Chuck Holton
Politics • Culture • News
Chuck Holton is an American war correspondent, published author, and motivational speaker.
Interested? Want to learn more about the community?
INCELs Strike Again

Old Problem, New Threat

And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Genesis 1:28

They call themselves INCELS, or “Involuntary celibates — young men depressed by their inability to get a girlfriend. This is not a new phenomenon…after all, men have lamented their inability to snag a mate since time immemorial. When I was in school, the inability to hook up with a member of the opposite sex was probably the norm, not the exception. I guess most of us could have called ourselves “INCELS” at one time or another.

From H. Michael Karshis
But now something’s changed. The internet allows many of these guys to turn to pornography and violent video games to soothe their frustration. So much time online takes them deep into a toxic mix of loneliness and isolation.

Jared Reed is an Associate Pastor at Granite Hills Baptist Church in Reno, Nevada. When I sat down with him to discuss this issue, he said very directly, “Look, this is a problem across the country, but I believe our area is especially bad. We have so many young guys who are addicted to porn, video games, and social media. It is undoubtedly a form of slavery.”

“We’re not talking about a fun thing to do with somebody physically sitting next to you for a few minutes on a rainy afternoon,” He continued. “We’re talking about weeks poured into an immersive environment, and at a very high cost.” Reed went on to relate a story of one man who was spending as much of his limited income on video games every month as he was on rent. That’s a problem.

Young men are increasingly hanging out with friends in the virtual world via massive multiplayer online games more than they are spending time with people in the real world, “meatspace,” as some call it. Online, they can form teams, explore and conquer worlds, shoot bad guys, pilot or parachute from planes, all without leaving the well-padded, air-conditioned comfort of their bedrooms.

The Author at age ~10
When I was a kid we’d go exploring, conquering, fighting and such too. We called it “playing outside.” Believe me, the graphics were incredible. Zero-latency.

But today’s young men are not allowed to do that, even if they wanted to. A report investigating the relationship between exposure to nature and mental health1 found that the average distance a young man is allowed to roam from his home unsupervised in 2020 is only about 300 yards. Most Americans spend 93% of their time indoors! Contrast that to my grandfather’s generation, which according to this report spent more time outdoors than in, walked most everywhere and roamed up to six miles away from home unsupervised.

When I was a kid, I rode my bike everywhere. It was about four miles to our church and a little more to my best friend Shane’s house. Between going to school, doing my paper route, and visiting friends I easily racked up ten miles a day or more on my old BMX.

Today’s kids are barely allowed to leave their front lawn. Many parents would say that’s because of the threat of abduction. Some whack job or pervert is likely to grab their kid off the street and murder him. Only that’s not borne out by the data. According to a report from the federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, of the 73.9 million children in America, only about a hundred of those are kidnapped each year by someone unknown to them. Ninety-three percent of those are eventually returned alive to their families. That means a kid in America today has a 0.00000014 chance of being kidnapped and murdered by some rando while out playing unsupervised. A kid is 1,600 times more likely to drown than be abducted.

But the mere perception of danger is enough for many American parents to treat their kids like useless toy poodles and keep them indoors, drive them anywhere they need to go, and as a result, make them much more likely to be obese, isolated, and antisocial.

Human beings were created for physical touch. We thrive on it. From breastfeeding to kissing to handshakes to wrestling to the very act of procreation, we are hard-wired to need human touch. Babies who are not held and cuddled often fail to thrive. Marriages fail, too, when there is no intimacy. Everyone needs touch.

But INCELS very often live their lives devoid of physical interaction of any kind. Their lives are spent online, connected to the entire world like never before but starving for love and physical affection. To make matters worse, they are almost universally addicted to porn, which cruelly forces them into the role of spectators to the most intimate of human touch, a constant reminder of what they don’t have. This creates in them a profound level of anger and self-loathing.

22-year-old self-described INCEL (name withheld) went on a killing spree in Isla Vista, California in 2014 to punish women who would not go out with him.
They begin to resent the world of “normies,” those people they see at school or in town who appear to have everything. They begin to hate “Chads,” who personify men who are perhaps richer or more attractive than they are, and “Stacys,” the “shallow” women who partner with them.

These INCEL men end up congregating in online chat groups at places like 4chan, and sort of stew in their own juices. They complain to each other about the inability to find a partner, about how shallow women are, and convince each other that they have a right to the kind of circus-act sexual trysts they see in pornographic movies. And because their world doesn’t readily offer up those opportunities, they come to believe the world deserves to be punished.

This is where things get dangerous.

Mark Lundgren is a former FBI agent who has been tracking this phenomenon. As we discussed it one day, he told me, “INCELS are made up of mostly white younger men who have sort of descended into a dark place on the internet, an echo chamber that is reverberating with a toxic ideology. They don’t think anything’s going to change in the world. They are extremely nihilistic and believe society needs to be punished. It’s a movement we’re seeing rise up much more significantly than we have in the past.”

Indeed we are. The FBI has identified at least four active violence attacks and forty-five deaths in the past few years that have been carried out by men adhering to INCEL ideology.

