Opinion/Streetalk

This ModeRn WoRld by tom tomorrow

Think about it

Legislators have difficulty with transgender issues. We understand. Human minds are pattern recognizers, much more than they are analytical machines. For those who’ve never been closely associated with a person who looked like a boy, but who understood their own identity to be a girl, the idea of this violates the patterns they’ve known all their lives. It violates their own sense of self.

We ask legislators to look a little deeper into themselves to recognize the truth of this. For many, their only association with transgender and transsexual people is through pornography. The fact is, for most people, the vast bulk of naked bodies we see of any people is through pornography, so we judge everyone by those patterns we see.

We shouldn’t dismiss this hard fact just because it says negative things about our society. We need to step outside your own prejudices and recognize the truth of it.

Just as most people who aren’t transsexuals or transgender don’t publish photos of themselves naked, neither do people who are.

It’s the majority of society that objectifies transsexuals and transgender people, just as it fetishizes or objectifies women or large penises or shoes.

All trans people have lives. They shop for groceries, have families, go to church, go to school, read books, watch TV. Like the rest of us, they’re sexual when they’re sexual, and they live nonsexual lives the rest of the time.

There’s no debating the fact that sexuality isn’t as simple as innies and outies or Xs and Ys. Genetic science has proven beyond any doubt that sexuality and gender is a spectrum that includes any possible permutation. We’re born with our chromosomes. Some of our sexual and gender identities are set at the moment of conception. Some change as internal and external factors within our lives change. But the idea that someone would lie about how they feel about their identity—unless forced to by someone or an agency more powerful—just doesn’t make sense. Where’s the Trans people benefit? None of this is threatening. shop, have There’s not even that much to debate on the topic. Liberals would say families, have people should accept other people lives. because it’s the right thing to do. Conservatives would say government should stay out of people’s lives because it’s the right thing to do. So when people who haven’t been taught how to open their minds make decisions to attack the identities of other people’s children—to attack children—because they’re simply unable to logic out how someone can walk like a woman but talk like a man, they deserve a certain amount of sympathy. It’s more often ignorance than stupidity that makes them act intolerantly toward others. But while we must be sympathetic to ignorance, while striving to inform, human beings of conscience can’t be tolerant of intolerance. We need to stand up for those children and men and women who are routinely crushed by ignorance. Ω

Will you participate in Earth Day?

Asked at Java Jungle, 246 W. First St.

Robert Molina

Barista My girlfriend is making our plans. I think we’re going to the city event. She’s the one who keeps tracks of these things.

Mike Zuckerman

Retiree No, but I live a lifestyle that is worthy of Earth Day. I don’t own a car. I ride a bicycle. I’m a vegetarian. So I’m kind of an Earth Day guy all year long.

Luke Nyhammer

Bartender I’ll be bartending that day. Last year I went down to Idlewild for the celebration. I kind of wandered around and enjoyed the people there.

Bob Wildman

Clinical psychologist Yes, if there are local activities, I would enjoy participating. Certainly, I support green causes. I believe in global warming.

Paul George

Copywriter I won’t do any fracking that day. I’ll avoid littering. Yes, if there’s something going on in town, I’ll check it out.