The Mandate Letter, by Jason Rogers, focuses on masculinity, emotional fitness, and mental health. Thanks for being here. If you were forwarded this email, get your own:
It is odd that, during a time when the world has been backhanded by one of the worst crises of masculinity in many decades, an event that is so directly pointed at one of the core themes of this newsletter, I feel such an overwhelming sense of resistance to sit down and write.
Some of that resistance is due to a slow recovery from a nasty cold. However, the lion’s share derives from a gobsmacking, worst-car-crash-you’ve-ever-seen, I-need-to-physically-relocate-my-jaw-to-its-normal-position sense of disbelief.
Up until this point, I have been vacillating between voraciously consuming the flood of war-related articles, tweets, and TikToks (as well as the warnings about the veracity of those articles, tweets, and TikToks) and metaphorically sticking my head in the sand, thinking, this can’t actually be happening, can it?
I am working on something related to Ukraine that I will share with you soon. But until then, onwards and upwards with the links.
🤬 This Is Why Putin Can’t Back Down — Much ink has been spilled in the last few weeks about the war in Ukraine. Many articles focus on the quirks of foreign policy and the history of the two countries. These are helpful for context. However, I’ve focused more on the pieces that investigate the psychological aspect of the conflict. This piece by David Brooks is direct and to the point. I’d draw your attention to two details. Putin is focused on two things: Status and (Avoiding) Humilation. More on this to come. — NY Times
🇺🇦 The Men Who Must Stay and Fight — When I learned that Ukraine was conscripting men aged 18-60, it gave me a pang in my chest. I’m 38 — not that old, relatively speaking — but I do think of myself as past fighting age. This thrust me into the terrifying thought experiment of what it must be like to be sligshotted into such a horror story. The New York Times spoke to so of the men in Ukraine who are grappling with what to do. — NY Times’ Daily Podcast
🪖 Military Men’s Retreats — I originally read this piece before the war in Ukraine had broken out. Now it takes on a whole new meaning. But, in general, I’ve spent a reasonable amount of time thinking about men’s retreats, and I still find it so interesting that they all have different flavors. This piece looks at one Modern Day Knight Project, a military-boot-camp style experience for men looking for something to shake them out of their emotional stupor. On the surface, it seems grossly over the top. Still, the tricky thing about saying whether an experience is “good” or “bad” is that each offers problematic rituals/belief sets right alongside beneficial lessons. I thought this was the most insightful line in the piece: "Through man camps, men are sold individual glory and delivered a brotherhood into which they belong. Is that all any of them really wanted?" I would argue that this is precisely what men want. But they either can't articulate it, or they are afraid to admit it. So, they need other reasons as the presenting rationale (be tougher, more successful, etc.). But at the end of the day, they are looking for friends that they respect who, in turn, respect them. — Vice
🍄 Microdosing and Mental Health — The practice of microdosing psychedelics for creativity and well-being took Silicon Valley by storm not long ago. However, it is also now considered a viable treatment plan for those who suffer from poor mental health. This piece looks at some of the recent studies that have evaluated microdosing’s impact, and in some cases, judged it to be primarily a placebo effect. However, many would say that because psychedelics are not very dangerous at low doses. And an effect is an effect. So who cares? — NY Times
🃏 Let’s Get Real Bro Game — Let’s Get Real Bro is sort of like Cards Against Humanity, except that instead of serving as an impetus for shock and titillation, the card game focuses on helping “guys to connect, dig deep, and get real.” I haven’t gotten my hands on a deck yet, but I looking forward to trying it out. — Game Website
☎️ 988, the New National Mental Health Hotline — On July 16, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline will go into effect, and its ambition is to be the 911 for mental health. That means that any person in a crisis can call and get the help they need. This is, in theory, a huge win. However, bringing the effort to fruition has turned out to be a logistical and financial nightmare. Many calls will reroute to centers that are understaffed and underfunded. And many states will have to figure out how to fund these lines themselves (notably through an additional fee on phone bills). This piece by NY Times investigative reporter Steve Eder poses a pretty terrifying question. Many people will call, but who will answer? — NY Times
🔥 Burn by Jorja Smith — It’s not a new song, but it is undoubtedly one with staying power. British R&B artist Jorja Smith sings some poignant lyrics for those on the edge of exhaustion. “Fire's always there, no one needs to get hurt / You let yourself burn, you burn yourself out.” It’s an important reminder that self-preservation is paramount.— Youtube
🏋️♀️ What Is ‘Bigorexia’? — The NY Times profiles the male teens who are obsessed with getting swole. An increasing number of young men have an unhealthy relationship with their body image, a trend now exacerbated by the TikTok influencers who promote workouts and supplements. “I try not to look at myself…I just get discouraged, especially when you look at social media and see these guys who utilize camera angles and lighting to make themselves appear as if they’re three times the size they actually are,” one young man said. — NY Times
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