Like probably most of us, I have known very few "trans" people in my life- in fact, only one. I knew her as a work colleague in the 2000-2010 decade. He- a man in his 40's-- had taken considerable time off work and then re-emerged as a woman, having gone through as complete a physical transformation- hormones, top and bottom surgery, etc. as was possible in 2010. I remember feeling that the physical, psychologic, and social stress she must have endured in the transformation had to have been tremendous, and that this commitment to her new identity was admirable if only for its shear determination and fortitude. Clearly this was a long-considered and probably tortured decision she had made-one not made lightly.
I wonder what this "old-school" trans person would think of the newer generation of pubescent and teen-age "instant" gender metamorphs, getting their puberty blocker prescriptions after one or two visits to the clinic. Maybe she would be supportive (" I wish it had been that easy for me!")- but maybe she would feel a certain skepticism or wistfulness....
Thanks for including information about Canadian groups that are fighting to protect the rights of women……. I will be checking them out. This is such an important issue for women because changes made to the Human Rights Act seem to place ”gender identity “ ( and trans rights) over the rights of women. Now public institutions are making decisions that impact on women in a very negative and possibly harmful way. For example, while students were learning at home during Covid, my daughter’s university renovated all the washrooms in her faculty building .They made them all unisex to accommodate trans students. Now that she has returned to in person school she does not have a washroom that she feels comfortable using in the building where she attends classes. She doesn’t use the unisex washrooms as she considers them unsafe. She also does not feel comfortable making a big deal about this issue and I respect her choice. However, I am upset that University administrators decided to make this choice for her, and for all the women in her faculty, without regard for their safety or comfort. I am glad that people are finally speaking out. Thank you for a very informative article.
Great article. One thing that I would add is that this reinvention gives a convenient way to circumvent safeguarding and shed those pesky police charges when going for jobs. In a time when we have puritanical standards and need to be seen as never saying anything politically incorrect, or commuted a wrong against anyone, even as a teenager, reinvention is a tempting path for, narcissists in particular. “If only it were all so simple! If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessarily only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?” Solzhenitsyn
I will cite an example: While I was contacting customer service over a phone bill issue, via email, the Customer Service Representative (CSR) kept signing off with chosen pronouns. I responded to that issue by reminding the CSR that I was not interested in knowing how the CSR identified, as it reflected gender preferences. I advised said CSR that it had nothing to do with the business at hand and that the act of identifying by pronouns in business correspondence was unprofessional. I advised said CSR to please refrain from using pronouns in any further correspondence. And to my delight, the CSR complied.
Corporations in CAD and USA are allowing this practice in order to comply with the demands of governments who are pushing and funding this appalling socially destructive policy via their ESG (Equity Social Governance) equation. Which means Corporations and government are colluding against normal society (societal norms). This is illegal, and damaging to society.
The only way we can make it stop is by refusing to participate and refusing to accept it.
The Bud beer sales losses is another perfect example of push back by the public (our society).
That was awesome.
Like probably most of us, I have known very few "trans" people in my life- in fact, only one. I knew her as a work colleague in the 2000-2010 decade. He- a man in his 40's-- had taken considerable time off work and then re-emerged as a woman, having gone through as complete a physical transformation- hormones, top and bottom surgery, etc. as was possible in 2010. I remember feeling that the physical, psychologic, and social stress she must have endured in the transformation had to have been tremendous, and that this commitment to her new identity was admirable if only for its shear determination and fortitude. Clearly this was a long-considered and probably tortured decision she had made-one not made lightly.
I wonder what this "old-school" trans person would think of the newer generation of pubescent and teen-age "instant" gender metamorphs, getting their puberty blocker prescriptions after one or two visits to the clinic. Maybe she would be supportive (" I wish it had been that easy for me!")- but maybe she would feel a certain skepticism or wistfulness....
Thanks for including information about Canadian groups that are fighting to protect the rights of women……. I will be checking them out. This is such an important issue for women because changes made to the Human Rights Act seem to place ”gender identity “ ( and trans rights) over the rights of women. Now public institutions are making decisions that impact on women in a very negative and possibly harmful way. For example, while students were learning at home during Covid, my daughter’s university renovated all the washrooms in her faculty building .They made them all unisex to accommodate trans students. Now that she has returned to in person school she does not have a washroom that she feels comfortable using in the building where she attends classes. She doesn’t use the unisex washrooms as she considers them unsafe. She also does not feel comfortable making a big deal about this issue and I respect her choice. However, I am upset that University administrators decided to make this choice for her, and for all the women in her faculty, without regard for their safety or comfort. I am glad that people are finally speaking out. Thank you for a very informative article.
Great article. One thing that I would add is that this reinvention gives a convenient way to circumvent safeguarding and shed those pesky police charges when going for jobs. In a time when we have puritanical standards and need to be seen as never saying anything politically incorrect, or commuted a wrong against anyone, even as a teenager, reinvention is a tempting path for, narcissists in particular. “If only it were all so simple! If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessarily only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?” Solzhenitsyn
Amen to that.
I refuse to participate.
I will cite an example: While I was contacting customer service over a phone bill issue, via email, the Customer Service Representative (CSR) kept signing off with chosen pronouns. I responded to that issue by reminding the CSR that I was not interested in knowing how the CSR identified, as it reflected gender preferences. I advised said CSR that it had nothing to do with the business at hand and that the act of identifying by pronouns in business correspondence was unprofessional. I advised said CSR to please refrain from using pronouns in any further correspondence. And to my delight, the CSR complied.
Corporations in CAD and USA are allowing this practice in order to comply with the demands of governments who are pushing and funding this appalling socially destructive policy via their ESG (Equity Social Governance) equation. Which means Corporations and government are colluding against normal society (societal norms). This is illegal, and damaging to society.
The only way we can make it stop is by refusing to participate and refusing to accept it.
The Bud beer sales losses is another perfect example of push back by the public (our society).
Surprised you didnt mention this pretty good article about identity
https://quillette.com/2023/01/31/every-gender-identity-is-authentic-until-it-isnt/
(BTW small typo Elond vs Elon at the start)