To think that JK Rowling is being very unfairly treated.

If anyone wants to see just how little we know about puberty blockers and how no one has any way of knowing which children might benefit from them (ignoring the consent issue, unknown risks, impact on development etc etc etc) look at the video in this thread which is a talk by a GIDS clinician in 2018. I transcribed some of his speech in the thread:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3950421-Talk-by-Dr-Aidan-Kelly-Tavistock

Then, if you can be bothered with a very very long read, look at the court judgement from the Bell case on why young children aren’t capable of consenting... (Case currently being appealed by the Tavi)

www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Bell-v-Tavistock-Judgment.pdf

So you are accusing her of releasing the book to some trans right activists so that they could complain so she could respond in order to boost sales ?

YANBU. I've been disgusted by the treatment JKR has received since this whole thing began. One of the things that bugs me the most is how in the mainstream media it's become the default position that JKR's opinions are 'problematic' or 'controversial' and worthy of vilification. Given that most people don't bother to read around an issue, a lot of them have now, erroneously, automatically assimilated this as fact. JKR has become synonymous with bigotry and hate speech, even if she has done nothing beyond standing up for women and voicing something that contravenes current received opinion. Where's the balance? It boils my blood.

I am as liberal as you can get - I naturally find my moral, political and spiritual stance to be very left-leaning and liberal. I have always sided with and fought for minorities and underdogs and those who are vulnerable to marginalisation etc. Yet on this issue it seems that, in a lot of people's eyes (I'm not talking about TRAs here, but just everyday people who haven't given this much considered research or thought), I would probably be put into the 'bigot' box if I were to talk about my feelings. The fact that JKR's (and mine, and so many other people's) position on this issue has somehow become aligned with non-liberality, right-wing causes and the DM-reading, 'political correctness gone mad' brigade is maddening. It's malicious and misogynistic and, frankly, disgusting.

I never said it was offensive. I said that she used this whole thing as a very clever advertising ploy. And it has worked. Clearly.

Thats what advertising is there for, to manipulate us into buying products.

Thats what happened, thousands of women who wouldn't usually have looked twice at this book made a point of buying it to 'support' JK.

As I said, clever advertising. Risky, but clever.

I am laughing at Joanne Rowling being called a twat and making comments to advertise her book.

Umm. Maybe read the history of her tweets. And maybe read the actual book and not the propaganda spread about it from people who are so heavily invested in trying to shut her up that they release misinformation and tell others so heavily invested to stay ‘safe’ and not read it either.

Or are you talking about the timing of her essay when she was trying to stop creepy activists posting harmful content and threatening to post dickpics (or was that diquepics) on the Ickabog conversations with readers. You know. Children. Obviously she was only trying to stop that to increase her book sales.

I am not sure she is the twat though.

I feel so bad for her and am livid at the way the fandom is treating her. I unfortunately had to leave quite a few fan groups and unfollow a lot of harry potter content creators just because of the vile things that they said.

midgedude Career of Evil

I think there was a trans abled plot line in one of the books. Harressing strike

Guess that's not offensive ?

Her plot sideline is only offensive if you want to be offended

It was a man trying to deceive people not a transgender person

Are you saying that only transgender men can wear dresses ? How narrow minded.

Or are you saying that we can't talk about the ways people try to deceive and hurt others ?

Do yiu go up in arms if a villain is anything but a straight white male? Have you burnt your copy of the merchant of Venice for its anti Semitism?

Same question: where in Troubled Blood do you find this offensive plotline?

They were actively hoping to avoid the public being aware of what was happening until it was too late and we woke up one day to self-id and the erasure of women's rights. The fuss that has been generated is down to Stonewall declaring #nodebate and trying every backhand and underhand method they can to change the law against the interests of women and safeguarding.

JK Rowling has used her position to help people less fortunate than herself in very many ways. She has given away literally millions of pounds - I don't think you can accurately describe her as a twat. That says more about you.

