Menstruators!!! - What's Up, Docs? on Radio 4

[IdaGlossop]

This is an interesting programme on Radio 4. I have learnt that 1/3 of menstruators suffer period poverty. Interesting. I have learnt that the plastic in a packet of sanitary towels is the equivalent of eight plastic bags. Interesting. I have learnt that it is possible to make a 30-minute programme about the defining physical process of the female body without once using a female pronoun. Ludicrous and infuriating.

YABU = menstruators is an inclusive word to use to describe male and female people losing the lining of their womb each month

YANBU = menstruators is an absurd word that panders to the deluded fantasists who have persuaded themselves that a human being born male can lose his womb lining once a month for 40 years.

YANBU. Load of fucking bollocks and I can’t wait for it to be over.

Menstruators is a horrendous, dehumanising phrase.

It is a dreadful, utterly ridiculous word. It seems like another attempt to avoid mentioning women and to airbrush them away as if they were unimportant.

Funnily enough, it never seems to happen to men!

I think it is ridiculous too but in this case, the word is not used to include trans women, who don't have a womb, it is used to include trans men, who have a womb and can menstruate (but don't identify as women)

Ah. Of course. Muddled thinking on my part.

The word is used for men without a penis and also for non-men. No need to mention women - why would they?

It annoyed me too. Just say women, girls and trans men.

Fuck the fuck off. What are men then? Ejaculators? Sperminators? Prostators? Testiculators? Penisours? A woman is an adult human female. I’m a woman. I no longer menstruate. I’m still a woman. I don’t have to have surgery or take hormones or wear makeup or dresses, or ‘pass’ to be a woman. I’m a woman by virtue of my DNA. It is in every cell of my body (apart from red blood cells). Everything else is just gardening.

All women menstruate. A small number of trans men menstruate. Why not use both terms, rather than verbally wiping out the majority?

Exactly, it's not hard and those words have worked for many years previous.

Do they perform the same linguistic gymnastics when talking about prostrate related stuff, I wonder?

To be honest, I really dislike the pair of them and their programme so I’m not surprised. Although this one was interesting.

I’ve been trying to listen to an audio book about the female body and strength training. It’s all about women’s physiology. The author goes out of her way to start off using the word women but then say cis women and then just talk about women according to their biology in more and more obscure ways. At one point for example she talks about people born with ovaries to refer to baby girls.

Men however remain men throughout the book. No babies born with prostates. She even mixes it in a sentence so says something like ‘cis women compared to men’.

At one point she actually uses the example of trans women who are taking female hormones to say some women can have strength closer to men 🥴

Oh I think the Van Tulleken twins are great but if they never said woman or women or female or something, they have gone down in my estimation.

Sorry but this just isn't true. There are women that don't and have never menstruate for myriad reasons due to health. I listened to the programme and thought they were sensitive to biological females that don't menstruate, and that's why they were careful with language.

On the whole, no. It's only women who have to move over, give in, and #bekind

Edited, stupid autocarrot

I turned it off. Absolute fuckwits.

I am not a fucking menstruator. I am currently menstruating and had to deal with fucking blood all over my hand from emptying my fucking mooncup in the work loo at lunch time because I am a woman. Fucks.

But all women don't menstruate, which is what I took from the use of the word. There are plenty of women who don't have periods for whatever reason. I don't particularly like the word menstruator, it's a bit clinical. I'm also very gender critical so generally I would be agreeing with you on things like this but in this particular case, I don't really see the issue. Admittedly, I didn't hear the programme...

Sperminators made me laugh!

Because we are not ‘non-men’. We are women.

Ah it's Chris and Xand.

I agree men usually get called men - however here's Dr Xand in 2022 talking about "people with prostates" (see linked video clip):

https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1550022/BBC-news-woke-prostate-cancer-gender-fluid

But trans men are actually women, no matter what they call themselves on a day to day basis.

One of them was asked once (on twitter I think it was) when he kept saying people with ovaries etc, well how do people know if they're a person with ovaries that this important health info applies to? He said you should ring your GP and ask them if you have or haven't got ovaries! All to avoid saying the word woman in the context of women's medical care.

Woke idiots beclowning themselves.

But only women menstruate. So healthcare info about menstruation doesn't apply to all women, but it does only apply to women.

I should have said 'most women menstruate'.