Hello My name is |
Breanna Still |
My sexual orientation is |
ALWAYS!, activist, adult, ask me, aunt, bi-romantic, bisensual, bitch, butch, butch-ish, butchdyke, byke, chapstick lesbian, chick, chubby, chunky, cunt, Democrat, daughter, dreamer, dudette, dyke, family, fat dyke, female, female-identified, feminist, femme-ish, femmy butch, friendly, full-time, GLBT, GLBTQ, GLBTQA, GLBTQI, GLBTQIA, geek, gender ambassador, gender defender, gender gifted, genderqueer, girl, girl lover, girly, gynephilic, homosexual, in transition, intelligent, introvert, LGBT, LGBTQ, LGBTQA, LGBTQI, LGBTQIA, LGBTQIOPPS, LGBTQIPPS, leftist, lesbian, lesbian-identified, lesbo, lezzy, liberal, M2F, Ms., MTF, ma'am, male-born, miss, monoamorous, myself, nerd, none of your business, open, passionate, person, pre-op, pro-choice, pro-family, pro-gay, progressive, queer, queer dyke, quiet, quirky, romantic, same gender loving, she-bitch, she-geek, shy, sister, snuggly, socialist, static gendered, sweet, TG butch, tomboy, tomboy femme, tranny, trannydyke, trannygirl, trannyqueer, trans, transbutch, transdyke, transexual, transfemale, transfemale butch, transfemale femme, transfeminine, transfolk, transgender, transgender warrior, transgirl, transperson, transqueer, transsexual, transwoman, trustworthy, understanding, weird, wench, whole-brained, witch, woman, woman-loving, XY, YES! |
What's yours? |
Monday, July 18, 2011
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Why the "Birther" Conspiracy Theory is a Load of Turtle Shit
Okay, I'm going to try something a little different this time around and write about something not remotely related to transgender or lgbt issues. I'm going to explain why the so-called "birther" conspiracy theory is a load of turtle shit finely glazed in horsefly larva.
Okay, first, I suppose I should explain what the birther theory is for anyone who has had their head under a political rock. Basically, the "birthers," as they've come to be called in the media, are a group of Americans who have come to believe that President Obama won't show his "real" birth certificate because he was actually born in Kenya and is, thus, not legally eligible to be president of the United States. This is mainly a group of conservatives, people who don't like Obama anyway either based on his policies or because ZOMG OBAMA'S A MOOSLIM!!! (which he isn't) or just because he's a black man (which he is. What, did you think I was going to lie about the obvious truth?).
First off, I should point out that the initial basis for their argument is totally, factually wrong. Obama has already released his birth certificate. Of course, the argument that is thrown back at this is that it is a "Certificate of Live Birth" rather than a "Birth Certificate." Yes, I know, there's a clear distinction (eyeroll). The governor of the state of Hawaii (the state where the president was born) has publicly stated that the birth certificate is real. On top of that, there are newspaper announcements of his birth from the time (which was about fifty years ago at the time of this writing).
Okay, so let's look at this. We have a "Certificate of Live Birth" from the state of Hawaii, CONFIRMED by the government there, and newspaper announcements of the birth. "But the announcements are fake!" Uh, no they're not, Mr. Dumbass-who-can't-accept-a-black-president. Take a good look. Every credible source has confirmed them.
So here's where things step off into clear conspiracy theory land: those newspapers were PLANTED so that he could fake his citizenship and become president! That's right: the birthers believe that the president's birth announcements were faked so that he would be allowed to be president. I shouldn't even have to go further than that to convince a reasonable person that this is bullshit, but, considering that more than half of the Republican base believes this, I will. Let's say, for a moment, that it's possible they did plant those announcements in the newspaper on the date so that Obama could be allowed to become president. Why? If you want to convince me that your crazy fucking conspiracy theory is true, explain to me why any crazy person would even WANT to do something like that? Why would anyone say, "Oh, let's find some foreign born black kid and forge announcements of his birth in Hawaiian newspapers so that he could become president someday!" Why not just pick someone who had no reason to question whether they were born in the United States? Or, more than that, why not pick a white boy? It DOESN'T MAKE ANY FUCKING SENSE!!!
So, there. If you are a reasonable person, you should be convinced now that Obama was born in Hawaii. If you aren't convinced, then that should be a clue to you that you aren't a reasonable person, but there's no point arguing with you since you won't accept any of the same facts as me anyway. For those who are convinced of reality, go out there and use this to tell the morons to just accept the truth that they can't admit to themselves. Hopefully, if enough people keep telling them they're wrong, they'll finally figure it out.
