Transgender rights discussion

maniak

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So when you said, and I quote, "I wasn't referring to this thread," you were, in fact, referring to this thread?
I made a general point about the transgender women in sports discussion being poisoned by insincere people weaponizing the issue.

I was asked if I was referring to this thread specifically.

I said no, in general, online and real life discussions.

I was accused of (or at least it was my interpretation of it) inferring some people here might have adopted that tactic without have the guts to say so.

So, even though my original comment was about the wider discussion in general, I don't want that to be interpreted as this specific thread being an oasis of reason, not affected by that poisoning. So, to be 100% clear, to be as clear as I can be: no, this thread is not an exception to what happens in general. Most people are arguing in good faith, but I believe I have spotted a couple of transphobes here.

With those people, I will not engage, so if I engage with someone, they can expect I see them as arguing in good faith and I will be doing the same.

I don't have the skills to make clearer than this, so I hope you understand.
 

maniak

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This is like the 90% thing all over again. Whenever you’re pushed on what you post you go into hiding (like now) or say it’s in generalities (like the 90% thing).
It's only that if you want to keep misunderstanding what I say on purpose. I've explained I used the 90% as an expression in the moment, to keep pressing on that just shows you want to be annoying, nothing else.

I'm waiting for you to tell me the benefit of me calling someone a transphobe on redcafe. The mods wouldn't do anything since it's just my perception and the person I named would get a free "see I'm a poor victim, trying to debate honestly and being called a transphobe by the intolerant leftists" card. I don't want that.
 

berbatrick

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So you're in academia right? What's your take? Is the research valid or not?
The last time I posted research in this thread, I posted 3 articles. The first, I was told was "disputed" (no reason given), the second got no response, and the third got a link to a blog post contradicting one of its assertions, from an openly anti-trans professor.
Just now I've been told that a tiny advocacy group that promotes conversion therapy for gay people might have something objective to say about trans medicine, with the usual pro-forma recital about grey areas applied to a fringe advocacy group :lol:

I don't think there is an iota of good faith debate happening in this thread. That's my academic take.

Your first link is a single-author product in a shady journal, I wouldn't go within 10 feet of it. Your second link looks plausible.

...

If you're not trying to weasel out of anything, name these posters.

lightbringer, hobbers (near 100% probability)
you (75%)
mozf, alex99 (50%)

I'm not reporting anybody (I think I've done 1 report in 13 years on this site), but the question was asked and I thought I could share my impressions based on this and other threads.
 

Alex99

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I made a general point about the transgender women in sports discussion being poisoned by insincere people weaponizing the issue.

I was asked if I was referring to this thread specifically.

I said no, in general, online and real life discussions.

I was accused of (or at least it was my interpretation of it) inferring some people here might have adopted that tactic without have the guts to say so.

So, even though my original comment was about the wider discussion in general, I don't want that to be interpreted as this specific thread being an oasis of reason, not affected by that poisoning. So, to be 100% clear, to be as clear as I can be: no, this thread is not an exception to what happens in general. Most people are arguing in good faith, but I believe I have spotted a couple of transphobes here.

With those people, I will not engage, so if I engage with someone, they can expect I see them as arguing in good faith and I will be doing the same.

I don't have the skills to make clearer than this, so I hope you understand.
And as I said, it's very convenient for these "general" points to be made, but not apply to this thread in the same way that they (apparently) "generally" do.

Surely you see why people are calling out these generalisations?

"90% of people debating from this side are transphobes, but this, inexplicably, does not apply here and I just bring this up as a general point. Don't ask me any questions."
 

Alex99

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The last time I posted research in this thread, I posted 3 articles. The first, I was told was "disputed" (no reason given), the second got no response, and the third got a link to a blog post contradicting one of its assertions, from an openly anti-trans professor.
Just now I've been told that a tiny advocacy group that promotes conversion therapy for gay people might have something objective to say about trans medicine, with the usual pro-forma recital about grey areas applied to a fringe advocacy group :lol:

I don't think there is an iota of good faith debate happening in this thread. That's my academic take.

Your first link is a single-author product in a shady journal, I wouldn't go within 10 feet of it. Your second link looks plausible.

...






lightbringer, hobbers (near 100% probability)
you (75%)
mozf, alex99 (50%)

I'm not reporting anybody (I think I've done 1 report in 13 years on this site), but the question was asked and I thought I could share my impressions based on this and other threads.
Yeah, you're not baselessly accusing me of being a transphobe while refusing to engage with my posts.
 

maniak

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And as I said, it's very convenient for these "general" points to be made, but not apply to this thread in the same way that they (apparently) "generally" do.

Surely you see why people are calling out these generalisations?

