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The current US administration rode in with a sense of "new sheriff in town," as one nonpartisan watchdog puts it. It has delivered on "new." But it has turned out to have an unexpected set of standards on behavioral norms.聽

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orb谩n has turned his country鈥檚 elections into a statement about national identity: white, 海角大神, and migrant-free. But in feeding into xenophobia, he may only be highlighting how fragile Hungarian identity really is, and driving a wedge in deeper.

Here鈥檚 another example of how polarizing leaders tend to reflect divergent views of whatever country they run: Who does it belong to? Where is it headed? Outside the Philippines, many empathize with President Rodrigo Duterte鈥檚 opponents, seeing a setback for democratic ideals. This report by the Monitor鈥檚 Jessica Mendoza, Manila born and raised, found that Filipinos who support him see the strongman as savior. 鈥淭he depth of the dissonance,鈥� Jess says, 鈥渓eft me shaken.鈥�

As authorities work to assess apparent online threats against schools, how do they balance safety and justice? Teens need to understand the gravity of tossed-off words. Officials need to guard against alienating the very students they need as partners.

First drafts of history include frontline accounts by bit players 鈥� the mundane, scribbled documentation of life. Now, volunteers are speeding the collection of such scraps for online repositories that tell bigger stories. Required mastery: the dying art of reading cursive.

Of all the global trends today, two seem to be on opposite poles. One is the new feminist era of #MeToo, which aims to elevate women in ways that would prevent abuse by powerful men. The other is the era of the ultra-masculine strongman. These men are rulers like Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Turkey, Rodrigo Duterte in the Philippines, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Egypt, and Nicol谩s Maduro in Venezuela who preside over nominal democracies.

Such men may find inspiration from Russia鈥檚 Vladimir Putin. For nearly two decades, he has systematically undercut opponents and found scapegoats 鈥� such as perceived threats from the West 鈥� to justify his long-term rule. These leaders sometimes display a male physicality, epitomized by the iconic photo of a shirtless Mr. Putin.

With the appeal of strongmen on the rise in many nations, what could provide an alternative model of leadership? Might it be found in the #MeToo movement?

The answer to the latter question, of course, is yes. The #MeToo movement puts an emphasis on lifting the views of men about their identity to include the positive qualities of both the masculine and feminine. The best leaders of the modern era 鈥� and of either gender 鈥� can be both strong and nurturing, wise and cooperative, brave and consoling. In many companies, a popular concept of leadership entails 鈥渇ollowership,鈥� or an expertise in effective listening and consensus-building.

Men in particular should express a 鈥渞elaxed masculine confidence,鈥� as writer Richard Godwin puts it, that is not threatened by feminine qualities. For women, there are numerous female leaders who have displayed masculine qualities in difficult times. Britain鈥檚 鈥淚ron Lady,鈥� Margaret Thatcher, led her country through the Falklands War. Many women now run Fortune 500 corporations in traditional 鈥渕ale鈥� industries.

Popular culture also can help one gender adopt the best traits of the other.

Bear Grylls, the popular host of reality TV shows such as 鈥淭he Island鈥� and 鈥淩unning Wild with Bear Grylls,鈥� teaches contestants how to survive in the wilderness, an endeavor that could be seen as ultra-manly. But he rejects conventional views of manliness. When men arrive on his shows to test themselves, they 鈥渢hink it鈥檚 all about machismo and muscles, but it鈥檚 not,鈥� Mr. Grylls told The Times of London. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think being macho is about banging your chest,鈥� he adds. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a much quieter thing. Being a man, hopefully, is showing those qualities of kindness, courage, and humility...鈥� that actually yield better results for surviving in the wilderness.

Such higher views of masculinity can help shape leaders who reject the destructive era of the strongman鈥檚 false masculinity. The #MeToo movement is not just about ending sexual misconduct of powerful male leaders. It can also be about men and women redefining leadership itself.