Men need better models of masculinity
The hedonism and materialism of the Tate brothers is not the path to happiness, much less salvation.
When Andrew and Tristan Tate were arrested on July 18, there was a debate over the trustworthiness of the United Kingdom's government and the merit of the charges against them. Let's assume for the sake of argument that the Tates are totally innocent of all charges against them. They are still not people who young men should emulate.
The Tate brothers famously made their fortune operating a webcam business where women would prostitute themselves for money. Andrew Tate has distanced himself and downplayed this aspect of his history, but it is nonetheless a very well-established fact. It amazes me that some conservative pundits who have railed against the evils of pornography have embraced and promoted the Tates. If we believe in a society where traditional sexual morality is valued and women are honored and protected by men instead of abused and exploited by men, the last people we should be honoring are Andrew and Tristan Tate.
Masculinity is good, but the Tate brothers are a cartoonish parody of masculinity. The "masculinity" promoted by the Tates is a far cry of the Biblical model. Scripture gives us these qualifications for elders in the church, and these are things that are good goals for Christian men: "Blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous." How many of these things can be used to describe the Tate brothers?
Part of the problem is the growing "edgelord" mentality on the Right. The Tates go out of their way to offend people, especially feminists, and many young men glory in seeing people offended. But it is not enough to be an anti-Leftist. Conservative principles, especially moral principles, should be the foundation of conservative efforts in the public square. The way to "own the libs" is not trolling and being outrageous, but advancing principles such is free markets, private property rights, free speech, sexual morality and protection of the innocent.
It was not that long ago where men with the history of the Tates would not be embraced by conservatives. (And in fairness, there are a number of conservative pundits who have been harshly critical of them.) The good news is that this presents a mission field for the Church: Men who are grasping for masculinity can be taught Biblical masculinity instead of the empty materialism espoused by the Tates and the rest of the pagan "manosphere." It has been encouraging to see many in the Church take advantage of this opportunity, and that needs to continue.