From the Manosphere to Marijuana: Big Ego’s make Cranky Toddlers

Podcast thumbnail for 'From the Manosphere to Marijuana: It's All Ego and Cranky Toddlers.' The image shows host Justin Barone in the center with a neon 'Thoughts Off The Stem' sign behind him. On the right, the Tate brothers are depicted with smoke effects. The layout includes bold yellow and white text and a prominent red 'WATCH NOW' button in the lower-left corner.

From The Manosphere to Marijuana: Comparing Tactics and Ideologies

From the Manosphere to Marijuana, what do a 1930s paper tycoon, the DuPont family, the first commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and a modern-day “Alpha” influencer have in common? They are all fueled by the same thing: A massive, fragile ego, an overabundance of pride, and a scorned inner child who runs the show. In our latest Seshisode of Thoughts Off The Stem, we’re exploring the link between the Manosphere and Marijuana. We’re talking about Louis Theroux’s Inside the Manosphere documentary and connecting the dots to the “Great Hemp Wars” of 1937. It turns out, the history of cannabis prohibition and the rise of the “Taint”—sorry, the Tate brothers—are fueled by the exact same playbook: fear, gaslighting, and overcompensation.

The PeopletHEIR BACKGROUND

William Randolph Hearst
was an American newspaper publisher and politician who developed the nation’s largest newspaper chain and media company, Hearst Communications.

The DuPonts
Du Ponts have been one of the country’s richest families since the mid-19th century, when they founded their fortune in the gunpowder business. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, they expanded their wealth through the chemical industry and the automotive industry

Harry J. Anslinger
was an American government official who served as the first commissioner of the U.S. Treasury Department‘s Federal Bureau of Narcotics

Inside The Manosphere: Ultra Masculine and Ultra Fragile

I recently watched the Louis Theroux doc, and like everyone else, I’m familiar with the ultra-masculine “women are only here to serve men” schtick. But honestly, It’s exhausting. These dudes are basically frat bros in the wild, uttering the stupidest collection of words I’ve ever heard while contradicting their own ideologies.

Take HSTikkyTokky—a name that sounds like a five-year-old’s favorite toy. Seriously it sounds like something that lights up and play sounds when you push it’s keys. Definitely not very masculine if you ask me. He preaches “masculinity” and says he doesn’t hate anyone, yet his content is a factory for hate speech and chaos. It’s all for the stream, all for the money. Young men following this movement need to wake up and see the parallel between the Manosphere and Marijuana prohibition: both rely on selling a false “authority” based on fear.

New Age Street-Corner Prophets: How the Manosphere Sells Insecurity

Their logic claims women are “born with value” (purely physical), while men must “create value” through financial wealth, supercar collections and a haram of women if they want. If you think a woman’s value is limited to anatomy, and men have no value, you’re a lunatic. Character is what gives us value. It’s what separates men, from boys, women, from girls and good people from losers.

When Andrew Tate brags about throwing a fight to bet on himself and triple his money, he isn’t being “manly”—he’s being a snake. These guys are nothing more than street-corner prophets in shiny suits, funding their lifestyles through the pockets of easily manipulated young men. Let’s call the Tate brothers what they are: The Taint Brothers. They are that smooth, untouched part of the male anatomy between the balls and the a**-hole.

They aren’t men; they’re boys starved for attention, protecting their fragile egos by degrading others because they never got enough hugs.

The ORIGINAL Manosphere

In keeping with this high level of self-absorbed nonsense, let’s look at how a group of old rich white guys successfully lobbied to criminalize marijuana. They didn’t want to make life better; they just wanted to protect their wallets. So instead of revolutionizing their industries and using or switching to more natural products, they lobbied congress to institute the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937. Instead of trying to make life better for the human collective they decided they needed the most money so, they said screw society, our profits are more important, and they launched a what would be the beginning of the war on weed.

William Randolph Hearst:

A pulp and paper giant worth $200 million in the early 1900s—the equivalent of owning the moon today. He didn’t want hemp competing with his timber. He couldn’t be bothered to retrofit or even change some of his pulp and paper mills to hemp textile factories, because as you know, white rich guys don’t want to give away a penny unless they get back 6. A little short sighted. Hemp is much more durable than paper.

The DuPonts:

In 1935, they released Nylon. Hemp was a direct threat to this new petroleum-based technology, so DuPont decided it had to go. Cause why use an eco friendly substitute, when you can use sinthetics to create what the natural world already did. Sure, hemp is a little more itchy but we’d have a lot less plastic in the ocean.

Harry J. Anslinger:

The first commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics. He was the original “talking head” bully, using gaslighting and fear to make a name for himself. Just like the Tate brothers, he needed to be the authority on something. He was probably just following the lead of the other two, but he bought their lies, hook, line and sinker.

