Recording of Mermaids training

[Imherefornow]

twitter.com/MichaelConroy68/status/1074723989308801026?s=19

Apologies if this has already been posted. Did a quick search and didn't find anything.

Michael Conroy attended and recorded a mermaids training session. It's hair raising listening.

I believe that someone is working on transcribing this, which will hopefully make it easier to analyse. But wanted to post it to make sure it hadn't been missed.

I'm going to buy jelly babies and eat them all up. Angrily. As a protest.

You can take our single sex spaces, you can take our rights and our protections - but, you CANNOT have the Bassets Confection. No.

do we still do ?

Also interested in reading the transcript... I can't bring myself to listen to it...

Bittermints, as it's Christmas I will supply the dusty old punchline - they identify as jelly babies [boom tish]

Here it is - Part 1
soundcloud.com/user-407799333/mermaids-barbie-gijoe-jelly-babies-and-other-nonsense-part-1

Here it is - Part 2
soundcloud.com/user-407799333/mermaids-barbie-gijoe-jelly-babies-and-other-nonsense-part-2

I name-changed in tribute to the questioner and then got so pleased with myself I announced the name-change on the wrong thread.

Good name.

:)

Michael Conroy is an absolute star for making this recording. And you transcribers are stars for going through and writing down all this nonsense for all to see.

Do OFSTED have anything to say about groups that go into schools and the quality required of their educational materials?

Do OFSTED have anything to say about groups that go into schools and the quality required of their educational materials?

Not their remit at all. They would have something to say about dodgy policies wrt safeguarding, however - schools can fail and go into special measures purely on a safeguarding issue (I know a primary school that went into SM because its fence was slightly too low).

Interesting. Thanks Vicky.

*I think autocorrect is onto something more profound.
The Mermaids 'jelly baby sex-stereotypes continuum' is only about superficial presentation eg the far extreme (called Barbie) is described by the trainer as someone liking pink, sparkles, long blonde hair etc.

So why shouldn't a person who prefers such things be a 'Barrie' and be male?*
-----
You could be talking about the transgender Miss Universe contestant.

Mind you, if I'd had 19 - NINETEEN - surgeries, fat old me could win the fucking thing :(

Fuck I love all you awesome strong women who post here! I am sooo glad I found this chat room. *Such fun.

Sorry if I've missed this, but presumably once the transcript is out, Big Lottery, Children in Need, DfE, Penny Mordaunt, Andrew, Janice and James (and the world) will receive a copy?

I live in a city mentioned in the audio where they say there is a Mermaids group/camp/club/commune

I will be finding out more about this, who supports it locally, and sending them a copy (along with councillors, MP, media).

But I feel I also need to point out to converts of TRA, those lacking critical thought/general common sense and to those who haven't got a clue about any of this whatsoever, why Jan's words are so dangerous. An interpretation if you like. A bullshit detector.

You can't rely on everyone 'getting it' (even though it should be glaringly obvious that sex isn't a spectrum, that safeguarding rules apply, that boys can't be girls...)

Still seething over two of the people who Jan uses as great role models: Tom Daly and Paris Lees!!!

Plus the talented female sports professional Nicola Adams who has been bundled in with that pair for some reason.

Yes it will need a critique/interpretation from a good critique...……..

Does Nicola Adams know?

That she's lumped in with somebody who thinks it's acceptable to rent a womb and another who no doubt would love to buy one.

Idontbuythejellybaby - I name-changed in tribute to the questioner and then got so pleased with myself I announced the name-change on the wrong thread.

Please tell me it was somewhere completely random like The Doghouse or Telly Addicts

From the audio I got the impression jelly babies does refer to those blobby people on the Barbie / GI Joe scale. I was wondering why they use GI Joe instead of Action Man. Maybe they're going for the US market in the long term?

Or maybe knocked Action Man from the 'jelly baby number 12' slot?

Eh? How is saying Nicola Adams is a good role model consistent with Mermaids' model?

She's completely awesome clearly, but wouldn't Mermaids have to say that she's really a trans boy or at least NB (but hasn't yet acknowledged it - blue brain in accidentally put in pink body)
?

It would be interesting to know who was involved with writing the training program delivered both to adults with responsibility for children and also the sessions delivered directly to children and young people.

Given the vulnerability of the children and young people concerned, one would expect to see the credentials of those with health, child psychologists, education & Safeguarding expertise etc.

On the same basis, as Mermaids provides a helpline staffed by volunteers for concerned children and their families / carers, the training for those taking the calls should be of a very high standard and adequately supervised. (as per Samaritans etc)

Light Spectrum:

Mermaids trainer, "Now I'm going to state the obvious here but work with me because I do have a point. Now we've got two light bulbs here and one is on and one is off, do we agree?"

Now, I am not an expert on electricity by any stretch of the imagination, but I know if I go into a dark room, I look for the switch and I will flick the switch and the lights will come on. If I flick it again the lights will go off. I know that much, yeah? So we've got boy/girl, on/off, yeah? Who can tell me what this is?

Audience: a dimmer switch

Mermaids trainer: It's a dimmer switch, and how does a dimmer switch work? I don't mean like transformers and circuits, just very basically, how does a dimmer switch work?

Answer: You turn it and the more you turn it up the brighter it is.

Mermaids trainer Exactly. So it'll start at off, and it will get gradually brighter and brighter and brighter and brighter until the light is completely on, because light is on a ... ?

Answer: Spectrum.

Mermaids trainer: Spectrum, absolutely."

A dimmer switch is used to vary the brightness of compatible dimmable bulbs, allowing a desired level of illumination to be achieved often with the purpose of creating mood lighting. Operated with a rotary adjuster, a dimmer light switch works by reducing power to the lighting source which can avoid harsh glares and beams. This can also help to prolong the life of the bulbs they are operating, which are run at lower power when the dimmer is set at a lesser ambience.

Apologies but this was bugging me: Physics GCSE memories!

So who turned the Mermaids trainer’s dumber switch all the way up?

ChewyLouie

"So who turned the Mermaids trainer’s dumber switch all the way up?"

Spinal Tap turned it up to 11, if I recall correctly.

The training must have been approved by Mermaids Charity.
I wonder if the dimmer switch is always used & how many people by word association anser 'spectrum' when a trainer says "because light is a........ ?"

spectrum

noun
1.
a band of colours, as seen in a rainbow, produced by separation of the components of light by their different degrees of refraction according to wavelength.
2.
used to classify something in terms of its position on a scale between two extreme points.
"the left or the right of the political spectrum"