Tucker Max's Childish Shenanigans

Today is the centennial of the outbreak of World War I, and I've begun the first in a series of articles for Showdown of Arms for the coming month that will be centered around this conflict. Much as I am reluctant to take a break from crafting this article, I think it necessary to write this post for the Masculine Epic concerning a recent controversy in the community.

Earlier in the year, Tucker Max, an author (more like a sophomoric frat boy) who has claimed to have success with seducing women, and Geoffrey Miller, a disgraced academic, launched a new website centered around dating advice for men called The Mating Grounds, which I won't link to here because I don't want to give it any hits, as counterintuitive as that may seem since I'm writing about it. Oh well.

The Mating Grounds has caused a lot of controversy. Some like Frost at Thumotic wished it well and hoped that The Mating Grounds would be a good website. Others like Mike at Danger & Play immediately lambasted Tucker Max and The Mating Grounds, claiming that it was a cheap copycat site whose only modus operandi was to ignore or bash the rest of the community, whichever suited Tucker Max better.

I don't like getting involved in controversies like this if it can be avoided, especially online. So I decided to, in the words of Marcus Luttrell, "let the situation develop." However, I now think it imperative of me to make this post. This community has helped me a lot and I do not want to see it undermined by charlatans and opportunists.

When it seemed like Tucker Max and The Mating Grounds were headed firmly toward Mike's prediction: a cheap, watered-down, PC-infested site whose only purpose was to bash others and not tell the whole truth, more controversy ensued.

Now we have something to confirm it once and for all, and which compelled me to lend my voice, however limited it may be, to attacking The Mating Grounds.

In his latest podcast, Tucker Max attacked Roosh. Now, if you want to criticize someone, fine. Plenty have criticized Roosh and I don't agree with everything he says either. However, Tucker outright lied about Roosh in an attempt to damage him. Not only was the lie extremely amateurish because anyone with an IQ above 80 should be able to quickly figure it out, the lie backfired because it only undermined Tucker's own credibility, not Roosh's. Lucky, a member of the Roosh V Forum, posted the transcript here, which I will quote from:

Tucker:

"Exactly! Which, by the way, brings up a super good point. I didn’t know this. Scott Barry Kaufman talked about this. Apparently, one of the really big pick up artists has this book about how he slept with a bunch of women in Russia and he had, like, pictures of them. The whole thing was a lie. The Russian media called this dude out, like, all the pictures he took off, basically, Russian social media sites and all the women freaked out and this dude…he’s still seen as an expert."

Nils:

"He’s so bad that the Russian media did a truth expose?"

Tucker:

"Do you know who I’m talking about? Roosh? That’s who it is, Roosh? So you know what I’m talking about, right? Roosh. Okay, so, whoever Roosh is…"

Nils:

"The Russian media came to the defense of women and the truth…"

Tucker:

"Right?! That’s how fucked up the pick up artist is!"

Nils:

"Wow."

Tucker:

"This dude. His whole thing was a lie! Which is, like…you know, that actually shocked me, because I know how easy it is to hook up with women. It’s not hard to hook up. You don’t need to lie about this. It’s not hard at all. That’s what’s funny. Notice how we haven’t talked about these guys aren’t actually fucking girls. Of course they’re fucking – or at least, I assume. This guy, apparently, is not. But it’s not hard to do this stuff. It’s really not."

Geoff:

"Yeah. If you have no conscience and you go for low-quality girls who are already drunk, yeah. Fine. Whatever."

Firstly, Roosh has never styled himself as a pickup artist, which, while relatively minor, is still a connotation that brings up negative imagery from the Mystery era of game. Pickup artists are associated with using faux tactics as a mask to pick up women. Roosh does not advocate such tactics and repeatedly emphasizes hard work in self-improvement so that you become attractive, not act like you are attractive.

More importantly (and this is absolutely key in destroying Tucker's credibility and why any guy out there should seriously question his competence), Roosh has, to my knowledge, never been to Russia. I have never seen him write posts about Russia describing its women or its culture, which is what he's most known for. The country in question over this misconstrued incident was Ukraine, not Russia.

