It always seemed to me that a number of girls love violence, aggression and hardness. Bad lads are popular. When there is a fight there are always girls shouting encouragement and getting excited by the action. They bay for blood and seemed turned on by it. The worse the better.
Boys notice that. They pick up on body language and pheromones.
The result is that males adopt surly attitudes, aggressive stances and dress to look hard. They shave their heads, get tattoos, build up their muscles and look macho to impress the girls.
This extends to fashion.
In America prisoners were made to wear oversize shirts and trousers without belts and the laces were taken out of their shoes. It was probably done to make it harder for them to escape.
When they got out of prison they went round their community wearing oversize shirts and trousers and with no laces in their shoes. It was a badge of honour to show that they’d been in prison, they were hard and tough.
It became a fashion and kids all over the world were going around with shirts untucked, no laces in their shoes and baggy trousers hanging round their arses. They had no idea why they were doing this other than it was cool.
Why is it that we perpetuate violence, nastiness and aggression?
The time when male macho attitudes were not fostered was in the sixties with its antiwar ethos and long hair with softer, gentler vibes.
Perhaps that’s what we need right now – a positive vibe with no nasty macho posturing.
Perhaps that segment of girls need to take that on board. The boys will follow.