"On the geo-political level, I look across the Pond to the US, where the only people who are saying the same things as us are frigging Rand Paul and Marjorie Taylor Greene, neither of which are people that I associate my politics as being anywhere close to. There is just no bloody way that the Left, my home, will align with us now, given who our "allies" are in the States. They just can't, even those that agree with us will never position themselves as having the same concerns as Marjorie Q-Anon Parkland Taylor Bloody Greene."
So you recognize that your views on trans people and those who are gender non-conforming people align with people who are radically right-leaning and conservative and these are people you would disagree with on any other perspective except for this one. That ultimately says something. You don't want to be tarred with the same brush, but you insist on being tarred with the same brush. As far as the left in the US is concerned, where we are dealing with wave after wave of anti-trans and homophobic bills. Where in the state I live in you could lose custody of your child for giving them gender-affirming care. Where if you are a teacher you can lose your job if you do not out your students for being transgender. There is no way that the left would see you as anything else other than a Rand Paul, a Marjorie Taylor Greene, or a Greg Abbott.
"The second is personal. I work for a large global organisation in a senior role. We had our Global Leadership "Away Day" a few weeks ago (on Teams, of course) and there was a presentation from some US colleagues on LGBTQ+, being able to bring your whole self to work, that kind of thing, from two gay colleagues, one lesbian one gay. So far, so good - absolutely the right thing for my organisation to be doing. Then they got onto pronouns and how everyone should start every meeting asking what pronouns attendees want to have used and encouraging everyone to put them in our email sign-offs. I'm never going to do that, but I can already see it happening around the organisation (particularly the US, but some of the easily led/want to be noticed over here will soon follow suit)."
You are a hypocrite. Bring your whole self to work, so far so good huh? As long as you are not transgender right?
" US, but some of the easily led/want to be noticed over here"
I find this, in particular, to be pretty interesting. So people who want to be nice about pronouns are easily led, attention seekers? Let's do something that has no impact on my life, but it will make my trans colleagues feel comfortable and accepted. You sound very schoolyard: if you do this thing that I don't like the sound of, but I don't want to do it and I don't know why I don't want to do it, it doesn't hurt me, but if you do it and it makes me look bad then you are an easily led attention seeker. And whatever name-calling nonsense you insist on doing. It's immature. And yeah that's definitely a MTG move so congrats.
"My best friend works with young people and whilst I've tried to approach it with her very gently, including all of the stats about single sex spaces and how women and children's safety is negatively affected as a result, her reaction is that she gets all of that but she works with children every day who are tortured by their own bodies."
What are these invisible stats? Who, where, what, why? I think it's insanely telling when someone throws stats into an argument without providing the information, the details, the research to support those stats. So here's the tea GRA EQUIA Literature Search 2019 - the stats that exist show that transwomen pose no threat to women in women's spaces. So you don't want to be compared to Marjorie and yet you'll use her tactics and talking points. Where is your research. Sounds like someone is being easily led here. By your logic trans women's safety is what is in jeopardy because you want to push them into men's spaces. I also promise you that you do not want transmen in your spaces.
Like what do you think you know? Trans women have been using women's spaces and competing in the Olympics before it became a blip on your radar? Ask yourself how many transwomen have won gold at the Olympics and then stop worrying about it. Where is the major crisis aside from the one you are whipping up without any real justifiable reason? The transphobia you are popping off on is such a recent phenomenon, you don't even seem to consider how long trans women have been in these spaces and it's just now you are getting worked up about it. All of it is built on lies and fear that you have allowed yourself to be led into by sitting in echo chambers where people constantly feed you the validation for your bigotry that you want to hear. Who is being led?
" I just can't see how we're going to stop it."
Kicking transwomen out of women's spaces and forcing transmen into your spaces and putting transwomen in danger by forcing them into men's spaces? It's funny how transphobes completely ignore transmen in their argument because they don't care about transmen in this discussion because if you have to make that a part of your argument then your argument becomes a house of cards. Look for pictures of big, burly, muscled, hairy transmen on google and ask yourself if that's who you want in your woman's spaces because that's what you are arguing for, that's what you want. If you keep going it's what you are going to get and have fun feeling comfortable inf your spaces then.
"Julie Bindel has a tweet pinned to her feed which is basically that the misogyny at the moment is like a tidal wave and that's how it feels."
Transpeople are not doing this though so quit using them as scapegoats for a transphobic argument.
"I'm not sure why I'm writing this really - certainly not to bring anyone down"
LOL except for transpeople right?
So you can see that people do not agree with you both on a personal and political level. You recognize that your views would be considered discrimination in the workplace and would get you fired. And you understand that your views would put you on the same platform as MTG? And yet you still think you are good and justified for being anti-trans? You are the baddie.