Tucker here demonstrates that he can't even get his story straight about the countries Roosh was supposedly in, let alone anything else.

Most importantly, Tucker is defaming Roosh. By undermining his credibility and claiming he hasn't slept with any women, he is trying to damage Roosh's primary source of income based on slanderous tales.

And as a last bit of hilarity, Tucker Max and crew again undermine their own credibility by that quip by Nils about "coming to the defense of women and the truth." How feminist of a thing for them to say. They certainly aren't going to run afoul of the PC priesthood with quips like that, which should tell you all you need to know about them by itself. They put women on a pedestal.

Now for the actual truth. The thing in question was Roosh's post about reasons to visit Ukraine. Note that Roosh stated, in bold print, that he did not sleep with any of those girls.

So, Tucker is at best a misguided fool, and at worst a malicious deceiver. To further provide evidence that Tucker has nothing new to add to the conversation and that he is only trying to ride coattails, this image speaks volumes:

Notice how most of it is centered around bashing other guys, not on adding value.

I wonder what, if anything, Mark Manson will have to say regarding the criticisms of his own book and work, which I find very helpful.

It is clear that Tucker is an opportunist looking to break into the community to make money, since his other projects have been on the rocks. He offers nothing valuable or anything which hasn't already been said, and he exists seemingly only to bash other guys to make himself look better.

And if you want more proof that Tucker isn't worth listening to, this is his girlfriend:

For a man that's supposedly slept with over 100 women and is now trying to posture himself as a guru to help other guys, I think he can do better.

One Year

It's been a year since I made the first post on this blog. It is aptly titled and deserves a link: Laziness is a Cancer.

Laziness and hesitation will kill your chances of success and doom you to a life of mediocrity. As Arnold Schwarzenegger said: none of his rules of success will work unless you do.

Make no mistake, this is still something I struggle with and still something I need to work on. It is still difficult for me to concentrate on one thing for too long.

However, in the year since I began this blog, I have more improvements in my life than in the rest of my time alive.

A year ago I was a scrawny twig with no muscle definition. Today, I am very well defined for my frame and have gained an additional ten pounds of muscle. I'm at 11% body fat, I have a solid visible four pack and good obliques, a well-muscled chest, a solid v taper, shoulder striations, much larger and more toned arms, tree trunk legs, and big, shaped traps. My shoulders are 1.45 times wider than my waist. Although I'm still not as big as I want to be, I no longer look like a complete wimp and have a better body than the large majority of the population. That's a very good accomplishment in a year, and I'm far from finished in my gains.

A year ago I was stuck in writer's block, making excuses not to continue working on the greatest creative project in my life, my long epic novel. Today, I have written around 700 additional pages and the novel is reaching its completion, though I have been stalling for the past couple of weeks. When I finally finish it, which is not far off, it will be a very gratifying accomplishment.

A year ago I was rather indifferent to my social and economic advancement. I said I wanted it but didn't put in the serious work that was needed and was more content with a "go with the flow" attitude. I will confess I still need much work in this area, and the job market being what it is, finding a new, higher-paying job is still a grind, even when your resume has been described as impressive by prospective employers. This area is frustrating because there is so much more outside your control than what you want, but nevertheless I must keep at it, and have been looking for a better position more fervently and sprucing up my resume.

Additionally I have begun to take steps in other areas. I have no intention of working for someone else forever. That's the path to a mediocre life and you will never get rich that way. Instead, this plan is as a stepping stone towards building the necessary economic and social capital I need to get a business off the ground. I have attended some local SCORE events and met with some of its councilors regarding starting your own business in the past year, and while I'm not ready just yet, I have made it my long term plan. I'm still only in my 20's, and I may need to use the remainder of them to get to where I need to be to start that business when I'm in my 30's. That isn't a bad course of action. I've also begun entry into the world of real estate sales, which is a nice way to make extra money and increase people skills at the same time.

