Absolute Silliness

Early in my transition, I came up with the phrase "I will not accept responsibility for other people's bigotry."  By that, I meant that I would not beat myself up because certain people had an issue with my transition.  I had a brother-in-law, for example, who was a bit of a celebrity in certain religious circles who rather stubbornly refused to use my proper name.  He offered the compromise that he would refer to me as "J" which I declined, because "Jay" is a boy's name, and besides, my name is Jennifer, not an initial.  I actually found it kind of amusing watching him stumble over language trying to avoid using either a name, or pronouns to refer to me.  And this was after he had to admit that he could not actually show, from Scripture, that I was doing something wrong.  It was clear that his concern about his image trumped any decency he might have shown me.


I simply refused to compromise my life for his, or anyone else's convenience.  I realized that he, and some others, did not recognize my transition as legitimate.  I simply considered the source and got on with my life.  Why should I let their ignorance, or prejudice, define who, or what I really am?


Well, of late, the transgender blogs have been going crazy over the "radfem's," i.e. radical feminists, mostly lesbian separatists, alleged bigotry against transgender people.  You would think the "radfems" were advocating murder the way the extremists are carrying.  And, in the expected return swing of the pendulum, Suzan Cooke has added her voice to the chorus.  Cooke, in her usual shrill hysteria, had compared the "radfems" to the Religious Right who Cooke hates with a passion.  Cooke, who recently seemed to have returned to a position in opposition to the silliness of the transgender extremists now sounds, again, like a clone of "Autumn" Sandeen and "Cristan" Williams.    


Now, personally, there is a lot that I would disagree with radical feminists over.  But, I can see some of their points specifically concerning "transgender" issues.  I mean, look at the transgender extremists who are now claiming that a man can become a woman simply by saying he is a woman.  Many are the radical feminists are far more comfortable with those who have undergone sex-reassignment surgery than those who simply change their wardrobe and then claim that also changes their sex.  I also can see some of their views concerning men who grew up enjoying male privilege who now claim to be fully women.  Those who most often identify as transgender, and those who tend to be the most radical proponents of that movement, are men who were rather late in life when they showed any inclination towards claiming to be a woman.  Prior to that, they were often transvestites, but they showed no real issues with their gender identity.  In fact, as crossdressers, they often identified as a man who was wearing women's clothes.  


I had gender issues from early on.  I did not have words to express what I felt, because I went through much of it during a time when such issues were well known.  I certainly never enjoyed male privilege, basically being seen as something of a "defective male."  People sensed that I was "different," and I was often accused of being a sissy.  I fought to avoid such a label at times, always unsuccessfully, simply because such a label generally led to being bullied.  But it was hard to hide the real me, and so I suffered.


But then there are those like "Autumn" Sandeen, who served for twenty years in the U.S. Navy, as a male, in a male-only position.  He had no problems, which, had he been transsexual, would have been impossible.  He likes to claim that in his last years he was harassed because he was perceived as "gay."  It is obvious that as his retirement approached, he was beginning to think of becoming a full-time crossdresser, rather than the part-time one he had been to that point.  And I am sure he began acting a bit effeminate.


I can certainly understand why the radical feminists would not want someone like Sandeen at their meetings.  He seems to fluctuate between acting very male and acting like a bad parody of a woman.  Likewise, other transgender extremists often come off as more male than anything else.  For example, check out "Cristan" Williams recent post where he puff himself up like a strutting peacock and postures in a very male manner about how he has "rewritten transgender history" in a year.  But that's a topic for another post.


No, I may not agree with the radical feminists, but I do understand at least some of where they are coming from.  They don't want men invading their space.  And their definition of men is a bit broad, including not only the men in dresses like Sandeen, but also post-op transsexual women.  Of course, I imagine more than a few post-op women might be among them without them knowing.  True transsexuals rarely have trouble assimilating in such situations.  They don't come across as men in dresses, and unless they choose to be open about their past, no one would know.


