During a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, Joe Rogan sat down with actor and martial artist Michael Jai White for a conversation that eventually turned toward masculinity and how traditional male values are viewed in modern American society.
The topic emerged naturally while the two were discussing Australia and New Zealand. White pointed out that these countries still carry strong “warrior culture” influences, with traditions and social expectations that encourage toughness, responsibility, and resilience.
“I don’t think I’ve ever met an Australian that I didn’t like,” White remarked, prompting Rogan to agree enthusiastically.
“They’re the coolest people,” Rogan said. “They’re friendly, easygoing.”
White then contrasted that cultural environment with what he believes is happening in the United States.
“You have rites of passage still,” he explained, referring to places like Australia. “That’s one thing that’s sad about the United States… it’s like we’re not making men anymore.”
Rogan agreed, adding that when strong masculine figures do appear today, they tend to stand out because they’ve become increasingly rare. He stated: “Not a lot of them. When they are, they stand out.”
White expanded on the idea, noting that even in Hollywood, the archetype of the “alpha male” is often portrayed by actors from outside America.
“A lot of times in these movies, if you have an alpha male, that American alpha male is being played by an Australian or somebody else,” he said. “It’s very rarely an American. It’s such a trip.”
Rogan then summed up what he sees as the broader issue. “Masculinity is demonized here for some strange reason over the last couple of decades,” he argued.
White suggested that part of the problem began in education, drawing from his own experience as a former school teacher.
He said: “Bro, I saw the beginning of a lot of it cuz, you know, like I said, I was a school teacher. And I was right on the forefront seeing like everybody gets a trophy. It’s about their self-esteem and you got to protect that. I’m like, come on. And, you know, taking away competition.”
According to White, removing healthy competition has left many young people unprepared to deal with failure.
“These kids don’t know how to deal with loss,” he said, warning that the inability to handle adversity can have devastating consequences.
Both men emphasized that learning to lose and learning to recover from it is one of the most important lessons in life.
“Dealing with loss is one of the most important lessons you could ever learn,” Rogan said. “If you want to get better, lose.”
He explained that losing forces people to confront their weaknesses and make changes.
“Losing is the best medicine,” Rogan continued. “You lose, you don’t ever want to feel that again. Then you start thinking about what you didn’t do, where you cut corners, what you can do differently.”
Rogan added that winning doesn’t always provide the same opportunity for growth.
“Sometimes when you’re winning, you don’t learn,” he said. “But a loss… man, a loss can be the best teacher.”
