My fears for the future.

[RealityFan]

Borne of being a bit of a glass empty person, never "happier" than when fussing and worrying.

Despite fighting talk on this forum, I'm less and less sure that the gender critical battle will come around our way.

If Starmer feels he can get away with it, he'll more and more sideline the What Is A Woman? question. FWIW, I'm unsure how salient it is across all voters, let alone all women. Trans issues are almost negligible in highlighted concerns amongst voters in opinion polls.

Unfortunately Mumsnet is not the outside world. Women especially may either neglect, or de-prioritise unease with gender issues, to get a government that will fund the NHS, social care, housing, nursery education etc.

If Starmer botches things and it's a Hung parliament or minority Labour administration, the LDs, Greens and SNP will extract such concessions that Starmer likely will cave on demands from Leftist Progessives in his own party and minority parties to kowtow on at least the direction of travel being Self ID, at the very least absolute draconian laws on conversion therapy ban to include trans, rigid hate speech laws as being passed in Ireland where any skepticism expressed will be stamped on, enforced pronouns and absolute ban on misgendering locked tight.

So, a sweeping Labour win brings changes in, or Starmer does another U-turn when in power. Anyone happy to vote for him hoping helltvo lukewarm in power? A marginal win, and we're in unpredictable progessive overreach territory.

And the Conservatives, my natural party to vote for, a busted flush over 14 years by the time of the GE, only now upping their game on trans issues, yet too late and too incompetent, so that the only party half decent in this area, is almost guaranteed to hand over the keys.

So, that's our political landscape. Further pessimistic feelings generate reading Eliza Mondegreen's report on EPATH conference, just a Hellish narrative of total child abuse, being driven through into the medical mainstream.

Throw in the recent UNESCO and WHO proposals, a de facto prospectus to revitalise the PIE agenda, Self ID and hate speech laws ramping up all way across the West.

And sane voices to the contrary, obviously speaking to the ordinary man and woman in the street (JKR, Billboard Chris, Sharon Davies, Graham Linehan, Posie Parker etc), effectively still marginalised by the anxiety-laden freeze in public discourse.

This feels like a never ending (un)civil war, the TRA forces now strategically embedded in every leftist/centrist party throughout the West, MSM, and more and more rightist parties, civic society, either enthusiastic or acquiescing. Woke capitalism rounding up the forces of capital, actors and musicians and writers on board making the case, "social capital" so to speak.

So, as our brave GC rearguard action creates hits that truly shake this edifice, the direction of travel from the TRA leviathan feels inexorable.

It feels weird for big wins like the end of No Debate, Tavistock expose, IOC ruling, Starmer having to consider his messaging, Sturgeon falling on her sword over Adam Bryson, Nike and Bud Light humiliated in public.

But I'd say these remain skirmishes, the trans edifice is rolling over us slowly but surely.

For the last few decades I always argued as an atheist with my devout Christian friend that humans fuck it up but also fix it.

On trans issues, I'm now only believing the first bit of that sentence.

Am I right to be this down hearted? Who wants to pick me up? Lol.

I also tend towards a glass-half-empty view of things, so often find myself thinking along the same lines, worrying something has shifted irrevocably.

Other points – which give me hope – include:

• Growing numbers of detransitioners telling their stories, and likelihood of future waves of litigation against institutions that fast-tracked medical transition.
• The free speech/Orwellian aspects of it all. Many are genuinely outraged at the silencing of legitimate views (eg current letter to Edinburgh University).
• Growing numbers starting to see it all as fad or social contagion, particularly re teenage girls.
• Half of all SNP members (SNP members! Vanguard of the batshittery!) voted for leadership candidates who didn't believe in it.
• In the UK, large parts of the press are sympathetic to GC views.

• they'll need to get self-ID through the Lords, and that may be far harder than the GRA
• even in the Commons, a self-ID law might see a sea of letters to MPs

Hi, I like to potter and ponder as well. I just feel that this is shaping up to be the battle of ideas, and the tide will turn many times.

