This is a public service announcement for "Alpha" Males (anyone who claims to be one or know one):
"Say what you will about the Alpha Male myth. But it does seem to work for the wolves."
— Some dudebro whom doesn't even read published research, on a post by Great White Snark (about debunking myths surrounding the Theory of Evolution and "Alpha" males)
The Snark responded thus:
"False. It’s a dysfunctional relationship dynamic as a result of living under duress. If you had actually read the content of the last four links (except the very last one) in the resources section (which I didn’t put there for my own amusement), you’d know that there’s no such thing as an alpha wolf (at least not in normal wild wolf pack dynamics; packs in Yellowstone being an exception). The “alpha wolf” phenomenon has only been witnessed in wolves in captivity in very small spaces/territories (particularly in packs where one or more members have no familial relations, much like humans in prison gangs).
David L. Mech (one of the world’s leading researchers on wolves) realised that he was mistaken in his creation of the term and campaigned/petitioned his publisher for about two decades to stop printing the original version of his work on wolves. (There’s now a revised and retitled version which corrects a lot of the erroneous and outdated research.)
To quote myself:
“I could go on (and I very much want to), but I think it’s best to limit the expressing of one’s opinions when one doesn’t know as much as one could about a subject (since I’ve found that that’s when opinions tend to be both strongest and highly erroneous). I’d rather wait until a time when I’ve read all of the aforementioned books and am better educated/informed and well-versed in the nuances of the subject.”
Perhaps you might do well to take the same approach going forward …"
Case closed, hopefully. I doubt it, though, since it takes about twenty years for new research to sink in and people tend to ignore facts that don't support their beliefs/ideology, anyway. By all means, please carry on acting like a titanic douche armada and identifying yourself as such. (Really, that's what it means if you call yourself an "alpha male".)
Please, folks, for your own good, read the links in the "Resources" sections, revise your mental models and stop behaving like arse clowns. (Like the Snark, I don't put them there for my entertainment alone.) Thank you and good night!
Thumbnail image: Photo of Black wolves by Patrice Schoefolt on Pexels