In 2014, a man identifying with the INCEL movement killed six and injured fourteen in Isla Vista, California. Before going on his rampage, he wrote, “I’ve been forced to endure an existence of loneliness, rejection, and unfulfilled desires all because girls have never been attracted to me.” He went on to say, “One day INCELS will realize their true strength and numbers, and will overthrow this oppressive feminist system. Start envisioning a world where WOMEN FEAR YOU.”

In 2015, a 26-year-old INCEL murdered nine people and wounded others before committing suicide at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon. He, too, lamented his inability to get a girl.

In 2017, an INCEL killed two students at a high school in New Mexico before killing himself. Before the event, he wrote, “Work sucks, school sucks, life sucks. I just want out of this [expletive].”

The massacre of 17 high schoolers at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, happened on Valentine’s Day, and not for no reason. The shooter has become the poster boy for many in the INCEL movement.

A mass shooting was thwarted in January 2019 in Provo, Utah, after a 27-year-old man posted the following on his social media account, “I’ve never had a girlfriend before and I’m still a virgin, this is why I’m planning on shooting up a public place soon and being the next mass shooter cause I’m ready to die and all the girls the [sic] turned me down is going to make it right by killings as many girls as I see.”

Aside from their obvious failures with women, how many of these guys do you think got zero hugs and pats on the back at home? How many of them would you think were heavily into violent video games? How many were addicted to online porn? If you guessed all of them, you’d be right.

But these kinds of addictions aren’t just the domain of unemployed losers who are one step from plunging over the brink. In our interview, Pastor Jared said, “Of the men I’ve counseled over the past five years, I cannot recall one for whom pornography isn’t a struggle. And we’re not just talking about young single men. I’ve counseled men from 17 to 75 who were struggling with porn addiction.”

Two young men from his church agreed to share their journey away from these addictions with me. Carson and Allen (not their real names) both struggled with video games and porn addiction.

Carson, age 37 and now married told me, “Video games definitely make you more reclusive, just by their nature, and made me less sociable. With pornography I’d say looking back it gave me unbelievably high expectations that no woman would be able to achieve.”

His buddy Austin, age 20 said of the games he used to play, “It’s all violence. And for me, a lot of those video games they make you angry. And you might play for a couple of hours and maybe you don’t win and you just…it just leaves me mad and it just kind of sets the tone for the rest of the day.”

This underscores why human interaction and especially human touch are so important. Mark Lundgren agreed. “Without community surrounding us,” he said, “We can go so deep into the internet, so isolated, so without hope, so dark and that I think can absolutely be a tool of strategic evil when it’s not checked.”

Jared agreed 100%. “The real change seems to happen when they are ready to get radical about dealing with this sin, putting it to death,” he said, paraphrasing Colossians 3:5. “Men who make the changes, who start to experience victory in this area, it’s a wonderful snowball.”

He’s right. Unlike Heracles and his new pet Cerberus, it’s not enough to try to chain up your hidden sins. A man of prowess must go all in. He must tear out and throw into the fire those things that cause him to give in. He must hunt down his weaknesses and kill them by embracing hardship in this life.

Fortunately, a man submitted to the Holy Spirit has help in this endeavor. Carson put it this way: “I gave my life to Christ, and I couldn’t do any of those things anymore. It completely purged me of my pornography addiction, my alcohol addiction, I completely lost interest in all my video games.”

Not every man will have such a black-and-white experience. I’ve been saved for decades and still struggle with besetting sins. Engaging the enemy of our own weakness is a daily battle every man must fight. In so doing, we will undoubtedly have a few setbacks now and then, but we never lose unless we stop fighting. The Apostle Paul knew what that was like, when he wrote, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Timothy 4:7)

My book Prowess — The Man You Were Meant To Be is for those of us who are still in the fight. It’s a manual to help you learn how to win in very practical, down-to-earth ways. The book is primarily aimed at the young lions who often approach me after a speaking engagement with questions about how to do manhood right. But even if you aren’t a young lion, it’s good to remember the really important things now and then.

This article is an excerpt of the book “Prowess — The Man You Were Meant To Be” by Chuck Holton

post photo preview
Interested? Want to learn more about the community?
What else you may like…
Videos
Podcasts
Posts
Articles
Is the U.S. Training Syria’s New Jihadist Army?

Very few media outlets are talking about this, but they should be — urgently.

While most of the world is distracted, U.S. troops are conducting live training exercises in Syria with the forces of the country’s new interim government, now led by Ahmed al-Sharaa — a man widely known as a former Al Qaeda affiliate.

Let that sink in.

Recent reports confirm that U.S. personnel at the Al-Tanf garrison have been training members of the so-called 70th Division, a unit formed from remnants of the Syrian Free Army, which now pledges loyalty to this new government. This comes right on the heels of a massacre of Druze civilians, allegedly carried out by those very same government-aligned forces.

Aiding the Next Generation of Jihadists?
This isn’t just a questionable policy — it could be morally catastrophic.