But, even some post-ops are going ballistic over the issue.  As I said, Suzan Cooke is in a complete snit over the issue.  Which is sort of surprising, but Cooke cannot seem to make up her mind which side she is on.  She has even apparently joined the chorus of transgender extremists who think that CeCe MacDonald should be placed in a women's prison, even those said person is physically a male.  In short, Cooke would negate the rights of every woman in a state prison in favor of a male criminal, simply because said person claims a female gender identity.  That surprises me.


The CeCe MacDonald case is a perfect example of why radical feminists would take such a dim view of "transgender."  Here is a person who committed a crime, and plead guilty.  Yes, it is argued that it was self-defense, but I have to wonder.  The case occurred in Minnesota, which is not exactly an anti-transgender stronghold, being the first state to pass a state-wide rights bill that included gender identity.  But, like pretty much anywhere else, those rights are tempered by common sense.  You don't put a man in a women's prison.  If you have a penis, you are male for certain purposes, no matter how you dress, what your ID says, or even if you live in a state that is insane enough to change your birth certificate like Sandeen has take advantage of.


The transgender extremists are trying to claim not only that MacDonald should get a pass on killing someone because of being black and transgender, but should also be allowed to be in a women's prison.  What a load of crap.  This represents an attack on women, not support for them.


Likewise, when transgender people attack radical feminists for wanting to maintain their vision of "women's space," I think it represents the inherent misogynistic tendencies of many in the transgender extremist movement.  And the same is true when radical feminists are attacked as viciously as they have been recently.  I don't agree with them, but I respect their right to hold views that are not the same as my own.


But then, transgender has never really been about rights...it has always been about a bunch of men wanting their way at the expense of women.

Ah, So Mr. Natalie Reed is a Cyber-Stalker to Boot!

I was taking a glance at my blogs statistics after last week's hoopla about Mr. Reed.  I had suspected that his blog was the source of the insulting little boys who decided to come my way.  And yes, I discovered that he posted a blog where he purports to reveal my name, and he links to a cyberstalking site that was put up when a group of thugs could not run me off from their little sandbox on Usenet.


Oh well...  such is life when you stand up to bullies.  At least, as far as I know, he has not tried anything as sinister as Mr. Sandeen's bout of cyberstalking.  


For what it is worth, the information that he accessed is about 85% total fabrication, with the remaining 15% so badly distorted that it might as well be made up.  I actually get a bit of a laugh reading how terrible my life is, while knowing that quite the opposite is true.  But like Mr. Williams, Mr. Reed prefers fantasy to truth.  


I do find it amusing that those who, oh so often, whine about how horrible their lives are because they are discriminated against as transgender people seem to take delight in fictional accounts of others supposed suffering.


The simple bottom line is, when I created this blog I chose not to use my name.  I am, in spite of what people claim, stealth.  But, in a perfect example of what the transgender movement is all about, some have presumed to attempt to determine who I am, and to try to cause me harm, simply because I disagree with them.  


Funny thing...  I could do the same thing, but I choose not to.  For example, it took me all of about a minute to determine "Autumn" Sandeen's birth name.  Now, I know he is very protective of that information (though given his waving his male flag, I don't know why) and it would hurt him deeply to have that information revealed, but I have chosen not to do so.  I prefer to deal with issues, not hurt people.  Now, someone like Mr. Reed might not like having his maleness pointed out to him, but it really is central to the issues involved.

Why Is the Transvestite Sandeen So Upset Over a Transvestite Fantasy?

Well, it appears that "Autumn" Sandeen, has his panties in a wad over what is, essentially, a transvestite fantasy.  In his latest post at Pam's House Blend, he is in hysterics over a new ABC TV show called "Work It."  The show is about two men who pretend to be women so they can get jobs as pharmaceutical representatives for a company that is apparently in total violation of Federal law.  I wonder how they will explain the company getting away with a policy of hiring "only women?"  But I digress....


