From my perspective attending a conservative church for about 20 years from 1990 forward, I can tell you the conservatives I knew never talked about trans anything. The topic never came up.

The hot button of the day was abortion.

What I saw from reading is the word "transgender" entered the vernacular of conservatives when you started hearing about trans in public schools and children.

I personally felt at that time it was going to become a bigger issue but I certainly never thought it would be all this today.

The first lawsuit I heard about was where a public school trans student wanted to use the showers of their identifying gender and was denied. That was June 2015.

For me that lawsuit was the primary reason I voted for Trump in 2016 after voting straight Democrat since Reagan.

My reasoning was after Gay Marriage passed in 2015 I realized there was the distinct possibility a trans case could hit the Supreme Court and permanently deny women the right to privacy in the restrooms. Considering I already knew the next president would likely get to nominate 3 seats in the Supreme Court, I knew Hillary Clinton had to be kept out of the White House.

I expected some backlash due to 2015 student lawsuit, but I sure never expected to see what we're seeing today.

Now my concern is due to trans issues being tied to "gay rights", I am afraid the public sentiment and gay support gained the last 20 years could collapse if straights started feeling the gay rights folks are wanting to indoctrinate children.

Thats been the sentiment in public schools already with alternative lifestyle books in school libraries.

I'm concerned there could be a backlash against all gays in general if this problem continues to fester.

As easily as the public has grown to tolerate/accept gays who are out in social circles usually reserved for straight people, that attitude could all too easily vanish.

Truth,

"This implies women are at risk in public restrooms from trans people"

No it doesn't.

Truth,

As usual you built a strawman based on your own inability to see past your nose and then framed your whole post around that.

Gal,

"There is already a segment of the population who believe that."

Yes...I agree but it's not totally unjustified.

Remember Loudon County where a father was tackled and dragged out and arrested at a school board meeting because his daughter had been sexually assaulted by a boy in a restroom wearing a skirt and who had done the same thing at another school with another girl and they transferred him and the father was demanding answers?

Loudon Co is at it again. In fact its the same High School. Three boys were in their restroom and another student who apparently looked female but identified as male was in there and the boys talked among themselves questioning why a girl was in there and the boys got suspended for talking about it. Something about title 9. The issue is still unresolved.

Gal...do you not think stories like this will create yet more backlash against trans and possibly gays?

Truth,

"You state that the presence of a trans woman denies a woman a right."

Thats not it either.

But you're getting closer.

Clown,

If you're going to respond to my posts, why not actually read them and try to comrehend instead of just seeing a couple of words going from there.

Truth,

"Trans people can no longer receive the exact same medical care and medicines a cis person can"

Here's my take.

If someone wants elective surgery and hormones for life, I am of the mind they should be financially obligated for the cost themselves.

Why should the government or an insurance company be financially involved.

Theres too many people needing actual life saving care.

This operation is unnecessary surgery.

If this person threatens to kill themselves, then psychiatric counseling should be covered.

Only under extreme situations should surgery be covered and over 25 years of age.

Threatening to kill yourself doesn't qualify.

Otherwise pay for it yourself.

Truth,

"TH: They can't it's against the law."

That sounds like a job for SuperTrump.

Truth,

Good thing people like you point it out.

Now it can get the attention it deserves and maybe get fixed.

Truth,

Some doctors will do anything for a buck.

They'll even cut off your penis if you just sign a waver, no questions asked.

Truth,

We all know good and well liberals have infiltrated that industry and turned it into an ideological crusade, instead of real medicine.

Truth,

People should be encouraged to think twice about the surgery.

Society needs an information campaign.

"No one will really believe you transformed into another gender and, be honest, neither will you.
It's all in your head."

Truth,

"Personally, I'd be ashamed to mock trans people knowing there are trans people on this website"

I'm telling the truth.

Liberals HAVE infiltrated that industry and provide biased information.

And doctors WILL do anything for a buck. A waiver is all that's needed. No therapy...nothing.

People DO need to be more informed before going under a knife. And absolutely no hormones to a minor.

Live the other gender....fine....it's your life. Surgery is permanent.

There's no way with liberals running the show, people are getting a fully honest understanding of how they will feel years from now.

I'm not mocking. I give a crap and hate to see liberals screw up people in the name of political influence.

It can wait. Don't be so eager to mutilate your body.

Redial,

"You think they don't {think twice}?"

I'm sure some do go into it eyes wide open. But children can't. That's for sure. Keep hands off kids.

But like I said, with that industry having turned into a political battleground and overwhelmingly under liberal influence, no, I don't believe people are getting enough actual therapy before making life-altering decisions.

Redial,

"You say that on a thread titled "FBI Readies New War on Transgender People"?"

I posted earlier I'm worried about a new kind of McCarthyism of sorts getting started.

I'm not an extremist.

I'm not thrilled with the rhetoric I'm reading on some sites and I don't automatically believe everything I read either.

We'll just have to wait and see about trans people and what really ends up happening.

