Anyone who has played sports, committed crimes, belonged to criminal organization, served in the military or been to prison knows that males can be violently cruel. On that list, two are considered honorable activities, while the other three are counted as dishonorable. Yet, the qualities one needs to thrive in all of them are the same. You have to be tough minded. You have to be willing to use violence to establish your place in the group. You have to overcome physical fear and take physical punishment.

In all cases, you will be confronted by other males who want to dominate you, sometimes in extremely unpleasant ways. In every locker room, there are guys trying to push around other guys. You earn respect from your teammates by pushing back. In prison, you better be willing to kill that guy or you’re going to be his punk. Men can be horrible to other men, but modern times and a feminized culture push this truth to the fringes. Still, it is an immutable part of the human condition.

Once in a while it creeps into view. A current example is the case of Miami Dolphin’s lineman Richie Incognito. Reportedly, he harassed a teammate to the point where the guy quit the team and went to get psychiatric help. I’m quite sure that every player on the team knew what was going on and many participated in it. The victim was probably despised by everyone because he was taking it. No man respects another man who will not fight back.

The over-class can preach the contrary in TV and movies, but no one respects a wimp, a pussy or a punk. That’s why no one came to the guy’s aid. Incognito is a horrible human being, by all accounts, but as far as the other players were concerned, he was the better man. It’s terrible and it is cruel, but it is the way men are to one another. This poor sap will get help, but he will never play football again. Like the Ned Beatty character from Deliverance, he can never look another man in the eye again.

Incognito has been suspended and will face some sort of punishment. As long as he can play the position, he will get work and be welcomed by other players. They may think he is a bad guy, but they will respect him. That’s the other side of this sort of thing and why campaigns against bullying are pointless. Men, by nature, respect the bully more than the bullied. In the evolution of man, being counted on to fight is an important asset. When the other tribe is coming for your women, the wimp is a liability.