"90% of people debating from this side are transphobes, but this, inexplicably, does not apply here and I just bring this up as a general point. Don't ask me any questions."
It's not inexplicably. It doesn't apply the same way because redcafe is a well moderated space, obvious transphobes are weeded out, so while in the general society the majority use this issue as a weapon, in this thread in this specific forum, it's a minority who do it, and that's a good thing. We are left with the less obvious transphobes, those who never step out of place to the point we can clearly identify them.

Don't ask me any questions? Mate I've been replying to this thread almost non stop today...
 

Alex99

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It's not inexplicably. It doesn't apply the same way because redcafe is a well moderated space, obvious transphobes are weeded out, so while in the general society the majority use this issue as a weapon, in this thread in this specific forum, it's a minority who do it, and that's a good thing. We are left with the less obvious transphobes, those who never step out of place to the point we can clearly identify them.

Don't ask me any questions? Mate I've been replying to this thread almost non stop today...
Surely you have to see why you entering a discussion and immediately declaring that you believe 90% of people on side of it are bad faith actors has drawn criticism, and why people can no longer consider you to be arguing in good faith?
 

maniak

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Surely you have to see why you entering a discussion and immediately declaring that you believe 90% of people on side of it are bad faith actors has drawn criticism, and why people can no longer consider you to be arguing in good faith?
I can see the first, not the second. If you care to explain I appreciate it.
 

berbatrick

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Surely you have to see why you entering a discussion and immediately declaring that you believe 90% of people on side of it are bad faith actors has drawn criticism,
Between the lack of available data (and test subjects), almost no long term investigations, political pressures, the pharma lobby and the plastic surgery lobby... Wouldnt fully trust any research paper in this area to be honest.
And I dont know if there's much of a drive to get a biological understanding because that's not where the money is. Also politically challenging when you might end up bracketing gender dysphoria with more stigmatised mental illnesses, there's always a lot of unscientific pushback.

There are quite a few issues with that study.
No research is to be trusted unless it backs up what one believes. The opposing side is anti-science, after all. No need to even give specifics!
On the other hand, assertions from a fringe advocacy group must be treated seriously, without considering the garbage source.

PS - since you said, direct quote, "No Evidence that Transgender Interventions are Safe for Children". the reason hobbers goes on about not trusting research is because there's a whole bunch of research about the health benefits of treating GDI with hormones, etc, including in people under 18. Which I have posted earlier in this thread.
 

The Corinthian

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The last time I posted research in this thread, I posted 3 articles. The first, I was told was "disputed" (no reason given), the second got no response, and the third got a link to a blog post contradicting one of its assertions, from an openly anti-trans professor.
Just now I've been told that a tiny advocacy group that promotes conversion therapy for gay people might have something objective to say about trans medicine, with the usual pro-forma recital about grey areas applied to a fringe advocacy group :lol:

I don't think there is an iota of good faith debate happening in this thread. That's my academic take.

Your first link is a single-author product in a shady journal, I wouldn't go within 10 feet of it. Your second link looks plausible.

...
Thanks for your input - and as I said a few pages ago - there's still so much research to be done in this area before we advocate for kids to have surgery or heavy medical intervention. Although the first part of your post is wholly irrelevant, and you've avoided answering the question I was asking. Is there a replication issue in science research and does that apply to trans research? Are there external pressures relating to trans research?


lightbringer, hobbers (near 100% probability)
you (75%)
mozf, alex99 (50%)

I'm not reporting anybody (I think I've done 1 report in 13 years on this site), but the question was asked and I thought I could share my impressions based on this and other threads.
I can't comment on mozf and lightbringer as I haven't seen any of their posts.

I can say with 100% certainty that Alex99, hobbers and myself aren't transphobes. Being cautious on this topic doesn't make you a transphobe - it's a nonsense assertion and it's an annoying tactic used repeatedly by people on the other side of the debate that yourself, maniak and stepic seem to revert to rather than discussing the topic at hand.

I'd be interested what posts specifically of mine can be considered transphobic.
 

Pogue Mahone

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Yeah, rubber-stamped was a poorly chosen phrase. The process is clearly more nuanced than that. Ultimately, however, after presenting the options and evidence and availing them of your opinion it would seem to often be reasonable (or at least not unreasonable) to "let them" have the final say. I mean, I know you're a doctor and I'm not exactly coming at this from a position of great knowledge myself but I don't think you can just blithely assume incompetence just because the patient is under 16. This is what the Great Ormond Street website has to say about consent:
Fair point. I’m obviously guilty of over-simplifying this. In my defence it’s a very long time since I did a paeds rotation and that was with very young kids, where there was never any question of consent not being left entirely up to parents.

