no doubt

You'd think that humans would have a better instinct for picking the true alphas males out of the pack. Ostricizing the loud, bloviating, obnoxious beta, gamma and delta males who are desperately attempting to masquerade as alphas doesn't seem to be something we're very good at anymore.

In the animal kingdom, the beta, gamma and deltas who attempt to display power through uncontrolled agression and loud, obnoxious behavior are put back in their place quickly or they are unceremoniously removed from the group by any means neccessary. Conversely, humans have been known to put these false alphas in to positions of great power.

Human females, whom one would think would possess an extra keen sense towards separating true alpha males from the pack, seem to be the most susceptible. How often does one see a woman with a beta, gamma or delta male that uses violence and other aggressive behaviors in an attempt to mask their lack of ability to demonstrate true leadership.

Or, take a look at the last presidential election results and see how many women voted for a false alpha male like Donald Trump.

@webbew1 Well I think for the most part people in general do a good job in pairing up with people who aren’t abusive even if they aren’t a good match for a romantic relationship. Sometimes abusers can be clever enough to lure unsuspecting victims into their trap with a false sense of comfort. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out how to manipulate people though some are more resistant to this type of deception than others. It is unfortunate though.

@webbew1 what are these alpha beta gamma males? Is this scientific sounding bullshit again? Or is it some new form of radiation emitted by males? ?

@Spongebob

An alpha is just what it sounds like.

An alpha is individual with natural leadership skills who maintains control of themselves and their environment at all times. An alpha is individual who is capable of motivating and organizing large groups of people to work towards a positive outcome.

Prime examples of alphas: Joan of Arc, Bill Belicheck, Angela Merkel, Barack Obama, Cleopatra, Winston Churchill, Indira Ghandi, Queen Victoria, Steve Jobs.....

Prime examples of betas: Napolean Bonaparte, Donald Trump, Ferdinand Marcos, Benito Mussolini..... And any other wanna be who uses fear and division to maintain power.

The rest of us lowly souls are just gammas and deltas.

@webbew1 could you please provide a reference? How did you come up with this list? Indira Gandhi is considered to be a dictator by a lot of people in India. Don't know much about Churchill, but would he be great with out the world war? He was a racist who justified British inaction during famines in India, claiming it to be natural selection or something like that. His record in first world War is not great either. I presume other names in your list could similarly be disputed. Depending on your own perceptions you could call anyone an alpha beta whatever.
My point is that human societies are much more complicated than small wolf packs from where the idea of an alpha male comes.

@Spongebob I would contend that an alpha is one who embodies desirable male traits such as self-discipline, maintaining order, stoic, wise, responsible, etc. these are by no means unique to men nor an exhaustive list, but I brought it up in the context of a male ideal because modern notions of masculinity seem to lack at least some of these qualities and opt instead for rabid unhinged chaos. At least it seems to be the case when one reads about football hooligans who beat their spouse or partner because their team lost.

@Wavefunction

^^^^^

What he said. Couldn't have stated it better myself.

@webbew1 Yes but what Spongebob said was that your list was entirely subjective. No one person is totally noble or totally dominant of all groups. A CEO might be the alpha at work but struggle in social situations because he can't make small talk. The alpha captain of a football team might be quite shy at work. Put Barak Obama in a Thai prison and not understanding the language and culture he would find himself 'omega' (if that is a category). I think we should confine the terms 'alpha' 'beta' etc to the lesser primate kingdom or wolf packs as mentioned above. Humans are far more complex.

I understand why you'd say this. Just wanted to shed some light.

I've not been involved with anyone who hit me. Not sure I'm the type who would attract that type of guy. Let's just say I've never met a jar I couldn't open myself. I used to feel as you do.

However, this doesn't happen right away. These guys are often nice and charming at first. Usually a strong emotional attachment forms before this kind of thing happens. The abuse starts in ways that make a woman feel insecure, until she is reliant on her abuser for love and validation. It's "abused woman syndrome."

When I was quite young I became involved with a man who was wonderful to me. Later in our relationship he confessed that he'd spent time in jail for beating a former girlfriend. I could see he had issues with his temper but never in a way that was threatening to me. I was very much in love with him, so, had it ever resorted to physical abuse, it would
have been very difficult to say goodbye ...

Especially since I would have been the one who killed him.

@Athena

A good rule of thumb to go by: Watch how they behave around others. Most abusers and manipulators will be nice to you until you are hooked in to the relationship through kids or finances for obvious reasons. He has no such obligations to others, and his true colors will be more likely to show through early on.

If he's cruel to the waiter, run in the other direction as fast as you can.

@Athena like this phrase: Let's just say I've never met a jar I couldn't open myself.
I think that is a fair assessment of the dynamics in this type of relationship.