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The manosphere’s testosterone fever is coming for the troops | Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced mandatory testosterone screenings, but it’s a symptom of a larger fixation.
Agreed. But I think with Hegseth specifically it has as much to do with his incompetence as anything. He doesn’t know anything about strategy, technology, or training, so he’s focused on the things he understands—aesthetics and signifiers of strength. He doesn’t understand that looking strong and being strong aren’t the same thing when you’re talking about a military.
Before he was chosen for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth publicly defended waterboarding and the Cheney/Bush enhanced interrogation techniques in counterterrorism operations, which are classified as torture under international law. I know those who served as guards at Guantanamo Bay were frequently asked to take part but there's no proof he did; it just seems likely when you see him in action today.
The General Jack Ripper character in Dr. Strangelove now seems no longer satirical, but rather precisely on brand with current leadership. If Hegseth and RFK had a press conference announcing tha importance of “precious bodily fluids” and bragging that they “drink only distilled water, or rainwater, and only pure grain alcohol” would you be surprised in the slightest?!?!?
I doubt Kubrick was thinking about how to manipulate the masses into being more pro-war when he made Dr. Strangelove. I think mostly some are too dumb to catch satire which may lead them to identify with the very thing that’s ridiculing them (e.g. Homelander).
I watched it back in 2016. Tried to tell people. Posted it online where relevant. Watched the last 10 years play out wondering how much attention I could place on it. These days, anyone who should actually watch it either will never hear about it or will tune out/not understand the arguments.
Watching the masses get played makes me question the efficacy of democracy. I dont mean doubting the integrity like Orange Julius does. I mean that I don't know if voting leads to the best outcomes. I remember seeing something about the south where one of them said "We don't need the federal government telling us what to do!" and someone responded, "Yes, you do. You would still have segregated water fountains otherwise. Hell, you'd still have slaves. The history of the south is one where for over 100 years, theyve needed to be told what to do. But then we get into the problems of which people get to make those decisions, and run into problems with each of those. I dont know what the answer is. Only the problems.
> Watching the masses get played makes me question the efficacy of democracy. I dont mean doubting the integrity like Orange Julius does. I mean that I don't know if voting leads to the best outcomes.
This problem has been known for thousands of years, Plato wrote about it.
Yeah but the modern US seemed to have a better grip on it, especially after the Cold War, which seemed to validate the system. It embed and flowed since then, but took a real nosedive in the Trump era, and I just didn't think after we inherited so much of recorded human history (unlike Plato) that we could make such a stupid mistake. But, here we are, which is in some ways new but also displays a lot of the same issues.
The structural imbalance caused by the electoral college and the fact that states are allowed to gerrymander for state and federal legislatures seats means that the country will be increasingly divided and tend towards a chaotic system that falls apart. There’s no fixing it, because red states will never vote to amend the constitution in a way that removes their outsized power (relative to population) to stack the votes.
I mean we’re almost at a point where 3/4 of the state legislatures are solidly red which means they could call a constitutional convention and rewrite things any way they want without even having to involve congress or take input from blue states at which point it will be completely game over.
I understand the argument against allowing a tyranny of the majority but right now just a few states get to decide who the president is so I fail to see how a tyranny of the extreme minority is any better.
Chinese democracy seems to be working out well in terms of keeping the corporations on a short leash while still promoting growth. Obviously nothing is perfect but I think there are lessons to be learned there.
Lol the US military is so fucked with this guy in charge. I'm old enough to remember GWB doing whatever he could to raise troop numbers, even some really underhand shit. Seems like this admin wants to get rid of as many soldiers as possible
Yeah i heard a lot about their lack of recruits during first Trump and then Biden years. Have there been reports about those numbers now? I'd assume they're down, but maybe they drew in even more crazies.
Officially, per the Department of WAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR, all the services are now meeting quota months ahead of time cause everyone is so fired up to serve under Trump, the god king.
That tracks with the Republican strategy. Pretend to care about troops and increase defense spending. Most of that money will go to civilians running these defense contracting companies. Very little will go towards things like better housing, more individual training opportunities, their families and ESPECIALLY veterans.
But since Republicans always tout how they want to increase defense spending, many service members, former or active, will eat it up. When in reality Trump doesn’t respect or care about any of us, unless they are actively brown nosing.
It's pretty funny to think of the secretary of defense mainlining manosphere podcasts, and using that stuff as a roadmap for the future of the military.
I genuinely think they're doing all this purity-test stuff to shake off anyone who would refuse orders when it comes time to turn the military on citizens. Probably after stealing the 2028 election.
I guess? The Western gay person stereotype is feminine. It would be a stupid plan for a stupid reason if true, but that's the modua operandi of this administration, isn't it?
Indeed. Well, I would say "the stereotype is feminine so that's all the Trump administration has interacted with", but I thought about Conservatives for more than one second and remembered that it can't be true (unless they all have a decided preference for twinks).
Nono, they want them addicted, just can't legally get them addicted to drugs. Once you go on TRT, you basically have to do it your entire life, and it's not exactly cheap. The army will pay for it? What do you think that means.
I've been on TRT of some form or another for almost 15 years. My body doesn't sense my level is low and/or doesn't react correctly.