The older they get, the more say they are going to have in any procedure or intervention. Although puberty blockers will, by definition, tend to be used in kids that are much younger than 16. Which moves the consent needle further away from them and further towards the parents. Not that it really matters. Parents will have the best interests of their child at heart anyway.
 

The Corinthian

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I must be closing on 200 posts in this thread, how many do you want me to quote showing me debating specific points?
Dude you were literally called out on this page about believing some people are transphobes and didn’t back it up when pushed on it. You were then called out about this made up statistic which you had to change what you mean to go from specific to general. So I don’t need to look up your 200 posts - it’s all there in the last couple of pages.
 

berbatrick

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Is there a replication issue in science research
Yes.

does that apply to trans research? Are there external pressures relating to trans research?
I have no idea, it's way outside my field (which I deliberately chose to be as non-political, non-fancy, and non-pharma-linked as possible), I would guess yes.


Saying "replication crisis" or "pressure" isn't a blank cheque to ignore every study whose outcome that you don't like.
There are two Catch-22s used in this thread quite often:
1.
A. The later the transition, the more concrete the advantage for trans women over cis women.
B. Early transition is harmful/unsafe/mutilation

2.
A. Early transition should only be allowed if supported by high-quality studies.
B. We need a ton of data from early transitioners to make these high-quality studies.

It's why it's very important to undermine the credibility of every single study that shows a positive outcome for trans therapy - the earlier the age of the study participants, the more urgent this becomes. Because that could break the second catch-22, which would even risk the first one.

I can't comment on mozf and lightbringer as I haven't seen any of their posts.

I can say with 100% certainty that Alex99, hobbers and myself aren't transphobes. Being cautious on this topic doesn't make you a transphobe - it's a nonsense assertion and it's an annoying tactic used repeatedly by people on the other side of the debate that yourself, maniak and stepic seem to revert to rather than discussing the topic at hand.

I'd be interested what posts specifically of mine can be considered transphobic.
With yours, I think it was stuff in (probably) other threads about 6-12 months ago. Can't get more specific, I don't bookmark posts.
With alex, I didn't have that impression at all, till the posts today, and their response to finding out the pediatrics association is bullshit.
If you are asking about hobbers, ... I don't really know what to say, I guess everything is in the eye of the beholder
With lightbringer, it was a big dust-up a few months ago. An argument kicked off by a particular phrasing choice, which went on for a couple of pages.
Mozf is my weakest one, should have said 30% or something.

Pogue and CR have been active and aggressive in this thread, on your side, but I never got that vibe from them.
 

maniak

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Dude you were literally called out on this page about believing some people are transphobes and didn’t back it up when pushed on it. You were then called out about this made up statistic which you had to change what you mean to go from specific to general. So I don’t need to look up your 200 posts - it’s all there in the last couple of pages.
And you have the face to say others aren't arguing in good faith?

It's like every post I write you just ignore and keep coming back with stuff I've previously explained.

Absolute insanity.
 

hobbers

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No research is to be trusted unless it backs up what one believes. The opposing side is anti-science, after all. No need to even give specifics!
On the other hand, assertions from a fringe advocacy group must be treated seriously, without considering the garbage source.

PS - since you said, direct quote, "No Evidence that Transgender Interventions are Safe for Children". the reason hobbers goes on about not trusting research is because there's a whole bunch of research about the health benefits of treating GDI with hormones, etc, including in people under 18. Which I have posted earlier in this thread.
The reason I go on about not trusting the research is they are essentially just patient surveys. Not research. Also doesn't mean I agree with what some random advocacy group is saying.

Puberty blockers should go through the same procedure that any other new drug has to go through. First you evaluate their safety in the patients they are prescribed to, and then their efficacy in treating the condition they are prescribed for. You dont just give them out and then bank on some surveys to justify it.
 

Murder on Zidane's Floor

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Thanks for your input - and as I said a few pages ago - there's still so much research to be done in this area before we advocate for kids to have surgery or heavy medical intervention. Although the first part of your post is wholly irrelevant, and you've avoided answering the question I was asking. Is there a replication issue in science research and does that apply to trans research? Are there external pressures relating to trans research?



I can't comment on mozf and lightbringer as I haven't seen any of their posts.

I can say with 100% certainty that Alex99, hobbers and myself aren't transphobes. Being cautious on this topic doesn't make you a transphobe - it's a nonsense assertion and it's an annoying tactic used repeatedly by people on the other side of the debate that yourself, maniak and stepic seem to revert to rather than discussing the topic at hand.

I'd be interested what posts specifically of mine can be considered transphobic.
50% what?
 

