Is being Trans a choice?

[Morrison71]

I am pretty sure I already know how this will go. It blows my mind so many people think this or that being trans is a mental disorder. How can people have rights, if we as a society don’t even acknowledge their existence?

You know would help with trans athletes, is if they could not go through puberty as the wrong gender. If they could get on hormone therapy early. But how can they do that, when the majority of people just think they are a bunch of loons?

 

[Huey Grey]

Trans bashing has nothing to do with athletics. It has everything to do with open bigotry because some people don't want trans people to exist. Hell, vased on yesterday's SCOTUS hearing some Republican Senators don't want gay people to exist either.

 

[FAUlty Gator]

We should ask this lady, if she has chosen it after 50 years of being a man and fathering three kids. Or maybe ask those closest to her if she's mentally ill. I best you get a bunch of different answers.

 

[abby97]

I will say this again, one can choose to live their lives in any way they see fit. However, don't you dare tell everyone else they must make accommodations for your personal life choices. Everyone has a right to live their lives as they see fit, not just you. (referencing the transgender community)

If women feels uncomfortable using the restroom with a trans women, then the trans woman needs to go elsewhere. Transwomen post puberty should not be allowed to participate in girls sports because they are not physically equal. A trans person has no right to alter the lives of others due to their personal choices. Everyone has equal rights.

 

[NCHawk5]

I will say this again, one can choose to live their lives in any way they see fit. However, don't you dare tell everyone else they must make accommodations for your personal life choices. Everyone has a right to live their lives as they see fit, not just you. (referencing the transgender community)

If women feels uncomfortable using the restroom with a trans women, then the trans woman needs to go elsewhere. Transwomen post puberty should not be allowed to participate in girls sports because they are not physically equal. A trans person has no right to alter the lives of others due to their personal choices. Everyone has equal rights.

Exactly. Demanding others to participate in their fantasies is ridiculous. You can play dress up all you want but the world shouldn’t be obligated to join in on the game.

 

[red/green hawk]

Bulemics and anorexics identify as fat people.

 

[Ray Kinsella]

So you're positions are:
1. Transgenderism is not a mental disorder
2. Anyone who thinks it might be is a heartless asshole

Is the science settled on this, or are we allowed to entertain the possibility that mental issues might contribute to someone not identifying with one's biological sex? Is it so outrageous to think that a mental disorder might be a factor? It's a pretty rare thing; it's not like 20% of the population experiences this.

Do you acknowledge that mental disorders exist, that there are people that have mental disorders? If so, does that mean you hate people with mental disorders, or do you treat them with compassion? I'm sure it's the latter, right?

For those of us who are still not convinced that transgenderism isn't a mental disorder, it doesn't mean that we don't have compassion or think that they should be treated less than others. And I think it's a worthy endeavor to learn whether or not there are underlying issues going on and whether or not they can be addressed, particularly in children, before they make life altering decisions.

This is not an unreasonable position, whether you agree with it or not. That's what I don't get about you, that you can't seem to even fathom why someone might disagree with your beliefs.

 

[binsfeldcyhawk2]

We should ask this lady, if she has chosen it after 50 years of being a man and fathering three kids. Or maybe ask those closest to her if she's mentally ill. I best you get a bunch of different answers.

View embedded media

That activist looks like Michael Moore...

 

[HawkeyeShawn]

Asking whether it’s a choice or not does not equal mean that they have no rights or that their existence isn’t acknowledged.

I don‘t believe having mixed feelings about your gender isn’t a choice. However, making the decision to Trans is most definitely a choice. I also think making a medical decision as impactful as this before the age of 18 should involve the parents and their physician. How I feel and think though, has no bearing on what the choices of an individual should be.

 

[FAUlty Gator]

Trans bashing has nothing to do with athletics. It has everything to do with open bigotry because some people don't want trans people to exist. Hell, vased on yesterday's SCOTUS hearing some Republican Senators don't want gay people to exist either.

Just because you equate "not changing everything we know about biology overnight to fit your new definitions" to "not wanting something to exist", doesn't mean that's the way of things.

 

[Huey Grey]

Just because you equate "not changing everything we know about biology overnight to fit your new definitions" to "not wanting something to exist", doesn't mean that's the way of things.

What rich bullshit is this? There is no strict binary biology. Mother Nature gives no shits about black and white binary biology. She creates grey everyday.

 

[BrunoMars420]

#CultureWars

 

[FAUlty Gator]

What rich bullshit is this? There is no strict binary biology. Mother Nature gives no shits about black and white binary biology. She creates grey everyday.