It's extremely cheap. Like 40 bucks a month for injectables. I get mine compounded as a cream, so no needles, and it's more like if I were making it naturally. Costs me about $75 a month.
If you need it, you need it for life. But if you take it when you don't need it, you'll almost certainly recover back to your previous levels within 6 months. Running out makes most men into a barely functioning shell for a while, but it's not quite an addiction unless your body is actually sick. Being on it tends to cause problems.
If gender affirming hormone therapy is what defines a man I am not understanding why trans men are not allowed to join. Please somebody explain this point like I am 5.
Right? It's so dumb. If anything, given the state of the world, men need to have LESS testosterone, not more!
This obsession with testosterone levels is going to put middle-aged men back into roid rage and teenage horniness. And, for what? So they can larp at how alpha they are?
Imagine thinking more testosterone will help men with anything.....
“We have a sacred duty to maintain that advantage, which is why we must constantly look for ways to optimize your performance, your resilience, and your long-term health,” Hegseth says, addressing America’s “war fighters,” before announcing a new, mandatory program annually screening service members over 30 years old for testosterone deficiency. (The test will also be available on a voluntary basis for those under 30.) If a deficiency is found, service members can opt into — but will not be required to accept — testosterone replacement therapy (TRT). According to The New York Times, these screenings will also include women.
MAHA and the broader manosphere’s obsession with testosterone levels is not new. Like any wellness fad, it starts with broad scientific truths. After age 30, testosterone levels in men naturally decline by about one percent each year on average. Male fertility levels — as in sperm count and quality — have declined compared to previous generations, which has fueled fear in the MAHA and biohacker movements, as fertility is often considered a proxy for overall health. Average testosterone levels in men have also halved in the last 50 years or so. This has led to a dramatic increase in testosterone supplementation, with The NYT reporting that prescriptions jumped from under a million in 2000 to 12 million by 2025.
But if you take some time to investigate what Hegseth seems to think TRT will do for the military, a lot of this rhetoric starts to fall apart.
Cleaned link from "https://www.theverge.com/column/966770/optimizer-manosphere-testosterone-troops?view_token=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpZCI6Ikt3Y3pDSkRZWHQiLCJwIjoiL2NvbHVtbi85NjY3NzAvb3B0aW1pemVyLW1hbm9zcGhlcmUtdGVzdG9zdGVyb25lLXRyb29wcyIsImV4cCI6MTc4NDczMDQ5MiwiaWF0IjoxNzg0Mjk4NDkyfQ.o0yvd_D1M0tvEfNbh12KOA3L6ai-SghhzmRS4GWg0-Q&utm_medium=gift-link":
https://www.theverge.com/column/966770/optimizer-manosphere-testosterone-troops?view_token=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpZCI6Ikt3Y3pDSkRZWHQiLCJwIjoiL2NvbHVtbi85NjY3NzAvb3B0aW1pemVyLW1hbm9zcGhlcmUtdGVzdG9zdGVyb25lLXRyb29wcyIsImV4cCI6MTc4NDczMDQ5MiwiaWF0IjoxNzg0Mjk4NDkyfQ.o0yvd_D1M0tvEfNbh12KOA3L6ai-SghhzmRS4GWg0-Q
Tracking parameters were removed from the original URL(s).
Hm? Yeah, I know, I took mine this morning. I'm just going based off recent trends where any woman with muscle mass on her seems to be accused of being trans by conservatives.
Oh okay. I don't know much about the details of hormones for trans women, sorry. I support the trans community.
I'm actually interested in trans people from a spiritual perspective.
I asked a trans woman once about her near death experience. She said that it was very brief. I asked her if she was female during that experience and she said she was. I haven't found any other trans women who have had a nde. I'd like to ask them the same question.
I think it's clear that gender is not physical, and that some souls have a strong preference for one or the other.
I think the intended implication is that cis women will be under suspicion by Hegseth of being secretly trans for pursuing a masculine occupation. It's about witch hunts, not genuine therapeutic medical treatments.
“I can no longer sit back and allow Communist infiltration, Communist indoctrination, Communist subversion and the international Communist conspiracy to sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids.”
This administration is no longer satisfied with involving themselves with women’s reproduction. They are now going after the men reproduction systems. Republican’s obsession with what is between everyone’s legs is full blown sexual deviance. But this is not new.
Ironically they won't do anything to actually fix it; if their concern was to raise testosterone levels, they'd empower the EPA and FDA to do their jobs: ensure higher quality environment, medications, food and resources for the general population. They were made to ensure companies don't fuck over the people of this country just so they can cut more corners to pad out their profit margins.
And we know that won't happen.
We all know this is just ideological bullshit, authoritarianism, and because "masculinity is in crisis". Masculinity is always "in crisis" because we're a nation of emotionally stunted children.
This is the same idiot who didn't think a bunch of people in close quarters should get flu shots. I think the only person worse to take health advice from is the secretary of health and human services.
I don’t get it. Why is it called manosphere when these guys are so snow flaky? They’re constantly whining about something. Every week there’s a new boogie man.
They are trying to juice up the military and increase their aggression to make it easier for the troops to turn on us. Make no mistake, they want to use the military on its citizens.
