178 Comments
User's avatar
Skenny's avatar

Quick question: what in the hell are "trans rights?" Presumably, it's some unique set of rights, since they already have the exact same rights as everyone else.

So it really is that they want extra rights, over and above everyone else. To that I say, in the most charitable way it can be phrased: Get over yourself.

David Nelson's avatar

One "trans right" I can think of is a wishful-thinking "right" to "agitate" for recruiting children to act on their feelings, not their reason, and become "trans"-sexual, increasing its population to add to its political muscle and reducing its collective feelings of self-loathing. They are most enraged that parents object to this concept of "their right."

Juju's avatar

The “right” to indoctrinate everyone else’s kids, the right to control school curriculums, libraries, and story hours, the right to force their way of life into every social space and be protected from any ridicule.

Elise Guidoux's avatar

I believe they are stealing the term from the gay and lesbian protests when those communities really did not have the same rights and the protests meant something. Transpeople are not getting imprisoned for being trans, they can marry, keep their jobs, flaunt their choices without getting arrested. It’s not a crime to disagree with someone’s else’s life choices, but seems like the trans community thinks it should be.

CStone's avatar

What rights did gays and lesbians NOT have before? I truly want to know. And no one has even attempted to answer my question.

Again: What rights did gays and lesbians NOT have before?

Jenna McCarthy's avatar

Actually, a bunch—tax and inheritance benefits, Social Security and pension benefits, health insurance, hospital visitation and medical decisions, and all sorts of other legal protections that automatically came with marriage.

Elise Guidoux's avatar

Basically “human rights”. Homosexuals had to live their lives in secret…could not legally marry, hold a job, gather in public without risk of violence and arrest. Look up the infamous stonewall riots (1969).. transpeople suffer a lot of this in some states and definitely other countries where it is truly not legal.

But not being allowed to participate in a “biological same sex sport” is simple biology. Jenna says it best.

Baldmichael's avatar

Trans rights are the opposite of trans lefts. The first is for conservatives, the second is for progressives.

P.S. They should not be confused with trans writes which are words recorded by trans people.

https://alphaandomegacloud.wordpress.com/2022/12/29/transgender-and-other-trans-words-definitions/

DJL's avatar

Where are all those liberal women from the 60’s and 70’s fighting for women’s rights??? Oh yeah, their dumb libtard asses are now fighting for men to have women’s rights

Jenna McCarthy's avatar

🎯🤦‍♀️

Kmari's avatar

Seems to me they were useful idiots to emasculate men and lay the foundation for the pudgy white guilt and trans phenomena that is adding to the breakdown of a stable society

Lisa Ricketts's avatar

So true! Always be skeptical of those who offer to help your cause, when they have no apparent skin in the game!

Lisa Ricketts's avatar

Typically, many of the "women's rights" advocates of old, got their wish and closed the door behind them! They completely forgot about the sisterhood! Hillary Clinton is a perfect example of this, as she repeatedly chose to demonize the women her husband had affairs with, rather than hold him accountable! Women tend to look at other women as competition rather than comrades in arms. Before we undergo puberty, we have no trouble banding together to keep the boys out of our playhouse, just as the boys do to keep us out of their treehouse. Something happens during puberty that slowly works on us until we see each other as rivals.

I blame the very same people who acquired the rights, as they appear to be the one's who vote for politicians that cook up policies to take rights away from those who were not in the original fight!

Vee's avatar

What in the actual duck? It's hard to believe there is an entire population that supports this kind of nonsense, but there are a ton of comments on the Defector article that made me think twice with this as one example:

"i am SO fucking tired of the notion of a "safe, inclusive environment" getting expanded to "include" shitbags that are actively doing everything they can to exclude people."

Isn't it ironic that the supposed anti-hate people are CLEARLY magnitudes more hateful than the people they are claiming are hateful? Reality is surely stranger than fiction these days.

Jenna McCarthy's avatar

I have run out of synonyms for irony and hypocrisy…🤦‍♀️

Rudolph Rigger's avatar

Wait, wait . . . Have I been getting it wrong for the last decade?

I thought "liberal" *was* a synonym for "hypocrite"

Vee's avatar

We all have 🤣

KatWarrior's avatar

You may like the quote I posted. Sort of says it all.

Sue Rosenthal's avatar

Good point. It's downright scary, is what it is.

