Angela Philipps, Contributor

Argue with a man, his ego gets in the way. Try and discuss things in a mature manner with a man, his ego still gets in the way. Bring up the subject of his interfering ego - you get my point?

I opened the inbox of my email account a couple of weeks ago, and there I found one of the most scathing letters I think I've ever seen. A guy was replying to the article I wrote entitled, 'One meal for sex'. It was rather long-winded, but the gist of it was that said fellow did not approve of what I had written. In fact, I have been getting a lot of male hate mail recently. It seems as if I have upset half the population of Jamaica.

many published works

What they have failed to remember is that I have also published many works which support the plight of single men and question the actions of women. I will reiterate that the month of May is a chance for women to let me know their 'boyfriend' problems, and for me to get as much of it down on paper as I can.

Look here lads, if you can't accept criticism, then you'll never get through life. Just because things don't go your way, or you disagree with what the ladies have to say about your faults, it does not mean that you are entitled to jump on the high horse of self-righteousness. A prime example is the following excerpt from the email I mentioned above:

trash like this

"Now, don't you people have anything more important to write about, like real ills that plague Jamaica's rapidly degrading society, instead of trash like this article? Does The Gleaner just pay you to write the most absurd, sensationalist story to gain headlines and sell papers? Isn't that the job of The Star? Or are you one of those young ladies from a middle-upper class background who have benefited from the nepotism and plutocracy so rife in Jamaica where hard-working, honest people cannot find a job without a 'link' because they fail to have the right connections, because surely it's not your journalistic prowess.

"I have no idea why I have written such a lengthy article since I have an exam which I simply cannot fail, yet seem destined to, because of the hierarchy of the biochemistry department at the University of the West Indies. Hey, maybe you should write an article about that, and you just might win that Pulitzer you've been dreaming about, or maybe you just need money so you don't end up being like the idiot in the article, paying for a meal with sex. Cheerio."

He sounds upset, doesn't he? Perhaps I should make an attempt at calming him down and telling him not to take it all so seriously. Of course, I run the risk of hearing from him again but, hopefully, if he's still got exams going on, then he won't keep wasting his study time on such 'sensationalist' stories!

financial suicide

First of all, the title of my article was NOT the headline of Sunday's paper, but I'm flattered that he feels that my column helps to 'sell papers'! I'd like to think so myself as well, to be honest! The truth is, a good paper ought to reach all grasps of our society. It would be financial suicide if the newspapers in Jamaica only tried to appeal to those solely interested in intellectual topics. Which is why sections like Entertainment, Sports, Food, Business, Auto, Flair, Art, News, Health, and Outlook exist.

What's even more incredible to me is that this fellow has taken what I've written as a personal vendetta against him, that he's lashed back at me, my work, and how I came to being a contributor for The Gleaner. Those who are afraid of what other people think of them and their actions are notorious for pointing fingers at someone else, so as to divert attention. It's as if their self-esteem has been trampled on. Maybe it really does always boil down to ego when it comes to men!

angelaphilippsja@hotmail.com