Murder on Zidane's Floor

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Thanks for your input - and as I said a few pages ago - there's still so much research to be done in this area before we advocate for kids to have surgery or heavy medical intervention. Although the first part of your post is wholly irrelevant, and you've avoided answering the question I was asking. Is there a replication issue in science research and does that apply to trans research? Are there external pressures relating to trans research?



I can't comment on mozf and lightbringer as I haven't seen any of their posts.

I can say with 100% certainty that Alex99, hobbers and myself aren't transphobes. Being cautious on this topic doesn't make you a transphobe - it's a nonsense assertion and it's an annoying tactic used repeatedly by people on the other side of the debate that yourself, maniak and stepic seem to revert to rather than discussing the topic at hand.

I'd be interested what posts specifically of mine can be considered transphobic.
No Corinthian, it's your motivation behind your posts that might be transphobic, only those who are righteous can interpret this :rolleyes:
 

The Corinthian

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Yeah, weird because everyone hates me.
But now that I know that mozf = you, I can safely say that I have seen your posts and they’re not even remotely transphobic. It’s a massive stretch to consider anyone in this thread posting caution on this topic is transphobic.
 

NotThatSoph

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You've shown a remarkable ability to consistently talk out of your arse in this thread, but this has to be the most blatant load of bollocks you've come out with yet.

As a pre-teen, you (and your parents) were presented with the option to undergo elective surgery on your back. You (and your parents) were told the full range of possible outcomes, because this is standard practice when presenting a patient with any surgical treatment (I was once due an appendectomy and they told me there was a slim chance I'd die during it - fortunately it turned out to be a kidney stone). Your doctor advised you (and your parents) against electing for the surgery.

Your parents may well have asked you what you wanted to do, and ultimately respected your decision, but be under absolutely no illusion that had you elected to go for it (it is not clear that you did), your parents would have been the ones signing the consent form(s) for the operation to go ahead.

As for that last line, you are clearly incapable of coherent debate.
Yes, that is how medical treatments work. The people involved are the doctors, the patients, and parents if needed. Minors are getting irreversible treatments all the time, and the "inability" to consent is never brought up. At no point was voting age, the age of consent or the military a conversation.

I'm kind of amazed that you managed to miss the point here.
 

Murder on Zidane's Floor

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But now that I know that mozf = you, I can safely say that I have seen your posts and they’re not even remotely transphobic. It’s a massive stretch to consider anyone in this thread posting caution on this topic is transphobic.
Appreciate it.

I imagine some people might be transphobic and use the arguments to further their agenda, as others have said. If this is the case, then you have to extend the exact same logic to the people supporting childhood transition, that they have ulterior motives as well.

This gets us nowhere and is just divisive.
 

Alex99

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I can see the first, not the second. If you care to explain I appreciate it.
Because you've immediately announced your judgment that the vast majority of one side is arguing in bad faith, how can anyone on that side accept that your opposing arguments are coming from a place of good faith, when you've literally telegraphed that you essentially don't trust anything the other side has to say on the issue.

They can't reliably determine that your posts are coming from a place of genuine argument.

No research is to be trusted unless it backs up what one believes. The opposing side is anti-science, after all. No need to even give specifics!
On the other hand, assertions from a fringe advocacy group must be treated seriously, without considering the garbage source.

PS - since you said, direct quote, "No Evidence that Transgender Interventions are Safe for Children". the reason hobbers goes on about not trusting research is because there's a whole bunch of research about the health benefits of treating GDI with hormones, etc, including in people under 18. Which I have posted earlier in this thread.
This is a medical issue though. The Cass Interim Report has gone to great lengths to highlight that the evidence base supporting these treatments is simply not there.

No one is claiming that his is an example of "anti-science" but it does show that the science is not there to support these medical interventions, which we should expect for any sort medical intervention being practiced freely.

In all honesty, I regret posting that page, but I'll leave the link up as it's there now. I generally treat pretty much all of the US medical organisations with a degree of suspicion anyway, as I don't think they can be relied upon to avoid influence from the pharmaceutical giants, and ended up posting that because it was a link I hadn't yet posted, had readily to hand and I was growing increasingly frustrated with stepic's refusal to engage with any of the points put to him, or indeed present anything remotely resembling evidence to back up his own points. As I said, I disagree with a lot of what they stand for, if not pretty much everything they stand for, and you're absolutely right that the motives behind their stance on the issue are extremely questionable given their track record on other issues. However, I think that the Tory party, by and large, is a reprehensible, bordering on dangerous institution. That does not mean that I find every policy and statement they make reprehensible and/or dangerous, and I may actually agree with the odd one from time to time. The specific page I linked, while sensationalist in its heading (which I acknowledged) and while it definitely uses some certainly dodgy language at times to discuss the issue (which I also acknowledged), was not just full of baseless conjecture from their end, and was largely in line with the findings of Cass Interim Report in that there is not an evidence base supporting the currently used medical interventions.

