Dr. V's magical putter

I think YF's larger point will be realized the next time someone with an (R) next to his/her name says something that is deemed to be insensitive.

 

To each other? I'm not sure they'd want to, but sure.

 

The reason the trans community is upset at Caleb, Grantland, and the big sportwriters in the sky who defended them, have nothing to do with whether or not they support insurance coverage for gender reassignment. (In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if some of the folks who are defending Caleb/Grantland's actions would be in favor of that.)

The issue is that he outed her, and acted like the very existence of a trans woman was wild, and "mysterious". He also treated her gender identity as a lie, and part of a con.

Further, not all trans have gender reassignment surgery. It's about the gender you associate with, live as, and project to the rest of the world. For example, I don't believe Islan Nettles had gender reassignment surgery, nor did Mike Penner.

 

Yeah, I don't care about the story that much. But you've raised this issue several times, that liberal journalists are hypocritical for not drawing attention to trans-gender rights with the same fervor as they draw attention to gay rights. And I'm just saying that I don't find it at all hypocritical.

 

In all fairness, the transgender community makes up .3 percent of the adult population in the U.S.

It is exceedingly rare, and thus will spark more curiosity than just about anything else.

 

What I've said is that in the aftermath of events like the murder of Matthew Shepard or the suicide of Tyler Clementi, the media ask us to consider what we, as a society have done to contribute to these deaths, and ask us to have a "national conversation" about the issues they raise.

The media will even write a narrative that is not necessarily based on the facts in order to shape the conversation.

And, we look at the local factors that contribute to the hatred/insensitivity shown towards Shepard and Clementi. What was it about their family, their region, their church that made them this way.

Yet, when Islan Nettles is murdered, strictly for being trans, we are not asked to have a national conversation. We are not asked what is wrong in Harlem, or in the African-American community that led to her murder, and that makes it unsafe for trans women.

And, that is a double standard.

 

Did Caleb treat her gender identity as freakish, as gross?

Simmons doesn't think so, but in retrospect, he can see how others might read the story that way:

Suddenly, a line like “a chill ran down my spine” — which I had always interpreted as “Jesus, this story is getting stranger?” (Caleb’s intent, by the way) — now read like, “Ew, gross, she used to be a man?”

If it can be read as "Ew, gross" -- and it can -- then why an I supposed to believe Simmons' contention that Caleb didn't mean it that way?

Intentions or not, it does read as, "Ew, gross" and Caleb hasn't come forward to say anything different.

 

Rebranding the GOP one issue at a time, YankeeFan has outflanked the liberal media on the transgender issue, brazenly attempting to take the "T" away from the Democrats who took for granted the entire LGBT community.

 

Yeah, that's fair.

My thoughts on the Tyler Clementi sensationalism are well-established here.

 

Fighting for every vote! That 0.3% of the electorate could be crucial.

We're going to flip Harlem. Suck it!

But, in all reality, it's not about politics, and certainly not about partisan politics. People are reflexive. They think they "support LGBT issues" but aren't even familiar with them.

Folks who would have never published an article in which the author outs a gay person to an investor, saw no problem with what Caleb did.

And, Caleb's supporters didn't want to listen to the other side of the argument. Instead, they got defensive, and couldn't understand why the trans community didn't want to hear their arguments.

 

YF has a better grasp of liberal viewpoints than a lot of board liberals, to be honest. Sometimes, he's even more sensitive to them than board liberals. (An example I can remember is the blow-up over whether lotteries are effective taxes on the poor, where YF was arguing that they were, while some board liberals angrily marched under the banner of "personal responsibility.")

 

Family seeks justice for Islan Nettles on Transgender Day of Remembrance

Justice for Islan Nettles, murdered in a hate crime

Chelsea Manning, Islan Nettles and the Struggle for Trans Survival

Islan Nettles' Murder and the Shameful (Non-)Response of LGBs

Embarking on a New Life, Transgender Woman Has It Brutally Taken