‘We Need Bullies’: Chris Rock Speaks Truth to Weakness in Tamborine

[Valin]

National Review

And be faithful in your marriage, and reject pornography.

Kyle Smith

February 15, 2018

Who said it: G. K. Chesterton, John Wayne, or Jordan Peterson? “We need bullies. Pressure makes diamonds. Not hugs. Hug a piece of coal and see what you get. You get a dirty shirt.”

Buzzer sound. The answer is none of the above. Chris Rock said it, on his new Netflix special Tamborine. Rock isn’t a political conservative, and I doubt he’s ever voted Republican in his life. But in his one-hour standup routine he articulates a vision in which the harsh facts of existence are to be welcomed rather than bubble-wrapped, sexual morality is the core of a successful marriage, and men acknowledge their special burden to toil for others. Take out the “mother*****r”s, of which there are many, and you could almost be listening to an unusually sharp-witted pastor.

(Snip)

Repackaged, Rock’s set could actually make for a Peterson-style self help guide — Rock’s Rules for Life. The world is harsh, so expect no favors from it. Be faithful and committed in your marriage. Reject porn. And if you’re a man, be one. Take responsibility. “I brought this s*** on myself,” Rock says. “You gotta learn some lessons, some man lessons. . . . There’s a coldness you have to accept when you’re a man, especially a black man.” Rock thinks “only women, children, and dogs are loved unconditionally,” whereas “a man is only loved under the condition that he provide something. I’ve never heard a woman in my life say, ‘You know, after he got laid off, we got so much closer.’” After all, when a man meets someone new, his friends ask, “What does she look like?” When a woman meets someone new, her friends ask, “What does he do?”

The value of a man is tied up in his work, Rock says: “What the f*** does that n****r do that can help you out? Can this m**********r facilitate a dream or not?” The advice to men is sound: Think less about your grievances, think more about providing for others.

 

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