History Repeating

There was an article on MSN.com on Tuesday about makeup for men, and how it’s catching on. (And believe it or not, the author seems to think men are buying and using mascara.)

It’s all part of the metrosexual movement, where non-transgendered males now have “permission” to take care of themselves and improve their grooming habits. (Read the article here.)

Somehow, I doubt men are clamoring for powders and mascara. Instead, I think cosmetic companies see a potential market and are selling the idea. But, you never know. 230 years ago, men wore makeup and wigs. (At least the aristrocrats do in all those French Revolution movies I see.)

And so what goes around, comes around. The times, they are a-changin.

(And that exhausts my cliches for now.)

Times do change. 20 years ago, it was uncommon for men to have pierced ears. Now, they’re just about everywhere. 50 years ago, if a man’s hair was long enough to touch his collar, he risked getting thrown in jail.

So, where am I going with this? The future. Times change, but history repeats itself.

Think back to the end of the Second World War. There was a major cultural shift in the United States. Soldiers and sailors came home, created baby boomers, and provided them with a home life comfortable enough that kids didn’t have to go to work when they were 14. Teens developed a culture.

And part of that culture was rebellion. Dad was in the army, and had a certain idea of how things should be. Kids had a different idea. Thus the hippie movement was born. (I’m not saying everyone was a hippy. But stay with me.)

One of the things to come out of this counter-culture was the sexual revolution. Women’s lib took off. The gay rights movement was born. There were wife-swapping parties. (Or so I hear.)

What’s this have to do with us, here and now? This war, the one on terror, in Iraq and Afghanistan, will one day end. And a lot of soldiers and sailors and airmen and marines will return home, after being gone for a long time. I predict we’ll see another baby boom when they get here.

Now, here is where my crystal ball gets murky, because I see a couple of different possibilities: both good.

Those troops will return home. Some of those forces will have served in Afghanistan, where man-on-man action is not taboo. Some of them may come home with a different view on homosexuality. They may not disapprove of it, as strongly as macho men have in the past. This could lead to same-sex marriage laws, and stronger anti-discrimination legislation, both of which can benefit us in the TG community.

Or, those returning troops will come back more disapproving of gays and lesbians and anyone different, anyone outside the norm. And they’ll procreate. And like after WWII, their children will rebel against them, leading to a second sexual revolution.

The good news is, either way, change is inevitable. The bad news is, all these changes probably won’t affect you and me, as they won’t really surface for another 20 years, at least, and by then, we’ll be seriously stuck in our ways, unhip and univited to the wife-swapping parties.

But, by then, at least we’ll be able to wear a little concealer on bowling night.

Category: All TGForum Posts, Transgender Opinion