Druze communities, who have long sought neutrality in Syria’s civil war, were brutally attacked.

Christian populations in the region are living in fear, as radical factions become emboldened ...

00:06:03
Debunked

Debunked: Following several accusations that Israel is causing famine in Gaza, COGAT has released drone footage of the hundreds of truckloads of supplies waiting to be delivered to Gaza by the UN. A statement accompanying the footage claims that 'There is enough food here to feed all of Gaza, if the UN ever came to pick it up.

00:00:39
Did Jewish Settlers Burn a Church?

See for yourself

00:02:32
Episode 622 - Field Producer Dennis Azato and Chuck Reminisce

My erstwhile field producer and cameraman Dennis Azato has accompanied me on ten years of adventures across the globe. Today he joins me in Ukraine and we spend some time remembering our many trips together.

Episode 622 - Field Producer Dennis Azato and Chuck Reminisce
Check Out My New Project

I've been quietly working on a new venture in my spare time (snort!) for the last couple months.

I am priviledged to see so many beautiful places in my travels around the world, and as an avid hiker and nature lover, I started filming some of my walks and drives. Many people seem to enjoy the serene sounds of nature (punctuated by my ragged panting, unfortunately) and find the first-person views soothing.

So please subscribe to my new youtube channel, which I'll update from time to time with new content from some of the most beautiful places on earth.

https://www.youtube.com/@Holtonadventures

August 01, 2025

I’m watching Chucks live today-
About the Aid and airdrops of aid from different foreign countries.
This means the GHF is not distributing this aid-so doesn’t that mean Hamas can grab it once it hits the ground and then make money?
More importantly, what if they are dropping weapons shipments?
Don’t these airdrops render the GHF obsolete?

Someone kindly help me understand as this seems concerning.

Thanks!

How do I give more than $9? No matter what I do to change the amount it says 9 or 90 if it’s yearly. I don’t know how to see the answer so can you email me? Thanks so much. [email protected]

post photo preview
Putin’s Puppet Threatens Armageddon — Trump Hits Back: Nuclear Showdown and the Battle for Ukraine

A Propaganda War at Home and Abroad

Inside Russia, the narrative is tightly controlled. Russian state media and pro-war bloggers carefully spin battlefield setbacks into stories of heroic advances. The Russian public, fed only state-approved information, sees a war effort progressing in Russia’s favor. Meanwhile, real figures tell a very different story.

In the last year alone, according to Western intelligence estimates, Russia has lost over 100,000 soldiers, with total casualties, including wounded and missing, surpassing 250,000. In contrast, Ukraine’s losses are significantly lower, estimated at around 13,000 for the same period. The disparity underscores Russia’s Soviet-style tactics: costly human wave assaults that sacrifice soldiers to gain just meters of ground.

Only for Supporters
To read the rest of this article and access other paid content, you must be a supporter
Read full Article
post photo preview
Weaponizing Aid: Why Gaza’s Suffering Persists

Well folks, I was supposed to be on my way to Thailand right now to cover the war there. But thankfully, that war ended before I had to board a plane—praise God for that. Not just because it spared me 24 hours of cramped flights, but because it spared countless people the devastation of another conflict. So instead, I get a few extra days here in northern Armenia with my grandbaby before Nathan and I take off on our next adventure.

But let’s get to it—the big headline today is humanitarian aid. Everywhere you look, the narrative is the same: “More aid must go to Gaza. People are starving. Israel is to blame.” That’s what the media wants you to believe.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: aid is rarely just about saving lives. Too often, it’s a weapon—used to control populations, prop up corrupt regimes, and advance political agendas.

Billions of Dollars, Decades of Aid – No Change

Global humanitarian aid tops $60 billion a year, yet places like Gaza, Haiti, Afghanistan, and much of sub-Saharan Africa remain locked in poverty and dysfunction. Why? Because aid has become an industry, not a solution.

As Graham Hancock writes in Lords of Poverty, it’s a “self-perpetuating complex” that feeds salaries, conferences, bureaucracy—and never gets judged on results. Billions pour in, but nobody asks, “Did this actually help anyone?”

Only for Supporters
To read the rest of this article and access other paid content, you must be a supporter
Read full Article
post photo preview
Armenia: A Love Story — Special Feature

Chuck is back in Armenia right now, and it is more than just another assignment. The couple featured in his documentary Armenia: A Love Story — Nathan and Rubina — are now expecting their second child. That means Chuck is about to welcome his sixth grandbaby, making this trip a deeply personal and memorable one.

To celebrate, we’re posting a special feature today. It is like an extended trailer for the full documentary and gives you a taste of the powerful story behind it.

If you are a paying supporter, you can watch the full version right now by searching Armenia: A Love Story in the content library.

If you are not a supporter yet, now is the perfect time to join and experience the full journey for yourself. This is a story of faith, resilience, and love in one of the world’s most complex regions.

Read full Article
See More
Available on mobile and TV devices
google store google store app store app store
google store google store app tv store app tv store amazon store amazon store roku store roku store
Powered by Locals