Going my own way

I've titled this story "Beyond Labels" because that's what I'm trying to be – beyond the need for a perfect category, beyond the expectations of others. When I was 17 to early 20s, I began questioning my sexuality. I'd noticed signs – the guys I crushed on, the way I never quite fit in. But I never connected the dots. To me, it was just part of who I am, like having brown eyes or loving pizza. I didn't label it, I didn't stress about it. It simply existed. At 13, I had a crush on Jonathan Taylor Thomas. I'd plastered my bedroom wall with his posters, and my brother would tease me, saying I was gay. The idea never occurred to me. I was a sensitive kid with a tender heart, unable to bear watching others suffer. If a movie showed someone crying and in pain, I'd start sobbing. I sometimes found girls attractive, but I assumed I'd date them. It was what I saw in movies, in books, in the world around me. I never managed to get a girlfriend, eithe...

 Before I found this book, "On Being Raped" by Raymond M. Douglass, I was trying to research male victims of rape. However, I wasn't having much luck. Society still perpetuates the harmful stereotype that men cannot be victims of rape; only women can be victims. I stumbled upon this book in Elliot Bay Book Co. in Seattle, WA, almost as if someone had intentionally hidden it between two larger books. I decided to purchase it, curious about its content and unsure if I would ever encounter it again.  After reading it, I felt deeply for the author and the traumatic experience he endured. It's essential that we shed light on the reality of male rape and sexual assault to provide support for victims and challenge societal misconceptions. "There is only one rape that I can claim to know about with any degree of authority, and that is my own." Raymond M. Douglass. 1^ On page 8, Douglass expresses the frustration of people jumping to assumptions about his experience,...

 i am one of many men who go on shots for testosterone ever since i was young because i have a low testosterone. The reason why it is so important for someone like me to be on testosterone medicine is because without it; my growth will be stunted, i won't develop well as a man and it can be damaging for me without it. This is different for transmen who go on testosterone because their body isn't equipped for a huge amount of it.  What happens when men get low T? Reduced muscle mass. Reduced bone mass (We can fracture easily) Reduced sex drive. decreased in energy level hair loss changes in mood reduction in size of testes low amount of semen (infertility) normally for men their testosterone can start decreasing after age 30.  I was taking the medicine including thyroid medicine from Male Excel, which is a total scam; they charged me from 300 to 988 for vials of testosterone gel every few months. I tried to ask them to hold off charging me until Jan, they decided to cancel...

  Hello, my name is Dr. Circ. Allow me to tell you why you should circumcise your son! You should have your boy Circumcised because it’s cleaner.   After all, boys are too stupid to keep themselves clean, and It’s not like it’s fused to the head at birth or anything or that it would be simple to wipe like a finger or anything. Goodness no.   Now, UTIs is a scary thing. It’s not like girls get it or anything or that the antibiotics that we do prescribe for UTIs would work just as well on boys who have it. Or that there’s 1% difference between them.   STIs and HIVs are so super scary. We could teach about safe sex and condoms, but I rather we just cut him up. And it’s not like girls get STIs or HIVs.   Now, penile cancer is a scary thing. It’s not like it’s rare or only in elderly men. Sure we get cancers in all parts of our body, diseases and all and it may be in girls too, but circumcision is what’s important. Forget all those brain cancers, lung...

  Society often struggles to accept that boys and men can be victims of sexual assault. This deeply ingrained misconception stems from outdated gender stereotypes and a lack of understanding about the nature of sexual violence. The reality is that sexual assault can happen to anyone, regardless of gender, and it's essential to acknowledge the experiences of male survivors. This essay will explore the unique challenges male victims face, the various settings in which abuse occurs, and the importance of providing support and resources for healing. A significant barrier to recognizing male victimhood is the double standard applied to sexual misconduct by teachers. When a female teacher engages in sexual activities with a male student, it's often romanticized or downplayed, whereas a similar act by a male teacher against a female student is rightfully condemned as sexual abuse. This disparity in perception was highlighted in a 2023 news article about multiple female teachers arres...

  Stay away from me   Stay away Stay away Stay away from me   Don’t need no ideology Don’t tell me what to think I will not be your pawn I will not be fooled.   Some things just don’t seem to make sense I see you now, so full of lies. Nothing you say makes sense. I wanted to leave, you want me to die   Don’t need no ideology Don’t tell me what to think   Stay away Stay away Stay away from me.   I didn’t know what I was doing I was just a child The innocence is gone Now it haunts me forever   Don’t need no ideology Don’t tell me what to think   I see it now I used to say that I am fine Until I realize I never was   Tried to speak my mind Society sides with you Shaming me for speaking up So much hostility that it is frightening   Stay away Stay away Stay away from me   I don’t need no ideology Don’t tell me what to think   There is j...

  When you have women demonize and attack boys and men, call them rapists or abusers when they never did such thing, that is misandry. When you have the family court system that favors mothers and allows her to have custody of the kids, it didn't matter if she was the abuser and he was a good father. It didn't matter if he can't pay child support, he will go to prison anyway. She can falsely accus him of abusing the kids and the court system will punish him and never will he see his kids again. That is misandry. When you have men and boys who are victims of abuse, of domestic violence from their parents or their parents or even their siblings there is no support. if the boyfriend or husband calls the police on her, they arrest him or shame him and blame him for upsetting her even if he didn't do anything wrong. there is no support network and there's rarely any men's shelters for domestic violence. That is misandry. When you have men and boys who are victims of ...

The Importance of Male-Only Spaces in a Modern Society The debate over the necessity and appropriateness of gender-specific spaces has become increasingly heated in recent years. While some argue that such spaces are outdated and exclusionary, others contend that they remain essential for the well-being and development of their respective genders. This essay will focus on the often-overlooked perspective of men and the importance of maintaining male-only spaces in contemporary society. Historically, male-only spaces were abundant, with institutions such as gentlemen's clubs, boys' schools, and male-dominated workplaces providing environments where men could congregate, socialize, and support one another without judgment or competition from other genders ( The Art of Manliness ). However, in the wake of feminist movements and anti-discrimination legislation, many traditionally male domains have become integrated, leaving men with fewer spaces to call their own ( Machronicle ). W...