The Manosphere and Marijuana: Gaslighting and Fear Mongering

When you compare the Manosphere and Marijuana history, you see the Anslinger Tactic in full effect:

  1. Create Fear: Print articles claiming cannabis makes you a killer.
  2. Divide the Public: Spew hate and lies to make something harmless look like the “worst evil imaginable.”
  3. Target for Assassination: Use lobbyists (the 1930s version of “bot farms”) to kill the competition.

From the Manosphere to Marijuana we Need a Beginners Guide

If you want to learn more about cannabis and how it works. Check out our Cannabis 101 guide. Educate yourself before you make snap judgements. Do the opposite, of the hyper masculine dopes in this post.

Join the Sesh on Youtube or Spotify

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Paying with Exposure: Why Your Brand Deal Is a Scam

TOTS420 podcast host with a sign saying Exposure Doesn't Pay The Bills, featuring a chart comparing Frosty Cake and Campfire Smoke quality.

Paying with exposure is a hustle that belongs in a buddy’s garage, not a professional business.

Why Paying With Exposure Doesn’t Work in the Real World

Imagine walking into a local pot shop, asking for an ounce of top-shelf flower, and offering to settle the tab with a shout-out on your Instagram story. You’d be laughed right out of the building. Why? Because legitimate industries don’t run on “vibes” or “likes,” yet in the podcasting world, my inbox is treated like a black market dealer’s garage where everyone expects a free bag in exchange for a few errands.

Welcome to Thoughts Off The Stem. I’m Justin Barone, and I hope life is being good to you, because lately, life has been acting like a prospecting pimp and I’m his prospective hoe. Recently, a couple of companies reached out with their pimp hand asking for me to get on the track and work for nothing but a slap in the face.

Light them if you got them, ‘cause here’s how these “exposure” deals played out.

The Worst “Paying With Exposure” Brand Deals I’ve Seen

Recently, a few companies reached out with “opportunities” that were really just chores in disguise. If you’re a creator, watch out for these red flags.

1. The Tin Joint Holder Tactic

A company reached out wanting a full suite of content: social shorts, feed posts, stories, a website feature on Tots420.com, and a spot on my YouTube review playlist.

  • The Offer: A free sample.
  • The Reality: They asked for my rates, saw them, and vanished. If you want a billboard, you have to pay the lease. A $10 tin doesn’t buy a week of production time.

2. The AI Tool That Wanted a Free Employee

This one was a masterclass in audacity. An AI podcast editing tool wanted a “partnership” where I would:

  • Edit one episode a week for three months using their (buggy) software.
  • Act as their unpaid QA and R&D department (reporting bugs and UI feedback).
  • Give them free rights to all my content for their ads.
  • The Payment: Use of the software.

Pro Tip: If a company asks you to find the bugs in their product while you advertise it for them, they aren’t a partner—you’re an unpaid intern.


Weed Facts: Stop Chasing THC Percentages

Before we get deeper into the “Dude, For Real?” files, let’s clear the air on some cultivation myths. THC potency is not the ultimate qualification for good weed. High potency is a byproduct of great cultivation, but a lower percentage doesn’t mean it’s “bad.”

Beyond the Hype: Weed Facts and Quality Control

Since we’re talking about high-quality work, let’s talk about high-quality flower. THC potency isn’t everything—potency is a byproduct of great cultivation.

How to Spot “Mid” Weed vs. Top-Shelf Flower

FeatureWhat to Look For
SmellPungent, bold, and nuanced. It should make your brain say, “I want to eat this.”
LookVibrant colors (whites, reds, oranges) with visible, “frosted” trichomes like a cake.
FeelSticky and slightly spongy. Stems should snap, not bend like celery.
StructureSativas should be light and fluffy; Indicas should be tight and dense.

The Red Flags of “Bad” Weed:

  • The “Musty” Nose: If it smells like a damp basement or a pile of straw, it’s aged or compromised.
  • The “Brown Sugar” Look: If the trichomes are amber and the bud is dirt-brown or lime-green, it’s past its prime.
  • The “Brittle” Touch: If it crumbles into dust or feels “wet” and tears apart instead of breaking, the cure was botched.

Dude, For Real? The “Exposure” Hall of Fame

They say there are no dumb questions, but the “Choosing Beggars” of the world prove that wrong every day. Whether it’s HuffPo asking for free articles while being a multi-million dollar entity or the guy who thinks Garlic is a valid currency for labor—the entitlement is real.

We’ve all seen the screenshots. The mechanic who gets asked for a “quick fix” for free, or the photographer (shoutout to the legends on BoredPanda) who gets told their work is “overpriced” because “I could do that with a filter.”

The bottom line: Exposure doesn’t pay the bills. Quality—whether in your flower or your content—costs money. If you want the “frosting,” you can’t pay with “crumbs.”


What’s Your Worst “Choosing Beggar” Story?

Have you ever been offered “exposure” in exchange for your hard-earned expertise? Drop a comment below or hit me up on socials. Let’s vent.

Want more unfiltered takes on the industry? Check out our Off The Stem Reviews

  • [Stay tuned to Tots420.com for more “off the stem” thoughts]

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