They're testing everyone, even asymptomatic soldiers? Are they testing them for everything for which they are asymptomatic? Influenza? Plague? Ringworm?
Feels like a push to chase women out of the service. And back into the trad wife life.
They are obsessed with forcing them back into the roll of pregnant and in the kitchen. But they utterly ignore the reason people stopped having kids in the first place...
People don't gave kids if they can't afford them.
Ultimately all this will so is further weaken the military and chase out older more experienced people in leadership positions because testosterone levels decrease as you age.
(crude summary:) "scientists" and demagogues using fringe-research like Craniometry to identify how a "good person" was supposed to look biologically and visually as opposed to a "bad person".
It became one of the foundations of the race theory bogus of the 19th/early 20th century with all its atrocities.
I.e: If the secretary of defense starts to politicize biological features, that is incredibly alarming because it pretty much opens the doors all sorts of terrible directions, ideologcially.
I implore everyone to remember that when you hear the word "bio-hacking/-maxing" it can easily be a dress-up of some pretty shitty, past ideas, especially when mixed with politics.
I went to a nutrition place they said beer increases estrogen maybe it’s that. Or maybe it’s Opposite Day and testing over 30 men for testosterone means bombing little girls schools in Iran
The idea of prolonging strength, vitality, endurance, etc, with testosterone supplementation was of interest to me. I went on TRT as an experiment, and it just didn't workout for me. I could have had a stroke or heart attack because my body made too many red blood cells while on it. I was a little stronger. Other than that, I didn't really notice it. It definitely didn't make a big difference like I thought it might. I was on the low side, but not extremely low side.
It does make your bones more dense, your muscles stronger, etc. I can see why optimizing your testosterone as a soldier could be of interest. I don't see anything wrong with it - other than, of course, the fact it can kill you if you're not careful with it. It's definitely not the fountain of youth or anything, however. I don't think people should decide that testosterone supplementation is for right wing idiots just because some right wing idiots are on it, or are promoting it. That's silly.
No it isn't a symptom of anything except to ensure a fully functioning military. Men with low testosterone don't make for great soldiers.
Stop the sensational BS about TRT.
Testosterone in men has been in decline in men since the 60s at a rate of about 1% per year. This is a generational decline. Sperm counts are down some 60% from then. Of course DoD is concerned. He should be.
It's not the increase in BMI. They have controlled the results for that.
There is research that shows certain chemicals mimic estrogen and have very long half life in humans. Certain pesticides and plastics behave like this.
My personal pet theory is that it is cows milk. Artificial insemination was commercialized in the 40s and became wide spread around the world in the 50s. Pregnant mammals produce more milk so that improved farmer profits. The problem is that pregnant mammals produce huge amounts of estrogen too, and it shows up in milk. Research on boys shows that drinking milk increases serum estrogen temporarily. But, if you're consuming dairy products at every meal and snack, then you're getting a lot of it almost constantly. So, I think that's the real cause.
Dairy consumption has gone down in recent decades but the damage is already done. It takes several generations with zero exposure to recover from this, based on animal models.
Yup. Thanks. I believe that it all has to crash down before real change occurs. The oligarchy has to become poor before ordinary people can have influence.
I just had a thought that maybe they will tear it down out of spite because they hate everyone. I dunno really.
This is a very small study. While the theory is plausible, it would take more than 18 people to show if it is having that detrimental of an effect throughout our society.
Im actually not against this, the screening is mandatory and the TRT is available if they opt in. As someone who actually on TRT and saw the effects it had on my quality of life, I think this is a great thing to offer the military.
That is true, but if you're on TRT it wasn't doing a good job of making it in the first place. Also, for a lot of people it is reversible using drugs like HCG or enclomiphene.
SunbeamSailor67 | a day ago
The US is sick...deeply sick.
username_redacted | a day ago
Agreed. But I think with Hegseth specifically it has as much to do with his incompetence as anything. He doesn’t know anything about strategy, technology, or training, so he’s focused on the things he understands—aesthetics and signifiers of strength. He doesn’t understand that looking strong and being strong aren’t the same thing when you’re talking about a military.
Rastiln | a day ago
Unsurprising, given that his resume includes not much beyond:
- Holding prisoners at Guantanamo Bay
- Being a civil affairs officer in the Reserve
- Being on TV
Tall_Trifle_4983 | a day ago
Before he was chosen for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth publicly defended waterboarding and the Cheney/Bush enhanced interrogation techniques in counterterrorism operations, which are classified as torture under international law. I know those who served as guards at Guantanamo Bay were frequently asked to take part but there's no proof he did; it just seems likely when you see him in action today.
Acing0325 | a day ago
Dude was a CA officer on the reserves?? Thought he was NG infantry or something.
If he was part time CA then his resume includes theoretically building wells at most 🥴
SPITFIYAH | 18 hours ago
SpaceShrimp | 14 hours ago
The problem from an USA system perspective isn’t that Hegseth is incompetent, but that he is allowed to be incompetent without any consequences.
dover_oxide | a day ago
Mentally and to a lesser degree ( in this case) physically
SunbeamSailor67 | a day ago
Remember, it is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.
trysten-9001 | 18 hours ago
Reminds me of the king of the hill episode.
callmesnake13 | 21 hours ago
The fixation is called being a man who hates women and desperately wants to have sex with other men.
cdazzo1 | a day ago
Yeah, maintaining medically reccomended hormone levels...true insanity!