Back to the point about trusting research. It's not a case of blindly trusting all research. Again, the Cass Interim Report has highlighted the gaps and flaws in this research, and this of course applies to the research in support of both sides, because no side is able to definitively state what the outcomes and long-term effects are. However, as a medical issue, you cannot ethically advocate for treatments with poor research foundations to be used, let alone on children.

Yes.



I have no idea, it's way outside my field (which I deliberately chose to be as non-political, non-fancy, and non-pharma-linked as possible), I would guess yes.


Saying "replication crisis" or "pressure" isn't a blank cheque to ignore every study whose outcome that you don't like.
There are two Catch-22s used in this thread quite often:
1.
A. The later the transition, the more concrete the advantage for trans women over cis women.
B. Early transition is harmful/unsafe/mutilation

2.
A. Early transition should only be allowed if supported by high-quality studies.
B. We need a ton of data from early transitioners to make these high-quality studies.

It's why it's very important to undermine the credibility of every single study that shows a positive outcome for trans therapy - the earlier the age of the study participants, the more urgent this becomes. Because that could break the second catch-22, which would even risk the first one.
Surely you have to acknowledge the massive ethical issues in your example?

I find it very difficult to accept that the ability for transwomen to compete alongside biological females in competitive sports is remotely comparable to the complete ethical minefield that, as you've described, would be using children in potentially life-altering, irreversible medical trials.

The fact also remains that within the Tavistock Clinic at least, there has been opportunity to collect data on early transitioners, and they've simply not bothered doing so.



With alex, I didn't have that impression at all, till the posts today, and their response to finding out the pediatrics association is bullshit.
As I said, you don't get to baselessly accuse me of being a transphobe without actually responding to my posts, and the fact that you'll freely admit that all it's taken is a couple of posts that you disagree with for you to make such an accusation, is frankly quite gross.

One of the consistent messages throughout my posts has been a desire for these children to receive proper care and support so that they, and their parents, can navigate what is undoubtedly a very difficult situation with as much information as possible. Having concerns about the care currently being provided, a concern echoed by medical professionals, does not make me a transphobe.

Yes, that is how medical treatments work. The people involved are the doctors, the patients, and parents if needed. Minors are getting irreversible treatments all the time, and the "inability" to consent is never brought up. At no point was voting age, the age of consent or the military a conversation.

I'm kind of amazed that you managed to miss the point here.
Within the context of this discussion, in which the idea of parents ultimately controlling the consent for these treatments has barely ever, if ever, been mentioned, you decided to make a post about how the choice was entirely yours for an elective, potentially crippling back surgery. You did not acknowledge at any point that your parents were the ones that would have actually had to sign off on it, and actually presented the entire thing as if this was not the case.

It was argued by multiple posters, yourself included, that children and young people do indeed have the capacity to make informed decisions on this specific issue themselves, despite the many other things that they are not able to make informed decisions about until they reach a certain age. Parents were not mentioned once.

While we're broaching "missed points", has it escaped your notice that these treatments do not have the foundation of research and review that you would expect? Minors do undergo irreversible treatments all of the time, but these treatments have a strong foundation of research and review to support them. This is the key point. Not that other treatments are irreversible. When minors receive these treatments, at least where elective treatments are concerned, their parents/guardians will be the ones signing off on them, precisely because these minors have an inability to consent themselves.
 

NotThatSoph

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Within the context of this discussion, in which the idea of parents ultimately controlling the consent for these treatments has barely ever, if ever, been mentioned, you decided to make a post about how the choice was entirely yours for an elective, potentially crippling back surgery. You did not acknowledge at any point that your parents were the ones that would have actually had to sign off on it, and actually presented the entire thing as if this was not the case.

It was argued by multiple posters, yourself included, that children and young people do indeed have the capacity to make informed decisions on this specific issue themselves, despite the many other things that they are not able to make informed decisions about until they reach a certain age. Parents were not mentioned once.

While we're broaching "missed points", has it escaped your notice that these treatments do not have the foundation of research and review that you would expect? Minors do undergo irreversible treatments all of the time, but these treatments have a strong foundation of research and review to support them. This is the key point. Not that other treatments are irreversible. When minors receive these treatments, at least where elective treatments are concerned, their parents/guardians will be the ones signing off on them, precisely because these minors have an inability to consent themselves.
I made a post about how a decision was made after conversations between me, my doctor and my parents, after you had several times brought up the age of consent and voting age. Of course my parents would have to sign off, just as parents of course are doing the same thing if their kids are receiving gender affirming care. This is so obvious that I shouldn't have to point it out. There is nothing special about gender affirming care compared to other treatments on the matter of consent. Now you're mixing up several arguements in an attempt to salvage things, if the research behind gender affirming care isn't good enough, then the issue is that the research isn't good enough. That has nothing to do with the capability to consent.
 