I've also ramped up my efforts to make money online. My websites are up, these blogs are running, and ad and affiliate revenue is steadily coming in, though not enough to make a living on, obviously. It is however, enough to pay for dates, which leads me to the next accomplishment.

A year ago I was very anxious when it came to approaching women and asserting my masculinity. Now I'm doing it almost every day. It's very gratifying to overcome a real, immediate fear like approach anxiety and discover it was bullshit all along. Now I'm having a bit of the opposite problem - instead of approaching too little, I think I'm approaching too much! Nowadays when I see a hot girl my mind immediately thinks 'approach' which is a good thing, but sometimes it makes more sense not to. There are so many hot girls that you just need to pay attention as to who you approach, and spend your time approaching girls that will give you the highest chance of success. As of now I'm still learning what that is, but I should pay more attention to certain demographic areas such as college campuses and tourist spots. Nevertheless, these are good problems to have indeed!

A year ago I didn't put as much effort into my appearance as I should have. Although I was always decently handsome, I simply wasn't doing as much as I could, and that is not the path to glory. Bodybuilding is one thing, but using the appropriate products and assessing your style is something else. I'm happy to say that this has also reversed. I'm much more conscious of what I wear, and I take a few extra minutes to groom myself to a much higher degree. As a result, I look more masculine, my skin is more radiant, and I dress appropriately to attract the kind of women I'm into. This takes the least effort as compared to everything else. A little really does go a long way.

A year ago I had a big problem controlling my temper. I would get angry over stupid little things. That has almost entirely disappeared. I'm calmer, more focused, and more rational. I get less anxious and have a mentality and mindset that my path will continue onward unabated.

While I was always well-read, a year ago I was missing out on some important information and life-changing advice. Now I have become far more enriched in both the abstract and the concrete after reading great works like the 48 Laws of Power, Think & Grow Rich, and some of the writings associated with my Twenty Men Exercise. Because I'm associating with good people and good thoughts, I've become a much better man myself.

Of course, I haven't gotten here alone. I've had the help and advice of good people. Some people I'd like to thank specifically are as follows:

• Roosh, for keeping up a great forum and ROK, wherein you can get good advice (though you must also be wary of the negatives as well).
• Christian McQueen and Chris at Good Looking Loser for their raw game tips and advice in making yourself more attractive.
• Mark Manson for his excellent advice on keeping all of this in perspective and having a solid grounding.
• Wycked, for his great articles at ROK critiquing the cultural absurdities that are a negative influence on men.
• Scooby, for his no-nonsense bodybuilding advice.
• And mostly, Quintus Curtius, whose excellent articles have dispensed a wide array of advice in all the important areas in life - body, mind, spirit. In him I have seen a mentor of sorts, someone to be like when I reach his station in life.

Obviously, I won't forget the rest of the community. For all the weird aspects of it, it is an indispensable resource for men in this oversensitive, politically correct world that is creating quite the identity crisis among us.

I'm still not where I want to be and much work remains to be done, but it has been an immensely satisfying year. I can only imagine what the next one will bring.

The Glory & Grind Cycle

If you talk with some guys who have been out in the field for a while, they'll tell you that meeting women is a real grind, and there are a lot of things that to a degree are outside of your control, even when things are going well. Even when you do everything right, The Fates just seem to conspire against you in some ways. As I've come out of my shell, I'm beginning to experience this too.

Two days ago I went out to Central Park. There I saw a real beautiful girl walking by. I hesitated for a moment, but walked towards her and had my opener ready. I went direct, telling her that I saw her and I wanted to meet her. By the way she stopped and looked at me, I could tell that it was on immediately. When she answered in a foreign accent I knew she was from somewhere in Northern or Eastern Europe, and she had that look to her too. After playing a short guessing game, she answered that she was from Denmark.

