I had gender dysphoria from 5yo. Im now 50, never transitioned and still have major gender dysphoria but i've learned to be at peace with it. I'm 100% sure if i saw myself now as a castrated trans woman, i would definitely kill myself. This world went from trans is weird and taboo to if you don't like trans then you are the worst kind of person. In my life all i wanted was to be treated with kindness and love as a trans person and 99% of the time i was treated lovely.
life with gender dysphoria is hell and we should not be promoting it as awesome . Treat others as you would like to be treated solves all our problems
Jun 17, 2023·edited Jun 18, 2023Liked by John Hawkins
This comment does not address the main point of your excellent article, but is directed to the aspect of your article dealing with how much worse it was in the past to be gay — or just known as gay.
I grew up as an adolescent in the 1960s. I remember how back then being publicly known as a homosexual was practically a societal and professional death sentence – even in Hollywood. This made denying one’s nature when asked a practical necessity, because refusing to answer the question “Are you gay?” was taken as a de facto admission. As a result, homosexual boys, girls, men, and women were forced to lie about it.
I’ve always thought the subject of one’s sexual life and desires should be private and one’s own business as long it concerned only consenting adults, and no one should be forced to lie about themselves in order to avoid being persecuted. Being a very obstinate person, I decided to follow the example of the perhaps apocryphal story of the King of Denmark and his aides (and later, most of Copenhagen following his example) of wearing the yellow star the Nazis mandated all Jews wear, thus making it impossible for the Nazis to know just from that star who the Jews were. I thought that if everyone refused to answer that question but said, “That’s my business,” then no one would be forced to lie to protect themselves from ostracism. So I took to never answering that question, and to those who concluded I was gay my attitude was, “I don’t give a futz what you think; you can believe whatever you like.”
I thought perhaps my example might inspire others to do the same, but it didn’t. Now, of course, the situation is very different and homosexuality is proclaimed much more often than it’s denied. But I still don’t answer that question and I still wish more people stood up for their right to privacy in that respect, because I think one's sexuality should be recognized as a private matter. And to anyone who says we have some kind of civic or moral duty to admit homosexuality for some kind of “sexual identity unity” and/or thinks it’s a good thing to “out” homosexuals in furtherance of that end, I say, go futz yourself.
Thanks for writing and re-publishing this article. I hope it reaches those who are considering such life-altering and physical mutilation that can never be undone. If our culture ever comes to its senses this era will be seen for what it is, an abomination against the human spirit and body by forces of evil. Abigail Shirer's book is a must read for parents, teachers, counselors, social workers, psychologists, physicians, and especially those who believe making themselves into an ersatz male or female is a good decision. No, it is one they will regret, and quite possibly will end their life too soon.
I had gender dysphoria from 5yo. Im now 50, never transitioned and still have major gender dysphoria but i've learned to be at peace with it. I'm 100% sure if i saw myself now as a castrated trans woman, i would definitely kill myself. This world went from trans is weird and taboo to if you don't like trans then you are the worst kind of person. In my life all i wanted was to be treated with kindness and love as a trans person and 99% of the time i was treated lovely.
life with gender dysphoria is hell and we should not be promoting it as awesome . Treat others as you would like to be treated solves all our problems
This comment does not address the main point of your excellent article, but is directed to the aspect of your article dealing with how much worse it was in the past to be gay — or just known as gay.
I grew up as an adolescent in the 1960s. I remember how back then being publicly known as a homosexual was practically a societal and professional death sentence – even in Hollywood. This made denying one’s nature when asked a practical necessity, because refusing to answer the question “Are you gay?” was taken as a de facto admission. As a result, homosexual boys, girls, men, and women were forced to lie about it.
I’ve always thought the subject of one’s sexual life and desires should be private and one’s own business as long it concerned only consenting adults, and no one should be forced to lie about themselves in order to avoid being persecuted. Being a very obstinate person, I decided to follow the example of the perhaps apocryphal story of the King of Denmark and his aides (and later, most of Copenhagen following his example) of wearing the yellow star the Nazis mandated all Jews wear, thus making it impossible for the Nazis to know just from that star who the Jews were. I thought that if everyone refused to answer that question but said, “That’s my business,” then no one would be forced to lie to protect themselves from ostracism. So I took to never answering that question, and to those who concluded I was gay my attitude was, “I don’t give a futz what you think; you can believe whatever you like.”
I thought perhaps my example might inspire others to do the same, but it didn’t. Now, of course, the situation is very different and homosexuality is proclaimed much more often than it’s denied. But I still don’t answer that question and I still wish more people stood up for their right to privacy in that respect, because I think one's sexuality should be recognized as a private matter. And to anyone who says we have some kind of civic or moral duty to admit homosexuality for some kind of “sexual identity unity” and/or thinks it’s a good thing to “out” homosexuals in furtherance of that end, I say, go futz yourself.
Thanks for writing and re-publishing this article. I hope it reaches those who are considering such life-altering and physical mutilation that can never be undone. If our culture ever comes to its senses this era will be seen for what it is, an abomination against the human spirit and body by forces of evil. Abigail Shirer's book is a must read for parents, teachers, counselors, social workers, psychologists, physicians, and especially those who believe making themselves into an ersatz male or female is a good decision. No, it is one they will regret, and quite possibly will end their life too soon.