tw266

I'm very much an old-fashioned liberal idealist. I believe we get closer to truth when all viewpoints are allowed to be aired. The closing of the mind which I see in the world disturbs me.

Human beings are not made of reason.

There are probably sub-conscious patterns of antipathy to transexuality that other non-traditional sexualities don't engender, because widespread sexual counterfeiting would be disruptive to society. We have certain expectations of others that we meet, and TG violates those expectations in a domain (sex and reproduction) that triggers our most ancient and visceral feelings.

If you bit into a steak and found that it tasted like chocolate, you'd be confused and disturbed. Now multiply that feeling by a large factor.

I believe that both of our experiences can offer valuable data points for others, and I believe that we should both feel free to share. I am somewhat concerned that my point of view is forbidden by polite society, as I believe the silence of people like me could lead many to misery.

You're setting up an infalsifiable framework where your worldview must be right (anyone who chooses not to live as trans is not really trans).

But ignoring that, there was definitely something going on with me. In elementary school for history dress up day, I wanted to be Betsy Ross. In college, I always hated dealing with chest-thumping groups of males, and I preferred female friends. Halloween was my favorite holiday for obvious reasons. Trans inclination was something long enough and strong enough that an "open-minded" parent or community could have pushed me that way.

But over time the importance of those inclinations seemed to fade. I'm a reasonably happy, reasonably successful mostly-straight male. And my success in the workplace and success in family relationships is more important to me than playing with my gender identity. Given what I have heard from trans people, I am pretty sure that I am better off than I would be in a less traditional lifestyle.

Given the immense distress that most trans people seem to experience, I wonder if we (and they) wouldn't be better off if the culture were less supportive of those lifestyles.

I had some inclinations that way as a teenager, and I am SO glad I wasn't living in San Francisco or some other place that would encourage me to "be me".