“He sawed off my hair with a dull knife”: The horrific misogyny of “Mixed Martial Arts” culture

[boston bean]

This is a brutal article... major trigger warning..

http://www.salon.com/2014/08/12/he_sawed_off_my_hair_with_a_dull_knife_the_horrific_misogyny_of_mixed_martial_arts_culture/

[BainsBane]

1. Wow

Awful. Truly horrendous. I had read about her assault and knew he was MRA, but I didn't realize how pervasive those attitudes were in the sport. This passage is especially chilling:

UFC veteran Josh Grispi was arrested for assault and battery of his wife, who reportedly suffered a broken wrist and concussion. What’s more, he allegedly trained his pit bull to maul his wife and sent text messages telling her she’s a “whore” whom he’s “goin enjoy choking to death.” This was reportedly followed up by the text, “I don’t joke ur dead when I see u… Literally. I don’t care I’m going to beat u n throw u to buddy [his pit bull], Ur dead.”

[boston bean]

2. My cousin is MMA and he is a good guy.

But it's not too hard to believe the culture this article points too.

It's brutal, huh??

[BainsBane]

3. What's a guy with jealousy issues doing dating a porn star anyway?

Here is the pitbull guy. Looks like a total dweeb.

[boston bean]

4. There are some real issues this article points to.

It's like the NFL's problems on steroids.

[Daemonaquila]

5. It's not pervasive.

Scandal sells, but it's not the norm. I'm a woman who has done martial arts a long time, and I've trained with many of these dudes. They are not misogynists or brutal people as a rule. If anything, they love having a woman in the gym who can go toe to toe.

Obviously there are exceptions. There sometimes are whole schools of exceptions, thugs who train together, often being trained by other thugs. Let's not pretend that they represent most of these guys.

At a school I trained at for a long time, the Sifu would use a few of us to either knock sense into, or weed out, the overly cocky, aggressive newbie males who thought they knew everything and should be able to kick the ass of everyone but other overly cocky, aggressive, young males. One of the instructors, who looked like a sumo wrestler and whose power was utterly scary, used to have some of us demo with him in class, knowing he could safely kick us halfway across the room (flying is fun!). It was all about making it clear to the guys that they'd better put away their egos and work up to the women's abilities, and making it clear to newer women that they were fully able to rock and roll, and shouldn't feel at all intimidated due to gender.

There are idiots and jocks and thugs everywhere. Don't generalize the asshats to be the norm among genuinely great guys.

[boston bean]

6. We could probably all agree that this treatment of women is pervasive

in our culture.

Three women a day are murdered by their husband or boyfriend.

I'm not sure of the stats on how many women are beaten a day, but I'm sure it's got to be pretty high.

So, to see it in sports where people are paid by their fans, there is a bit more attention. But the problem exists in all walks of life.

Thing is, is it is excused often, not just when money is involved, but when it is excused to make a buck, it adds another dimension.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

13. Three women a day are murdered by their husband or boyfriend.

Three women a day are murdered by their husband or boyfriend.

Three women a day are murdered by their husband or boyfriend.

Three women a day are murdered by their husband or boyfriend.

Three women a day are murdered by their husband or boyfriend.

Let that sink in for just a moment, folks.

[BainsBane]

7. The article quotes the president of the league

Did you read it? I was prepared to say it wasn't the league until I read that. Management sets the culture. I'm sure there are fine guys in MMA, but the rot starts at the top.

Et cetera, indeed: Those are just incidents that happened in the last couple of years. Don’t expect upper management to care: UFC president Dana White once tweeted at Jenna Jameson, who had previously accused ex-boyfriend and former UFC fighter Tito Ortiz of domestic violence, “@jennajameson hey jenna SHUT THE FUCK UP and mind ur biz! @titoortiz put her on a fuckin leash!!!” He’s also infamously filmed a video rant in which he called a female journalist a “fucking dumb bitch” and hurled a homophobic slur

[nomorenomore08]

8. That is just... How the fuck does someone get to that point?

[redqueen]

9. Holy shit.

We have GOT to start taking domestic violence seriously.

That this sport would attract men who are severely infected with toxic masculinity is no surprise. I'm stunned I hadn't heard of some of those vile comments. Fucking sickening stuff.

[ismnotwasm]

10. I read this

What an asshole. Not to excuse him or make excuses about violence against women, but do MMA's take steroids at all?

Sounds like another violent jerk with 'atta boy' pals. Far too typical in our society. The likening it to a disease is absolutely correct IMO

That is what defines this kind of toxic masculinity: It’s a violent reaction to feminism and women’s rights. This phenomenon has existed ever since Susan Faludi published “Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women” in 1991. The underlying mechanics remain the same, but its expressions are ever-changing. MMA fighting, the worship of “alpha male shit,” pickup artistry, rape jokes on Twitter, misogynistic shooting sprees — they are all symptoms of the same disease.

[A-Schwarzenegger]

12. Arrested.

http://ktla.com/2014/08/15/mma-fighter-war-machine-arrested-sought-in-las-vegas-beating-of-ex-girlfriend/

[Tuesday Afternoon]

14. Good.

<snip>

Las Vegas police on Tuesday announced a warrant for his arrest in connection with the Aug. 8 assault. He was charged with several counts of battery, including by strangulation, as well as assault with a deadly weapon, coercion by force and “open and gross lewdness,” according to a news release from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.

A male and female victim had severe injuries that were not life-threatening, police said. The female victim was hospitalized.

<snip>

[redqueen]

15. Still feeling sorry for himself, like all violent misogynist assholes everywhere do.

Nothing is ever their fault.

...

The couple had broken up in May, she wrote.

But Koppenhaver, while on the run, tweeted Monday that he had planned to propose to Mack when he showed up to surprise her.

“The cops will never give me fair play, never believe me. Still deciding what to do but at the end of the day it’s all just heart breaking,” he wrote.

His last tweet read, “I only wish that man hadn’t been there and that Christy & I would be happily engaged. I don’t know y I’m so cursed.One day truth will come out.”

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/mma-fighter-war-machine-arrested-beating-christy-mack-cops-article-1.1905348

He'd beaten her before. Yet he assumes if that guy wasn't there she'd take him back.

Fucking asshole.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

16. yep.

Fucking asshole.

good enough.

forget all the psychological issues, people around here do not like armchair diagnosing and,
I understand and agree and do not want another post to go to jury from this "safe haven".

So, yeah ...


Fucking asshole.

is good enough for me.