The 50 year old father of three says she needs tampons and other feminine products for her non-vagina and non-existent reproductive organs. Just because I correctly point out how goddamned ridiculous that is, doesn't mean I don't think she exists.

 

[Huey Grey]

The 50 year old father of three says she needs tampons and other feminine products for her non-vagina and non-existent reproductive organs. Just because I correctly point out how goddamned ridiculous that is, doesn't mean I don't think she exists.

Even if this is true, who cares? If it helps somebody transition how much of an orgre are you that you would begrudge them a friggin tampon?

Let them live their lives. That is the only proper response here.

 

[gohawks50]

The 50 year old father of three says she needs tampons and other feminine products for her non-vagina and non-existent reproductive organs. Just because I correctly point out how goddamned ridiculous that is, doesn't mean I don't think she exists.

The first rule of being a journalist is that our job is to witness news, not make news. I did not get credentialed to cover the NCAA D1 Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships in Atlanta with the aim of becoming one of the stories. My only mission was to report on the success or failure of out transgender swimmers Lia Thomas and Iszac Henig.

Like Thomas, I am a woman who also happens to be trans. My pronouns are she/her/hers. But to anti-trans inclusion groups like Save Women’s Sports and the U.K. based organization, Standing for Women, I am a “biological male” which is a phrase meant to imply that I am not who I say I am. To them, I am a man.

That became quite clear while I was doing my job as a reporter, when one British activist started asking me questions during an interview. My off-the-cuff answers—some of which were admittedly inelegant, abstractly metaphorical and definitely not my best choice of words—resulted in shouting, screaming, in-your-face misgendering and bullying. Somehow, I managed to keep my composure, but I will confess, I am still shaking from this. I didn’t show it, but they succeeded in scaring me in a way I haven’t felt since being surrounded by bullies in grade school.

This is the full account of what transpired, a portion of which was posted to Instagram by Kellie-Jay Keen (@theposieparker) and shared across social media. You can also listen to the unedited raw audio recording that I uploaded to YouTube.

At the conclusion of swimming finals on Saturday evening, I approached Beth Stelzer, founder of the Save Women’s Sports group, who was assembling her fellow activists in the hall outside the McAuley Aquatics Center on the Georgia Tech Campus. I had interviewed her and others from her group earlier in the week, and although we stand apart on the issue of transgender inclusion in sports, we had been civil to one another, and respected what each of us came here to do.

That all changed in just over six minutes.

Keen wanted to know if I used “women’s spaces” here in Atlanta. My answer, over and over, was, “I’m a woman.” I don’t claim to be the same as a cisgender woman, but there are many ways to be a woman, and I identify as one who’s trans.
With her phone camera pointed up at me, the petite Brit then proceeded to lecture me on why I should not be using “women’s spaces” like bathrooms and changing rooms and locker rooms.

As she pressed on, I asked Stelzer, “Would you call off your dog?”

That was unfortunate on my part, because although the metaphor might have felt apt, it only increased the tension in the air.

All hell broke loose when I used the word “mom” to describe myself.

“How dare you!” Keen responded. Immediately, I was surrounded, screamed at, had more cameras and fingers pointed in my face, and bullied for identifying both as a woman and as a mom.

“You’re not a mother!” Stelzer screeched. “You never birthed your children, Dawn!” She stepped closer, so that she was inches from my face with Keen so close to my body that her video shows only the UChicago logo over the shape of my breasts under my pullover hoodie.

I tried to explain that while I am not my children’s birth mother, I consider myself a mom because I do the job of mom, raising my three children alone.

That’s when the father of a Cal swimmer, who identified himself as Matthew, also joined the fray.
“Did you have a period?” I asked him why he was so intent in asking questions about menstruation. Not all women do, I told him, and they’re still women.

He went on to tell me, “I have nothing against Lia as a person. I just think competing in this arena is not the right thing to do,” Matthew said.

Fortunately, there was no violence and Georgia Tech security was present for most of the confrontation. A security official eventually intervened and escorted the activists outside, where I’ve learned there was a subsequent angry squabble among them that was described by one witness as “a spectacle.”

Keen shared a 2-minute video of the confrontation with her 11.5 million followers on Instagram, and as of press time it has more than 7K views. That same video has been shared nearly 200 times and attracted hundreds of comments on Standing for Women’s Facebook page. At least on Facebook, the group got my name right; Keen deadnamed me on Instagram, and also identified me as being from “Outsports” even though I haven’t been with the company since May 2021.

