"In a postfeminism generation, gender roles are unclear. Men in their late 20s to
early 30s today were raised to be sensitive and caring, and to hide any aggressive
impulses, but find this gets them nowhere. Women in their 20s to early 30s talk
about feminine empowerment but are still only sexually attracted to overt displays
of strength and aggression. Sensitivity, politeness and asking what a woman
wants are extreme turnof s because they are perceived as weakness. Not only is
being a new kind of man a turnof , it also keeps me from making the first move
because I learned to worry about forcing myself onto the object of my desire, to not
be crass or slimy, to not use pickup lines, etc. But there are no clearly defined rules
for what I should be doing, just a set of things that I shouldn’t do — all the things
that would elicit results. … I’ll just go play video games, thanks.”