WellIGuessSoAndYou | 15 hours ago
So you do care about medically recommended hormone levels.
Haunting_Basket_8140 | 18 hours ago
I agree, the fact that the democrats used tax payer dollars to pay for sex changes is really messed up.
WellIGuessSoAndYou | 15 hours ago
Social media has really done a number on your feeble mind. It's incredibly sad. Below average people have no defense against the algorithms.
okletstrythisagain | a day ago
The General Jack Ripper character in Dr. Strangelove now seems no longer satirical, but rather precisely on brand with current leadership. If Hegseth and RFK had a press conference announcing tha importance of “precious bodily fluids” and bragging that they “drink only distilled water, or rainwater, and only pure grain alcohol” would you be surprised in the slightest?!?!?
Magnificent_Z | a day ago
It's almost like satire is often a warning
96-62 | 12 hours ago
Maybe, but sometimes I wonder if satire is a plan. People don't deep in their bones know that it's satire, and it becomes what happens.
The trick to manipulating people into something ridiculous is to give them the idea in a way they can't make sense of.
JamesMagnus | 11 hours ago
I doubt Kubrick was thinking about how to manipulate the masses into being more pro-war when he made Dr. Strangelove. I think mostly some are too dumb to catch satire which may lead them to identify with the very thing that’s ridiculing them (e.g. Homelander).
96-62 | 11 hours ago
Oh, I don't think he did it on purpose.
dontera | 9 hours ago
I hate you for making this Very Accurate observation.
Vryl | 9 hours ago
My first thoughts went to Strangelove. This is 100% precious bodily fluids.
JunglePygmy | a day ago
They’re just trying to break down the country so they can sell it for parts. The true GOP wet dream is finally at play
ours | a day ago
Russia 2.0.
SirrNicolas | a day ago
They are following the exact playbook of post Parastroika Russia.
Please consider watching HyperNormalisation by Adam Curtis. This theater of chaos is all by design.
UnlimitedCalculus | a day ago
I watched it back in 2016. Tried to tell people. Posted it online where relevant. Watched the last 10 years play out wondering how much attention I could place on it. These days, anyone who should actually watch it either will never hear about it or will tune out/not understand the arguments.
Watching the masses get played makes me question the efficacy of democracy. I dont mean doubting the integrity like Orange Julius does. I mean that I don't know if voting leads to the best outcomes. I remember seeing something about the south where one of them said "We don't need the federal government telling us what to do!" and someone responded, "Yes, you do. You would still have segregated water fountains otherwise. Hell, you'd still have slaves. The history of the south is one where for over 100 years, theyve needed to be told what to do. But then we get into the problems of which people get to make those decisions, and run into problems with each of those. I dont know what the answer is. Only the problems.
ctindel | 19 hours ago
> Watching the masses get played makes me question the efficacy of democracy. I dont mean doubting the integrity like Orange Julius does. I mean that I don't know if voting leads to the best outcomes.
This problem has been known for thousands of years, Plato wrote about it.
UnlimitedCalculus | 19 hours ago
Yeah but the modern US seemed to have a better grip on it, especially after the Cold War, which seemed to validate the system. It embed and flowed since then, but took a real nosedive in the Trump era, and I just didn't think after we inherited so much of recorded human history (unlike Plato) that we could make such a stupid mistake. But, here we are, which is in some ways new but also displays a lot of the same issues.
ctindel | 18 hours ago
The structural imbalance caused by the electoral college and the fact that states are allowed to gerrymander for state and federal legislatures seats means that the country will be increasingly divided and tend towards a chaotic system that falls apart. There’s no fixing it, because red states will never vote to amend the constitution in a way that removes their outsized power (relative to population) to stack the votes.
I mean we’re almost at a point where 3/4 of the state legislatures are solidly red which means they could call a constitutional convention and rewrite things any way they want without even having to involve congress or take input from blue states at which point it will be completely game over.
I understand the argument against allowing a tyranny of the majority but right now just a few states get to decide who the president is so I fail to see how a tyranny of the extreme minority is any better.
juliana-crain | 22 hours ago
Voting works great if we punish lying and cheating and corruption. We should try that at least once.
mercury_pointer | a day ago
Chinese democracy seems to be working out well in terms of keeping the corporations on a short leash while still promoting growth. Obviously nothing is perfect but I think there are lessons to be learned there.
ctindel | 19 hours ago
There is no democracy in china, you can't have democracy with only one party.
mercury_pointer | 19 hours ago
I disagree.
Jenings | 7 hours ago
I’m always championing this guy but it’s so fucking bleak and accurate no one has the stomach for it
SunbeamSailor67 | a day ago
This ☝️
DubSket | a day ago
Lol the US military is so fucked with this guy in charge. I'm old enough to remember GWB doing whatever he could to raise troop numbers, even some really underhand shit. Seems like this admin wants to get rid of as many soldiers as possible
MJMichaela | a day ago
Yeah i heard a lot about their lack of recruits during first Trump and then Biden years. Have there been reports about those numbers now? I'd assume they're down, but maybe they drew in even more crazies.
hhs2112 | a day ago
They'd never report the truth anyway
breakwater | a day ago
This is one way of saying recruitment is up to a 15 year high and not wanting to admit it
mothman83 | a day ago
Officially, per the Department of WAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR, all the services are now meeting quota months ahead of time cause everyone is so fired up to serve under Trump, the god king.
