as a female electrical engineer, and to make generalizations (obviously not ALL men blah blah blah), i’ve noticed older straight white men tend to argue as crazily with other straight white men, but they’ll do it to each other’s face when it’s someone they see as socially equal to them. they’re honing their arguing skills for when the arguing bachelor of the neighboring tribe comes to argue because no one has been able to effectively teach them a better way to live over their hubris.