I am a centrist Democrat and a sex-realist gay man who believes that it is unfair and inappropriate for males to compete against females in female-only athletics. Trans girls are boys. Trans women are men.
The fact that males have a natural physiological advantage over women is reason enough to oppose their participation in female-only sports events. Even if that were not the case, they should still be banned. Just because someone defies biology and takes the position that they belong to the other sex does not mean that the rest of us are required to go along with it.
Trans-identified males’ insistence on crashing female sports - and the support they enjoy from cishet male allies - is yet another example of men’s entitled propensity to oppress women.
The Maine legislature’s unconstitutional silencing of a democratically elected representative for having said things trans activists and their allies do not like is typical of how the trans phenomenon has captured institutions. Censorship is the preferred tool in the trans activist tool kit. If our side manages to get a few facts and arguments over the transom, the next trans tactic is to smear the source as “transphobic.” What they almost never do is engage with the substance of the gender critical position.
You raise a good point here that is often overlooked: “your” identity isn’t yours. Every person has the right to see themselves however they want. But everyone also has the right to independently form their own concepts of others; you can’t force your identity into others’ minds. We should defer to people’s self-concept most of the time, but rights must have precedence over identity.
This is all a kind of present madness. The legislature was completely wrong to censure the teacher. At the same time, as one who has been a teacher for over 40 years, I feel the teacher in question should have had enough sense of the present moment to have been far wiser about her post.
As one who has coached both boys and girls in various sports for over thirty years,I think that trans women who transitioned after puberty should not compete in girls sports.
These are two entirely different issues, and should be treated as such. And everyone involved should have paid heed to that old lesson, “He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind”
The result of Libby's post was intense harassment and abuse of the trans athlete and her parents, requiring police protection for them and updated security at the school. I think that your article should at least mention that in passing! You don't think that played any role in the legislature's reaction?
His name is John Rydzewski. Quote "He was nothing special as a male pole-vaulter, as Katie Spencer he is winning championships". He is cheating. The cultural left views cheating as a sacred right. Others do not agree and think that cheating is wrong.
What are you talking about? I, and most of my friends, are culturally left and don’t favor cheating and certainly don’t favor trans women competing in women’s sports.
The sacred 'right' of males to cheat in women's sport is defended, to the bitter end, by many on the left. Let me use one (highly germane) example.
A democratic congressman, Seth Moulton (D-MA) said “I have two girls, I don’t want them getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete, but as a Democrat, I’m supposed to be afraid to say that.” Exactly one Representative (Tom Suozzi D-NY) publicly agreed with him.
Conversely, his campaign manager (Matt Chilliak) resigned. The mayor of Salem, and the Governor of Massachusetts denounced him. There were calls for him to resign. There were public demonstrations against him. The head of the Democratic party in Salem (Liz Bradt) called him a ‘Nazi Cooperator’.
Keeping males out of female sports is also the government’s job. We are lucky that we now have a President that is willing to uphold basic sanity (the vast majority of Democrats agree).
The article is actually about cheating in Maine. No less than the governor has defended cheating.
You're confusing most of the cultural left with politicians. Big mistake. As a long time member of the cultural left, I know.no one supporting men in women's sports.
The pro-trans left controls almost everything. That certainly includes most (but not all) Democratic politicians. However, the pro-trans left also controls almost all of the media. The pro-trans left also controls (de facto) the medical establishment (AFAB/AMAB are scientific nonsense, the pro-trans lobby doesn’t care). The pro-trans left controls the Olympics (ever heard of Imane Khelif? He wasn’t trans but was allowed to compete as a woman because of ‘gender ideology’). How about NGOs? Recently a group of people (Coyne, Dawkins, Pinker) resigned from the board of the FRRF because they (the FRRF) censured a paper titled ‘Biology is not bigotry’.
Males in female sports may be a 20:80 issue with the public (it is). However, it is a 80-20 issue with the elite (obviously excluding Republicans).
I am a centrist Democrat and a sex-realist gay man who believes that it is unfair and inappropriate for males to compete against females in female-only athletics. Trans girls are boys. Trans women are men.
