Literacy alien Tala earns parents’ anger over use of pronouns - article in The Times

Like, you realise how ridiculous this is and that loads of people are taking the pee out of you for this, right?

The memes have been great tho

I hope younger people don't see this and think that feminism means squirrelling over a cartoon alien that uses they/them and more generally trying to remove trans people's rights.

Did Herts County Council or Hitchin Library actually officially say what the crazy alien's pronouns are or is that an assumption?

Calling it 'gender neutral' is aligning it with a faith system. A bit like saying a character was Muslim. It is not a neutral statement. But as for pronouns - like the rest of language, young children need to learn pronouns. And like the rest of language when you mangle it so it no longer means what it used to it will no longer support the TRA fantasy

When 'he' and 'she' are just words chosen like names and divorced from sex then what? What are you trying to opt into by using 'she' ? What good does it do to call yourself a women if it has no meaning? If women can mean men and women's spaces are mixed sex? If men competing in women's sports find themselves up against a field of men? Ultimately it is self defeating from a trans perspective.

OK..
Yes. IT is a cartoon character. I don't know whether aliens have xx, xy or some other chromosome arrangements. It's not (as in, it is not) for me to assume anything about them.

Ultimately its a cartoon creature.

It is /it's. Either way, not they're /they are or their. So you got that right.

Ultimately its a cartoon creature.

Regarding pronouns, what do people say when they hear of people with unisex names. For example, you read an article about Chris who is a pastry chef. You don't know if Chris is male or female, and all the pictures are of their pastry creations. How do you refer to Chris when telling someone about the skills Chris has with pastry?

Gendered language (for want of a better terminology) is clunky at times. Things like when addressing an audience: "Welcome ladies and gentlemen, girls and boys" vs. "Welcome everyone "

"They live" is plural not singular, btw

Is there any official source that actually stipulates what the alien's pronouns are?

”some kind of trans agenda (not a thing, btw)”

The Denton’s document doesn’t exist, Stoneballs haven’t been lobbying behind closed doors and an alien bear with they/them pronouns wasn’t suddenly brought into being at exactly the same time that the children’s book industry is so beset by trans ideology that they employ sensitivity readers to make sure nobody steps out of line, and where those who do are sacked…

It's a mascot for kids.
Agree

Sounds much more natural

I wonder if a librarian took it on themselves (sic) to read the toddlers a lesson in pronouns outside official policy, if the library are now saying that wasn't the intention.

They're a mascot for kids definitely reads wrong and sounds like a misplaced plural. It's a mascot for kids would be more natural.

"Aliens are called it"

Tala isn't a project by NASA and they aren't portraying Tala as what modern research thinks an alien would look like or anything like that. They're a mascot for kids.

Aliens are called it

Tala is a fictional gender-neutral alien who arrived on Earth to be a reading mascot for toddlers, as confirmed by the library itself. I really don't think there are any conspiracies going on. That's all there is to say IMO.

"though it would be correct in the singular to call it it, not they."

I know we sometimes call animals "it"(usually the ones we don't keep as pets or bond with) but Isn't "it" usually reserved for inanimate objects? We can't call cute Tala an "it" can we?

Yes, of course. All those well known real life aliens are usually referred to as “it”.

Right?? It’s an alien character. Claiming it’s promoting some kind of trans agenda (not a thing, btw) is truly clutching at straws.

Singular 'they' has been around for hundreds of years. It's fine.

Agree with the rest of your post, though.

Oh sorry @BFOSdeeznutz I've re read.

They're saying Maya was wrong. But that they are using "gender neutral pronouns".

Right!

Wrong thread? @BFOSdeeznutz ?

Maybe it can run for PM once Liz goes. Seems to have the appropriate qualities.

Apart from the obvious political overtones, how are you then supposed to teach small children the very basics of grammar?

This is a bit like, say, impressionist/abstract artists - you are only capable of creating impresionist works once you have mastered realism. i.e. the basics must come first.