On Old Spice’s 2008 “Art of Manliness” Man of the Year Matthew L. Chancey: Right-Wing Nutjob!
In which The Gay Recluse says wtf.
Somewhat cruelly, a reader just tipped us off about several things that we’d rather not ever have learned about, but which we are now compelled to share, to both shock and amuse you.
1) There is a blog called the Art of Manliness. Wtf, we could try to explain it, but why reinvent the wheel? In their words:
So basically, thousands and thousands are flocking to this site, and not just for laffs? We couldn’t believe it, either.
2) The Art of Manliness decided to hold a “Man of the Year” contest, which Old Spice — yes, sadly they still exist — sponsored to the tune of $2000 for the winner and assorted other Old Spice junk that would be good to regift if you were ever invited to say, Dick Cheney’s birthday party. But they’re very inclusive:
- Looks out for and is loyal to his friends and family.
- Does the right thing, even when it’s not convenient.
- Is proficient in the manly arts.
- Serves and gives back to his community.
- Sacrifices for the good of others.
- Works hard and never complains.
- Has a confident swagger, but isn’t a pompous jerk.
- Has a sense of humor but doesn’t cut people down.
- Embraces instead of shirks responsibility
3) A bunch of men were nominated, there were votes. Whatever! The winner was Matthew Chancey, who was nominated by his wife: “In short, Matt is a far cry from today’s ‘metro-sexual’ or video game addict. He is a true man’s man.” Wow, good for him!
4) [This from our reader, and we really couldn’t be bothered to fact-check, but none of it seems implausible!]: Chancey and his wife Jennie run a misogynistic site called Ladies Against Feminism, which promotes the idea that women should not attend college, work outside the home, or have the right to vote. They are also proud members of the racist, homophobic cult Vision Forum, whose statement on homosexuality includes the following: “Homosexuality is not a victimless crime. It is a cruel moral perversion that wreaks moral, physical and spiritual havoc on men, women, children, families and institutions. The Bible makes no distinction between homosexuals, pedophiles, bestials and rapists. All are criminals, the toleration of which brings judgment on the land and devastation to children.”
Thanks a lot, Art of Manliness and Old Spice. It’s great to give homophobic nazis as much exposure as possible! I’m sure this will be great PR for both the site and the venerable Old Spice brand. Congratulations to all on such a great way to end the year.
A final note from our reader: Please contact Old Spice’s parent company, Procter & Gamble, and tell them you will not be buying Old Spice products while their company is being represented by a radical, right-wing extremist.
Update: Queerty also posted about this, and has some interesting (by which we mean nauseating) information about Chancey and Vision Forum.
Filed under: Conspiracy, Disease, Retail | 5 Comments
Tags: Art of Manliness, Homophobia, Matthew Chancey, Nazis, Old Spice, Vision Forum
The Gay Recluse 
I cannot believe that someone would write that hideous statement on a billboard. Please tell me that’s a joke. What a horrible,cruel world.
i am waiting for the book of corporate involvement for gays.meaning a book about which corporations do and who do not promote equal rights for gays in the working world.perhaps it allready exist,if so please post.Till then articles like this one are great.
I am also fascinated with knowing which publishers,drug companies ,liquor companies and
medical facilities are owned by the right wing.Just so i can monitor and avoid giving them my hard earned cash.
If the dinosaurs want to walk like they have shit there pants while reeking like a spoilt
fruitcake ,i say more power to them.
I just wont buy allspice or anything proctor and gamble.as for the definition of a man
i cant think of anything gayer than an “allspice manley swagger ball”which i wish to
hold next fathers day.
i am waiting for the book of corporate involvement for gays.meaning a book about which corporations do and who do not promote equal rights for gays in the working world.perhaps it allready exist,if so please post.Till then articles like this one are great.
I am also fascinated with knowing which publishers,drug companies ,liquor companies and
medical facilities are owned by the right wing.Just so i can monitor and avoid giving them my hard earned cash.
If the dinosaurs want to walk like they have shit there pants while reeking like a spoilt
fruitcake ,i say more power to them.
I just wont buy Oldspice or anything proctor and gamble.as for the definition of a man
i cant think of anything gayer than an “oldspice manley swagger ball”which i wish to
hold next fathers day.
In my comment of 12/8, I remarked on how inherently fascinated with masculinity so many straight men and women are. If “The Art of Manliness” doesn’t illustrate this, I don’t know what does.
Most people perceive a wide gulf between the “gayness” of hairdressers, interior designers, artists, guys who like the color pink — in short, the supposedly “less masculine” archetypes — and the allegedly “sound,” traditionally butch masculinity vociferously propagandized at “Manliness.”
Yet as one peruses that website, one is drawn to the realization – repeated a million times in history, and in popular American culture – that “gayness” and “manliness” are not distant, opposite points on a line, but two, precipitously close dots on a small circle. They can only ever be so far apart; they both live in enthrallment to the same thing: maleness. Whether maleness is fetishized in the fantasies of a dress salesman, or on the blog of a straight, married couple, the picture gets kind of gay, however else you may try to categorize it.
And why not fetishize? Traditional masculinity, when it’s not out brutalizing the world or annihilating difference, can be so alluring. Clearly, Brett and Kate, over at The Art of Manliness, think so.
what we have a total disregard for here is “human-ness”.Which embraces the multi-faceted tendencies of all of us(gays ,bi’s and strieghts),and which takes empathy.Maleness is held in high-esteem,woman-ness(active refusal to accept the standards of a male hierarchy by embracing her humaness) has all but been erased since the 80’s even by some of our lesbian sisters and Gayness has been stripped gutted and sold back to us by drug companies as diseased victims,by fashion as sassy but willing nannies to strieght women and men and by politics as pawns in a quest to divide america down the middle.The only way we can get pass this is to sit down and list all the things we love about being gay ,human and male or woman,and focus on strengthening those gifts.Our magazines and our films and our artists we need to encourage,as Alex Haley said “find the good and praise it”