Dr. Molly Rutherford's avatar

Trans kids belong in therapy. Truly, there is no such thing as a trans kid. Nobody cares about the WNBA, so they need these fake controversies to stay relevant.

John Poland's avatar

Great comment on both counts. The controversy keeps them from complete irrelevance.

People need to state plainly that there is no such thing as transgenderism. Don't try to be sympathetic to the "trans" kids, because there are no such thing as "trans" kids. There are kids with issues that need to be addressed, perhaps professionally, and we should all have sympathy for them, but not because they are "trans". More likely, they have been lied to, manipulated and pressured into believing lies about themselves by psychotic criminals who should be in jail.

No matter how much people butcher their bodies with drugs or surgery, they will never change the trillions of cells in their bodies screaming out their true sex via the 23rd pair of chromosomes. Never accept the premise of their argument that "trans people" deserve rights, because there are no "trans" people.

AJF's avatar

John, I was a teacher in a public school for 28 years... there were 2 boys in particular that I remember well and knew their parents. Both had older sisters. Both as young boys wanted to wear dresses and fancy shoes, etc. NO ONE suggested to them they might have been "born in the wrong body"... both sets of parents saw it as a phase and let them wear whatever clothes they wanted. For the one boy it went on for about 4 years, and then he just decided to wear different clothes. The other boy about a year and he just decided to stop. I have no idea what friends were saying to them, but I no for certain NO ADULTS OR SCHOOL OFFICIALS got involved. This was 20 years ago. I shudder to think what would it be like if this happened today. We always accepted "Tom Boys", girls who were attracted to typical boyish activities. Why would society not accept that boys might be drawn to typical female things? I've read multiple stories of "Tom Boys" (many with older brothers) lamenting if adults had gotten involved when they were young, as they "grew out of it" and are exceedingly happy to be mothers.

AJF's avatar

*know for certain (don't want to be corrected as a former teacher 😄)

Fred's avatar

So true. Let kids be kids, teach them right from wrong, to be grateful and respectful, and let them grown into adults with whatever beliefs want they hold after they mature.

Roberta Stack's avatar

This is a great commentary! Thank you! I'm so appalled that this is even an issue.

The WNBA is not doing anything to protect women.

Juju's avatar

She nails it perfectly with this, “It’s a clever little rhetorical racket, really: invent the hatred, assign it to your opponent, and then congratulate yourself for bravely confronting it.”

That’s EVERYTHING the left is forcing us to live through, and has been for the past decade or two. It should be the slogan for the Democrat Party. Join us! We invent the hatred, assign it to our opponent, and then congratulate ourselves for bravely confronting it.

Crash Pile's avatar

The WNBA misunderstood that the Streisand effect is not a positive one just because it was was named after Barbra. They are actively diminishing what they had built. Despite the old aphorism, maybe increasing publicity is not always good.

AJF's avatar

Roberta, but seems they're doing their damndest to protect mentally ill men!

MaryAnn's avatar

One of the former NBA players made the point about the salary differential between the G League ($45k) and the WNBA ($1.4 M). A guy can pretend to be a woman and make bank, at the literal expense of a woman.

Jrod's avatar

It’s unclear to me what rights the trans protectors think the trans community is being deprived of? Do they have some sort of special rights the rest of us don’t? I’m for everybody, including the trans community, to have the rights afforded us by our magnificent constitution, no more, no less.

Gwyneth's avatar

I would think that wearing these t-shirts is akin to stating their pronouns, an action which, if I am not mistaken, was recently considered a sacred cow.

KC & the Sunshine's avatar

THIS!

AJF's avatar

Gwyneth, it's now clear that people with a thinking brain must go on offense. Major push back needs to happen in a big way and soon! I'm old so have no idea how to initiate this via social media, but I think it should happen quickly.

Gwyneth's avatar

Alas, I too am older and have never been on social media. Despair not, the ripples of change continue on outward and shall not be stopped.

Ginny Moore's avatar

“Because last time I checked, supporting one group does not automatically constitute an attack on every group that isn’t that group.”

Sadly, this is not true any more. It’s not enough to say you are “pro something” in order to really support it, you have to be “anti something” too.

Sad.

And I’ve been meaning to get a tank top from her site for a while now. Guess I’ll go do that today! 💪

Love you, Lady and the way you shine.

