I’m brought to mind of the concept that any movement must have a peaceful branch for the system to acknowledge and meet demands for change as well as a “violent” branch to drive the opponents to the bargaining table. And within both of those is a need to take care of the community to enable them to continue to protest for change.

Completely agreed with this concept. I’ve been a big fan of multiple voices advocating for different things. It helps others understand where the center is or where the most agreement is likely to be. You need some people asking for everything in order to push in the direction of change, otherwise the people in charge will think what they have given up is satisfactory (or perhaps even too much).

I think where these protests will succeed or fail is community coming together to take care of each other, with a safety net so many more people will be able to participate and make their voices heard.

Yes I think general principles of anarchy apply here in that the more people you can get mobilized around a single issue and the more engagement you can get the more successful it will be. Entirely peaceful protests can drive huge change, but only when the government is a peaceful one who actively wishes to represent the people. The more corrupt and out of touch they get the less they will care about the constituency and the massive prevalence of voter disenfranchisement and a system of corruption which is increasingly run on money in the United States seems to suggest that it falls more closely in that latter bucket.

Yeah, I’ll have to check the book out to understand more.

Looking at hundreds of campaigns over the last century, Chenoweth found that nonviolent campaigns are twice as likely to achieve their goals as violent campaigns. And although the exact dynamics will depend on many factors, she has shown it takes around 3.5% of the population actively participating in the protests to ensure serious political change.

I really wish this was in a proper paper, as I wonder how much selection bias is at play here. How is “achieving their goals” measured? What kind of governments are we talking about? What is “serious political change”? I have a lot of serious doubt that nonviolent protests do much against hostile governments. They are absolutely important, and true research has revealed they are much more effective at mobilizing people who agree with the protestors, but the research also shows that violent protests have a larger affect on folks who do not agree with the protestors because they cause actual harm and more forcibly bring people to the table to negotiate. But what exactly is considered violent is a difficult one to quantify and direct physical violence (injuring and killing others) is much less effective than non-human directed violence which is difficult to quantify and to define. Destruction of property, for example, is often considered a form of non-human directed violence which likely has a larger affect on change than human-directed physical violence because no one is directly injured and it creates a direct economic incentive for change to happen.

HHS direct link is down now, unsure if moved or removed

Trying new potential solutions is definitely a step in the right direction! I hope it helps more than you expected or even dreamed it could. 💜

great article thanks

We have one rule here, it’s to be nice. Stop being antagonistic

There’s no way for me to really know what’s going on in their heads, frankly.

What I can tell you, at least, is that I have had some partners respond to this with shock and negative emotions. They often feel that it is somehow invalidating how they feel about me. On more than one occasion I have been described as romantic which is perhaps where this feeling of invalidation is based. I very much enjoy intimacy, I simply do not experience a “romantic” attraction. I still enjoy doing many of the things that are considered normal in what is described as a “romantic” relationship (I use this term because I’m poly, I’m not coupled with anyone, just partners).

I’m aromantic and of all the labels I have, it’s the one that often gets the strongest visceral reaction from folks. Many have preconceived notions of what aromanticism is and can be and it’s deeply frustrating. It’s one of the labels I have that I am most hesitant about sharing, because it requires a conversation to explain myself. However, even after explaining myself, I believe many think I am either lying or just cannot believe that the way I view the world is true and instead substitute their own beliefs for truth.

Oh, now they are “lightly studied”? That’s walking back your point substantially. If they are “lightly studied” then why are you advocating for such harsh rules? Why not advocate for them to be studied in more depth?

their is biological advantages of transitioning without taking puberty blockers earlier

There really isn’t. The IOC (International Olympic Committee) has a set of policies based on objective science, and I would encourage you to look at them if you are interested in the science. Until then, this comment will be removed for spreading misinformation. If you wish to make claims, you need to source them.

This is how you make them listen.

Lot of salty folks in the comments. Yes, I hate dems too, but this is an important win when there’s so much anti-trans legislature going through across the US.

It’s really disappointing to see so many folks diverting attention away from a trans win to complain about democrats. This is the LGBTQ+ community can you please just let people be happy about one small win? There’s vanishingly little to be happy about right now for trans folks.

Wish this article did a better job at citing information, would love to know what study provided evidence for sentience and self-awareness. Not that I disagree, I think we vastly underestimate the intelligence and cognitive state of most living creatures, I just want to read about this in more depth.

“embrace of right-wing politics…” my dude he did a literal nazi salute multiple times, stating it this way is minimizing

Installing ramps is explicitly not treating them the same. It is making accommodations for them because they are not the same.

Yes, equity vs equality.

wholesome content, thank you for sharing

To me it seems the original comment was simply someone providing an example of how binary trans folks can be upset at being referred to as they/them, an experience that many have also shared in here. Those who have chimed in have even stated it is mostly a pet peeve or an annoyance at best. I’m not sure I share your opinion that anyone was getting their “panties in a twist” so much as they were educating and sharing, which is completely reasonable on a website of this size in an area where folks who are not queer can read and comment.

Your response makes plenty of sense given the severity of problems happening right now. I wonder, however, if your energy is not better spent elsewhere? Infighting does not serve anyone, something which I see even you preaching, yet you are even replying to my comment where I simply am reminding you to be nice (which I made as an admin only because you were reported) with strong language deriding your fellow queers and allies.

I do not think it’s particularly nice to escalate and get mad at someone who is trying gently to educate you.

This comment was reported, please remember our only rule on this website and try to be nice in the future.