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  • Alpha Males

    Are you one?

    Is a Human Alpha Male a good thing or bad thing.

    Do we have control over it?

    Is it even a real thing?

  • #2
    How are you defining "alpha male"? A quick Google search can give you a definition that sounds very positive or a definition that sounds very negative. Not sure I see one that's truly neutral, other than in the animal kingdom context. Here's the most neutral one I could find that goes beyond the animal context:


    alpha male
    noun [ C usually singular ] uk ​ /ˌæl.fə ˈmeɪl/ us ​ /ˌæl.fə ˈmeɪl/

       ​
    specialized biology the most successful and powerful male in any group

    ​
    a strong and successful man who likes to be in charge of others
    1. the most successful and powerful male in any group 2. a strong and…

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    • #3
      I think alpha status is very context-dependent. Anyone who thinks they're an alpha male I'd love to see them walk into an NFL locker room and assert their position.
      If DMT didn't exist we would have to invent it. There has to be a weirdest thing. Once we have the concept weird, there has to be a weirdest thing. And DMT is simply it.
      - Terence McKenna

      Bullshit is everywhere. - George Carlin (& Jon Stewart)

      How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are? - Satchel Paige

      Comment


      • #4
        I'll take a stab at answering your question, though. I am about average in physical size and strength, so if we're talking pure physical power, I'm probably not going to be the "Alpha Male" in a group. In a professional or family context (or an educational context when I was a student), however, I'm not particularly shy about expressing my opinion and making executive decisions, albeit generally based on inputs that try to be considerate of everyone else. I generally express myself with confidence and clarity. So is that "Alpha Male" like? Maybe in some ways.

        Overall, I think a male who attempts to use physical strength/intimidation to control others is a bad thing. I think confidence, clarity and decisiveness, when exercised with empathy in a way that takes consideration of others can be a good thing.

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        • #5
          I think it is a contentious term that has its roots in our misunderstanding of the hierarchies that exist in other animals. That said, if we are going to accept the general popular notions of the term, I'm not one. Although, with age, I've found more confidence in the various aspects of my life, and I now feel I act appropriately with others, which is to say, I teat myself as an equal to others, neither trying to establish dominance, nor cowering/bowing/deferring/afraid to express my voice or feelings with others. I think that is the ideal balance in our society.

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          • #6
            Originally posted by Sour Masher View Post
            I think it is a contentious term that has its roots in our misunderstanding of the hierarchies that exist in other animals. That said, if we are going to accept the general popular notions of the term, I'm not one. Although, with age, I've found more confidence in the various aspects of my life, and I now feel I act appropriately with others, which is to say, I teat myself as an equal to others, neither trying to establish dominance, nor cowering/bowing/deferring/afraid to express my voice or feelings with others. I think that is the ideal balance in our society.
            Yep, I'm pretty much the same way. If I find myself around someone who I can tell thinks he's an alpha male, I make a quick exit.
            If DMT didn't exist we would have to invent it. There has to be a weirdest thing. Once we have the concept weird, there has to be a weirdest thing. And DMT is simply it.
            - Terence McKenna

            Bullshit is everywhere. - George Carlin (& Jon Stewart)

            How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are? - Satchel Paige

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by B-Fly View Post
              How are you defining "alpha male"? A quick Google search can give you a definition that sounds very positive or a definition that sounds very negative. Not sure I see one that's truly neutral, other than in the animal kingdom context. Here's the most neutral one I could find that goes beyond the animal context:




              https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/...ish/alpha-male
              I am not defining it.

              I am just asking what the board thinks.

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              • #8
                Originally posted by DMT View Post
                I think alpha status is very context-dependent. Anyone who thinks they're an alpha male I'd love to see them walk into an NFL locker room and assert their position.
                You mean the coach?

                All kidding aside, in humans it does feel like context dependent. I wonder if that would disqualify someone from being alpha male?