Bad ass. 🥰🤬🍑❤️

Marlene Swann's avatar

Yes - this is the best way to fight stupidity - have half a million people show up at the next Fever game with XX XY t-shirts. Hats. Something! Great idea Ginny, I’m on board!

Also, best zinger in the whole stack, Jenna: . “If you’re not too busy, maybe you could send your security detail over here to try to shut down this Substack. I could use the free press.” Let me just re-stack this for you! lol rofl

Justin's avatar

I was debating with myself about disagreeing with how to fight stupidity, by saying that not supporting/paying for seats, services, etc. would send a message. (I boycotted Tractor Supply for their support of a Trans show at a children's event. I also wrote to their board. And they eventually pulled back from supporting those kinds of events, but I think it more the blatant exposure by a journalist that showed different ways that a company serving people with traditional values had drunk the kool-aid of DEI, and sales plummeted that did the trick. I still haven't been back. Nor to Target.)

I have to say though, my own example above shows that in today's world, you have to widely expose the absurdity of the position before dense people with few brain cells and compensation packages relying on customer dollars being spent are getting the message.

But maybe that's part of it.. Identifying/Interviewing the owners or board members individually to see just how much they're willing to stand behind absurd policies or positions. (Isn't that divide and conquer technique being used against us?)

Stop supporting the businesses, buying their merch and start finding other alternatives. (essentially turning your back)

Bud Light is a tarnished brand. I don't believe it ever recovered. Most other boards sat up and paid attention.

This is the kind of publicity you don't want, but this doubling down, nee 4x, is either courage or stupidity, and I'm going to take door #2 for supporting a position having no foundation in reality. (It's a manufactured social construct, backed with fraud and deception.)

Great coverage Jenna!

Marlene Swann's avatar

I never did drink bud, but I also have never been back to Target. Boycotting is just one method of exposing stupidity so the shareholders sit up and take notice. Any way that “widely exposes the absurdity of the position” is an avenue I’m gonna take.

Justin's avatar

At my age, I wear tee shirts that share a message to help wake people up, and it's the principle I'm promoting.

I have a "Truth is NOT Hate Speech" tee. (Babylon Bee, though I like the old style they had)

I also have the one I've shared on a few substacks lately seen here: https://shop.babylonbee.com/products/experts-vs-conspiracy-theorists-t-shirt?_pos=1&_sid=96c456056&_ss=r

I still wear my "DeSantis Airline - Bringing the border to you!" tee. and "FREEDOM" tee.

A bumper sticker on my car says, "Is that what your TV told you to think? @" (the @ is a hypnotic swirl)

Maureen's avatar

'Transgenderism is the only mental illness demanding the rest of society adopt the patient's delusion as part of the patient's treatment."

Post your reply

Marlene Swann's avatar

This is truth! This is just like when you get blasted over mis-gendering someone, the only reply needed is, “I did not misgender you, I just refused to agree to your delusion.”

KatWarrior's avatar

Something happened to the hubs I yesterday that dovetails nicely with this situation. It was a case of a lack of courage, integrity, and a set of balls! It very much created a rush of anger in me that I still cannot shake.

After reading this, the word "wrongthink" came to the forefront, so I (of course) searched for meaningful quotes. It helps me synthesize my thoughts and feelings. I need to make a mental model out of a situation in order to "move forward," so to speak.

I think that a good person can sometimes do wrong out of ignorance or weakness or wrong thinking, but when hard times come, the goodness wins out after all. And a bad person can often seem good and trustworthy for a long time, but when hard times come, the evil in him gets revealed.

Orson Scott Card

KatWarrior's avatar

Long story short is that a trusted friend and our property manager listened to his “boss,” who is a narcissist, midwit, psychopath, pathological liar ( shall I go on?), con man, and all round evil. Trusted friend discarded his balls in favour of digging deep and doing the right thing.

I have seen this sort of behaviour one too many times. I forgive him, but I will never forget his choice and lack of integrity and respect.

Juju's avatar

Integrity and respect can be lost in the blink of an eye but takes years to earn back.

Jpeach's avatar

The WNBA is another hijacked American institution. Hijackers are the CCP influenced (paid off) Marxists who have hijacked the once legitimate Gay Rights Movement, Social Welfare programs, Voting Rights, Etc..

