The Toxic-Masculinity-Industrial Complex

How to Get Rich and Famous by Being an Abusive Creep on the Internet, and Why That Needs to Change

Image Credit: Greta Thunberg on Twitter

In case you haven’t heard the story that took the internet by storm, it goes — deep breath — like this. An online influencer and noted violent misogynistdecided to make fun — for no reason, just out of the blue, because, well, misogynists will be misogynists — of Greta Thunberg. To which she repliedwith the tweet above, which the internet celebrated as a hilariously accurate takedown. It went viral, and said guy — let’s call him a manfluencer — responded with a bizarre video in a bathrobe and a cigar. Next to him was a pizza box. And what happened next? The Romanian authorities swiftly detained him on charges of organised crime and rape.

To which Greta responded: “this is what happens when you don’t recycle your pizza boxes.” Funny? Savage? Ludicrous? All of the above. But also deadly serious. Said guy runs a camgirl “business,” and he’s more or less out of the closet as a trafficker. Don’t take it from me, take it from him, normal guys don’t exactly make remarks like (and trigger warning here for violent misogyny): “It’s bang out the machete, boom in her face and grip her by the neck. Shut up b*tch.” Or, for example:

In one video explaining his reasons for the move he suggested it was because it would be easier to evade rape charges. This is “probably 40% of the reason” he moved there, he says in one video, adding: “I’m not a rapist, but I like the idea of just being able to do what I want. I like being free.

This sordid, gross manfluencer is just one tip of a far larger iceberg. The toxic-masculinity-industrial-complex. What do I mean by that? There are a lot of guys like him, and for some reason, being that kind of guy? Misogynistic, violent, bigoted (because of course hating women is a form of bigotry), loud and proud of it? It’s become a veritable career path. Say this kind of stuff out loud, and you can get rich and famous.

That’s because, in turn, manfluencers are created.