Alex99

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I made a post about how a decision was made after conversations between me, my doctor and my parents, after you had several times brought up the age of consent and voting age. Of course my parents would have to sign off, just as parents of course are doing the same thing if their kids are receiving gender affirming care. This is so obvious that I shouldn't have to point it out. There is nothing special about gender affirming care compared to other treatments on the matter of consent. Now you're mixing up several arguements in an attempt to salvage things, if the research behind gender affirming care isn't good enough, then the issue is that the research isn't good enough. That has nothing to do with the capability to consent.
How is it obvious that people are talking about parents consenting when they are literally arguing that making informed decisions about these treatments is somehow different to the other things mentioned? stepic in particular tried to engage this specific point without referencing parents.

You even invoked this line of argument yourself in that weird about your doctor and parents not pointing out that they could feck you.

I'm not mixing up arguments at all. They're all related.

There's no point in continuing this line of discussion now though as you've now acknowledged that your parents would have, in fact, had to consent to the surgery you mentioned, and I have no interest in beginning a debate on when and it what situations it is appropriate for parents to concede more of the decision making to their child.
 

NotThatSoph

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How is it obvious that people are talking about parents consenting when they are literally arguing that making informed decisions about these treatments is somehow different to the other things mentioned? stepic in particular tried to engage this specific point without referencing parents.

You even invoked this line of argument yourself in that weird about your doctor and parents not pointing out that they could feck you.

I'm not mixing up arguments at all. They're all related.

There's no point in continuing this line of discussion now though as you've now acknowledged that your parents would have, in fact, had to consent to the surgery you mentioned, and I have no interest in beginning a debate on when and it what situations it is appropriate for parents to concede more of the decision making to their child.
Why would @stepic have to mention parents? Every idiot knows that parents are involved, there is no need to say it.

I did not invoke this line of argument either. I was talking about how the age of consent was irrelevant for whether or not I could have the surgery, just like the age of consent is irrelevant for whether or not I could have received any other form of medical treatment. You're trying to single out gender affirming care on the topic of consent, it doesn't work. This isn't a debade about parents conciding more decisions to their child, you made that up.

This discussion became pointless when you started posted material from hate groups, not when you started imagining arguments.
 

The Corinthian

I will not take Mad Winger's name in vain
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Yes.

I have no idea, it's way outside my field (which I deliberately chose to be as non-political, non-fancy, and non-pharma-linked as possible), I would guess yes.
Saying "replication crisis" or "pressure" isn't a blank cheque to ignore every study whose outcome that you don't like.
There are two Catch-22s used in this thread quite often:
1.
A. The later the transition, the more concrete the advantage for trans women over cis women.
B. Early transition is harmful/unsafe/mutilation
A and B have very little to do with each other. If you read the thread, putting to one side the athletes/sport debate - there's some warranted opposition to invasive surgery on kids, or from giving them quite substantive medical interventions. That's the point you're missing.

Speaking on B specifically - the advantage for trans women over biological females will be apparent pre-puberty as well, albeit not as pronounced as it will be post puberty.

The ultimate overarching takeaway message however, is that there is still an absence of research of evidence on gender dysphoria, whilst still noting things such as replication science and external pressures. The logical and more sensible thing to do is to get a deeper understanding of GD before we start all of these processes for kids.

2.
A. Early transition should only be allowed if supported by high-quality studies.
B. We need a ton of data from early transitioners to make these high-quality studies.

It's why it's very important to undermine the credibility of every single study that shows a positive outcome for trans therapy - the earlier the age of the study participants, the more urgent this becomes. Because that could break the second catch-22, which would even risk the first one.
The second scenario is something you've come up with yourself, and isn't one that's been posited here.

Gender dysphoria, not transition, needs to be understood by high-quality studies. We need data on gender dysphoria, the causal links, and the root machinations behind it before prescribing what should be done.

With yours, I think it was stuff in (probably) other threads about 6-12 months ago. Can't get more specific, I don't bookmark posts.
With alex, I didn't have that impression at all, till the posts today, and their response to finding out the pediatrics association is bullshit.
If you are asking about hobbers, ... I don't really know what to say, I guess everything is in the eye of the beholder
With lightbringer, it was a big dust-up a few months ago. An argument kicked off by a particular phrasing choice, which went on for a couple of pages.
Mozf is my weakest one, should have said 30% or something.