The show, which seems to basically be a rehash of the old plot concept from Bosom Buddies and Tootsie.  The idea is, a straight male is "forced" by some circumstance beyond his control to dress up as a woman.  He may be doing this to get a job, or to obtain some other benefit.  And even though it goes against his very nature, he succeeds, and perhaps, comes to be a better man because of it.  Oh, and he finds that he enjoys being a woman, if only for a while.  In another words, it is a classic transvestite fantasy of forced feminization.


So, why is Mr. Sandeen so upset?  Well, it appears that LGBT activists have declare war on this show because it "trivializes" the experiences of transgender people, and well, it makes fun of the idea of men wearing dresses.  In another words, this is a safe issue for them to use to "prove" that they are really, really aware of, and concerned about, transgender issues and they are doing something about it,


Of course, the whole thing is just ridiculous.  This is a show about two straight men disguising themselves as women to get jobs.  They are "pretending" to be women in order to get a job they would otherwise be denied (again, how is this company getting away with a clear violation of Federal law?).  That is totally unrelated to "real" transgender people who ae pretending to be women because they think it is a fun and cool thing to be a "woman with a penis."  And, it is unrelated to true transsexuals who are women, who are in the process of putting they lives on track.  


The claim is made that in "real life" transgender people face problems:

In the brick-and-mortar world, most of us late-transitioning trans women didn’t have the benefit of make-up and wardrobe departments to facilitate our transitions. Many of us started our transitions with deep voices, heavy beards, and bone structures that didn’t say “woman.” Many of us were — many of us are — visibly trans, not “passing” in our target sex of female.

Of course, Mr. Sandeen fails to mention that he, and other transgender people generally attack anyone attempting to be  actually "pass."  The whole idea for people like him is to be visibly transgender.  They are not interested in actually being female, but derive their identity from being "women with penises."  So, a show about two straight men who somehow manage to overcome obvious problems and succeed in passing, is just too much for them.  They think, how dare these men actually work as women, and not "trans women."  It appears that they are upset with this show for much the same reason that they hate those who identify as transsexuals, but not transgender.  They hate anyone who is successful at being a woman.  


Sandeen attempts to feign ignorance of the whole concept of stealth:

In the brick-and-mortar world, the two crossdressers in Work Itwould be having uncomfortable discussions with the HR department of their new employer about transitioning in the workplace, including negotiating restroom use. They would likely at least face workplace harassment, and if they lived in the 35 states without employment protections based on gender identity, they might not have been hired — or if already hired might have been fired — specifically for being trans…and without much legal recourse. 

I live in the brick and mortar world, as he puts it.  I have never had an uncomfortable discussion with the HR department.  In all of my jobs, except one, I was not remotely out.  I did work at a position as an outreach worker for a research project that targeted people who identified as transgender or transsexual.  I had participated in the project at the request of my therapist at the time, and I sought the position because it provided me with both an income and health insurance benefit that would cover my sex reassignment survey.  I later moved on to another position that was not directly related to transgender issues.  But even there, there were no such discussion.


No, most jobs I have had since transition have been held simply as a woman.  I never seriously considered "transitioning" on the job.  Even in the outreach position, I had been in transition for years, and was simply listed as a female.  In fact, I ignored requests sent out to all employees in the organization to, "be out."  Every year, during Pride Month, they would distribute posters featuring employees who were willing to publicly identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender.  I had no desire to do so.


I lived in one of those 35 states.  In my first job after transition, I was hired as as a woman, and assigned to the lingerie department.  In my job, among other duties, I had to assist other women in the dressing room.  No one ever questioned whether whether I was a woman.  Granted, unlike those Sandeen describes, I had undergone electrolysis, had been on hormones for years, and well, I admit I am blessed with relatively good bone structure.  But, more importantly, I did not begin transition until i was ready.  This was not a silly fantasy for me.  It was about being who, and what, I really was.  Not engaging in dress-up and forcing people to indulge my delusions.  I was not interested in being transgender, or even transsexual.  I was simply living as the woman I already was.  


