Obsession

For the past week or so the transgender blogs have all been covering the story about Lu’s: A Pharmacy for Women which was recently opened by the Vancouver Women’s Health Collective in Canada. They have taken notice of this new pharmacy because it has a policy of only providing services to "women born women." So, of course the transgender types are absolutely livid.

Now let me begin by saying that I do think this is a silly rule for this pharmacy to have. Here is the reasoning behind it from Caryn Duncan:

“We are an organization that has for almost 40 years supported
women around their battle with breast cancer or unwanted pregnancy or delivering
a baby with a midwife, [and] celebrating or dealing with menopause,” Duncan
said. “It’s about bleeding—or wanting to bleed or not bleed. It’s about being a
woman, and the physiology of being a woman.”

Further, Duncan claimed that the pharmacy doesn’t have the expertise or capacity to serve transgender women, stating “I think we’re being very reasonable.”

Now, as I said, all of this is pretty silly. But, I also believe that this group has a right to choose who they are willing to serve. Just as I believe that the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival has the right to exclude those that they do not consider "womyn born womyn." That does not mean that I do not consider such attitudes to be rather reprehensible. I also believe that groups like the Ku Klux Klan have a right to say who can, and cannot join, dress up in silly costumes, and march around a burning cross even though I find the Klan's beliefs to also be completely reprehensible.

Of course, the gender fascists don't see things that way. They are unwilling to extend to others the sort of rights they would demand for themselves. For years, they have tried to demand admission to -othe Michigan's Womyn's Music Festival. And, in another example, there was an effort to demand that those who had not had surgery be admitted to a bisexual women's group even though there was quite a bit of nudity involved.

Now, all of this is typical transgender behavior. Any suggestion that simply stating one is a woman does not immediately, and completely, change one's sex is met with outrage and shrill cries of "Prejudice, bigotry, and dicrimination!" It does not matter how one might be perceived by others, the gender fascists demand that the world bend to their delusions. So what it their presence causes discomfort to women seeking a safe space? That is not as important as their right to pretend to be a woman.

Most of those with Harry Benjamin Syndrome seem sensitive to these sort of things, and would actually avoid such a situation. Not only would they be concerned about how they might be perceived, they would also not wish to cause other women distress. But the larger transgender community increasingly tosses such concerns aside. They could care less if others might perceive them as "men in dresses invading women's space." All that matters is their right to claim an identity, no matter how absurd that might be.

And what makes this thing even sillier is the fact that many of those screaming the loudest are unlikely to remotely be affected by this situation. The pharmacy is located in Vancouver, Canada and yet among those who have been the most shrill are bloggers in places like San Diego and Texas.

When I read about stuff like this, it means little to me. Personally, I would have no desire to go to such a place. I have absolutely no interest in associating with those who hold views like this, nor do the vast majority of women. Places such as this, and the Michigan festival cater to a tiny, relatively isolated group of extremists. Most women are probably not even aware that such exists, and if they are, they have no interest in using such services.

But, to the gender fascists, this is all a serious threat to their carefully constructed delusions and as such, they must be fought. It really is all terribly funny in a very sad sort of way.