We interrupt our normal topics to cover something important. There is a fellow named Julien Blanc that normally would not be known outside a smaller group of people, that gained some viral notoriety through a video that has been spreading through the Internet:
He's known as a pickup artist (PUA) and someone that runs a company that teaches his take on PUA principles. By its wiki definition, the intent is sexual relations.
Many men haven't developed the social charms or skills in meeting women. The PUA community has developed around helping each other understand how to get better at it. It broke into the mainstream due to the publishing of The Game. Once it broke into the mainstream, more and more men and women have emerged to help / "help" men pick up or meet women through videos, blogs and of course paid courses or workshops.
At its best, the goals and principles of PUA is how to better connect with and date women that you are interested in. It teaches and encourages confidence and helping those who may be socially awkward on how to get out of their own way. Truly listening, connecting, reading body language, respecting verbal and non-verbal cues and ultimately looking at women as people. In most cases, it makes no promises that you can have any woman that you want. But that you can be more comfortable and confident in going up to talk to any woman that you want.
At its worst, it's terrible.
In this case, the main goal is to score. Women are abstracted into conquests. Actually connecting with someone that you want to date and see again, is irrelevant for men in this case. It is unnecessary filler to get to what they want. It is this mindset and culture that someone like Blanc subscribes to.
The only way that he is still a thing, is because it is still easy for him to share his terrible ideas. The only way these type of ideas will be countered is if we talk about it, make it more common knowledge, and make it difficult for commercial establishments to support the spread of these ideas. You're certainly free to have whatever idea you want, but I don't think that we have to help it go any further.
The Video (added bold for emphasis)
“When you go to Tokyo….if you’re a white male, you can do what you want. Just grab her, pull her in. She’ll giggle. Just say PIKACHU or POKEMON or something to take the pressure off. I’m romping through the streets (of Tokyo) just grabbing girls and it’s like (motions) head on dick (pfft) head on dick, yelling ‘PIKACHU’ with a Pikachu shirt on….Every foreigner who is white does this. When you see that one foreigner in the crowd in Tokyo and your eyes will lock and you know that he knows and he knows that and it’s this guilty look like you both fucked a hooker or something.”
Let's break this down a little bit.
"if you're a white male"
First off, I'm not a white male. But, I have been to Tokyo and other major metropolitan areas. Much like men here say and claim that are attracted to exotic women, there are women abroad that find white men to be exotic. As such, in the streets some people will ask to take pictures with white men (especially ones with blond hair and blue eyes). In some social situations, they'll get a bit more attention than other ethnicities. This is trying to take advantage of people by presuming how they will behave around you, just because you may be unique.
"Just grab her, pull her in. She’ll giggle."
At first you may think, oh maybe he means that after you get to know someone and you've established friendly relations, you would think about doing this. Nope. As the video demonstrates, it was pretty indiscriminate. As others have pointed out, laughter or giggling can be a response for a totally unexpected situation. Once again, this is less about connecting, and more about forcing his desires on many women indiscriminately.
"Every foreigner who is white does this."
I wouldn't say it is every foreigner, but there are a certain amount that feel privileged and do so recklessly. On my trip earlier this year to Japan, I made it a point to go to more public social events and meetups just to talk to more people. Where I could, I got to small talk with different people. While I was talking to a local woman, a white male that she may or may not have been dating came over to sit nearby, and either held or hand or placed his hand on her leg and it was immediately awkward. He didn't acknowledge me, she didn't quite acknowledge him, but she didn't pull away or distance herself. Was it the PDA that was awkward for her, or was his aggression or trying to "claim her" uncomfortable. I really couldn't read the situation well, so I couldn't tell if I should help, or if this was really her boyfriend, but yikes.
"it’s this guilty look like you both fucked a hooker or something"
How I read this is that the guilty look, is because the perception is it is that easy. That is the most insulting thing of it all, and worse that he is teaching it to a roomful of white men who were eagerly eating it up. He took an entire city, and implies that all Japanese women are essentially hookers that you can bully into having sex. I don't want to punch that many people in the face, but I would if I could.
Change
Will anything change now, just because we talked about it? Blogged about it, liked some videos? I don't think anything will immediately change but the more we teach each other, the less these type of ideas will try to spread, and hopefully we'll live in a better world.
Additional Coverage and Opinions below.
RocketNews 24: http://en.rocketnews24.com/2014/11/05/video-of-pick-up-artist-grabbing-japanese-women-on-the-street-triggers-online-protests/
Rachel and Jun (Jvlogger):
Dochi Hoko (Jvlogger):
-- wake.eat.sleep