I mean, it sounds to me like men also chose the bear. Why did they choose the bear, is it because they're stupid? Probably not, they likely just thought their odds were better with the bear.

Dropping the metaphor, and looking in the cold light of day, those young men saw a better future under Trumpler than Harris. Articles signaled this well before, and nothing was done to address it.

Will their future be better - probably not. Can they be made to think their future is better, that's a tough one. Remember, you can trick one group of people into thinking they have more rights by stripping the rights of those around them.