Now, Denmark has had a bit of an infamous reputation in the community ever since Roosh wrote his Don't Bang Denmark guide, but I'm happy to say that this girl was great. I took her on an instant date. She was very elegant and feminine, and I could have a conversation with her without being bored out of my mind or talking about vapid stupidity. Much to my delight, she dislikes the spread of things like social media just as much as I do, and she had a really deep personality. One of the things she said that was most memorable was how there was no hardship anymore, that people just have it too easy. It was at that point that I relayed the story of my grandfather to her, which she really liked. I was even able to talk about the Homeric epics with her, and she had a lot to say about them too. I've remarked in the last post about the lack of femininity in American women (on average). It's true. There was just no comparison. This girl was simply a cut above the majority of American women you will meet, even here in New York.

Alright, so maybe I'm harping now, but I really liked her. She was such a breath of fresh air compared to the girls I normally speak to. I approached another girl just before I met this one, and while she was generally cool too and I got her number (even while her boyfriend was in the vicinity), she did not have nearly the dimensions or the femininity that this one had.

The basic game principles still applied of course. I made sure that I was the leader of that interaction. The fact that she was essentially a wandering tourist helped maintain this frame. Aside from leading her, I made jokes about her being the future soccer mom of my kids, and was aggressive with the physical contact. I made sure to touch her early, putting my hand on her waist to guide her to different places. One hilarious thing that really helped was that someone came up to us at one of the fountains and was passing this ad for a palm reader. When this guy left I made fun of it by doing a mock palm reading. I kissed the back of her hand after that. She complained about how she had mosquito bites. I kissed one of those too, which sounds kind of stupid here, but it was cool and even romantic at the time. She's a rather modest girl, and began to remark at how aggressive I was when I held her hand, and shit tested me by asking "what if I were to have a boyfriend?" I can't exactly remember what I said to blow past this, but I just shook it off because it legitimately didn't bother me. I mean, if she were to have a boyfriend (at least one she really cared about), she wouldn't have been doing any of this with me.

As Chris says at Good Looking Loser: "don't be smooth, be aggressive."

And since I'm interesting and such a naturally good conversationalist, I can get away with being aggressive and smooth at the same time. Of course it just helped that I knew she was rather attracted to me from the start, which will induce you to be more aggressive.

Anyway, I led her to a bunch of different places over many hours, in and out of the park. It was a great date by all accounts. It was a day of glory.

Now comes the grind.

Bad logistics can just really fuck you up, and to a large extent, it's outside your control. Unfortunately this girl was leaving New York the next day. What shitty luck.

We exchanged contact information of course. However, more logistical problems have arisen.

Because of her international calling code, when I tried to send the customary text messages, I got them returned for having an invalid number.

Fuck.

I made a huge ass mistake in not getting her email. Newbie mistake. I know never to do this again.

The only card I seemed to have left to play was the dreaded Facebook card. She gave me that.

I found her last night. No friend request option. I grudgingly had to pay $1.13 to send her a message that would go directly to her inbox.

Now, my text game I think is comparatively weak, but I tried the best I could, trying to convey some flirtation and rapport. But still, it's fucking Facebook.

Now I can only hope she'll respond.

It sucks. It sucks because not only was this girl one of the two best-looking girls I've approached so far, but she also had the best personality, hands down. Her sophistication and femininity really drew me in. She is everything I could ever ask for in a woman.

Now, I understand the importance of not getting one-itis, and I just wrote an article about Louis XIV's memoirs wherein he advised his reader to have no attachments or favorites. It is good advice. I am therefore making sure to be as detached from this as possible. You do that by moving forward toward your goals every day like a perpetual motion machine and having the proper priorities, as well as of course going out and approaching other women.

The reason I say this is because it's just something you need to be aware of, in the world at large and in meeting women. You could have an excellent date and then that momentum might be lost either through logistical problems, her fickleness, or just horrible luck. You need to have a strong inner game and grounding to keep things in the proper perspective and not get too emotional.

She is considering coming to New York to go to school, and did say she wants to see me again. So all I can do at this point is try and do what I can.

The weather of life is unpredictable. It could be a sunny day and then a stormy one. The only thing you have is yourself and how you choose to respond to these things. The fact that I did (mostly) everything right with this approach/date, and with a very beautiful girl, is a grand victory in itself.

