hondarobot
05-06-2006, 04:16 PM
I haven't really read a great deal of material on the subject, but I think something that often goes overlooked regarding the whole topic of Transexualism is that the word defines a process, not a condition or state of being. A transexual is a person who undertakes an, often times, lengthy process to change their gender to one which they feel is more suited for them. That is all fine and good, but it doesn't really address exactly Why people do this.
So first off lets address some of the reasons why a person would alter their physical appearance to that of a gender opposite to how they were regarded at birth. Right off the bat, let's be honest, a few are lunatics. I see people like this all the time, generally it's some middle aged guy wearing a granny dress, cheap wig, and war paint looking make-up. The explanation for these peoples behavior is that they are crazy, and that's a whole other kettle of fish.
There are also people who do it just because they want to do it. It's not like changing gender requires magic or anything, anybody can do it if they can afford to and want to do it. Nothing wrong with that, it's one of those free-to-be-you-and-me things. Obviously, people of this type generally are more into the razzle dazzle of the whole thing, and most would fall into the "drag" classification. It's something they want to do, not an extention of how they actually are.
Then there is the case of Gender Indentity Disorder. I think most TS identify with this catagory and define it as being a "need" to change, they couldn't live happily without taking the steps to alter themselves into the gender they actually identify with. The problem I have with that is it seems to imply that it's a mental disorder or something, that switching gender at some point in life is done to address some issue that is causing personal problems. I suppose that could be the case in some circumstances, but I don't think it is the norm. Even the term Gender Indentity "Disorder" seems to imply some kookyness is involved.
Anyhoo, there seems to be a great deal of confusion about the whole situation, so I'm going to try and address things from my perspective just because I happen to have a great deal of time on my hands at the moment and nothing better to do. People are a complicated deal, they are the result of a biological process that is so vastly beyond our current understanding it's not even worth examining too closely here. Things don't always work out exactly right and the end product that emerges at birth quite frequently has a few rough edges that need ironing out, so to speak.
In the case of the particular genetic "skill set" that generally leads to Transexualism, I'd just like to say that it is "real", it's not so much a "disorder" as it is just a fact of life. I've made the outrageous claim that I myself was TS before on these boards. Obviously I'm not, because I have no disire to undergo a bunch of surgery and correct some "mistakes" that happend while I was being constructed prenatally. But, yeah, I wasn't suppose to be a guy.
The most common reaction to a statement like this is "That fucker is crazy! He's probably some looney fag or something!", but I'm not. Oddly enough, I'm only attracted to girls, so I guess on a mental/emotional/bio-chemical level I'm a dyke who continues to live as a man. Hehe, it doesn't get much more socially ostracized then that, you'd think. That also is the one reason I, personally, would never undergo surgical alteration. I only like girls, and I'm a pretty attractive guy as I am. Correcting my gender assignment would work against me, actually.
But the fact is I'm very happy with myself. I don't go blabbing it up that I'm not like most people. In my case, I have no desire to slap on a dress and go prancing through a field of daisies. I've just been aware for most of my life that I'm not really the gender that I was physically assigned at birth. It's a strange process that leads to figuring things out, just a vague feeling of "Hmmm. . .I think there's something odd about me" early in life that eventually (in my case) around late teen years suddenly hits you. Whoops, I'm not really a guy, but I'll make the best of things I guess.
Anyways, that's my HA post of the day. I'd argue that Gender Indentity, whatever it may be, is not a Disorder at all. It's an issue that most people take steps to correct when they are not born with corresponding physical configuration to what they think and feel, and they definately should if they wish to do so. But it has nothing to do with being "weird" or anything.
And if anyone has a problem with that, I'll scratch their eyes out. hehe.
So first off lets address some of the reasons why a person would alter their physical appearance to that of a gender opposite to how they were regarded at birth. Right off the bat, let's be honest, a few are lunatics. I see people like this all the time, generally it's some middle aged guy wearing a granny dress, cheap wig, and war paint looking make-up. The explanation for these peoples behavior is that they are crazy, and that's a whole other kettle of fish.
There are also people who do it just because they want to do it. It's not like changing gender requires magic or anything, anybody can do it if they can afford to and want to do it. Nothing wrong with that, it's one of those free-to-be-you-and-me things. Obviously, people of this type generally are more into the razzle dazzle of the whole thing, and most would fall into the "drag" classification. It's something they want to do, not an extention of how they actually are.
Then there is the case of Gender Indentity Disorder. I think most TS identify with this catagory and define it as being a "need" to change, they couldn't live happily without taking the steps to alter themselves into the gender they actually identify with. The problem I have with that is it seems to imply that it's a mental disorder or something, that switching gender at some point in life is done to address some issue that is causing personal problems. I suppose that could be the case in some circumstances, but I don't think it is the norm. Even the term Gender Indentity "Disorder" seems to imply some kookyness is involved.
Anyhoo, there seems to be a great deal of confusion about the whole situation, so I'm going to try and address things from my perspective just because I happen to have a great deal of time on my hands at the moment and nothing better to do. People are a complicated deal, they are the result of a biological process that is so vastly beyond our current understanding it's not even worth examining too closely here. Things don't always work out exactly right and the end product that emerges at birth quite frequently has a few rough edges that need ironing out, so to speak.
In the case of the particular genetic "skill set" that generally leads to Transexualism, I'd just like to say that it is "real", it's not so much a "disorder" as it is just a fact of life. I've made the outrageous claim that I myself was TS before on these boards. Obviously I'm not, because I have no disire to undergo a bunch of surgery and correct some "mistakes" that happend while I was being constructed prenatally. But, yeah, I wasn't suppose to be a guy.
The most common reaction to a statement like this is "That fucker is crazy! He's probably some looney fag or something!", but I'm not. Oddly enough, I'm only attracted to girls, so I guess on a mental/emotional/bio-chemical level I'm a dyke who continues to live as a man. Hehe, it doesn't get much more socially ostracized then that, you'd think. That also is the one reason I, personally, would never undergo surgical alteration. I only like girls, and I'm a pretty attractive guy as I am. Correcting my gender assignment would work against me, actually.
But the fact is I'm very happy with myself. I don't go blabbing it up that I'm not like most people. In my case, I have no desire to slap on a dress and go prancing through a field of daisies. I've just been aware for most of my life that I'm not really the gender that I was physically assigned at birth. It's a strange process that leads to figuring things out, just a vague feeling of "Hmmm. . .I think there's something odd about me" early in life that eventually (in my case) around late teen years suddenly hits you. Whoops, I'm not really a guy, but I'll make the best of things I guess.
Anyways, that's my HA post of the day. I'd argue that Gender Indentity, whatever it may be, is not a Disorder at all. It's an issue that most people take steps to correct when they are not born with corresponding physical configuration to what they think and feel, and they definately should if they wish to do so. But it has nothing to do with being "weird" or anything.
And if anyone has a problem with that, I'll scratch their eyes out. hehe.