Timothy G McKenna's avatar

Well, we already have The X Games, and they’re a hit on ESPN - why don’t we have “The XX Games” and “The XY Games”?

MS's avatar

And then we can have the XXX games (probably not on ESPN).

Timothy G McKenna's avatar

Hahaha

Laura Kasner's avatar

How about “games for the mentally ill”.

Timothy G McKenna's avatar

They already have it - it’s called “rugby”, and it’s quite popular in Great Britain and upscale college campuses in the US. 🤣

SadieJay's avatar

Love Rugby. It would certainly weed out the weaklings, because I am pretty sure there is not crying in Rugby.

Dave Scrimshaw's avatar

It's called politics, where you get millions of people to vote for known liars. I'm sure you've heard of it.

Mehitabel's avatar

I’m going to start a campaign for the replacement of the word “politician” with “Snollygoster”, an actual old English word meaning a politician who cares more about enriching himself than serving his constituents. But I repeat myself …

SHug's avatar

I LOVE that!! New word!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yay!!!!!!!!!

David Nelson's avatar

Triathlon-ing checks all the boxes for me.

(Actually, any of "marathon-ing" or "running" or "jogging" or "sprinting" or "hurrying" do.)

KC & the Sunshine's avatar

Hurrying! 😆😆😆😆 (I did it copy Laura, I promise!) I came here to edit my comment to add another category— “hurrying (or cleaning horse buckets) in high humidity and heat”. That’s my personal misery category.

Laura Kasner's avatar

Hurrying. 🤣🤣🤣

SadieJay's avatar

That leaves it open for 85% of the internet population to join. Can't think of any words more inclusive than that!

Laura Kasner's avatar

What saddened me most about this story was that this mother and daughter caved to their demands.

From Jennifer Sey’s SS regarding this story:

“In overtime, WNBA security approached them, declared the shirts “offensive” and offered a choice: put on the provided Dream “Wellness & Health Night” tees or get escorted out. They complied so they wouldn’t miss the last two minutes of the very close game.”

When money is more important than what you say you are taking a stand on, you are standing on sinking sand.

Jenna McCarthy's avatar

For these ladies I don’t think it was about the money! I think it was the love of the game and supporting the players. And I can see in that split second moment being flustered and making the decision that makes the problem just go away… Obviously you and I would not have complied lol but I don’t judge.😊

Laura Kasner's avatar

In Jennifer’s post, she said they paid $1,000 each for their tickets.

Jenna McCarthy's avatar

Oh I saw that. It is widely reported and I even included it here. Again I’m just saying I don’t think it was about the money per se.

Laura Kasner's avatar

Jenna my love. It’s always about the money.

How many people who did not want to get the shots got them anyway because they didn’t want to lose the money they’d already spent on the cruise they booked?

Jenna McCarthy's avatar

Always??? My husband’s best friend who died after the shot took it so that he could visit his own dying mother in hospice. And it is the love of the sport that compelled them to spend that much money on a ticket in the first place! I think we are going to have to agree to disagree.😘😘😘

Laura Kasner's avatar

I clearly should not have used the word “always”. I should have clarified when those appearing to take a stand regarding a certain issue, money often comes into play.

That’s a tragic story Jenna. I know there are far too many. 😢💔. My heart breaks about such stories.

KC & the Sunshine's avatar

There are certain games/events I’d have stayed to watch the last two minutes and certain ones I’d have walked out.

I’d stay no matter what I had to wear, whether my tickets had been free, or $5000, if say, Golden Tempo was running the Preakness Stakes after having won the Kentucky Derby.

Of course, any mom would need to take into account how her girl felt about it, and might have stayed though everything in her longed to leave— because moms will ditch matters of principle for matters of their daughter’s heart.

My girls and I would stay for any horse race, or show jumping event. My son on the other hand, would take the offered replacement shirt, rip it in two, and use it to floss his butt crack while being slow walked out, simply to

make a point. If he had a third hand, he’d use it to thumb his nose at the powers that be, even as he flossed. That goes for pretty much any sporting event, concert, whatever…

I don’t think it’s always or necessarily or even usually about the money.

Juju's avatar

Now there’s a son to be proud of!

Laura Kasner's avatar

KC - I’m laughing out loud. I love your son 🥰

DDForTruth's avatar

I already like your son's hootzpah, a lot!!

