A Kamala Harris voter took to social media to find out if he was wrong to overreact after his wife allegedly started treating him like a "sexual predator" following Donald Trump's recent re-election.
"Since the election I have been walking on egg shells because of her fears of a more conservative country and last night I made my first big mistake," the 33-year-old husband told Reddit's Am I Overreacting (AIO) forum.
The big mistake, he says, was his attempt to initiate sex.
"We have a very active/healthy sex life, so this isn't usually a big deal," the man clarified.
Her response, however, felt like a big deal: "Well I guess consent doesn't matter anymore, you might as well **** me," the woman snapped, according to her husband.
"I was devastated and I still am today. I have never come close to forcing a woman into anything. We have been married for 7 years...Now because of something completely out of my control I've been relegated to just a man, the enemy in her mind."
He went on to clarify that his wife is an "incredible person," who works in a male-dominated field around conservative men. He therefore understood her apprehension about the country's political future.
"However, I feel like I went from loving husband and father to dangerous predator overnight though no action of my own," he wrote.
Following her harsh reaction, he says he pretended to fall asleep to avoid further discussion. When she wanted to be affectionate the next morning, he was still upset, and rejected her advances. "I just wasn't feeling it," he told his fellow Redditors.
In conclusion, he wanted to know: "[Am I overreacting] for avoiding the advances of my wife after she equated me to a sexual predator?"
The replies ran the gamut from "you're absolutely you're overreacting" to "no, you're actually under-reacting!" Delivered in essay form or just a few words, some responses from commenters were full of understanding, while others drew a hard line.
Those with the most upvotes fell toward a compassionate center, urging him to open the lines of communication with his wife.
A lot of people didn't read her comment as accusatory, but rather as a general expression of frustration.
Among those who downplayed her comment were people who validated her reason for feeling like her consent matters less now.
Others sympathized with the pain her comment caused the husband, but encouraged him to give her time.
For every comment advocating for compassion, there were comments stating that it was an unacceptable accusation for her to make. In other words, the "Not All Men" crowd weighed in.
For some men, what the wife said was a complete dealbreaker.
Notably, there was confusion about what four-letter word she used when allegedly telling her husband "you might as well ---- me."
Toward the bottom of the page, where the comments with fewer upvotes live, some Redditors dismissed the wife's outburst as "melodramatic," "psycho," and "pathetic."
For anyone looking to understand why some women may feel unsafe or as though their voices don't matter, comment sections can be powerful teachers.
The original poster was active in the comment threads, responding to a handful of the more thoughtful replies with care and attention, and thanking people of various opinions for their insight.
Though the country's gender divide writ large may be widening, happily this particular husband and wife seem to be a single short conversation away from returning to solid marital ground.
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