I uh.... am somewhat skeptical.
FeelingPlayfulNow | a day ago
I doubt many people are rushing to sign up to fight Iran.
Galevav | 9 hours ago
Recruitment is up by a lot, which is what you expect when the economy is in the shitter.
tullbabes | a day ago
That tracks with the Republican strategy. Pretend to care about troops and increase defense spending. Most of that money will go to civilians running these defense contracting companies. Very little will go towards things like better housing, more individual training opportunities, their families and ESPECIALLY veterans.
But since Republicans always tout how they want to increase defense spending, many service members, former or active, will eat it up. When in reality Trump doesn’t respect or care about any of us, unless they are actively brown nosing.
Mtshoes2 | a day ago
It's pretty funny to think of the secretary of defense mainlining manosphere podcasts, and using that stuff as a roadmap for the future of the military.
MiniaturePhilosopher | a day ago
It’s hard not to wonder if they want to drive down the number of troops to create a justification for reinstating the draft.
RoyalWe666 | 15 hours ago
I genuinely think they're doing all this purity-test stuff to shake off anyone who would refuse orders when it comes time to turn the military on citizens. Probably after stealing the 2028 election.
adamwho | a day ago
They imagine this is a way to get rid of gay soldiers.... Little do they know that high of testosterone isn't sexual preference thing.
Maybe they are trying to chase away women with this move too.
Not certain how this will work out for getting rid of minorities... Unless they plan on using them as cannon fodder in a war
MuscaMurum | a day ago
Little Do They Know could be the MAGA motto
browster | 9 hours ago
They should print it on our money
ArcfireEmblem | a day ago
I guess? The Western gay person stereotype is feminine. It would be a stupid plan for a stupid reason if true, but that's the modua operandi of this administration, isn't it?
eightslipsandagully | 22 hours ago
Plenty of gays do steroids to look good
ArcfireEmblem | 7 hours ago
Indeed. Well, I would say "the stereotype is feminine so that's all the Trump administration has interacted with", but I thought about Conservatives for more than one second and remembered that it can't be true (unless they all have a decided preference for twinks).
h0neanias | a day ago
Nono, they want them addicted, just can't legally get them addicted to drugs. Once you go on TRT, you basically have to do it your entire life, and it's not exactly cheap. The army will pay for it? What do you think that means.
ours | a day ago
Big bucks for the insane supplements industry.
The same supported by Peter Theil and his roided sham Olympics.
Polymathy1 | 14 hours ago
I've been on TRT of some form or another for almost 15 years. My body doesn't sense my level is low and/or doesn't react correctly.
It's extremely cheap. Like 40 bucks a month for injectables. I get mine compounded as a cream, so no needles, and it's more like if I were making it naturally. Costs me about $75 a month.
If you need it, you need it for life. But if you take it when you don't need it, you'll almost certainly recover back to your previous levels within 6 months. Running out makes most men into a barely functioning shell for a while, but it's not quite an addiction unless your body is actually sick. Being on it tends to cause problems.
ghanima | 19 hours ago
Mark my words: they think their are legions of transmen and transwomen "hiding" in the military and are implementing these tests to "expose" them.
TinyChaco | 4 hours ago
The trans men are gonna love getting the federally funded gender affirming care, then. Sucks for the women, though.
Available-Medium7094 | a day ago
If gender affirming hormone therapy is what defines a man I am not understanding why trans men are not allowed to join. Please somebody explain this point like I am 5.
TheWeirdByproduct | 13 hours ago
They want biological males enhanced by hormones.
greencubicle | a day ago
He's really into physically fit and hairless young manly men...
Fit_Salamander_2814 | a day ago
Right? It's so dumb. If anything, given the state of the world, men need to have LESS testosterone, not more!
This obsession with testosterone levels is going to put middle-aged men back into roid rage and teenage horniness. And, for what? So they can larp at how alpha they are?
Imagine thinking more testosterone will help men with anything.....
[OP] theverge | a day ago
“We have a sacred duty to maintain that advantage, which is why we must constantly look for ways to optimize your performance, your resilience, and your long-term health,” Hegseth says, addressing America’s “war fighters,” before announcing a new, mandatory program annually screening service members over 30 years old for testosterone deficiency. (The test will also be available on a voluntary basis for those under 30.) If a deficiency is found, service members can opt into — but will not be required to accept — testosterone replacement therapy (TRT). According to The New York Times, these screenings will also include women.
MAHA and the broader manosphere’s obsession with testosterone levels is not new. Like any wellness fad, it starts with broad scientific truths. After age 30, testosterone levels in men naturally decline by about one percent each year on average. Male fertility levels — as in sperm count and quality — have declined compared to previous generations, which has fueled fear in the MAHA and biohacker movements, as fertility is often considered a proxy for overall health. Average testosterone levels in men have also halved in the last 50 years or so. This has led to a dramatic increase in testosterone supplementation, with The NYT reporting that prescriptions jumped from under a million in 2000 to 12 million by 2025.