                Comment


                • #9
                  I'm involved in one hyper-local Facebook discussion group where there's one bomb-throwing conservative who is so obsessed with the idea of "real men", i.e., conservatives, and then liberal men, who he collectively despises as "not real men", "pussies", "faggots", "fairies", "girls", "betas", "weak", "sensitive", "cowardly". He can't debate with any male who is left of center without resorting to language that seeks to emasculate, feminize or homosexualize the person, which is his idea of the most powerful insult imaginable. To their credit, most of the other conservatives in that group don't follow this guy's toxic lead, and to the credit of the regulars here at RotoJunkie, I have seen very little if any of that here.

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                  • #10
                    I think the alpha thing being physical prowess was a much bigger deal in middle and high school. At least in my time, males definitely established hierarchies based on physical prowess. While it is much more about other things as an adult, I do find that I feel my "weakest" in a broad sense of the word when I am physically in my worst shape. I do find exercising and at least staying out of the worst shape I sometimes have fallen into as an adult helps in other aspects of my life.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by B-Fly View Post
                      I'm involved in one hyper-local Facebook discussion group where there's one bomb-throwing conservative who is so obsessed with the idea of "real men", i.e., conservatives, and then liberal men, who he collectively despises as "not real men", "pussies", "faggots", "fairies", "girls", "betas", "weak", "sensitive", "cowardly". He can't debate with any male who is left of center without resorting to language that seeks to emasculate, feminize or homosexualize the person, which is his idea of the most powerful insult imaginable. To their credit, most of the other conservatives in that group don't follow this guy's toxic lead, and to the credit of the regulars here at RotoJunkie, I have seen very little if any of that here.
                      I'm surprised your gruop puts up with that garbage.
                      If DMT didn't exist we would have to invent it. There has to be a weirdest thing. Once we have the concept weird, there has to be a weirdest thing. And DMT is simply it.
                      - Terence McKenna

                      Bullshit is everywhere. - George Carlin (& Jon Stewart)

                      How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are? - Satchel Paige

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by Sour Masher View Post
                        I think the alpha thing being physical prowess was a much bigger deal in middle and high school. At least in my time, males definitely established hierarchies based on physical prowess. While it is much more about other things as an adult, I do find that I feel my "weakest" in a broad sense of the word when I am physically in my worst shape. I do find exercising and at least staying out of the worst shape I sometimes have fallen into as an adult helps in other aspects of my life.
                        Yea I think for many adult males, money replaces physical prowess.
                        If DMT didn't exist we would have to invent it. There has to be a weirdest thing. Once we have the concept weird, there has to be a weirdest thing. And DMT is simply it.
                        - Terence McKenna

                        Bullshit is everywhere. - George Carlin (& Jon Stewart)

                        How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are? - Satchel Paige

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by DMT View Post
                          Yea I think for many adult males, money replaces physical prowess.
                          This is true, but for me, there is some biology in play. I'm a somewhat anxious guy--much more so when I was younger. So for me, I think my self-perception is influenced by regulating my testosterone to cortisol levels. Working out and getting into the right calm state moves me to the right place mentally. Not to an alpha mentality, but away from a "beta" one (again, these terms are loaded and problematic).

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by DMT View Post
                            I'm surprised your gruop puts up with that garbage.
                            Yeah, although the group was established by three guys, two right-leaning moderates and one further far right evangelical, who felt ostracized/shouted down/disrespected in the other local town Facebook groups, since my town as a whole is pretty overwhelmingly Democratic/liberal. So they're very much of the viewpoint that open discussion and debate, even if some of the viewpoints and modes of discretion can get ugly, is better than censorship.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by DMT View Post
                              Yep, I'm pretty much the same way. If I find myself around someone who I can tell thinks he's an alpha male, I make a quick exit.
                              I think Johnny Tyler played by Billy Bob Thornton in Tombstone is a perfect portrayal of someone who thinks he is an alpha male but is not. He is a bully.

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