The only connection this show has to transgender is the fact that it is essentially a clean version of transvestite fiction.  You would think that someone like Sandeen would be excited to have this presented weekly.  But, the LGBT activists have spoken, and so he must rush to front of the mob, and help lead the charge.  After all, if they get this show cancelled, they will have shown their power and TV executives will be under their control.


Personally, I think the show is a rather silly idea.  The answer to sex discrimination is to take the employer to court, not to pretend to be the sex they are willing to hire.  But that would not make a very good TV show.  Another objection to this show is that it uses the idea of men dressed as women for humor.  Funny, but I would think they would start by making an effort to shut down every drag show, and to force every drag queen, to  stop performing.  Of course, men dressed as women is humorous.  And yes, that is a problem for transgender people.  After all, that is exactly what they essentially identify as.  


GLAAD has the following to say about the show:

GLAAD has seen the pilot and while the show’s pilot does not explicitly address transgender people, many home viewers unfamiliar with the realities of being transgender will still make the connection. Work It invites the audience to laugh at images of men trying to adopt a feminine appearance, thereby also making it easier to mock people whose gender identity and expression are different than the one they were assigned at birth. Said GLAAD’s Acting President Mike Thompson, “Transphobia is still all too prevalent in our society and this show will only contribute to it. It will reinforce the mistaken belief that transgender women are simply ‘men pretending to be women,’ and that their efforts to live their lives authentically as women are a form of lying or deception.”

These problems are even more pronounced in the show’s printed ad, which depicts the two main characters dressed as women while standing at men’s room urinals. Not only does it inadvertently further notions that transgender identities are humorous or artificial, but imagery like this are one of the first things anti-LGBT activists resort to when trying to deny transgender people protections against discrimination. As Mark Snyder from the Transgender Law Center said in a recent article, a printed image like this in magazines or the sides of city buses will “make it more difficult for transgender people to gain full equality — including the important right to access public accommodations appropriate to their gender identity.”

GLAAD clearly has no grasp of transgender reality.  When you have men, who are intent of being "trans women," i.e. retaining their identity as men, while attempting to force society to accept them as women, simply, and only, because they claim to be women, it is really kind of hard to argue that they are not engaged in a form of lying or deception.   Granted, the deception is not the one that GLAAD is thinking of, but it is, at best, a shaky position.  And the issue is not the right to access public accommodation appropriate to theyr "gender identity," but quite the opposite.  It is about men, who are quite happy as men, getting into women's spaces.


As to the print ad, I grant, it is a bit absurd.  Transgender people don't walk up to urinals like that.  No, they stand to pee in the stalls of women's room.  After all, as I said, forcing  their way into women's rooms is a major part of their agenda, though I do suppose they would welcome forcing women's rooms to include urinals.  But that is a whole new discussion.

A thought....

While looking at yet another round of arguing on yet another pro-transgender blog, I had a thought. A common argument made by the gender fascists is that they outnumber those who are HBS, classic transsexuals, or true transsexuals (note that I do not include "WBT" since that term is quickly becoming associated with the transgender crowd).

Now, that is an interesting argument. I mean, is that not the same argument that has been used to oppress for ages? African-Americans were out numbered by the segregationists in the South...Chinese workers were outnumbered by those who sought to oppress them during the buiding of the Western United States...well, the list could go on and on.

I'm sorry, but who I am is not subject to a majority vote. There may be more "transgender" than those who are classic transsexuals. As a matter of fact, that is exactly the point. HBS or classic transsexualism, is rare. It is not a condition that one simply decides to have. Just because there are fewer of us does not give the gender fascists the right to try to drag us under their umbrella

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.