But if you take some time to investigate what Hegseth seems to think TRT will do for the military, a lot of this rhetoric starts to fall apart.
Gift link: https://www.theverge.com/column/966770/optimizer-manosphere-testosterone-troops?view_token=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpZCI6Ikt3Y3pDSkRZWHQiLCJwIjoiL2NvbHVtbi85NjY3NzAvb3B0aW1pemVyLW1hbm9zcGhlcmUtdGVzdG9zdGVyb25lLXRyb29wcyIsImV4cCI6MTc4NDczMDQ5MiwiaWF0IjoxNzg0Mjk4NDkyfQ.o0yvd_D1M0tvEfNbh12KOA3L6ai-SghhzmRS4GWg0-Q&utm_medium=gift-link
TroutMaskDuplica | a day ago
Gender Affirming Care for all military men.
clean-links | a day ago
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starfleetdropout6 | a day ago
Kegsbreath exudes small dick energy with the intensity of a hundred dying suns.
SunbeamSailor67 | a day ago
Absolute bullshit. 🙄
kraftdinnerwithsalsa | a day ago
I think it’s quite telling that the conservative sub won’t post about this.
Jasonrj | a day ago
That's probably the lowest T subreddit.
flakemasterflake | a day ago
I don’t think non bots even post there. It’s essentially a dead internet sub
pacard | a day ago
Penis inspection day coming soon!
D3PyroGS | a day ago
Pete reserves the right for first look
angieisdrawing | a day ago
And first tug
Mimehunter | 10 hours ago
Prima nutcha
cdazzo1 | a day ago
It's alarming how many people aren't aware of annual physicals
LayneLowe | a day ago
I have to ask what was Amy McGrath's testosterone level when she was flying helicopters around Iraq?
D0_stack | a day ago
Much more than Hogsbreath.
Astarkos | a day ago
I have to ask why these manly men all have such weak and high-pitched voices.
redlightsaber | a day ago
Women will be screened as well, this is not satire. To what end, only God knows.
ParticularGanache726 | a day ago
No. There's no plan to screen female soldiers.
redlightsaber | a day ago
Did you read the article in OP? Of course you didn't:
>According to The New York Times, these screenings will also include women.
ParticularGanache726 | 18 hours ago
Duckworth pushed for that. Secdef was silent on the issue at the announcement.
Your article is behind a paywall.
SilverMedal4Life | a day ago
They'll just be transvestigated instead.
ParticularGanache726 | a day ago
Trans women take female hormones and testosterone blockers.
SilverMedal4Life | a day ago
Hm? Yeah, I know, I took mine this morning. I'm just going based off recent trends where any woman with muscle mass on her seems to be accused of being trans by conservatives.
ParticularGanache726 | a day ago
Oh okay. I don't know much about the details of hormones for trans women, sorry. I support the trans community.
I'm actually interested in trans people from a spiritual perspective.
I asked a trans woman once about her near death experience. She said that it was very brief. I asked her if she was female during that experience and she said she was. I haven't found any other trans women who have had a nde. I'd like to ask them the same question.
I think it's clear that gender is not physical, and that some souls have a strong preference for one or the other.
FeelingPlayfulNow | a day ago
I think the intended implication is that cis women will be under suspicion by Hegseth of being secretly trans for pursuing a masculine occupation. It's about witch hunts, not genuine therapeutic medical treatments.
ParticularGanache726 | a day ago
I'm sure that's possible but HIPAA applies to military personnel also, I assume.
SilverMedal4Life | a day ago
True, but that won't stop mobs of people from harassing innocent folks.
FullOption3126 | 16 hours ago
Gross
ispeektroof | a day ago
Cock! They love the cock, but can’t admit it to themselves.
Gastronomicus | a day ago
So effectively Petey wants to provide gender affirming care to soldiers.
Pictoru | a day ago
Neat, so now gender affirming care is okey, right? .....right?!
>If a deficiency is found, service members can opt into — but will not be required to accept — testosterone replacement therapy (TRT).
roodammy44 | a day ago
“I can no longer sit back and allow Communist infiltration, Communist indoctrination, Communist subversion and the international Communist conspiracy to sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids.”
NotACatVideo | a day ago
This administration is no longer satisfied with involving themselves with women’s reproduction. They are now going after the men reproduction systems. Republican’s obsession with what is between everyone’s legs is full blown sexual deviance. But this is not new.
Lokan | a day ago
Ironically they won't do anything to actually fix it; if their concern was to raise testosterone levels, they'd empower the EPA and FDA to do their jobs: ensure higher quality environment, medications, food and resources for the general population. They were made to ensure companies don't fuck over the people of this country just so they can cut more corners to pad out their profit margins.
And we know that won't happen.
We all know this is just ideological bullshit, authoritarianism, and because "masculinity is in crisis". Masculinity is always "in crisis" because we're a nation of emotionally stunted children.
MoogProg | a day ago
Look, this is about American defense, and Pete Hegseth feels safer when he's surrounded by strong men with lots of testosterone.
Majestic_Emotion7917 | a day ago
Ler's check those balls, boys.
