Understanding transgenderism.

[Anomalocaris]

Let's not call it an 'ism'.  Peoples identities can't and shouldn't be reduced to a condition.  I doubt anyone intentionally used it that way, but it's a word that's become so entrenched in our vernacular by anti-trans folks that people don't give it much thought when they use it.  

People will say "Being transgender is a choice."  It's not.  Science shows that it's not.  Male and Female brains have different structures, and transgender brains more closely resemble the brain of the gender they identify with.  Of course, that doesn't matter to the people who claim that transgender is a choice.  Because the truth is they aren't interested in the science.  They aren't interested in anything, other than their own pre-concieved opinion based on their religious beliefs.  

Being transgender isn't a choice.  But being a Bigot is.  People are going to choose to be bigots because they need someone to hate and look down on because they're worthless excuses for human beings, and they need it to validate themselves.

It is too easy to misuse scientific factoids.     Biological Science does not say social convention about gender has to follow brain structure.     What social science say is unclear.     People who claim transgender is a choice is not explicitly denying self-identification of gender may have a strong basis in underlying brain structure.   What they are claiming is self-identity is not important to social identity, and social identity is a sort of duty that one might chose to carry out or shirk, but which is damaging to the society for people to shirk and therefore a dutiful person would not shirk it.

My opinion is continuing to impose the tradition social identify of gender in defiance of self-identity does not bring wider social benefit commensurate with the cost imposed on those with a transgender self identity.    Therefore the effort should stop.    

But I certainly don’t think it is as clear and open and shut case as some people think.     I think in the long run, intellectual honesty of a society is degraded by pretending what is debatable to be clear cut merely in the name of a good cause.    Pulling a fast one for a good cause is no different from lying for jesus.   A few good causes is not worth the degradation of intellectual honesty.

When a hood cause is advanced on the back of intellectual laxity, it gives cover to all those seeking to advance bad causes through duplicity.