My hope in sharing this is not to defend myself or give these activists more attention, but to give everyone some perspective on what it’s like to be bullied for being who I am when I’m merely doing my job.

Since this morning, I have been communicating privately with Beth Stelzer and we both regret that this interaction escalated as it did, and we hope we can find a way to have more productive, less confrontational and mutually respectful engagements in the future.

TERFs challenge reporter’s gender at NCAA Women’s Championship

The full story of what happened when 10 members of two anti-transgender groups and a swimmer’s dad confronted me in Atlanta

www.losangelesblade.com

 

[FAUlty Gator]

Even if this is true, who cares? If it helps somebody transition how much of an orgre are you that you would begrudge them a friggin tampon?

Let them live their lives. That is the only proper response here.

There it is. I'm not begrudging anyone. I'm just not going to adopt the belief that she can get pregnant and have a period because she wants it to be true. But I'm not going to stop her from believing it.

Why are you begrudging me on that point? I've been using her preferred pronoun the entire time in this thread, haven't I? But that's not enough for you. You want me to take what I know to be true about reproduction, sex organs and biological sex and act as if it's all a fake, so this person, who I will never meet, can be put at ease in her imaginary beliefs.

I'll support her in her right to be who she wants to be and her right to believe what she wants, but I'm not gonna go there with her. And if you think that means, "I don't believe she exists", well, that's on you. You're wrong.

 

[whatsup13579er]

I think we need to invest a lot more into mental health in this country.

 

[SoonerBeAHawk]

Even if this is true, who cares? If it helps somebody transition how much of an orgre are you that you would begrudge them a friggin tampon?

Let them live their lives. That is the only proper response here.

Just a thought ... maybe the people who she should be most committed to, her three children.

Don't know their ages but they could be ok with it. Otoh, that's a helluva rug to pull out from under them (and place on Mommy#2's head). They very well could be horrified or just very, very confused.

 

[Rudolph]

Just because you equate "not changing everything we know about biology overnight to fit your new definitions" to "not wanting something to exist", doesn't mean that's the way of things.

*sigh

 

[gohawks50]

Just a thought ... maybe the people who she should be most committed to, her three children.

Don't know their ages but they could be ok with it. Otoh, that's a helluva rug to pull out from under them (and place on Mommy#2's head). They very well could be horrified or just very, very confused.

Listen to the unedited version of the incident in the tweet.

 

[Rudolph]

There it is. I'm not begrudging anyone. I'm just not going to adopt the belief that she can get pregnant and have a period because she wants it to be true. But I'm not going to stop her from believing it.

Why are you begrudging me on that point? I've been using her preferred pronoun the entire time in this thread, haven't I? But that's not enough for you. You want me to take what I know to be true about reproduction, sex organs and biological sex and act as if it's all a fake, so this person, who I will never meet, can be put at ease in her imaginary beliefs.

I'll support her in her right to be who she wants to be and her right to believe what she wants, but I'm not gonna go there with her. And if you think that means, "I don't believe she exists", well, that's on you. You're wrong.

Lol. Unreal.

 

[Ray Kinsella]

*sigh

Lol. Unreal.

Thanks for contributing to the conversation with your great insights, Rudolph. I'll have to take into consideration all your points.

 

[tWarnerHawk]

• Gender dysphoria or gender identity disorder are mental health conditions for which gender reassignment is a treatment for. Some people choose not to transition and may be able to resolve their distress through other methods of therapy.
• A lot of mental health diagnoses need more study for better understanding.
• Many people (some professionals and most non-professionals) don't understand mental illness in general and make up their opinions based on myths or feelings.

 

[the24fan]

I have no doubt there is a certain small percentage of actual mental health issues on this particular issue. However, there can be no doubt that we live in an attention seeking society where people will go to outrageous means to seek out that attention. So what I'm saying is I absolutely think a large majority are doing it just to get to get people to look at or talk about them.
Rip me if you want but that's how I see it.

 

[SoonerBeAHawk]

Listen to the unedited version of the incident in the tweet.

View embedded media

What was I supposed to take away from that other than Dawn Penis (Ennis, sorry couldn't resist) believes she menstruated around lunch time?

 

[Hawkeyenuts66]

Voted No, I don't believe anyone chooses to be mentally ill.

 

[Rudolph]

Thanks for contributing to the conversation with your great insights, Rudolph. I'll have to take into consideration all your points.

Oh fùck off. This shit’s been covered plenty already.