TruthOk8742 | a day ago
I wouldn’t even be surprised if they created a segregated "low testosterone" battalion at this point.
tface23 | a day ago
No facial hair gets rid of blacks. Testosterone checks get rid of women and some males. This is a plan to gut the military
awildjabroner | a day ago
GOP has a strange infactuation with other people's virility and genitalia.
seKer82 | a day ago
Just another example of how little the American military respects female veterans and soldiers who already deal with a ridiculous amount of abuse.
Tenkehat | a day ago
Mandatory... Huh...? They can refuse vaccines but this is mandatory?
elmonoenano | a day ago
This is the same idiot who didn't think a bunch of people in close quarters should get flu shots. I think the only person worse to take health advice from is the secretary of health and human services.
dread_companion | a day ago
Next, he's going to personally weigh and measure their 'manhood'.
canadianshane123 | a day ago
I don’t get it. Why is it called manosphere when these guys are so snow flaky? They’re constantly whining about something. Every week there’s a new boogie man.
TheVeryVerity | 18 hours ago
Because they’re obsessed with being a man
DBearDevon | a day ago
He’s obviously a very angry bi-bottom, and should attempt embracing in a more private manner.
clean-links | a day ago
Cleaned link: https://www.theverge.com/column/966770/optimizer-manosphere-testosterone-troops?view_token=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpZCI6Ikt3Y3pDSkRZWHQiLCJwIjoiL2NvbHVtbi85NjY3NzAvb3B0aW1pemVyLW1hbm9zcGhlcmUtdGVzdG9zdGVyb25lLXRyb29wcyIsImV4cCI6MTc4NDczMDQ5MiwiaWF0IjoxNzg0Mjk4NDkyfQ.o0yvd_D1M0tvEfNbh12KOA3L6ai-SghhzmRS4GWg0-Q
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Duckbilling2 | a day ago
Secretary Influencer
VisitSad1133 | a day ago
I thought I needed testosterone even though I was only 32 at the time.
Turned out I just had awful, untreated anxiety that was just becoming too much to ignore lol.
ABogWitchBitch | a day ago
Trans men have the funniest opportunity available right now.
krostybat | a day ago
Does testosterone level even have any proven usefull impact for a military force ?
hambergeisha | a day ago
Hard Gay!
DBearDevon | a day ago
He’s obviously an angry bi/bottom
Right-One-7152 | a day ago
Perhaps if Pete just gave into his instincts and blew them all before the test they would get a higher result?
ludixst | a day ago
On the bright side it should greatly reduce the lifespan of the chuds booting testosterone
Beautiful-Limit1718 | a day ago
My first thought when I saw this was that Hegseth was going to personally test all the samples by taste.
cbih | a day ago
I'm more convinced than ever that Petey is a gay Nazi
ocxtitan | a day ago
Sounds like gender affirming care to me....
Occamsrazor2323 | 23 hours ago
Soon soldiers will be dishonorably discharged if they can't immediately discharge a huge load into Hegseth's gaping mouth.
lidsville76 | 23 hours ago
They are trying to juice up the military and increase their aggression to make it easier for the troops to turn on us. Make no mistake, they want to use the military on its citizens.
Kaptein_Tordenflesk | 22 hours ago
They're so incredibly insecure and weird
Overall_Curve6725 | 20 hours ago
All that extra T isn’t working for Hegseth
river_miles | 20 hours ago
They're testing everyone, even asymptomatic soldiers? Are they testing them for everything for which they are asymptomatic? Influenza? Plague? Ringworm?
Sounds like a great idea. It's only money!!!
Brokenspade1 | 20 hours ago
Feels like a push to chase women out of the service. And back into the trad wife life.
They are obsessed with forcing them back into the roll of pregnant and in the kitchen. But they utterly ignore the reason people stopped having kids in the first place...
People don't gave kids if they can't afford them.
Ultimately all this will so is further weaken the military and chase out older more experienced people in leadership positions because testosterone levels decrease as you age.
trysten-9001 | 18 hours ago
Reminds me of the king of the hill episode.
ElMauru | 16 hours ago
Ah, the "lombroso effect"?
(crude summary:) "scientists" and demagogues using fringe-research like Craniometry to identify how a "good person" was supposed to look biologically and visually as opposed to a "bad person".
It became one of the foundations of the race theory bogus of the 19th/early 20th century with all its atrocities.
I.e: If the secretary of defense starts to politicize biological features, that is incredibly alarming because it pretty much opens the doors all sorts of terrible directions, ideologcially.
I implore everyone to remember that when you hear the word "bio-hacking/-maxing" it can easily be a dress-up of some pretty shitty, past ideas, especially when mixed with politics.
lacabezadearriba | 15 hours ago
so, if I'm low on testosteron, I'm out?....I don't need to be a desertor?...oh, ok I'm very, very, very low on testosteron....
snasna102 | 15 hours ago
Ahaha I love this for America. Next is mandatory looksmaxxing.
What a joke of a country the US has become.
Unlucky13 | 10 hours ago
I really hope Hegseth is taking testosterone. The side effects would be the ultimate irony.
oldbastardbob | 10 hours ago
"I get my 'manliness' from a pill bottle!" is a weird way to claim the maga-coveted "alpha male' status, eh?