I've already made my personal decisions. I won't be cowed into using personal pronouns or hiding my thoughts. I won't go looking for conflict, but if it comes my way...

I'll never ever vote for a left party again. I've just seen video of Aussie "Liberal" Party members refer to their party colleague who attended and supported Posie Parker in Auckland, as a "terrorist". I know that this strain of poison now infects at a deep level the Labour Party, Lib Dems, Greens, SNP etc. You'll never get my vote.

There are gonna have to be SO many instances of a Joanna Cherry MSP sueing a venue for discrimination in banning her and others, while Labour weaponise anti free speech laws.

The battles in science, medicine, schools.

It just feels like the establishment is coalescing fast around this enemy position.

I know y'all have a different legal right of freedom of speech, but I've noticed a few times when people were silenced and news have been kept hush, the truth exploded out of the gate in a way that made much more an impact than it mightve had it not been treated like a conspiracy. That's lead to more of a public consciousness to how fucked up this all is, and that's obviously good. Nothing cleans like sunlight.

Women especially may either neglect, or de-prioritise unease with gender issues, to get a government that will fund the NHS, social care, housing, nursery education etc.

This is exactly my daughter, who is also a member of BACP and gave me a lecture about how my generation didn't believe in 'choice' because we were raised by parents traumatised by WW2 when they had no choice about anything.

Sorry, but that is such BS from your daughter. Maybe you ought to remind her who fought to make rape in marriage illegal, legalise abortion and contraception, fight for child care and refuges, overturn S28.

What is she fighting for? For men to access those spaces? She needs to get out of the kindergarten and see the world as it is.

Then again, maybe she calls you a literal fascist, Hitler etc.

Sorry if I'm talking out of line.

@RealityFan - no she doesn't do any of that, but she thinks my concerns about safeguarding women are overblown. TBH I don't see her in person that often (we live on opposite sides of the Atlantic) and I don't want to spend that precious time arguing. I occasionally send her research or comment but she basically grey rocks me when I do that.

Britinme, I'm afraid this is part of my angst. A very large number of young women, and surprising number of older ones too, are either agnostic, or generally sympathetic to the TRA cause, like yr daughter.

Those that are opposed are either cowed, don't think it'll go that far, or will prioritise Woke Starmer promising to fix the NHS over culture warrior Sunak who has broken it.

Whether Starmer gets a landslide or sneaks in will determine his strength of purpose on TRA.

That underscores my point, the future is focussing twds the result we all don't want.

Now had the Conservatives lived up to their name and conserved our infrastructure AND culture, there'd be all to play for.

Alas the cultural left that worships at the altar of trans is about to get the leftist govt that won't object.

However old does your DD think we are?!!
Our grandparents may have been traumatised by WW2, but I don't think our parents were choice-adverse. Quite the opposite!

Hey, my parents were always old. They didn't get any of the movements from the Swinging Sixties (despite my dad working in the main nightclub in Old Bond Street which had Lulu, Tom Jones, Englebert Humperdinck over regularly...and the Krays!), and really didn't dig Monty Python or The Young Ones.

However the last thing I'd criticise them for would have been "being traumatised" by WW2 into desiring no choice.

Maybe the problem is the opposite. Eight decades of peace on British mainland (excluding The Troubles) leading to young Brits etc stressing that gender choice is a matter of life and death. And decades of Western consumer choice meaning anyone young feels they can be anyone and any gender they please.

And seeing women much more visible than before, thinking that every struggle of women is settled, men and women interchangeable.

I believe this is Helen Joyce's current theory.

We will see. There's a debate happening on the 12th June in Westminster which will shed sunlight, there's more awareness of the risks with sex-change surgery and a groundswell of opinion looking at research literature on transgender medicine and going 'its weak.' I'm also watching the outcome of various court cases, especially the LGB one.

No debate is well and truly over, which was always the key thing on the TRAs side. On top of that, for every captured person in their twenties, there's a teenager behind them rolling their eyes.