As a humorous end note, I'll say that when I was walking around with her, arm on her waist, I noticed that I was getting many more eyefucks from other women than usual. Pre-selection really is the most powerful attraction trigger there is.

Reflections on the U.S. This July 4th

Since it's that American staple known as Independence Day, I thought I'd do some societal introspection and reflections with today's post on this July 4th.

Everyone loves the fireworks staple on July 4th - Independence Day, right?

A lot of guys in this neck of the woods are rather down on the U.S. There are of course good reasons for this. The cultural decline we live in is real. You can't tell me that a culture that produces things like this isn't in decline. The forces of political correctness - its inquisition, its fierce mob of defenders, its marginalizing and ostracizing of dissenters, grow more powerful every day. A culture of enforced uniformity that resembles the religious persecutions in Europe that the Founding Fathers sought to break from is rapidly developing. Obesity is a huge problem, and the relations between the sexes continues to be strained.

Landwhale attempting to redefine beauty through Fat Acceptance - a clear sign of cultural decline.

Meanwhile the government grows ever more intrusive. NSA spying will continue on as normal and the implementation of Obamacare continues to be a mess.

The prospect of finding meaningful employment for the nation's young people continues to be questioned, despite reports and brouhaha about job growth speeding up. This is a personal matter to me as well, because I've been affected by it just as much as anyone else in my generation. Finding a better job and moving up the ranks continues to be a struggle (even when I have all the prerequisites asked for), and you really do need to figure out a way to make money on your own, or you're going to be in trouble.

I wonder how much my generation really knows they've been duped? NSA spying continues.

Given all these factors it is understandable that a lot of guys would be down on the U.S. Many times I think I do not belong here. This is a country that all too often coddles and gives in to weakness, encourages narcissism, and all too often punishes daring and innovation, whether that be through government reprisals or something else.

However I think there are still many positive attributes about the U.S.

Firstly, while the complaints about the lack of femininity in American women are things that I generally find valid, this doesn't mean that those women don't exist. One thing I really love about this neck of the woods is that it emphasizes that you are the largest determiner as to your outcome in life. So I'll ask: do you want a feminine woman? If so, you should probably go to places where those sorts of women tend to congregate, rather than go out "sarging" to random clubs or approaching random girls on the street. To clarify, I am by no means saying those two things are wastes of time as they have many uses, but they are simply less likely to net you the kind of woman you really want.

Elegant and feminine women are still around. Go to places where they will likely congregate.

Now I realize that living in NYC, I'm in a bit of a privileged position to be saying this. Girls from all over the country and world come here, and it tends to select for the best. I fully realize that in other places it could be a very different story, that there is a real lack of "talent." Well, then the onus is probably on you to go to areas where that talent is, if you really want it. It could take years, but if you really want it, you need to work for it.

Simply put if you're having problems with all the women you approach and interact with, you are the problem. We should want a society that encourages against the trends we currently see, but this is something that you need to keep in mind. There are a lot of great women out there (and at an added benefit, women from your own culture), and you need to find them.

The next, and most important thing you need to realize about living in the U.S., is that your political freedom is generally higher than anywhere else. We have a robust doctrine of rights stemming from our Constitution, even now. This is made obvious by the fact that while free speech rights are being curtailed in many Western countries that proclaim allegiance to them (under the guise of "hate speech" and other laws), they are still on a very solid foundation in the United States. The thought of sending someone to prison for things like racial insensitivity or Holocaust denial for example, is not only ridiculous, but inconceivable in the minds of most Americans (at least as things currently stand). These are things we ought to cherish, and they are displays that the ghosts of the Founding Fathers still linger.

Be grateful for these dead white men. They left us a legacy of robust political freedom that continues onward.

And finally, while other countries retain higher positions on the scale of economic freedom, and the tax laws of the U.S. are extremely onerous and counterproductive, there is still a wide abundance of economic opportunity. It is still easy to start a business, and many fields do not have the ridiculous regulations that plague others. There is such a strong market here, with an amazing infrastructure, that you can succeed if you continuously move forward.