The Library of Congress Case...

The "transgender" community is thrilled, as well they might be, over the decision handed down by the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in the case of Diane J. Schroer vs. James H. Billington, Librarian of Congress. Unfortunately, while this case represents, at least for the moment, a great victory for the transgender, it has the potential to turn out to be a horrible case for those with Harry Benjamin Syndrome.


First off, the case can, and may very likely will, be overturned on appeal. Schroer's case is not a particularly strong one, and the Library of Congress raised some issues that, while perhaps not valid in fact, are not invalid in principle. That is, the LOC can argue that they were not really acting out of prejudice, but out of genuine concern, and a higher court may well accept that reasoning.


Schroer is a classic example of transgender, not HBS. Schroer had a long and successful career as a male. There is no evidence in Schoer's past to show any signs of HBS, or even of gender identity disorder prior to the decision, rather late in life, to transtion. Schroer is another man who has decided to retire as a woman.

Now, not everyone with HBS will transition early in life. Some will, usually because of family or religion, delay transition. For others, it was simply a lack of resources (30 years ago, it was a lot harder to find a qualified therapist if you lived in much of the country). And in many cases, people might well have been mislead by the information that was available to them at the time. I do believe that 30 years in the future, late transition among those with HBS will be almost unheard of. But one thing that is characteristic of those with HBS who transition late is a lifetime of issues related to their condition. They are likely to have led absolutely miserable lives. Someone who is forced, for whatever reason, to endure life with a brain that is at odds with their body is not going to have had a happy existence. And that unhappiness is going to affect all areas of their life.


Unfortunately, when someone like Schroer comes along, it raises troubling questions about what is really going on. By all accounts, Schroer had an outstanding and successful career in the military. And not just the military, but as a member of the Special Forces, i.e. a Green Beret. This is one of the most elite units of the U.S. Army. It should be noted that women have never been allowed to joint the Special Forces. This is an area of the military that is strictly limited to men. Schoer apparently had no trouble fitting into this group, which is notorious for being hard to join. Currently, those wishing to become Green Berets have to go through three levels of training. The first, includes advanced infantry and Airborne. After that, only 35% make it through the second round, and then only 20% of those make it through the third round. That seems to present pretty good evidence that Schroer was not the least bit troubled by the supposed disconnect between his body and his brain.


And that presents the major problem with this case. Here is a person who clearly made a choice to "become" a woman. There is virtually no hope of actually arguing that Schoer suffers from any sort of medical condition that was present from birth. That means that a discrimination case that could easily negatively impact people with HBS, not because it actually involves an HBS person, but because the transgender activists insist on dragging us under their "umbrella," a case which could, quite easily, make it to the Supreme Court, is based on behavior, not an intrinsic trait. And such a case could easily result in a precedent that discrmination based on the "behavior" of being "transgender." which would be broadly, and incorrectly interpreted, becoming the law of the land.

And this is typical of the transgender mindset. They would rather go down in glorious defeat, taking HBS people with them, than actually make some progress for those they claim to include. It is simply not acceptable that people who have had surgery can change their birth certificates. The law must allow anyone to claim to be a different sex. It isn't good enough if a law prevents people for being fired for what they do on their own time, men must be allowed to show up in dresses when the mood strikes them. They push for the ridiculous, and laws that might actually accomplish some good never make it past the point of being a joke.

Some of the reasons the LOC gave for not hiring Schoer are not remotely legitimate. But when they raised the question of how Schoer's transition might affect the ability to testify before Congress, they brought up a legitimate question. And again, this points up a problem with the transgender mindset. Clearly, Schoer does not really want to be a "woman," but desires to be a transgender person instead. Being in such a public situation, where his past would be a major issue, and would lead to the possibility of regular publicity, would be be horrifying for an HBS person. There would be no chance of being taken seriously as a woman. Why anyone would seek such a situation is beyond me.

But such is the world of the transgender.