Anti-Male Products Designed By Jim Benton
Jim Benton has released a large amount of anti-male products that depict the act of violence against boys (including testicular kicking), and misandry as a form of acceptable humour. His products contain the following quotes; "I love boys they're stupid", "let's go find some boys to beat up", "boys are funny when they try to think", "hooray for guys with money", "boy's lie and kind of stink", as well as an image that shows a girl flushing the head of a boy down the bowl of a toilet and the term "boys are fun" written underndeath it. There is even am image of a girl kicking a boy in the groin, and the underlying message is quite clear; girls are being told that it is acceptable to kick boys in the groin.
Chris Key recently sent an e-mail to Jim Benton that contained the following article.
In reply, Jim Benton wrote the following:
Jim Benton Said: 11th of November, 2005
"Hi Chris— Thanks for writing. I respect your opinion, of course, but I have to tell you, out of hundreds of thousands of images on products I've created, only one depicts a kick in the crotch. It includes a tagline like "Please don't make the nice little girl angry". It's marketed on pink and yellow babydoll tees, and clearly the market here is for women, not men. ( Which is why your kick-to-the-clit joke wouldn't play well ) Over the years, we've marketed all sorts of stuff, some very sweet and plea sant, some very edgy. None of it makes everybody happy. In fact, that is probably the very bottom line of selling entertainment and licensing products. The fact that many women object to the Playboy bunny logo does not keep Spencer Gifts from giving it huge space in most of it stores. If enough people want it, the retailer sells it. Most people laugh at it BECAUSE they understand it's wrong. It's the WRONGNESS that makes people laugh. The girls who wear this don't actuallly make a practice of roaming the streets kicking us do they? They just giggle and show it to their girlfriends and they giggle. In your email, you suggest that "...there are a large number of arrogant and ignorant young men who have been brainwashed by the feminists and actually support the feminists without even knowing it. " That's a very hard proposal to dispute. One doesn't know, I suppose, if one is absolutely and totally absurbly stupid, even if he can find a group of similarily stupid people to agree with him. So, am I stupid? Are you? I guess I can't be sure. You signed off as an advocate for men's rights. I'm sure we would find much common ground. I believe that often the laws about child custody, support, and divorce are lopsided. And I believe you have a right to champion those rights. I also believe you have a right to laugh ( or not ) at whatever jokes you please, and that those rights extend to the people who tell them, and the people who purchase them, no matter what sort of genitals they were born with. Jim" |
Chris Key's Reply
"The total number of images that depict testicular kicking as acceptable is not the issue, as your ONE product has encouraged young girls to kick innocent little boys in the groin. A study has shown that males who were victims of testicular kicking at a young developed a large degree of depression, social phobia, and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Around 10% of the boys stated that they were kicked in the groin, while only 2% of the girls reported such an incident happening to them. Here's a link to the study - http://www.unh.edu/ccrc/pdf/CV12.pdf
In other words, your product is basically stating that the act of testicular kicking is acceptable as long as the perpetrator of the crime happens to be an angry female. Anyone can experience a great deal of anger for no apparent reason, and they may project their feelings onto others who have never even committed a single sin against them.
Depicting the act of testicular kicking as *acceptable* is dangerous, as it will most likely confuse the female youth into believing that it's their right to commit such an act. The message may even be interpreted as an excuse for girls to avoid taking accountability for their actions after they have committed the act of testicular kicking.
Whether your product is meant to appeal to a certain demographic is inexcusable, as it is violation the Human Rights of the male populace and is therefore unacceptable.
The Playboy bunny logo does NOT promote the act of rape or sexual violence against women as acceptable; therefore your claim has no correlation to the original subject. Your product is promoting the act of testicular kicking as acceptable, and that is a violation of Human Rights.
As a 20-year-old male I can confirm that the girls at my school believed it was their RIGHT to kick males in the groin for no apparent reason at all. They would defend their actions by saying it's shown on television therefore it MUST be acceptable. Thankfully I was never kicked in the groin, but there were quite a few girls who were willing to taunt and threaten the male students; some of them even committed the act against the other boys.
A sane person is able to acknowledge the morality of a situation by viewing it from alternative perpsectives; something that you have failed to do in the case of your anti-male logo.
Perhaps your product is merely a representation of the integrity and competence of your company, and if so then you have a lot of room for improvement. Can you honestly say that your company is unaware of the misandrist and inhumane nature of your product?
An intelligent and competent man/woman would notbe able to successfully sell his/her product to the public by using civil and morally correct method - something you have failed to perform.In all honestly I believe that you're the opposite of a Men's Rights Activist, as you are promoting the concept of misandry in order to gain profit, and that is reprehensible. A Men's Rights Activist works for free, he promotes civility, equality and fairness.
Your product has exceeded the realms of freedom of speech, as it is depicting the act of testicular kicking as acceptable which is a form of hatred and sexism."
Jim Benton Said: 17th of November, 2005
"Chris— Your statements are your own to make, but you don't get to state what our intentions are. We do not advocate violence of any sort. The people at Warner Brothers do not advocate the reckless discharge of revolvers in all directions just because Yosemtie Sam does it in cartoons. There is a difference between cartoons and reality, and the difference is clear to almost everybody. |
Chris Key's Reply
The consumers tend to be attracted to the products that contain an underlying message that suits their own agenda, beliefs and feelings, and therefore a person does not require a superior intellect to realise that you're trying to gain the attention of the misandrist and aggressive females who hate men.
