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All this Free Speech Warrior stuff about transgender people. This idea that we "mustn't stifle debate".
I just want to know where *their* red lines are. /1
I just want to know where *their* red lines are. /1
Presumably there are some views that *they* think we shouldn't take seriously, or dignify with a discussion? Th we should just dismiss as the mendacious, distorted, delusional nonsense they are? /2
Maybe, for example, the Flat Earth hypothesis. I don't myself think we shd waste even 30 seconds on that. It's stupid codswallop, and there's nothing wrong in saying so and moving on. That's not "stifling debate"; it's rightly refusing to waste time on a ridiculous non-debate. /3
Thing is, most of the mainline transphobic tropes are literally in the same boat rationality-wise as Flat-Earthism. "There are no trans kids"; "transgender's a fetish"; "trans people are confused gays"; cversn therapy... these are views w the epistemic status of Flat-Earthism. /4
That's why there's absolutely nothing anti-intellectual or anti-free-speech in refusing to debate these positions: in pointing out that they're hogwash & don't deserve our time, & moving on to more worthwhile questions, like what to do about the UK's institutional bigotry. /5
"Aha!" retort the FSWs, "but we can and DO show that Flat-Earthism is hogwash! And we have done! We didn't refuse to debate Flat-Earthism! We debated it and won! And that's the difference! That's what gives us the right to ignore Flat-Earthers now!" /6
Yeah. OK. But in that sense, WE TOO (we trans people and our allies) took on the standard transphobic tropes, debated them, & won.
We did this about 1000 times.
And actually we still do it, pretty much every day. We find we kind of have to. /7
We did this about 1000 times.
And actually we still do it, pretty much every day. We find we kind of have to. /7
We keep on doing it because we have to, because WE REFUTE THE HOGWASH BUT YOU DON'T REGISTER IT, AND YOU KEEP ON ASKING US TO REPEAT THE SAME REFUTATION AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN, AND EVEN WHEN WE DO, YOU STILL DON'T LISTEN. /8
And then we get tired because you don't listen to what we're saying, and the 1001th time you ask us to repeat it we snap and say "Oh FFS, not again. No, not playing this time." /9
And then you solemnly nod your heads and wag your fingers, and you tell us we're being unreasonable and "stifling debate".
Well, there's certainly someone being unreasonable here. But is it actually us?
/ends
Well, there's certainly someone being unreasonable here. But is it actually us?
/ends