Particular_Rough_357 | 9 hours ago
I went to a nutrition place they said beer increases estrogen maybe it’s that. Or maybe it’s Opposite Day and testing over 30 men for testosterone means bombing little girls schools in Iran
AustinCJ | 8 hours ago
He’s watched too many Hollywood action movies. We aren’t going to need lots of beefy dudes to wage war with drones and robots.
bbbinson123 | 7 hours ago
On various inadequacies.
charlesyo66 | 6 hours ago
He is so gay. His cock-ring Ken hair, his Tom of Finland love of manly-men in military garb.
He is so fucking gay.
Head_Midnight666 | 5 hours ago
The idea of prolonging strength, vitality, endurance, etc, with testosterone supplementation was of interest to me. I went on TRT as an experiment, and it just didn't workout for me. I could have had a stroke or heart attack because my body made too many red blood cells while on it. I was a little stronger. Other than that, I didn't really notice it. It definitely didn't make a big difference like I thought it might. I was on the low side, but not extremely low side.
It does make your bones more dense, your muscles stronger, etc. I can see why optimizing your testosterone as a soldier could be of interest. I don't see anything wrong with it - other than, of course, the fact it can kill you if you're not careful with it. It's definitely not the fountain of youth or anything, however. I don't think people should decide that testosterone supplementation is for right wing idiots just because some right wing idiots are on it, or are promoting it. That's silly.
ejbhlb | 2 hours ago
Will the next thing be measuring penises?
elVanPuerno | 2 hours ago
TDS = tiny dick syndrome
slaymaker1907 | a day ago
Did anyone read the fucking article? They’re doing screening and offering TRT for those with low T. They aren’t removing troops with low T…
kintsugi___ | a day ago
But...why?
cdazzo1 | a day ago
Because it's healthier to have hormone levels within a certain range
kintsugi___ | a day ago
So are they going to test female hormone levels and adjust those too?
ParticularGanache726 | a day ago
No it isn't a symptom of anything except to ensure a fully functioning military. Men with low testosterone don't make for great soldiers.
Stop the sensational BS about TRT.
Testosterone in men has been in decline in men since the 60s at a rate of about 1% per year. This is a generational decline. Sperm counts are down some 60% from then. Of course DoD is concerned. He should be.
SilverMedal4Life | a day ago
What do you think the causes of this are?
I wonder if it's got something to do with being sedentary and overweight (on average), along with all the microplastics.
Why doesn't good ol' Pete here focus on those?
ParticularGanache726 | a day ago
Thanks for your curiosity.
There's several theories on this.
It's not the increase in BMI. They have controlled the results for that.
There is research that shows certain chemicals mimic estrogen and have very long half life in humans. Certain pesticides and plastics behave like this.
My personal pet theory is that it is cows milk. Artificial insemination was commercialized in the 40s and became wide spread around the world in the 50s. Pregnant mammals produce more milk so that improved farmer profits. The problem is that pregnant mammals produce huge amounts of estrogen too, and it shows up in milk. Research on boys shows that drinking milk increases serum estrogen temporarily. But, if you're consuming dairy products at every meal and snack, then you're getting a lot of it almost constantly. So, I think that's the real cause.
Dairy consumption has gone down in recent decades but the damage is already done. It takes several generations with zero exposure to recover from this, based on animal models.
SilverMedal4Life | a day ago
Wow, that's quite something. Why do you think the federal government under Trump doesn't talk about this?
ParticularGanache726 | a day ago
The dairy industry is mighty and mean.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19496976/
I believe now that the constant exposure to cows milk increases estrogen in boys leading to delayed sexual development.
Also, even more telling is that vegan men have higher testosterone.
SilverMedal4Life | a day ago
How interesting. It must be quite frustrating to see nobody else talking about this, or doing anything about the corruption on display.
ParticularGanache726 | a day ago
Yup. Thanks. I believe that it all has to crash down before real change occurs. The oligarchy has to become poor before ordinary people can have influence.
I just had a thought that maybe they will tear it down out of spite because they hate everyone. I dunno really.
I do believe we are heading to a crash soon.
FeelingPlayfulNow | a day ago
This is a very small study. While the theory is plausible, it would take more than 18 people to show if it is having that detrimental of an effect throughout our society.
ParticularGanache726 | a day ago
Yes, you're correct. I've been looking and this is a controversial topic with the dairy industry fighting hard against it apparently.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4524299/
Review of natural hormones in milk and cancer risk.
Bovine estrogen is identical to human and is 100,000 times more potent than the estrogen mimics like plastics and pesticides.
I'm still studying this. It's clearly a controversial topic.
Gastronomicus | a day ago
Drank the kool-aid I see.
Lol classic - downvotes and then blocks any dissenting users.
Fllannelll | a day ago
Im actually not against this, the screening is mandatory and the TRT is available if they opt in. As someone who actually on TRT and saw the effects it had on my quality of life, I think this is a great thing to offer the military.
mentalxkp | a day ago
Im not super well informed on TRT, but I seem to recall its permanent, like your body will just stop making it. Is that accurate or way off base?
Fllannelll | a day ago
That is true, but if you're on TRT it wasn't doing a good job of making it in the first place. Also, for a lot of people it is reversible using drugs like HCG or enclomiphene.