# Republicans' war on transgender people: Omnibus thread **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 3, 2022, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609 "2022-06-03T02:20:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2022, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/121 "2022-06-05T06:19:24Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > I was inferring she meant all hormone related therapies by the term “puberty blockers”. I would guess As you are flat-out stating that you don’t really know what you’re talking about, maybe you could shut the fuck up for a while and try to learn something instead of posting these gigantic multi-paragraph posts full of empty, uninformed speculation. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2022, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/122 "2022-06-05T09:29:39Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > I was inferring she meant all hormone related therapies by the term “puberty blockers”. I would guess that puberty blockers alone without associated hormone therapy would be uncommon as a trans therapy. I thought puberty blockers generally went hand-in-hand with hormone therapy. You thought wrong. “Puberty blockers” are JUST the blockers, no additional hormones. That’s it. Start to finish. “Hormone replacement therapy” is to establish the hormone profile of the person’s identified gender. It _may or may not_ include medication to block specific hormones _in conjunction with_ hormones like estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, etc. If a trans person’s original gonads are removed then there is no need for a blocker, just the replacement hormones. > [@filmore](#): > > As DeSantis is trying to block both puberty blockers and hormone therapies, Keep in mind, DeSantis is not just trying to get rid of puberty blockers for kids, he’s trying to get rid of hormone replacement therapy _for adults_. Which, for at least some of the trans community, are essential to their long term health and well being on just a basic, physical level. > [@filmore](#): > > I think the term “reversible” is technically fine, but it’s not going to be the case that all the differences brought on by puberty and hormone therapies are reversible. One more time, please - _blockers do NOT cause changes_. That is the _point_ of blocker therapies, to _prevent_ permanent changes. > [@filmore](#): > > If there’s a set of identical twins and one has trans therapies and one doesn’t, I would assume that there were continue to be marked difference even if the trans twin stopped therapies. It’s not reversible in that the twins would once again be as identical as if one never did therapy First - the primary difference between two identical twins where one is give a puberty blocker and the other is not and that alone would be that (obviously) one twin would go through puberty sooner than the other, and the one that went through it later would probably be an inch or two taller. They’d still look like twins. There are a lot of things that can result in identical twins looking different from each other (kidney disease is one, because it can stunt growth, although identical twins have a superpower the rest of us don’t - a health twin can donate an organ to their twin and the recipient will need no anti-rejection medication at all, ever). So what? Plenty of identical twins take steps to look LESS alike. It’s no big deal. > [@filmore](#): > > There are some treatments trans kids do that are irreversible, like breast reduction. Except it is HIGHLY unlikely that would be done on a minor, and if the kid is on puberty blockers that surgery can be entirely avoided - and if when adult the kid decides NOT to transition then if the blockers are stopped normal breast develop occurs, again, _without_ the need for surgery. Which is why banning the blockers is stupid. Unless, of course, you don’t mind inflicting pain and suffering on people or maybe that’s the point of it all. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2022, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/123 "2022-06-05T12:12:07Z")
I’m an ally of trans people. I will answer your uninformed or disingenuous questions. > [@filmore](#): > > I was inferring she meant all hormone related therapies by the term “puberty blockers”. I would guess that puberty blockers alone without associated hormone therapy would be uncommon as a trans therapy. Then you thought wrong. The point of giving puberty blockers to kids is to buy them more time before making big irreversible changes to their bodies. You know, like puberty. The effects of puberty are extremely hard to reverse, often impossible to reverse. And the reason trans kids rarely get gender affirming surgery is because they don’t need it, and they are kids, so it’s better to delay that kind of irreversible change. Why don’t they need it? Until puberty, kids aren’t very physically different by sex, especially not with their clothes on. So it’s not hard for a prepubescent child to take the social role of the gender they identify with, and be accepted in that social role. Whereas it’s quite hard for others to accept you as a woman if you smell like a man, speak with a man’s voice, and have a man’s physique. The “kids” who have breast reduction are trans boys who didn’t get hormone blockers, and had those irreversible effects of puberty imposed on their bodies, and are distressed by that. Also girls with breasts large enough to hurt their backs, it to interfere with their activities, or other physical problems with their breasts. Hormone blockers buy time. They allow a youth to put off major irreversible bodily changes until they are an adult. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2022, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/124 "2022-06-05T13:17:31Z")
