[ianch99]

I think it is the extremists on both sides that have determined where we are today. First, the extreme trans supporters demanded, in various forms, that any man who "considers" themselves as a woman should be regarded as equal by society in all contexts. Clearly a dumb idea but it is this entitlement that drove and distorted the agenda and so set in motion the journey we see today.

Now it is a reasonable proposition that a man (or woman) who undergoes the long, difficult and painful process of gender reassignment (hormones, surgery, etc.) should be treated as a woman (or man) in the same way as society treats any another member of that group. If they are physically the same, in all meaningful senses of the word, and you still object then you are just discriminating on the basis on DNA. It is a separate discussion when the trans individual declares themselves to be the opposite sex but this is visibly not apparent. This is where the concerns, rights, safety, etc. of the target gender need to be addressed. It is this that the extreme trans supporters ignored and it is this that has led us here.

Now the turn of the extreme anti-trans supporters: while some are coming from a position of safety concerns, equality of opportunity (in sports, etc.), a lot are coming from a much darker place. The role of the Evangelical right and their wish to impose their world view on the majority is part of this.

At the end of the day, the modern world with its complexities and nuance will never be accommodated within the purview of the emergent MAGA/Christian Nationalist collective. Consequently, it must be changed. What was multi-coloured must now be black & white, or binary, to coin a phrase. This is a sinister direction: what might be next? Maybe banning gay marriage, or even being gay itself. After all, these all come from the same playbook.