I'd a paid money to see that actually.

😂🤣

While clapping for him the entire time too!

David Baldwin's avatar

I would have ignored the security team. Then, make THEM physically remove me. If they even touched me I would 'scream' something like "Assault!" or "Rape!" or "Get your hands off my breasts!" "Why are you trying to abduct me!" How many phone cameras would be filming that incident? (But you have to say that twice and very loud. Once to get everyone around you focus on the incident. The second time for the cameras to start capturing.) I'm just wondering if the security team would have backed down then?

David Nelson's avatar

David, I want to go to a sports event with you!

Justin's avatar

Particularly when (pulling shirt out and looking down) I'm lacking in the breasts area. I know there are padded bras and all.. but given the topic at hand, it's not a strong selling point.

That and the facial hair. 😂

Richard schoenenberger's avatar

Whether you admit it or not, the shirts convey a message. If you stand by that message, why would you cover up?

And why would the security wait till the last two minutes of the game? Seems ridiculous.

Jenna McCarthy's avatar

I agree that the shirts are making a statement about biological reality, but disagree that there’s any implicit hatred or phobia.

Laura Kasner's avatar

Richard - Because they knew they would cave to their demands. Especially after paying $1,000 each for their tickets.

Richard schoenenberger's avatar

I’m thinking they got their money’s worth.

David Nelson's avatar

If I own XX-XY I send mom-daughter fans prompt reimbursement for product placement and a Thank-You card with my autograph. And a coupon good for 20% off the next purchase.

SadieJay's avatar

You can't buy that kind of publicity!

GK's avatar

I wish they would have taken off the t-shirts and walked in wearing just their bras or their skin. I know that is outrageous, but so was their request.

Copernicus's avatar

Shoot. That sort of is pretty disappointing.

I had assumed they'd worn the shirts and paid for court side seats to make a point.

Someone else's avatar

They made their point, spectacularly. In my universe, putting on the provided shirts demonstrated that they care more about supporting the women on the court than making a distracting scene. Bravo for the way they handled it. Since when does grace equal not standing up for your position?

Copernicus's avatar

That's actually a good point that I hadn't thought of. Thanks for writing it.

David Nelson's avatar

No, I 𝙙𝙞𝙙 catch the critical kernel of the story, and it was this: "The mother-daughter duo reportedly paid a grand apiece to sit courtside." (I think it sailed completely over the WNBA's head, but ...easy, because they won't stand up.)

I confess I was "of two minds" about clicking on a link purporting to point to a product produced by a company called "XX-XY." Imagine my relief when seeing it really was "only" a pullover. Imagine my surprise however that it was not leopard-print!

And finally I'm overjoyed, in a roundabout way, that the Paralympic Committee is working on a test that, as an indirect benefit, can be applied to Democrats to determine mental fitness for office. And voting. (There is no Constitutional requirement that citizens be mentally competent to vote; up until Joe Biden's time in office--some would say earlier; much earlier--the Founders relied heavily on that constituency being relatively small and the "mass" media not going out of their way to make a big deal about how to get to the polling places. That's all changed. There are even "buses" now.)

Jenna McCarthy's avatar

I DO wear the pink hoodie with leopard leggings.😉

David Nelson's avatar

For some reason, I immediately "received" an image of Alex Karras as "Mongo" riding a Brahma into Rock Ridge in "Blazing Saddles" with the words "Yes/No," with arrows, painted on the bull's backside. (If in fact you painted "XX/XY," with arrows, on the backside, there's proof positive of a psychic connection I have so far only imagined. (If not, I don't suppose you'd consider it?))

Michael Haag's avatar

Outstanding essay. One of your best (and that’s a high bar)!

John Wright's avatar

" Is an I ❤️ NY tote bag insinuating that New Jersey sucks?" - well, NJ does suck, no need for a t-shirt or tote bag to imply it. 😇

Jenna McCarthy's avatar

There are parts of New Jersey that are actually spectacular! Truly.😉

John Wright's avatar

Yes, I've lived there (high school years were in NJ). Geographically parts of New Jersey are excellent. The school systems are terrible. And politically, I'd actually take New Jersey over New York (but I'd never again live in either).

I think when most people "diss" New Jersey they really are dissing Newark (the armpit of New York).