Guardian Article today - bullying of GC women

[PlateSpinnin]

Hi,

I've name changed but I'm an occasional poster. I regretted closing my account (worried about security after someone made a veiled threat about being able to trace any poster a few months ago) but there have been so many interesting discussions of late in which I was desperate to get involved. I have learned so much from everyone. Thanks so much. I've also been feeling a bit isolated - I think some of my friends think I'm obsessed and I have had others keeping their distance.

I'm in the public sector and this issue is completely monopolising my job. I've gone public regarding my concerns - I've had a lot of private support at a senior level but I think everyone is just so shit-scared (and also happy for me to fight it on everyone else's behalf).

Anyway. This is interesting in todays Guardian. I wonder if the headline was deliberately vague as to the nature of the bullying that she was going to discuss. Love that she cites Owen Jones as an example.

www.theguardian.com/society/commentisfree/2017/nov/19/bullies-everywhere-take-delight-in-coming-up-with-new-insults

Sorry, FizzyWater. I must've misremembered the context of your warning. It gave me the willies, anyway and thank you for your advice re using a different email address.

Fizzy going to a blog might give the blog owner your IP address, but how would it give them your MN username which would be needed to connect it to info in your posts?

noblegiraffe I think it depends on what you post on MN. Some people post quite a lot of personal info, including the number and sex of their children, divorced/married, rough area of the country that they live in, job etc. Someone looking carefully might find it quite easy to tally up all the info via advanced search and use freely available info in conjunction with IP address to ID the poster.

Yes, I get that if you had someone's IP address and username you could identify that person, what I'm confused about is how clicking on a blog link from MN would give that blogger your username.

These articles are encouraging and well timed for me as I will meet with my MSP this week and planning to discuss prisons situation as well as issues with children so there is a lot there I can refer too.

You've missed the so-called Women's Equality Party wanting to kick out a woman for speaking about transgender issues on the Moral Maze

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/feminist-accused-of-promoting-prejudice-kwjz9nvcc

The WEP is such a waste of an opportunity.

The WEP is such a waste of an opportunity.

To think we lost Sandi Toksvig from The News Quiz for that damp squib

Sarah Ditum has it:

twitter.com/sarahditum/status/932045182052327424

Asinine beyond comprehension

The thing is the trans debate seems to exist mainly online and within a very select group of people. I have said before that despite being politically active I have rarely if ever seen this issue raised in any way shape or form. The exception being a radical feminist group I recently left (I could honestly weep).

I said the same about discussing this at work (which is female dominated) most people didn't have a clue and were baffled and amused by the whole thing. Incidentally my work is mainly dominated by Labour supporters with a few notable Tory voters. Everybody was unified on this issue.

Obviously I know my experience is not representative of the country as a whole but I don't think it's unique. The online debate is very out of touch with what people actually think. Hopefully the growing critical reporting in the media is reflective of this and the fact that these laws are being changed while most people aren't really engaged with the issue.

The WEP is such a waste of an opportunity

It's sinister really, look how effective this issue has been at tying the party in knots and making it completely useless. I don't think it's a coincidence.

I mentioned a rad fem group I was in in my above post. The group was really active a couple of years ago having weekly meetings etc. It petered out and died off for no particular reason that I could see. All I would see was the occasional social media post by one active member. A few months ago it became active again on social media, posting links and tagging people etc. Then they announced they were starting meetings again, I was quite pleased. Then the first meeting invite went out and the majority of the text was given over to the new "rules" about what is a woman and what is transphobic.

My friend works for a university in a tech role. He says that trans stuff has been a major issue for discussion in both the university employment world and tech world for years and is surprised that it is only starting to be talked about by the more general public.

noblegiraffe

That doesn't surprise me at all. The tech world has been discussed on here before and I actually considered saying "universities" in my post.

I work in the public sector and have still yet to hear it mentioned other than as part of the standard Equality Act stuff. My DH works in old school industry and thinks I am over reacting to the whole thing. Incidentally "Miffer is overreacting" is a common thread among my family and friends on this issue. I don't believe I am, obviously.

Well done to Catherine Bennett. I'm very grateful to the brave people sticking their necks out on this issue. Unfortunately, I'm not sure it would make a lot of sense to someone who is new to this. At least she referenced the mighty Janice T, who has a very clear way of explaining the problems with trans ideology.
The Times is a reassuring read, with a number of gender critical articles today.

Just had a couple of friends round and raised the trans issue. Havent seen them for a while so they have been spared my increasing rants. They were gobsmacked that it had gone as far as it had, and agreed 100% that men are not women in any form (though the guy made an exception for post-op transwomen, said they had changed sex, which I challenged him on and he realised that it was stupid to say that anyone can ever 'change sex' but concluded it must be hard for post-op transwomen as they feel they don't really fit with men or women, which I agreed with)

The subject of transing kids really horrified them immediately, without going any further in depth. The woman, her brother is gay and immediately she linked this to him when he was a kids, apparently he was really feminine and everything, does this mean he would be transed today? I said yes, most probably. She then went onto say she was a tomboy too. And asked if it was all about stereotypes. Got it straight away. They asked how 'puberty is blocked' and I told them by using chemo drugs and telling parents they are harmless and such, and they hit the roof. They were ranting more than I ever have between themselves, I just kind of watched in amusement tbh

Had a bit of 'lesbians being pressured into shagging males' too. They thought this was absolutely ridiculous and homophobic (which it obviously is) and worked out near instantly that it was because 'transwomen ARE women' was the mantra, this is exactly why it has got to that stage.

All in all, a productive and interesting evening. They are going to broach the topic with friends too as they think its really important.

These were two people who were very 'wtf you are against LGBT rights?!' when the topic first came up and who were also of the opinion that 'trans' meant 'post op transsexual' (was quite fun introducing the guy to Danielle Muscato tbh). To which I clarified that no I am certainly not against that and T is nothing to do with the T anyways. They left as enraged as I am about the state of things today. And 100% 'terf'

I think if most people were aware of whats going on, they would be gender critical. I think most who scream 'transphobe' just bury their heads in the sand and ONLY listen to the activists side and avoid GC writing like the plague so never actually learn. Like many on here who scream transphobes then never enter the thread again. Its easier to cry bigot and ignore than realise that the 'bigots' are actually the ones in the right tbh

After my ridiculously large brackets in the first bit...should have been that they agree sex segregated areas (actually segregated by sex) are very much needed. And that its nonsense to claim they are not

To which I clarified that no I am certainly not against LGBT rights and T is nothing to do with the LGB anyways. *

Must proofread before posting..

Thanks for the links everyone. Hadnt had a chance to catch up with the papers today but really heartened to see all this in the mainstream press.

Some really positive articles today (which of course are ALL being seen of as transphobic and hateful by trans activists). There is just no understanding by activists that their years of aggressive silencing of (mainly) women and systematic 'infiltration' of policy making departments is rising up and biting them as people suddenly realise that it's not OK to influence children in schools and funnily enough, parents and teachers don't like being told lies about puberty blockers being reversible etc etc.
The challenge is to take this outside of Twitter / social media and hold accountable all the politicians and senior civil servants who have actively promoted, funded and enabled transgender activist organisation to access and influence public services / schools and often vulnerable young people in ways no other interest groups have been allowed to do.

BatShite Your posts made me nearly wake up my sleeping baby, I laughed so much. Well done for speaking out and it’s amazing that you had such a great reaction.

I try to drop small bits & pieces into conversations but find it so hard to say much as I’m so angry about it that I’m conscious of not wanting to be off putting