It delivers a subtle message, not that men are stiffed, but that men whine about being stiffed, because they are unwilling to give up control. One of the themes in the book is whether white middle-class men are willing to share the podium. To many men, it seems like there is no place for them on the podium. Faludi focuses only on those men who seek the glory of a superstar. But not that many men want to be superstars and to dominate others.
Most men outgrow that.
Men are not the adolescents she portrays. It opens by raising issues about a girl automatically being believed if she engages in sex and later says it was rape, or if she hits a guy and accuses him of assault, or if she says a guy is stalking or harassing him. Real issues in young men's lives. The infamous Spur Posse and the cadets resisting the breaking down the all-male walls of The Citadel. There's an irony in her extensive coverage of The Citadel, in view of the fact that the Federal tax dollars continue to help support colleges that bar admission solely by reason of sex.