Opinion

ROOKE: We May Be Reaching The ‘Hard Times Create Strong Men’ Phase

(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Mary Rooke Commentary and Analysis Writer
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In many ways, our society feels like it is heading toward the end of the world without any hope of preventing civilization from the head-on collision with doom it’s currently facing.

The issues ruining our country are eerily similar to several apocalyptic novels high school students were once required to read before graduation. These stories were set in worlds that resemble our own to serve as a warning for what would come from a freedom-rich society lulled into complacency by a malevolent ruling class.

We’ve fallen so out of step with former generations that instead of seeing these important books on senior syllabi, our students are forced to digest works promoting the latest progressive ideologies that teach them to hate their legacy and fear their parents instead of the government. (ROOKE: Caring About Jan. 6 Is A Luxury Only The Rich Can Afford)

Our greatest issue is that men don’t want to be strong anymore. But why would they? The powers that control our important institutions stripped any incentive for them to stop the slow, brutal descent into chaos.

Older generations, captivated by the sexual revolution and controlled by the rise of feminism, have consistently allowed the demonization of the next group of young men ready to take their place. Instead of protecting them from ideological forces that would see them turned into nothing more than a sidekick, they sat back and laughed as young men struggled under the weight.

They tell themselves the decline is inevitable, that it’s normal for kids to be disloyal to their heritage because they were. When the wolves came for control of our manufacturing, entertainment and education, the slow decline was something they were more than willing to scoff at but never actually did anything to fix. (ROOKE: The Left’s Cultural Revolution Comes For America’s Most Hallowed Grounds)

Predictably, their indifference came at a high cost.

Three generations of young men have weathered an all-out assault on masculinity. Parents taught them less and less how to handle adversity and what it meant to be honorable and steadfast, even against overwhelming odds. Still, as G. Michael Hopf wrote in “Those Who Remain,” his 2016 end-of-the-world novel, “Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. And weak men create hard times.”

Surely, Hopf is describing this exact moment our society faces as we stare down rumors of world wars, open borders and unbearable inflation caused by society’s weak protectors — an aging generation hell-bent on living in a fantasy world of their glory days.

Although we are certainly lacking strong men willing to stand up and protect the most vulnerable, new Gallup polling reported by Daniel Cox, pollster and director of Survey Center on American Life, shows that help is on the way.

Young men raised to believe they are less than their worth are pushing back and reclaiming the yolk of leadership. With each passing year, young men (18-29) are becoming increasingly more conservative.

The current watchmen at the gate are fat and lazy, but there is hope these young men understand that while older generations didn’t appreciate the critical role strong men played in keeping our society safe, their decision to return to tradition and preserve societal norms fills a void that no one else can. With their protections, society can be free to build families with honorable legacies, economies that benefit all stations and lasting peace.