Perhaps you are unable to understand this concept, or maybe you're just pretending to be a simpleton in order to avoid taking accountability for your actions, but your ignorance does not excuse the evilness of your products."
Jim Benton Said: 18th of November, 2005
"I wish you knew just how wildly you are overestimating the popularity of this item. Honestly, I don't think any stores are even carrying it. I find it hard to believe that you even saw it in the marketplace. That said, nobody can speak to what my intent is. Only I know that. Out of hundreds of thousands of images I've created, you've managed to find-God knows how- a few that were created to give girls a laugh, that might be a little mean-spirited, but does not "advocate" anything. And remember, only the person who created knows what was intended. We would probably agree on many points, you and I: realistic issues on violence, and men's rights, but your focus on this makes it hard for me to take you seriously. I get tons of email. You'd be floored, seriously. From people that tell me how much I've helped their kids with various projects, and how much my stuff makes them laugh. Your emails stand out in sharp contrast-so sharp, in fact, that I truly question if you really even know what I do. This is my last email to you. I do regret if I have hurt your feelings or whatever, but all of the work I do is to entertain. Obviously, if you tell enough jokes, some of them are not going to work for everyone, and it's clear to me that this one did not work for you. That happens." |
Jim Benton Said: 18th of November, 2005
"tell you what. I told my business partner about your emails and he had a suggestion. next time we have a catalog go out, we'll send you one, and then you might get a real understanding of what the product actually is and how it's marketed. How's that?" |
Chris Key's Reply
The present popularity of the item is irrelevant, as the purpose of these e-mails is to ensure that you learn that it is immoral to produce any form of material that is sexist, derogatory and offensive.
In the USA, there was an incident in that included the selling of T-Shirts that contains quotes such as; "Boys are stupid, throw rocks at them" and "Boy's lie, poke 'em in the eye". Glenn Sacks began protesting against the company and it led to a LOT of stores refusing to stock their merchandise.
If you're trying to make a profit from an item that promotes misandry, then expect the Men's Rights Activists to stand up and say that they're not willing to tolerate such tripe.
Glenn Sacks has his very own radio show called "His Side", and he wouldn't be impressed by your merchandise.
It appears as if your intent is to gain profit from the selling of merchandise that promotes misandry, and IF that is the case then the competence of your company is questionable. An innovative company would be able to gain popularity through the utilisation of constructive thinking, and NOT resort to promoting stereotypes and sexism just to appeal to an angry demographic who enjoy sharing their hatred for others.
If your products are intended to make girls laugh, and as they seem to think it is hilarious, it definitely speaks volumes about the mentality of that demographic. Would a sane, caring and moral person laugh at an image that depicts sexual violence against boys as acceptable, or the act of flushing a boy's head down a toilet bowl as a form of comedy? How do you feel knowing that you're producing a form of merchandise that is intended to appeal to a demographic of young girls who possess psychotic and sick fantasies?
By producing such merchandise, you are only allowing the irresponsible, ill-mannered and abusive demographic of young girls to think it is *acceptable* to act in such a manner, and that makes you no better than them.
Even if the underlying message of your product is not intended to encourage girls to kick boys in the groin, as the female youth are most likely going to view the picture as a sign that it is acceptable to perform such an act.
Until you are willing to take accountability for your actions and admit that your product is a form of misandry, then you will fail to realise the horrific nature of your product.
It must also be noted that you have failed to produce any merchandise that condones the act of clitoris kicking and misogyny, and that speaks volumes about your view on the situation. If you truly believed that there is nothing wrong with the message of your product, then you wouldn't hesitate to produce at least one item that condones the act of clitoris kicking or misogyny.
In all honestly, you probably realise that society would not tolerate any product that condones violence against females and misogyny, but you're willing to encourage misandry and testicle kicking just because the concept of political correctness allows such a double standard to exist.
Please, develop some integrity and take accountability for your actions."
Jim Benton Said: 18th of November, 2005
"Best I can do: I'll make your feelings known at our next licensing meeting. I don't agree with your statement that a company should not produce anything offensive, because SOMEBODY is offended by everything. Your characterization of a single cartoon as "evil" , in my opinion, devalues the word, but you're entitled to your opinion. Finally, the company you referenced is called DAVID AND GOLIATH. I am inside the industry and know FOR A FACT that the controversy got him interviewed in People magazine, created a much larger demand for the product, and he opened a store inside The Venetian in Vegas. I'm told he never has to work again. That said,I don't seek controversy, I just try to make MY consumer laugh. I tried to tell you that the material you are referencing isn't even on any store's current buy, to my knowledge. The one thing you can rely on Junior girls for is to move off something quickly. My next big line has cartoon bears and ducks and I can nearly guarantee that somebody from PETA will email me about it. It's utterly harmless, but that's the nature of the internet. But, as I promised you, I'll make your feelings known. Jim" |
If you would like to make an official complaint to Jim Benton about his products, you can do so at the following email address - JKBenton@aol.com