So there is a sense a contradiction. While there is quite an abundance of problems in the United States that need immediate addressing (and ones in which only this corner of society seems to have the balls to truly call out in all their ramifications), I'm inclined to say that if you spend too much time complaining about the problems in the U.S., you aren't moving forward in life. You're not becoming a winner. In truth you're just the opposite side of the coin to the social justice losers.

Do not be a perpetually whining loser (AKA, a social justice warrior) like this by spending all your time complaining.

Recognize the problems, attempt to fix them, and also move forward with your destiny. That is the thought I wish to convey this Independence Day.

Quarterly Report - Q2 2014

Time sure flies. It's time once again to outline where I stand in relation to my four major goals for the year.

1. My writing has once again gone excellently. On some days I'll write more, and on others less, but production has continued to remain persistent. It's really remarkable how many excuses your brain tries to give you not to move forward in life. I used to tell myself that I had writer's block and couldn't do this. I would then laze away. Well, by continuing to be productive I've busted through any blocks like a sledgehammer through glass. Write something, and that something will appear and snowball. I have finished the fourth act, and am well into the fifth. In another month or so, this thing should be done.

2. This is the one that's seen the most improvement. I've come into contact with some old friends and have just begun to gestate building the bigger social circle that I wanted. I've also done by now my first few serious ballsy daytime cold approaches without pretexts. Obviously, this has been the most gratifying accomplishment of the quarter. I always had some doubt whether or not I'd begin to conquer approach anxiety. Now it's begun to happen. As I've stated in my previous post, I approached a very beautiful model just last Friday, and likely would have at least gotten a date out of it were she not taken. A year ago I wondered deep down whether I'd ever be able to get the balls to do it. Some approach anxiety still persists (and always will), but it's becoming a lot more manageable.

Now the biggest things I need to do are twofold: continue moving in the direction I'm headed now with my approaches, and add some more sexual undertones to those conversations, and secondly, I need to be a bit more persistent when it comes to building up a bigger social circle. I should look for events to go to that would not only allow me to meet girls, but to network.

3. When it comes to my fitness, my legs have improved the most this quarter. The new leg routine has begun to sculpt them into tree trunk projections of solid, lean, muscle. My upper body seems to have plateaued somewhat though, at least with the stuff I'm doing now, so I need to adjust. I need to pay attention to what I eat more, hence why I began a serious nutrition journal yesterday. Ultimately I still want to get more size. If I can gain just another 1.5 or so inches across my shoulders, I will be very close to the golden ratio regarding my shoulder-to-waist comparison. If I can gain another two inches for each shoulder, I will be exactly there. I'll say that it really helps having a naturally slim waist, and I want to make sure my bulk is as clean as possible. To that end I think I'll experiment with this plan (or something like it), but I need to make sure my body fat does not go significantly over where it is now (11% or so).

4. This is the area that currently needs the most work. Throughout the second quarter I've begun to lay more of a foundation for my online businesses to grow. Showdown of Arms is up and running, and I've begun to build the foundations of a strong, thriving forum (and hey, if you're interested in battles, whether that be historical or fictional, and want to discuss some current events with cool and smart non-PC people, feel free to join). The OBD Wiki also continues to run. I have joined the Amazon Associates program and made a couple of sales.

The real money isn't coming in yet though, which makes sense since I just started the sites. In the meantime, I need to find a way to make more. Unfortunately my drive to get my real estate license has stalled due to odd circumstances. Also, trying to find a higher paying job just absolutely sucks, even when you have the requirements they ask for and then some, still nothing. But complaining is for losers. I need to apply to more jobs, that simple - but not just any ones, ones that will help me build the social capital I'll need to start the consulting business I want to start in the future.

And there you have it.

Writing: Excellent
Social Development: Very good
Workouts/Exercise/Nutrition: Good
Making Money: Progressing, but needs improvement