But..let's be real. I have a grandchild in school and I'm getting told a LOT of kids are now saying, "I'm gay" or "I'm transgender". Been going on a few years.

Really?

Is this more prevalent than you or I really know and the current administration wants to get to the bottom of this?

Well...it's not going to be an easy thing to figure out with so many school districts being run by liberals.

I'm afraid you're going to be reading about anti-tran articles stirring up some people.

That's how it will be presented by the liberal media. Just a culture war. Just anti-tran bigots.

Are more and more kids really saying they're gay or tran? Kids say all sorts of stuff to be different and special.

This is not a good thing I'm hearing from my grandchild.

And, furthermore, what are all these school shooting all about? How are all these things tied together?

Dan,

"A waiver is all that's needed. No therapy...nothing"

Alex,

"Bill has beliefs he can't be reasoned out of because he didn't reason into them."

If what I say doesn't sound reasonable to you, I have no control over that.

Dan,

"To a person, they were all tortured souls then, and are blissfully happy now."

Just saying...you are aware people stick to the party line...right?

They may or may not be really truthful with you.

Also, how many years now for them?

Four people...if they were male to female, I'd lay odds one of them will regret it during their life.

Getting them to open up to you may require lots of booze.

Dan,

My point is simple.

I do not believe enough good therapy is being provided. Good doctors are actually hard to find.

One of them wouldn't even see me because I lived gay and then married a woman. Sorry...won't see you.

I've seen probably 10 therapists in my life and only one was any good. Saw him for years and I have no idea whatsoever his political persuasion.

That's a professional.

Dan,

So you're against people getting more therapy?

Laura,

"We know who we are."

I know...you're a Two Spirit person.

Curious...do you have 1 or 2 souls?

How does that work?

Dan,

"Pray the gay away" and "good therapy" are essentially the same?

Pray the gay away is pointless. Good therapy can save your life.

I never said good therapy will "cure you".

Just should get it first before cutting anything off.

Time to end this conversation.

You're off the rail now.

Clown,

"Why don't I find it surprising BullJohnson is asking his grandchild about gay and trans kids."

High school.

You can be sure in my family my grandchild is not being left to chance.

Makes some of the schools best grades. Both me and the child's father are both making my grandchild fully aware of the liberal indoctrination at public schools.

I have never asked, "are you gay or straight". Would never consider it.

But we do talk about the teachers and other students (no names) and the culture of the place.

I guess you think only the teachers should know anything.

Dan,

"Did you get therapy before deciding to hide your sexuality by marrying a woman?"

No. I didn't cut anything off.

Dan,

"an outside group demands to make another's life choices."

That's not what therapy does.

Maybe you should give it try.

Clown,

"You better groom your grandkid to hate homosexuals as much as you do."

My family never uses certain derogatory words for minorities.

We don't teach hate. If anything we teach, "live and let live".

Dan,

"She literally asked me, "Do you see any reason to come back?"

That was probably code for "I don't want you for a patient"

Of course you probably thought you were smarter than her. You probably were a problem patient.

No...she was tired of you and the money just wasn't worth it.

She's seen enough no-it-alls who couldn't be helped so she figured her time could be better well spent with someone else who didn't see therapy as a competitive sport.

Dan,

"By the end of the third session, the problem had been dealt with"

Really?

I went for years. Three visits isn't enough time for her to get to know you and create a treatment plan.

Dan,

Only 3 visits.

Must have been a superficial problem.

Dan,

Glad she helped you.

Dan,

"I went until I solved the problem."

I thought you said therapists "demand to make another's life choices."?

Actually, how it should work is they help you make decisions but don't tell you what to decide.

Laura,

The only good doctor I had made me stop smoking pot cold turkey for him to take me as a patient.

So I did.

I'm grateful for that.

Dan,

Pot and alcohol both interfere with meds for mood, depression, and anxiety.

So when people claim nothing works but keep using, it's not a mystery. They were warned to stop and just didn't.

THC can actually make mental health worse. It hits the brain's frontal lobe which is the part that handles judgment and risk-taking. You're adding fuel to the fire.

True story...

I smoked pot for years. After quitting cold turkey, about 3 months in, I was just sitting there when my brain quivered hard inside my skull for about two seconds, right in the front. It happened again at six months, then never again.

I told my doctor. Don't remember if he had much to say.

Can't find a lot of information or cases but it happened to me. Basically some sort of reset the brain getting accustomed to new ways of functioning.

Dan,

Pot use can exacerbate mental health issues.

My take? People who stay high most of the time are often medicating something that was there to begin with.

There's solid research showing a link between heavy pot use and an increased risk of schizophrenia, especially in people already vulnerable.

THC is a much more insidious drug than most people are willing to admit.

Dan,

"I was talking about your requirement for folks to get therapy until YOU'RE satisfied"

You're always twisting stuff. I never said how much therapy.

My point was now that there is minimal expectations of any mental health analysis, I don't believe people are fully aware of consequences or maybe they will reconsider physically altering their body and just choose to live the other gender and accept their natural body.

Dan,

We're beating a dead horse.

I'm done.