RA #3

The Death of Macho by Reihan Salam is a provocative piece about the decline in male dominance and the increasing role of women in positions formerly held by men.  Salam calls it a “monumental shift of power from men to women.” (629)  Salam explains that men have been hit harder by the recession, giving women a chance to climb the economic ladder into more equal paying jobs.  Salam explains, “Although not all countries will respond by throwing the male bums out, the backlash is real - and it is global.  The great shift of power from males to females is likely to be dramatically accelerated by the economic crisis, as more people realize that the aggressive, risk-seeking behavior that has enabled men to entrench their power - the cult of macho - has now proven destructive and unsustainable in a globalized world.” (630)  He is saying that men’s “manly” behavior is not something to be respected or revered, it is actually destructive and has usurped women’s power for too long, and it’s finally time for women to receive the same opportunities, wages, and respect as men.  Salam predicts the outcome of this power switch and investigates the effects that this will have on our infamous “macho men.”  Men will have to either conform or rebel to this new social and economic dynamic.

Salam uses cause and effect to show the huge impact that machoism has had on society and the serious implications of it.  He also explains the effects that this will have on the dynamics of the household and workplace, now that women are climbing up the economic ladder and men are forced to take a step back.  Salam explains that male dominated jobs such as manual labor type of jobs as he refers to as the “housing bubble” are startin got diminish so that female dominated jobs can find a place in the economy.  Salam also quotes US President Obama, he says, “though construction and manufacturing jobs won’t vanish altogether, they will constitute a smaller percentage of the economy.  As a result, women are just as likely to be the primary bread earner, if not more likely, than men are today.” (632)

I really enjoyed reading this article.  I am a working woman and also a full time student, and I completely take care of myself and never dreamed of not making it on my own.  I see that women are taking a greater role in the economy and toward being completely self sufficient, and I intend to support and feed this change by continuing to climb up the ladder to success and show women everywhere that unequal treatment in the job market is absolutely wrong.  I think its about time that someone assigned this type of article in an english class so I could write about it!