Cyprus-Forum.com

[phoenix]

I've noticed that Cypriot men are excessively tough on their sons.

Also, to add to what Dinos S mentioned about some vindictive qualities, I've also noted that in Greeks. I was speaking once to one guy here whose son had bought a house he didn't care for and stated plainly that he hoped his son would go bankrupt and lose the house, so that maybe he'd see his mistake buying it.

On a different note, I've found the vast majority of Cypriots to be very warm and welcoming to their homes. They take pride in what they have and love to make you feel at home with them. Common sayings: Would you like some more (lamb, chicken, soup, etc) as they put more onto your plate...

I've noticed in myself that I tend to yell a lot when speaking about normal stuff. It's not intended to be yelling at other people, but is often taken that way. I have to laugh as I write this because it's such a dead-ringer. Although it's great for office drama. Keep 'em b!tching and they'll stay in line.

I think Cypriot men seem to feel that showing their female side, i.e. nurturing or sentimentality is unacceptable. To dissipate all that unspoken empathy they feel, makes them over react with the maleness, so they appear tougher / harsher than they really are. Of course they exaggerate this to set an example to their sons lest they turn out girly.

You can really see all this psychology at funerals though . . . none of the men ever shed tears, but you know they are torn apart inside.

Then they go and overdo it with the alcohol

A good friend of ours won't allow his 6 year old son to cuddle his Mum so they have to hug when he's not looking! Very sad. He's a great guy but that's just the way it is.

That's common in the UK amongst public school parents and kids. We were on the chess circuit for a while and the distance kids are forced to maintain from ANY normal social contacts was very sad.

all that a uk public school education gives you is an unhealthy interest in perverse sexuall activity

Are you speaking from personal experience, DINOS?

. . . I've never let my son board, but more because I can't tolerate anyone else looking after him. My Cypriot control freak mother thing.

[DINOS SKALIOTIS]

me public school - oh no far from it my mum couldnt afford that kind of thing! i am the complete opposite of those aristocratic english chinless wonders who come out of those places! in fact we had a school like that in our area and me and me mates used to go and beat them to a pulp and take their pocket money!

[T_C]

From the Cyprus Mail letters section:

Dear Sir,

Based on my 14 years living in Cyprus I come to the conclusion that most Cypriot Males (CMs) generally have warped perceptions of manhood.

Hunting is one "avenue" for proving CM manhood: killing little defenceless birds and rabbits, plus the cruel, un-western treatment and living conditions of the CM’s dogs.

In other countries wearing military clothes for other purposes (such as hunting) is not acceptable, since it represents disrespect for the national guard. In Cyprus, postage stamps were issued showing CM hunters wearing military gear!

CM endorse their "masculinity" by harassing non-Cypriot females: at work, in the bars and nightclubs – even where it is blatantly obvious that the woman is offended/not interested.

CMs thrive on picking fights or looking for trouble with male tourists: I never observe a CM picking on someone that may possibly represent a challenge, unless the CM has a pack of friends nearby as "back-up". In all the brawls I have observed, the CMs outnumber their foreign male victims by at least 3 to 1. Is this the definition of being “tough guys”?

I won't mention that particular sexual activity which Cypriot men believe is okay to engage in – and which they don't regard as homosexual.

Cypriot men also believe that the louder they talk the more "manly” they are. Cypriots seem to believe that soft-spoken men are not "manly"; I find it fascinating when observing a conversation between a CM and any other soft-spoken male. The CM becomes more loud and more arrogant.

"Protection" is often offered to CMs for their unacceptable criminal actions. An example is the recent case involving a father allegedly sexually molesting his child. whilst the (non-Cypriot) mother may be punished for trying to protect her child from the suspect!

Road manners are a classic example where the CM feels the adrenalin of "power" bestowed to him by his car or motor bike, making the CM "king of the road" at the expense of other innocent drivers and pedestrians. Once while taking an evening walk I had a CM driver jokingly accelerate towards me.

CMs appear to be cowards and here is their warped mentality: they believe that they prove their “manhood" by beating, dominating or suppressing a weaker person.

I always thought the reverse applied. I was taught that a man is "manly" if he proves that he can beat someone who represents a genuine challenge to him. The video of 10 police officers kicking and punching two young defenceless handcuffed students confirms my point.

Indeed, the filmer of the incident, as the Attorney General stated, "was panic-stricken to have his identity revealed lest he fall into the bands of these twisted cowards".

The CM appears to be "educated" from school-age regarding these perceived "manly traits", this is observed in their sleazy attitude to their female co-students, teachers, and especially the non-Cypriot girls.

Add to this the CM’s attitude to animals and the environment in general. Maybe there is some truth in the theory that CMs feel frustrated/helpless by the Turkish invasion and occupation, so they "release" this frustration through their attitudes and actions mentioned above.

The above phenomena reflects my observations during the 14 years I have lived in Cyprus, whether at work, during my military service, shopping, bars, restaurants, on the road, everywhere.

Am I generalisng? Yes. It appears that the only authentic real CMs are the "Diluted Cypriots", i,e. the CMs that have spent more than 10 years overseas and have learnt to differentiate between civilised, acceptable norms, and the unfortunate culture developed in a small island inhabited by less than one million people, where even the Cypriot women appear to condone their men's behaviour.