From watching football this weekend, Republicans look like they’re going all-in on the anti-trans rhetoric. I’ve see ads attacking Harris and Colin Allred (Ted Cruz’ opponent) for mandating tax-payer funded transition surgery for minors, requiring drag shows on military bases, forcing high school girls to shower with “biological men,” etc. One ad featured a legless Vietnam vet making these claims. Nice touch.
It would be laughable, but Republicans wouldn’t be making this part of their closing argument if they didn’t think it would work.
I don’t know if they really believe it will work, but it’s all they have: doubling, tripling down on the hate and fear. They are scum, and they will pay probably soon but definitely in time for what they are doing.
Only my own opinion, but I can’t see a trans female (biological male) feeling at all comfortable stripping down in a high school gym locker room. In fact, I don’t see the necessity of such an encounter happening at all. This open showers/changing clothes thing in this day and age is sooo 20th century. If I can remember back to the good old days, no teenage girl enjoyed having to display her body in front of a bunch of classmates. As for showering–no, no, no. In fact, I see no reason why they should have to in this day and age. Individual showers like at a YMCA locker room plus changing stalls would be appreciated by all concerned, and I don’t see why the high school people haven’t implemented such. I can’t conceive of any trans–or straight–person feeling anything other than great embarrassment over this whole process.
It feels to me like they have, for the most part, given up on trying to broaden Trump’s appeal, and instead are pushing for turnout among those who have already bought into his fearmongering.
Yeah, even back in the 1980s, I never showered after gym class, and there were a handful of us boys who did not. It just seemed ridiculous to me (I never got that sweaty and never wanted to shower with others).
I’m a member of my local YMCA, though I haven’t been there since COVID. They have communal showers, and I certainly saw guys showering after workouts there, though I don’t think I ever saw a guy under the age of 60 doing so – which probably maps strongly to people who grew up doing so in gym class in high school.
Referring to the female side of the YMCA locker rooms. The ones I go to have individual showers (just a stall and a curtain) with some individual changing rooms. Nothing fancy.
It’s not a coincidence these ads are running during football. I’m not saying these attitudes are representative of football fans, but if you’re trying to reach those that may be receptive to this message broadcast football is one of your best bets.
My favorite is the one about “Texas girls” and sports, showing various young girls participating in sports. Then it blasts Colin Allred for voting against the Texas bill that bans “men from women’s sports”. They illustrate this by having a ten girl in a flag football game get totally flattened by some hulking behemoth in a Blue jersey with Allred on the back.
Wait, Allred didn’t vote to let men compete in little girl’s sports. But that’s how I reword their commercial.
Heck, back in the 20th century, my gym classes in Jr high had already given up on showering. Some of us lads were starting to get a little gamy after class, too.
I hear this all the time but I don’t believe it. For countless times over the past decade and a half, I’ve heard from the right (and occasionally the left) how Unacceptable Political Event XYZ is going to lead to revolt, revolution, civil war, etc. And it never happens. Even January-6 was a bunch of scattered insurrectionists who never stood the slightest chance of overturning the election outcome. They could cause damage to a building and some physical injury, but made not the slightest whit of difference in determining who was taking the oath of office on the Capitol steps on Jan-20.
There is a tremendous personal cost to getting off the couch and going out to revolt - risking imprisonment or death. There is far lower personal cost in sitting on the couch and keeping one’s head low and just accepting it and moving on. 99.9% of people who say “this means revolution!” won’t actually do it.
So no, I don’t believe that a Trump reelection would lead to a revolution.
I’ll make a thread about it if Trump were to win (which, I firmly believe, he will not). It’s an interesting topic but there is no use putting the energy into it if dude is done.
I believe people are more likely to get out and vote if they believe there’s a chance their candidate might lose. A +5% margin is enough to make some people stay home.