@filmore, I don’t have any trans children or family members, so I’m not that informed on what’s happening on the medical front. I don’t need to be, because it’s none of my business. If I had a trans child, I’m sure I would know tons about what is being done and what isn’t. Fucker Carlson is similarly as uniformed as I am, but he’s making it his business to get in between children, their parents, and their doctors. Ron Deathsantis is also uninformed, and is also putting himself between kids, parents, and their doctors. Do you have trans kids or relatives? If not, why do you care about medical decisions for trans kids? Do you think that trans parents are uniquely bad at making medical decisions for their kids? Do you think doctors and surgeons are uniquely bad at trans issues? What other laws should the state government pass that would override medical boards, doctors, surgeons, and parents? This is what you’re missing, I think. The Republicans are using trans issues as a wedge and passing hateful laws targeting trans people. You’re gobbling it up, thinking there must be some logical reason, but it’s just hate and identity politics on the right. Ask yourself, why am I concerned about trans medical issues that have no effect on me or my loved ones? You’ll realize that you’re being played by the right-wing hate machine. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2022, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/125 "2022-06-05T13:19:43Z")
For children who think they might be trans, puberty blockers give them and their medical providers time to evaluate and determine the child’s gender identity and other needs. Transphobes have this very mistaken idea that a kid says “I’m trans” and then the next day they start getting hormones and then surgery. That doesn’t happen. It’s a long process, that usually starts with a child asking questions, and does not involve any flippant or rushed decisions. Puberty blockers ensure that the process can proceed as it should, without any great rush. And if a child and their team later determines they aren’t trans, or do not want to transition, then they can simply stop the puberty blockers and develop as most children do. Republican policies on trans issues are monstrous and will lead to more dead children, with no positive for anyone but those who hate trans people. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2022, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/126 "2022-06-05T13:51:57Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > I don’t have any trans children or family members, Nor do i, but i have a lot of trans friends and acquaintances. And i care about my friends. Also > [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Republican policies on trans issues are monstrous and will lead to more dead children, with no positive for anyone but those who hate trans people. This is all true. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2022, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/127 "2022-06-05T16:04:40Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Nor do i, but i have a lot of trans friends and acquaintances. And i care about my friends. Same here. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2022, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/128 "2022-06-05T16:17:57Z")
Standard practice at the Seattle Children’s Hospital gender clinic is to not start hormone therapy for at least a minimum of one year after having been screened in as a patient under care. The psychological side of the house is where they start, and explain in great detail with medical literature the various options. Puberty blockers are discussed, and seems like a good method to buy time for both the child _and_ parents. That said, puberty blockers are not prescribed if 2 years of puberty have already taken place. Unfortunately, a high percentage of trans kids really start to understand themselves during puberty. And puberty is often when dysphoria starts. And I say buy time for the parents, it is while many parents (like myself) are very supportive, starting something like approval for hormone therapy is not a decision taken lightly by parents. In my case, we started with birth control to stop his periods, which caused great distress. Also, I found a good therapist for my son, and about 18 months later and a year and a half of presenting among his peers in high school, I gave permission to start on a minimal dose of testosterone. Some kids start testosterone and quickly realize it is not for them. Minimal doses of testosterone do not provide any immediate noticeable effects, and largely fade away if stopped. More testosterone does things like lower the voice significantly, which is not reversible. One more personal anecdote. All the “joking” about suicide and suicidal ideation literally stopped after his first shot of testosterone. In fact, it almost flipped and for a month or two, my son would say things “Dad, drive carefully in the snow now that I have a reason to live.” As pointed out upthread, having trans people adds to society and has absolutely zero personal impact on you. Unless of course, you’re a self-hating dysphoric denier of your own state, or you have children or relatives that are trans. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2022, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/129 "2022-06-05T16:46:27Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Nor do i, but i have a lot of trans friends and acquaintances. And i care about my friends. I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. I think these laws are monstrous and will lead to mental health issues and suicide. I’m saying I’m not going to push for laws that get between doctors, parents, and kids, because I honestly don’t know enough about this, I’m sure they know best, and I’m definitely not going to take my guidance from Republican bigots. ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/130 "2022-06-06T18:20:28Z")