Here are my insights. First, biology evolves. And there’s more to gender and sex stuff than just the penis/vagina biology. Reducing the complexity of all this stuff to that is lazy and convenient, and conveniently lazy. A little study into how we’ve been fùcking with the human endocrine system might surprise some folks.

Second, the idea that a woman is only a woman based solely on reproductive capability is also lazy and convenient and conveniently lazy. There are social constructs, too. And then, well, some humans born with a vagina are never able to reproduce. Myriad reasons. Same with humans born with a penis.

I have to laugh because it’s not hard for people to understand some of this. Straight men, I ask you. Did you CHOOSE to be a straight man, identifying as society generally identifies men? I suspect not. It just was, and is. You knew nothing else.

My brother is gay. Not by choice. I have a trans friend. It’s not a choice.

Pretty much everything about society reinforces gender identity and sexuality things for straight born-with-a-penis men and born-with-a-vagina women. Try to imagine if it didn’t. We are bombarded all day everyday with environmental information that helps frame our world and how we see ourselves in it, including gender identity and sexuality stuff. It’s a relative privilege to “fit” easily. I enjoy it. Most of us do. It’s complex, but not hard. It’s easy to recognize and respect the complexity, and reserve space for it.

 

[ClarindaA's]

Team #trans is what is going to keep Democrats losing elections….unhitch that trailer from the Democratic convoy and you start winning

 

[Rudolph]

Voted No, I don't believe anyone chooses to be mentally ill.

Though you have apparently chosen to appear challenged.

 

[ICWestfan]

Even if this is true, who cares? If it helps somebody transition how much of an orgre are you that you would begrudge them a friggin tampon?

Let them live their lives. That is the only proper response here.

I agree. She may need hormone therapy when she hits menopause.

 

[the24fan]

Oh fùck off. This shit’s been covered plenty already.

Here are my insights. First, biology evolves. And there’s more to gender and sex stuff than just the penis/vagina biology. Reducing the complexity of all this stuff to that is lazy and convenient, and conveniently lazy. A little study into how we’ve been fùcking with the human endocrine system might surprise some folks.

Second, the idea that a woman is only a woman based solely on reproductive capability is also lazy and convenient and conveniently lazy. There are social constructs, too. And then, well, some humans born with a vagina are never able to reproduce. Myriad reasons. Same with humans born with a penis.

I have to laugh because it’s not hard for people to understand some of this. Straight men, I ask you. Did you CHOOSE to be a straight man, identifying as society generally identifies men? I suspect not. It just was, and is. You knew nothing else.

My brother is gay. Not by choice. I have a trans friend. It’s not a choice.

Pretty much everything about society reinforces gender identity and sexuality things for straight born-with-a-penis men and born-with-a-vagina women. Try to imagine if it didn’t. We are bombarded all day everyday with environmental information that helps frame our world and how we see ourselves in it, including gender identity and sexuality stuff. It’s a relative privilege to “fit” easily. I enjoy it. Most of us do. It’s complex, but not hard. It’s easy to recognize and respect the complexity, and reserve space for it.

i'm not saying there isn't room for biology in some situations. All I'm arguing is I think a large percentage are attention seekers.
In an age of tik tok and twitter is it really a stretch to believe some people will go to outrageous lengths to be popular or to get attention for themselves?

 

[gohawks50]

What was I supposed to take away from that other than Dawn Penis (Ennis, sorry couldn't resist) believes she menstruated around lunch time?

You obviously didn't listen to the recording.

 

[Rudolph]

i'm not saying there isn't room for biology in some situations. All I'm arguing is I think a large percentage are attention seekers.
In an age of tik tok and twitter is it really a stretch to believe some people will go to outrageous lengths to be popular or to get attention for themselves?

No offense, but fück off with this abject stupidity. THINK. This is prejudice in action, brother. EVERYBODY TIKTOKING IS ATTENTION-SEEKING!!!!!

And yet, this is how you conveniently lazily stupidly decide to judge a varied and diverse group of people.

SMH.

 

[the24fan]

No offense, but fück off with this abject stupidity. THINK. This is prejudice in action, brother. EVERYBODY TIKTOKING IS ATTENTION-SEEKING!!!!!

And yet, this is how you conveniently lazily stupidly decide to judge a varied and diverse group of people.

SMH.

Sorry man....I won't apologize for my stand on it.
and I am not the judge. I'm simply saying I believe a large majority of this is by choice. I'm not ruling out the actual biology of some of those cases, but you cannot tell me lots of people don't do it for attention. All you have to do is look around you man.....its become an all about me world. I truly believe there are those who will go to these extreme lengths to get it.....we will have to agree to disagree. I won't however resort to telling you to f' off.....