For me the two key things are:

1. GRA reform. It needs it.
2. Robust, evidence-based medical care for trans and support for detransitioners.

I'm keeping my eyes on the prize and ignoring the rest of the froth.

I don't think the wartime generation was traumatised by WW2 - having gone through the great depression (real, no safety net hardship) and 6 years of war people were tougher and more resilient than any generation since. They didn't have time to be traumatised:they were too busy recovering and rebuilding the country.

Ok so where does choice come into it? You can have choice for everything? It's a right as we are not biological human beings? We are consumers instead?

I feel your pain, @RealityFan

But I am clinging to the theory that this is the "gets worse before it gets better" stage.
And the fact that as soon as people find out what's really going on, they reject it.

And then sometimes I feel more depressed. That we will have to keep fighting this in one form or another for the rest of our lives and on into eternity. Because the forces ranged against us are so powerful and well funded and have absolutely no scruples. Nothing is so devious or cruel that they would baulk at it. They don't care about democracy or human rights or the rule of law. They have no compassion. And given that the incentive for them is even more money or gratification and they will suffer none of the adverse consequences of this madness, there is no reason for them to stop trying to achieve their ends.

It's one of the stupidest things I've ever read. Made worse by it coming out of the mouth of someone who truly believes they're principled on this.

Sorry mine wasn't particularly cheering, @RealityFan

How people think at 20 isn't necessarily how they think at 40 or 50. I know I've changed my views on a number of things

Besides, I know several young women who will either listen to reason or who don't need to even see Isla Bryson to know it's nuts.

Has this forced us to face up to sex differences that feminists have tried to down play for several decades?

Differences between men and women are not all down to nurture. But that's not to say that gendered expectations aren't social either.

Like you I worry. As a young woman I travelled to different countries and was shocked at how badly I got treated in some places. The respect that men give to women is not innate, it is a social contract and varies in different times and places.

Bella, I could walk away from all this worry. As a man with no kids let alone daughters, no skin in the game, working for myself in a supportive community, with a woman who's head is screwed on right lol, diverse but generally GC friends and clients, I could switch off all immersion into this madness, and live my life in ignorant bliss.

However I choose (or does my brain oblige me to?) to stay engaged, for better (I hope), or for worse (I seriously hope not!).

Part of my therapeutic solution is to celebrate the victories (JKR with every Tweet, Posie on the floor in Auckland to proudly on her feet at Speakers Corner, the irresistible evidence from the Tavistock, WPATH and Mermaids, so-called intelligentsia like Sturgeon and Humza soiling themselves in public, No Debate now not up for debate, court cases going our way from Forstater and Bindel, to hopefully Sall Grover and soon very probably Joanna Cherry, etc etc), while not for an instant underestimating the hordes who will absolutely trample over all of us given half the chance.

Also, personal spend of £1000 on CBT is getting me to be sanguine, accept the battle, decide on a line, not feel bad, and never let myself down (as I have in the past on other issues).

But God alive!, there is just nothing that compares to this Monty Python World come to life, the comedic bits stripped out, the post modern horror and boundary transgressions mutated.

I'm right behind you...hopefully a shared space, all genders welcome lol.

The less and less hidden part of all this is TransHumanism, where we're all consumers, gender, body parts, the works.

Kinda like David Cronenberg come to reality.
See Mary Harrington.

Bella, you've nailed it pretty well. Cheering is not a word to use...just yet.

All of this is going to fall by the wayside in a few years' time when people start realising that we will be fighting against the impact of climate change and AI.

Sorry but your fears for the future are misplaced.

You mean TRA will be accepted as we ramp up worry on AI and the environment?

Or the TRA madness will implode, we regain our rationality, and again find our common humanity to fight these other genuine existential threats?

I think you point to one of many fundamental disagreements emerging in society, things are destabilising rapidly and the near future is unlikely to look like anything we can currently imagine. I'm not sure if that makes you feel better or worse!!