A judge in Virginia Beach has ruled that the books _Gender Queer_ and _A Court of Mist and Fury_ contain obscene material not appropriate for kids, and a restraining order was put against Virginia Beach schools and the Barnes & Noble store in the city due to them both being available to read to minors without parental consent. > **[Virginia Beach judge rules two books in public schools obscene for children](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/restoring-america/patriotism-unity/virginia-beach-judge-rules-two-books-in-public-schools-obscene-for-children)** > > Two books contain obscene material for children, a Virginia Beach circuit court ruled as parents seek to limit graphic material in schools. > **“We’re not trying to ban the books,” Anderson said. "We’re not trying to make the books illegal.** We’re just saying that they can’t be distributed to minors without parental consent, just like minors would have to have parental consent to go into a movie theater and watch an R-rated movie." (Bolding mine.) Oh, really? Well, read further. > **[Virginia Judge Restricts Booksellers From Selling 2 YA Books Accused of Being...](https://www.themarysue.com/us-bookseller-gender-queer-lawsuit/)** > > After Republican politicians seek to limit Barnes & Noble from selling two popular YA titles to minors, a retired Virginia judge temporarily bans selling in the state while she reviews these books. > [Retired](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title16.1/chapter4.1/section16.1-69.22:1/) Virginia Beach Circuit Court [judge Pamela Baskervill](https://www.mccammongroup.com/neutrals/hon-pamela-s-baskervill-ret/) placed a preliminary injunction against booksellers while she reviews the titles. This prohibition on selling and distributing the titles applies to everyone, regardless of age. > The judge could decide that these particular books are “obscene” enough that they should be illegal to sell, buy, or own anywhere in the state. And if that happens, any school, bookstore, library, or private citizen who is caught with these books on their shelf could be criminally prosecuted. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/131 "2022-06-06T18:29:56Z")
Has anyone read these books? Are they pretty adult, or is it just that they are about LGBTQ subjects? Also, how do various adult magazines and books get sold in Virginia??? ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/132 "2022-06-06T22:47:19Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > Has anyone read these books? Are they pretty adult, or is it just that they are about LGBTQ subjects? In my devotion to the Dope (and plain old native curiosity) I have now detail-skimmed both these books. The Gender Queer memoir by Maia Kobabe seems like a pretty standard coming-out story, but about being genderfluid/transgender rather than gay. AFAICT it isn’t any more sexually explicit than something like, say, [Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home, which for that matter has also been banned in some places.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fun_Home#Challenges_and_attempted_banning) The Court of Mist and Fury novel by Sarah J. Maas also looks pretty unremarkable as one in a popular series in the “high fantasy” genre blending romance novel with sort of juvenile Game of Thrones stuff? According to [this random reviewer](https://teamqueens.org/2021/04/19/book-review-a-court-of-thorns-and-roses-book-series-by-sarah-j-maas-a-study-of-queenship/), > [@](#): > > This review discusses: > > 1 _. A Court of Thorns and Roses_ (ACOTAR) > > 2 _. A Court of Mist and Fury_ (ACOMAF) > > 3 _. A Court of Wings and Ruin_ (ACOWAR) > > 4 _. A Court of Frost and Starlight_ (ACOFAS) > > 5 _. A Court of Silver Flames_ (ACOSF) > > The Court of Thorns and Roses series, by Sarah J. Maas, is a popular high fantasy series telling the lives of the High Fae in a fictional country called Prythian. Readers follow the story of Feyre Archeron, a human girl who falls in love with a faerie and ends up becoming crucial to saving their country. Across ACOTAR Feyre falls in love with Tamlin, the High Lord of the Spring Court, and completes three trials to save not only Tamlin, but all the other faeries of Prythian from Amarantha, an evil faerie queen. The next book follows Feyre coping with her PTSD from the events of the trials in ACOTAR, the breakdown of her relationship with Tamlin, the development of her relationship with Rhysand, High Lord of the Night Court, and the discovery of a much bigger villain than Amarantha – the King of Hybern. There are a few fairly explicit verbal descriptions of sex from the female narrator’s point of view, but they and the rest of the character interactions appear to be pretty thoroughly cisgender and heterosexual (if you don’t count that one of the (female) narrator’s (male) lovers apparently has wings? not sure, like I said, I was skimming). You can find much steamier stuff in a Harlequin Romance novel any day of the week, and I’m not sure it’s even that unusual in the YA genre. In short, Gender Queer appears to be a well-written/drawn cartoon