)
My take here is that people like the guy in the article lack the soft skills part but as he has grown up being self-aware of his height, probably blames all short-comings on that.
It would probably be simpler and more effective to do proper gym (better looks and more confidence) than this extreme and painful process.
I would like to hear someone who did the same procedure to hear if things actually got better now that they are taller.
Yes, plenty of short guys do extremely well. I know a couple. And they have exceptional personalities and self-confidence.
But we can't expect most people to be exceptional, by definition.
star-glider•5mo ago
soupfordummies•5mo ago