The fact that males have a natural physiological advantage over women is reason enough to oppose their participation in female-only sports events. Even if that were not the case, they should still be banned. Just because someone defies biology and takes the position that they belong to the other sex does not mean that the rest of us are required to go along with it.
Trans-identified males’ insistence on crashing female sports - and the support they enjoy from cishet male allies - is yet another example of men’s entitled propensity to oppress women.
The Maine legislature’s unconstitutional silencing of a democratically elected representative for having said things trans activists and their allies do not like is typical of how the trans phenomenon has captured institutions. Censorship is the preferred tool in the trans activist tool kit. If our side manages to get a few facts and arguments over the transom, the next trans tactic is to smear the source as “transphobic.” What they almost never do is engage with the substance of the gender critical position.
You raise a good point here that is often overlooked: “your” identity isn’t yours. Every person has the right to see themselves however they want. But everyone also has the right to independently form their own concepts of others; you can’t force your identity into others’ minds. We should defer to people’s self-concept most of the time, but rights must have precedence over identity.
I too am a centrist Dem, and I agree with you.
This is all a kind of present madness. The legislature was completely wrong to censure the teacher. At the same time, as one who has been a teacher for over 40 years, I feel the teacher in question should have had enough sense of the present moment to have been far wiser about her post.
As one who has coached both boys and girls in various sports for over thirty years,I think that trans women who transitioned after puberty should not compete in girls sports.
These are two entirely different issues, and should be treated as such. And everyone involved should have paid heed to that old lesson, “He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind”
All of your comment makes good sense to me. I agree.
The result of Libby's post was intense harassment and abuse of the trans athlete and her parents, requiring police protection for them and updated security at the school. I think that your article should at least mention that in passing! You don't think that played any role in the legislature's reaction?
His name is John Rydzewski. Quote "He was nothing special as a male pole-vaulter, as Katie Spencer he is winning championships". He is cheating. The cultural left views cheating as a sacred right. Others do not agree and think that cheating is wrong.
What are you talking about? I, and most of my friends, are culturally left and don’t favor cheating and certainly don’t favor trans women competing in women’s sports.
The sacred 'right' of males to cheat in women's sport is defended, to the bitter end, by many on the left. Let me use one (highly germane) example.
A democratic congressman, Seth Moulton (D-MA) said “I have two girls, I don’t want them getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete, but as a Democrat, I’m supposed to be afraid to say that.” Exactly one Representative (Tom Suozzi D-NY) publicly agreed with him.
Conversely, his campaign manager (Matt Chilliak) resigned. The mayor of Salem, and the Governor of Massachusetts denounced him. There were calls for him to resign. There were public demonstrations against him. The head of the Democratic party in Salem (Liz Bradt) called him a ‘Nazi Cooperator’.
Keeping males out of female sports is also the government’s job. We are lucky that we now have a President that is willing to uphold basic sanity (the vast majority of Democrats agree).
The article is actually about cheating in Maine. No less than the governor has defended cheating.
You're confusing most of the cultural left with politicians. Big mistake. As a long time member of the cultural left, I know.no one supporting men in women's sports.
The pro-trans left controls almost everything. That certainly includes most (but not all) Democratic politicians. However, the pro-trans left also controls almost all of the media. The pro-trans left also controls (de facto) the medical establishment (AFAB/AMAB are scientific nonsense, the pro-trans lobby doesn’t care). The pro-trans left controls the Olympics (ever heard of Imane Khelif? He wasn’t trans but was allowed to compete as a woman because of ‘gender ideology’). How about NGOs? Recently a group of people (Coyne, Dawkins, Pinker) resigned from the board of the FRRF because they (the FRRF) censured a paper titled ‘Biology is not bigotry’.
Males in female sports may be a 20:80 issue with the public (it is). However, it is a 80-20 issue with the elite (obviously excluding Republicans).
Why do you think the "elite" holds those views?
Images of minors? I shall never forget this one from the Vietnam War
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/ba/The_Terror_of_War.jpg