Pogue and CR have been active and aggressive in this thread, on your side, but I never got that vibe from them.
This is all fairly baseless - and fair enough, you're entitled to your pov, but it would be better for you have some tangible evidence. Alex99 posted literally one link you didn't like which decided to sway you, despite you ignoring all of his other thorough posts on the subject matter. None of your posts have addressed his commentary. It's that type of behaviour which makes me doubt your intentions and makes you come across with having an agenda. It's very 'ha! gotcha! you posted a link that is associated with x group which means I can disregard everything you say!'
 

The Corinthian

I will not take Mad Winger's name in vain
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Messages
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Why would @stepic have to mention parents? Every idiot knows that parents are involved, there is no need to say it.

I did not invoke this line of argument either. I was talking about how the age of consent was irrelevant for whether or not I could have the surgery, just like the age of consent is irrelevant for whether or not I could have received any other form of medical treatment. You're trying to single out gender affirming care on the topic of consent, it doesn't work. This isn't a debade about parents conciding more decisions to their child, you made that up.

This discussion became pointless when you started posted material from hate groups, not when you started imagining arguments.
It became pointless when you tried to make some false equivalence with your back problems. The two aren't even remotely similar scenarios and only an idiot would try and crowbar that into the conversation to make some asinine irrelevant point.

And to round it off you made some weird point about doctors or your parents trying to feck you.
 

Alex99

Rehab's Pete Doherty
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Messages
15,869
Why would @stepic have to mention parents? Every idiot knows that parents are involved, there is no need to say it.

I did not invoke this line of argument either. I was talking about how the age of consent was irrelevant for whether or not I could have the surgery, just like the age of consent is irrelevant for whether or not I could have received any other form of medical treatment. You're trying to single out gender affirming care on the topic of consent, it doesn't work. This isn't a debade about parents conciding more decisions to their child, you made that up.

This discussion became pointless when you started posted material from hate groups, not when you started imagining arguments.
Because he was quite literally arguing that children do have the capacity to consent on this issue?

Look, I'm going to chalk this up to both sides misunderstanding the other on this specific issue because it's going nowhere, especially as we are now effectively in agreement regarding the involvement of parents.

Last line is false, and I've literally expressed regret at posting that link and conceded that it is a flawed source. As I said, I've posted it now so I'll leave it up.
 

NotThatSoph

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Because he was quite literally arguing that children do have the capacity to consent on this issue?

Look, I'm going to chalk this up to both sides misunderstanding the other on this specific issue because it's going nowhere, especially as we are now effectively in agreement regarding the involvement of parents.

Last line is false, and I've literally expressed regret at posting that link and conceded that it is a flawed source. As I said, I've posted it now so I'll leave it up.
If it's a misunderstanding then it's all yours. You were the the one who brought up voting and the age of consent, here. You did it in response to someone talking about receiving gender affirming care, and no one has advocated that parents shouldn't be involved. You continued to bring up the age of consent as an argument against gender affirming care, when consent is treated the same here as with any other medical treatment.

You said that you regret posting that link, while in the same sentence saying that you don't trust any US medical organization anyway. Classic minimization. Your original response to getting called out was to act completely indignant, talk about these days you either have to agree 100 % or disagree 100 %, and to reference them as an authority by being medical experts.

This is a hate group, and they are liars. They lie about gay people when they call them groomers, and when they say that gay people aren't fit parents. They lie when they cite their "research" in favour of conversion theraphy for both gay and trans people, and the specific link you posted is complete garbage. The things they list are extremely selective, and the few things they reference are referenced poorly and, again, selective. Even if you didn't post material by a hate group, which you did, that link would be worthless. This shouldn't be surprising, material from hate groups tend to be low quality.
 

Alex99

Rehab's Pete Doherty
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If it's a misunderstanding then it's all yours. You were the the one who brought up voting and the age of consent, here. You did it in response to someone talking about receiving gender affirming care, and no one has advocated that parents shouldn't be involved. You continued to bring up the age of consent as an argument against gender affirming care, when consent is treated the same here as with any other medical treatment.
Right, now I've taken a minute to do the dishes and given this some thought, I'm going to point out that we've become too fixated on the specific aspect of consenting to treatment. The person I've responded to there stated on a couple of occasions (not necessarily in response to me) how sure these children are of wanting to make these changes, and how young they are (or should be, in his opinion) when they begin different stages of the treatment pathway.

The point I was trying to make was that minors do not have the capacity to make informed decisions on certain things (including medical treatments, which is why their parents need to sign off on them). This, to my mind, could be applied to the expression of wanting to pursue medical intervention. As I said in that post, children and teenagers are sure as shit of a lot of things, right up until they aren't.