memoir about gender identity, which is honest about gender and sex issues without being titillating, but which has conservatives in a tizzy because it’s about non-cisgender identities. A Court of Mist and Fury (along with the rest of the series) appears to be a not-particularly-well-written YA/fantasy-epic/romance mashup with some slightly lurid scenes of sex and violence, which has conservatives in a tizzy because it’s apparently hugely popular with the same readership demographic that in the previous generation went crazy for Twilight. (Apropos of which, I think that as a gesture of Doper solidarity we should try to get another and similarly titled well-written memoir about gender identity, our own [AHunter3’s GenderQueer: A Story From a Different Closet,](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B085X31WV7/) onto conservatives’ book-banning radar. Nothing like making a huge fuss about banning a book to pique reader curiosity and drive up sales.) ---
**Author:** ![JeffB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeffb/32/188_2.png) [@JeffB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JeffB)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2022, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/133 "2022-06-07T08:07:46Z")
How does a “retired” judge place an injuction? ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2022, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/134 "2022-06-07T09:59:24Z")
Thanks for taking one for the team! ---
**Author:** ![Taber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ac91a4/32.png) [@Taber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taber)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2022, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/135 "2022-06-07T17:53:04Z")
Ohio had decided\* that doctors checking the genitals (external and internal) of an unknown number\*\* of female athletes is worth it to root out the single digit number of trans athletes in their state. > **[Fact check: Ohio bill banning transgender girls from female sports could...](https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/2022/06/07/bill-transgender-athletes-could-require-genital-checks-girls/7529718001/)** > > Ohio Republicans passed a bill that has pediatricians worried they may be asked to perform invasive genital exams on their patients. - Passed the house, but not the senate/Governor \*\* People on twitter have suggested some will mass report out of protest, or that opposing teams will strategically accuse to knock out the star player until they get their results. I think it will depend on how easy the process is, and how many people actually know about the law and the process to trigger it, but at the very least I suspect this will affect a lot more cis girls with short haircuts, muscular builds, or good performances than it will catch any trans girls ---
**Author:** ![SunUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SunUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunUp)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2022, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/136 "2022-06-07T20:15:27Z")
> **[28 U.S. Code § 294 - Assignment of retired Justices or judges to active duty](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/28/294)** Briefly, judges after retirement are designated as “senior judges” and can be called in by the chief judges of the court they served on to, in essence, act as full judges as they are “willing and able.” So they can carry a lighter workload, possibly in a court which doesn’t have a full complement of judges, but they still have all their powers and all their rulings have the full force of law. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2022, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/137 "2022-06-07T20:26:48Z")
> [@Taber](#): > > but at the very least I suspect this will affect a lot more cis girls with short haircuts, muscular builds, or good performances than it will catch any trans girls Good odds, since apparently there is currently one trans girl competing in Ohio. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2022, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/138 "2022-06-07T20:29:56Z")
The real benefit is to pedophile doctors who now have an excuse to look at private parts of lots of girl athletes. ---
**Author:** ![WalterBishop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/aeb1de/32.png) [@WalterBishop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WalterBishop)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2022, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/139 "2022-06-07T20:58:03Z")
> [@Taber](#): > > Ohio had decided\* that doctors checking the genitals (external and internal) of an unknown number\*\* of female athletes is worth it to root out the single digit number of trans athletes in their state. I’m not a scientist or doctor, but isn’t it possible to tell what someone’s sex is by simply doing a mouth swab? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2022, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609/140 "2022-06-07T21:00:55Z")
> [@WalterBishop](#): > > > [@Taber](#): > > > > Ohio had decided\* that doctors checking the genitals (external and internal) of an unknown number\*\* of female athletes is worth it to root out the single digit number of trans athletes in their state. > > I’m not a scientist or doctor, but isn’t it possible to tell what someone’s sex is by simply doing a mouth swab? - And miss out on the humiliation? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-war-on-transgender-people-omnibus-thread/965609.md?page=8)