 

[SoonerBeAHawk]

You obviously didn't listen to the recording.

Actually it's quite obvious I did because of the detail - period thingy - I picked up on in the longer "recording" that's not in the first.

C'mon, kindly get to your point.

 

[Rudolph]

Sorry man....I won't apologize for my stand on it.
and I am not the judge. I'm simply saying I believe a large majority of this is by choice. I'm not ruling out the actual biology of some of those cases, but you cannot tell me lots of people don't do it for attention. All you have to do is look around you man.....its become an all about me world. I truly believe there are those who will go to these extreme lengths to get it.....we will have to agree to disagree. I won't however resort to telling you to f' off.....

Based on tik tok. And simple, lazy ignorance. But you got your pride, so you’re good.

Stay proud.

 

[the24fan]

Based on tik tok. And simple, lazy ignorance. But you got your pride, so you’re good.

Stay proud.

It's not about pride.
It's absolutely about looking around and recognizing how the world has become.
If you can't see that people have become self centered and absorbed in how others see them I don't know what to tell you. I see it everywhere.
This issue is no different.
As I said I am not the judge. I refuse to do that. I'm sure there are actual mental and/or biological reasons. However you're unwilling to accept that a large percentage of this trend is by choice.
Who's the stubborn and ignorant one now?

 

[artradley]

I am pretty sure I already know how this will go. It blows my mind so many people think this or that being trans is a mental disorder. How can people have rights, if we as a society don’t even acknowledge their existence?

You know would help with trans athletes, is if they could not go through puberty as the wrong gender. If they could get on hormone therapy early. But how can they do that, when the majority of people just think they are a bunch of loons?

How can somebody be the "wrong gender?"

As I've always argued, gender is a social construct, not a natural fact. If a biological male feels more comfortable wearing dresses, then by all means wear dresses. If they want to change their name to Mary and they want me to refer to them as "she", that is fine.

But it is liberals who claim they have a mental health issue. I think Lia Thomas is a dude who feels more comfortable dressing and behaving in a manner we usually associate with women. So we can now refer to "her" as "her" in order to be polite and accepting. I think that should be the end of it.

Liberals, however, claim she suffers from "gender dysphoria" which requires treatment.

 

[Huey Grey]

It's not about pride.
It's absolutely about looking around and recognizing how the world has become.
If you can't see that people have become self centered and absorbed in how others see them I don't know what to tell you. I see it everywhere.
This issue is no different.
As I said I am not the judge. I refuse to do that. I'm sure there are actual mental and/or biological reasons. However you're unwilling to accept that a large percentage of this trend is by choice.
Who's the stubborn and ignorant one now?

So self absorbed that people think they can tell people how to live their own lives.

 

[FAUlty Gator]

Oh fùck off. This shit’s been covered plenty already.

Here are my insights. First, biology evolves. And there’s more to gender and sex stuff than just the penis/vagina biology. Reducing the complexity of all this stuff to that is lazy and convenient, and conveniently lazy. A little study into how we’ve been fùcking with the human endocrine system might surprise some folks.

Second, the idea that a woman is only a woman based solely on reproductive capability is also lazy and convenient and conveniently lazy. There are social constructs, too. And then, well, some humans born with a vagina are never able to reproduce. Myriad reasons. Same with humans born with a penis.

I have to laugh because it’s not hard for people to understand some of this. Straight men, I ask you. Did you CHOOSE to be a straight man, identifying as society generally identifies men? I suspect not. It just was, and is. You knew nothing else.

My brother is gay. Not by choice. I have a trans friend. It’s not a choice.

Pretty much everything about society reinforces gender identity and sexuality things for straight born-with-a-penis men and born-with-a-vagina women. Try to imagine if it didn’t. We are bombarded all day everyday with environmental information that helps frame our world and how we see ourselves in it, including gender identity and sexuality stuff. It’s a relative privilege to “fit” easily. I enjoy it. Most of us do. It’s complex, but not hard. It’s easy to recognize and respect the complexity, and reserve space for it.

Yeah great. What does putting a wig on and saying you suddenly need tampons after fathering three children and being a man for 50 years have to do with any of the shit you mentioned?

For someone who always swears things are more complex than they seem, you have zero grasp of nuance when it comes what makes someone a "transphobe" or "not accepting the existence" of someone. And once again, the fact you choose to overlook those absolutely ludicrous statements of Huey's to get to the points I made, shows just how much objectivity you have. Or, is this another one filed under the "He didn't really mean exactly what he said" category?