Unlike your example of the back surgery - which presumably involved you expressing some degree of physical discomfort, the source of which was then identified via x-rays, MRI scans, etc. - gender dysphoria cannot be assessed in the same way. Ultimately, information is only available from the mouth of the child expressing this discomfort. Any parent will tell you that children and teenagers are quite often not reliable narrators of their own circumstances, particularly when they're younger, so it's a very difficult issue to deal with. Anyone going through it has my deepest sympathies. My stance remains that the medical pathways are not suitable for minors, given the potentially irreversible nature of them, and the lack of evidence underpinning them. Children with these difficulties absolutely need help, but my personal feeling is that, at this moment in time, the best solution is surely to let them live and express themselves as freely as is reasonably permissible, while providing proper therapeutic support.

As with stepic earlier, I'm happy to accept that your view on this is different to mine. I just feel that with the current gaps in evidence supporting these treatments, the lack of clarity as to what gender dysphoria even is, and the highlighted lack of routine therapy offered to children using the UK gender services, my stance will remain what it is for the foreseeable future.

You said that you regret posting that link, while in the same sentence saying that you don't trust any US medical organization anyway. Classic minimization. Your original response to getting called out was to act completely indignant, talk about these days you either have to agree 100 % or disagree 100 %, and to reference them as an authority by being medical experts.

This is a hate group, and they are liars. They lie about gay people when they call them groomers, and when they say that gay people aren't fit parents. They lie when they cite their "research" in favour of conversion theraphy for both gay and trans people, and the specific link you posted is complete garbage. The things they list are extremely selective, and the few things they reference are referenced poorly and, again, selective. Even if you didn't post material by a hate group, which you did, that link would be worthless. This shouldn't be surprising, material from hate groups tend to be low quality.
It was one link among a plethora of other sources cited across my posts.

You can view my commentary on it as minimisation if you wish, but this isn't the case, and was certainly not what I intended with my additions. I simply tried to explain how I came to post it and highlighted the points that I still believe to be salient. For clarity, I referred to them as "medical professionals", which they are. I did not state that they were experts on this subject, just that the information on that page, despite the language used in some areas, was largely in line with the information available in the Cass Interim Report.

Additionally, I stand by my point about many people viewing things as either 100% one way or 100% the other. In a way, I feel like you're doing the exact same here, just as berbatrick did earlier. Everything else I've said has been ignored so you can focus on one link from one organisation.

As for not trusting American organisations, I generally don't and I explained why, and this is one of the reasons I regret posting that link.

Ultimately, I can delete that link and the references to it and I don't feel like it hinders the points I've made or the other evidence I've provided to support them in any way.

Finally, I cannot force you to take my arguments in good faith, only say to you that the views I express on this issue come from a place of sincere concern for the care provided to children, and a desire for that care to be as good as it can possibly be.
 

Alex99

Rehab's Pete Doherty
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Messages
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I feel like this thread has drifted a VERY long way from the issue of transgender athletes in competitive sport…
Quite.

@NotThatSoph @stepic @berbatrick @maniak and some others I've forgotten the specific accounts of.

It's quite clear that you have a passion for this topic, as do I and a number of other posters. We don't necessarily agree on many aspects of it, but I respect your convictions.

To me, the arguments feel like they've become quite circular, and we're simply going over the same few posts (or even parts of posts), over and over.

In the interest of moving this thread back towards it's intended discussion, I think I'll bow out here.
 

Acheron

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I feel like this thread has drifted a VERY long way from the issue of transgender athletes in competitive sport…
Yes, it has several pages ago. Some of the stuff was interesting to read, at the beginning, but the main topic needs to be brought back.

I think it all started when someone suggested that there wouldn't be a controversy, about trans women taking part if female categories, if they transitioned before puberty. The implications and dilemma of transitioning at that stage have already been discussed a lot but even then I believe there would still be a problem with trans women competing in female sports.
 

Bebe

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I feel like this thread has drifted a VERY long way from the issue of transgender athletes in competitive sport…
It has. That being said, it's drifted into the question of medical transition treatments for children. Which to my mind is inevitably where a discussion of transgender athletes ends up, because a) there's an obvious biological advantage in sport if one goes through male puberty, b) sporting organizations seem to by and large be acting in recognition of a).

If a person born male wishes to compete against women and is barred from doing so because he went through puberty as a male, someone inevitably is going to say "well alright then, lets start medical transitions earlier so that said biological advantage doesn't exist".

In summary I think it's hard for the conversation not to end up where it is in this thread IF my above "a)" is accepted as fact.