Posted on July 15 2026
Welcome to this weeks blog post of our series Shit Men Say Online, where we excavate the internet’s most confidently incorrect male commentary, break down the psychological insecurities driving it, and teach you how to respond with petty, informed precision.
If you've been following along, you know we're using this space to build your ultimate database of actual data. The next time a man pipes up on the timeline demanding a "source" because a woman or feminine presenting person shared their lived experiences, you’ll be prepared with the exact proof required to either piss them off or shut them up.
Today, we are looking at a post from this insecure loser:
"Instead of arguing with a woman: Treat her like a silly little kid. Would you argue with, justify your actions, defend, or explain yourself to a child? She needs you to lead, not argue."
Oh joy. The classic "infantilize your partner so you don't have to take accountability" routine. Let's look at the actual psychology behind why men post things like this, and how to shut it down.
Men Who Treat Women Like Kids Are Scared of Equal Partnership
We already knew this, but here's the data.
When men fixate on treating adult women like children, they attempt to frame their emotional avoidance as "leadership" or "masculine stoicism." In reality, digital sociology and psychological stats exposes a deeply pathetic coping mechanism:
They're Performing "Alpha Stoicism" to Hide Their Emotional Incompetence
Sociological research on online spaces shows that when men feel like they are losing social power or leverage in a world moving toward gender equality, they latch onto rigid, archaic scripts to reassert dominance (Vallerga & Zurbriggen, 2022).
On the internet, a guy who obnoxiously broadcasts that women "need to be led, not argued with" isn't actually offering leadership advice. He is performing a defense mechanism. By framing healthy, equal communication like explaining your actions or justifying your behavior as "arguing with a child," he is trying to create a fantasy world where his authority is absolute and never has to be questioned.
The Cowardice of Stonewalling (Losers can't handle accountability)
Clinical data on relationship dynamics shows that refusing to engage, explain, or justify your actions to an equal partner is a toxic behavior known as stonewalling (Gottman, 2013). Peer reviewed relationship studies show that treating a partner with this kind of contempt is one of the single greatest predictors of relationship failure. To these men, a woman holding them accountable or demanding mutual respect feels like a threat to their ego. They hide their fear of being exposed as emotionally immature by attempting to lower a woman's status to that of a child, validating their own refusal to grow up.
Hostile Sexism Masquerading as "Leadership"
According to the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory, anti woman attitudes operate on a spectrum of hostile and benevolent sexism (Barreto & Doyle, 2022). The instruction to treat women like "silly little kids" exposes this intersection. It relies on the underlying premise of benevolent sexism, which is the idea that women are fragile, irrational creatures who need protective male guidance, to justify hostile, controlling behavior. It's a cheap psychological trick designed to make emotional abuse and dominance look like a chivalrous duty.
How To Shut A Misogynist Down
When men start crying about how they "lead" their partners by treating them like children on your timeline, don't waste your energy trying to teach them basic human decency. Misogynists don't care. Hit them right where it hurts: their fragile egos.
When crafting an online response to these types of men, it is important to use simple, yet effective language. While name calling is fun and easy, you don't want to be penalized by the social media overlords for bullying or harassment.
Dismantling the "Authority"
Instead of getting defensive, hit them with a comeback that exposes their profound lack of emotional maturity. We have sifted through the data for you, a simple:
"That’s a lot of words just to say you want to date a child or a do."
Or if you want to be especially condescending and target their fragile "alpha" scores:
"So you lack basic communication skills. Normal people would be embarrassed to admit this."
If you want, you can provide the name of the research papers (all references are listed below), but it's not necessary; the onus is on men if they want to be educated.
Men and their constant need for validation
Instead of arguing with these guys about what makes someone a good partner, just call out how embarrassing their own logic is. A guy stating his "leadership rules" unprompted always acts as if his emotional unavailability is a prize women are actively competing for.
In reality, he's the one begging for attention. His comment is just a sad attempt to play the strong, silent protector over a screen, demanding women accept bare-minimum maturity. Since he's clearly the one craving validation from the algorithm, flip the script and ask him why he thinks his fear of equal partnership is relevant to anyone but his therapist.
Over to You...
We could hand these guys a peer reviewed dissertation on their own insecurities and they’d still blame feminism. If we can't change their minds, we can at least disrupt their peace.
So how do you handle these entitled losers when the algorithm insults you with their presence? Drop your favourite ways to piss off men online in the comments. Let us build the ultimate cheat sheet.
If you want the next edition of Shit Men Say Online dropped directly into your inbox instead of hunting for it on your timeline, make sure you sign up for the newsletter.
P.S. If internet warfare is not enough and you want to piss men off in real life, we have plenty of audacious feminist and political t-shirts over in The Shop. Just saying.
References
- Barreto, M., & Doyle, D. M. (2022). Benevolent and hostile sexism in a shifting global context. Nature Reviews Psychology, 2(2), 98–111.
- Gottman, J. M. (2013). What predicts divorce?: The relationship between marital processes and marital outcomes. Routledge.
- Vallerga, M., & Zurbriggen, E. L. (2022). Hegemonic masculinities in the ‘Manosphere’: A thematic analysis of beliefs about men and women on The Red Pill and Incel. Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy, 22(1), 602–625.
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