There is actually a trans character in The Silkworm (not a central character and not a "bad" character, one of many people who the murder victim hurt or betrayed).

I'm not sure why nobody comments on that.

There is no trans character in Troubled Blood, not even a character who wears a dress - there's a mass murderer who is already in jail and who sometimes wore a womens coat and headscarf (crimes committed in the early 1970s) as a disguise to avoid being caught, but didn't wear a dress or in any way identify as a woman - in fact he hated women.

I can see why she's so well liked on here though. She takes the same approach to gender issues and has the same wide eyed faux confused "but I'm not being offensive how could anyone want to attack innocent little me?" reaction when people who disagree say so. It's a bit pathetic but nothing particularly unusual.

No one deserves abuse. I don't agree with her position or support her stated views. Her plotline was offensive and she knows it. The attention she gets for the things she says no doubt increase her sales as well as her profile.

her book, about a bad man who commits his crimes in a dress

Please can you quote the paragraphs in the book in which this happens? Or give page numbers?

Always good to see which people have clearly not read Troubled Blood....

@NoraEphronsNeck that’s a definite win and it’s good it’ll be challenged in future. It’s just shocking the way it was chucked in as a statement of fact.

There are plenty of men you could say that rubbish much more truthfully

I think she's a bit of a twat really for a few reasons, regardless what side of the 'debate' you're on.

She didn't speak out for women, she is a very clever business woman, who saw a way to get a lot of advertising for her book, about a bad man who commits his crimes in a dress, which she conveniently came out with not too long after she sparked off all this controversy.

Shame so many people fell for what she said but I guess that's how advertising works.

Does she deserve death threats? No, nobody does.

Should she have used peoples very strong feelings to line her own pockets? Also no.

If TWAW, then being pro-women must by definition also be being pro-trans.

If being pro-women is anti-trans, then TW Cannot Be W.

[quote Biscuitsanddoombar]@NoraEphronsNeck well done you for taking it further but honestly his behaviour is appalling!!

A throwaway comment & no harm done? He just stood up in a room of 60 people and said JKR was anti trans which is a lie & shows he hasn’t read what she said.

He then said on email and only to you because you pointed out he was wrong that is was a throwaway comment & no harm was done. But he’s not emailed all the people in that room and said he was wrong has he?

Now everyone in that room thinks there’s no point in raising anything pro women because they’ll be written off as transphobic by the senior management

It’s outrageous![/quote]
You're right he hasn't told everyone that the comment was wrong. And it is a shame that other women might feel reluctant to comment.

However, D&I champion said he would make sure it was challenged if it was mentioned again by anyone and I think that the manager who said it won't do so again, regardless of what he thinks in private.

The Ikabog and Troubled blood are both within the top 40 bestsellers of 2020 ... Troubled Blood was the best selling book in the UK at one point.

There's no such thing as bad publicity, and all the drama actually brought the Strike series to the attention of readers who'd never heard of them and bought Troubled Blood and the 3 books before it in the series in 2020 to form their own opinions or show support after reading her essay.

I think the drama over nothing hasn't harmed her sales at all...

I feel reassured by the poll results!

Just posting this link. It is long so I am breaking it into pieces and it is done in a way that you can do this. It is well worth watching and forming your own views.

So Mumsnet have removed both my posts where I asked who is getting the monetary benefit of prescribing off label drugs without any registrational clinical trials to approve that use.
And asked asked where the money trail is leading to.

WTF Mumsnet!

JKR has demonstrated how important is to be able to speak and to be allowed to speak.

• You must not speak about X because X is not white therefore it's racism.
• You must not speak about Y because Y is a famous philanthropist.
• You must not speak about Z because Z is a professional and we must trust them.

And what happens? Vulnerable people are harmed.

It does not matter whether it is contentious. If you believe people are at risk of harm, you must have the right to speak up and be listened to with an open mind.