Okay, first, I suppose I should explain what the birther theory is for anyone who has had their head under a political rock. Basically, the "birthers," as they've come to be called in the media, are a group of Americans who have come to believe that President Obama won't show his "real" birth certificate because he was actually born in Kenya and is, thus, not legally eligible to be president of the United States. This is mainly a group of conservatives, people who don't like Obama anyway either based on his policies or because ZOMG OBAMA'S A MOOSLIM!!! (which he isn't) or just because he's a black man (which he is. What, did you think I was going to lie about the obvious truth?).
First off, I should point out that the initial basis for their argument is totally, factually wrong. Obama has already released his birth certificate. Of course, the argument that is thrown back at this is that it is a "Certificate of Live Birth" rather than a "Birth Certificate." Yes, I know, there's a clear distinction (eyeroll). The governor of the state of Hawaii (the state where the president was born) has publicly stated that the birth certificate is real. On top of that, there are newspaper announcements of his birth from the time (which was about fifty years ago at the time of this writing).
Okay, so let's look at this. We have a "Certificate of Live Birth" from the state of Hawaii, CONFIRMED by the government there, and newspaper announcements of the birth. "But the announcements are fake!" Uh, no they're not, Mr. Dumbass-who-can't-accept-a-black-president. Take a good look. Every credible source has confirmed them.
So here's where things step off into clear conspiracy theory land: those newspapers were PLANTED so that he could fake his citizenship and become president! That's right: the birthers believe that the president's birth announcements were faked so that he would be allowed to be president. I shouldn't even have to go further than that to convince a reasonable person that this is bullshit, but, considering that more than half of the Republican base believes this, I will. Let's say, for a moment, that it's possible they did plant those announcements in the newspaper on the date so that Obama could be allowed to become president. Why? If you want to convince me that your crazy fucking conspiracy theory is true, explain to me why any crazy person would even WANT to do something like that? Why would anyone say, "Oh, let's find some foreign born black kid and forge announcements of his birth in Hawaiian newspapers so that he could become president someday!" Why not just pick someone who had no reason to question whether they were born in the United States? Or, more than that, why not pick a white boy? It DOESN'T MAKE ANY FUCKING SENSE!!!
So, there. If you are a reasonable person, you should be convinced now that Obama was born in Hawaii. If you aren't convinced, then that should be a clue to you that you aren't a reasonable person, but there's no point arguing with you since you won't accept any of the same facts as me anyway. For those who are convinced of reality, go out there and use this to tell the morons to just accept the truth that they can't admit to themselves. Hopefully, if enough people keep telling them they're wrong, they'll finally figure it out.
Monday, February 14, 2011
The Paper Bag Challenge
I recently had a conversation with a woman who wanted to learn all she could about me and being transgender. She was surprised, however, when I explained that I am a lesbian (terminology which, despite the seeming clarity on my part, was rather confusing to her), and seemed to have difficulty comprehending why anyone would want to be part of the opposite gender if they were still sexually attracted to them.
This is a misconception which is still rampant in spite of my having essentially passed beyond it long ago. In short, it's a concept that people seem to have difficulty grasping, while for me it's just something I've taken for granted. But this time I think I've got her beat. I asked her, "Well, do you think you could live as a gay man, with all the social pressures that entails?"
Her response actually stunned me, though I suspect many of my cisgendered readers may expect it. "Sure, I think so." Again, when discussing issues of gender and sexuality, my cisgendered readers will have to forgive me, for it's essentially like I'm living on a separate plane of existence, not because I view myself as above others but simply because I've had a lot more time to study and live through these things that most people never even consider. I was amazed at the level of certainty she seemed to have in which she said these words. It was as though she had never considered what her own life would really be like, and I have concluded that that is something that was lacking on my own argument. I need to show people what it is like to be forced into a social role to which you are not emotionally connected.
And thus, I have devised what I call my Paper Bag Challenge. I had initially conceived of several rules, but none of them fit in any scenario I ran in my head, so I decided to simply pare all the rules down to the core spirit of the challenge.
For 30 days, no one, not even you, can see your face.
The most likely way of achieving this is, of course, the classic paper bag with holes for your eyes and/or mouth, etc., but it could also be achieved with a mask or a veil. From 12:00 am the first day to 11:59 pm of the 30th, at no point when anyone can see you or when you are within view of a mirror, should your face be exposed. Obviously, it is recommended that the covering be removed while sleeping, but only for safety's sake. Significant others should hopefully be asleep, but even so any social interaction you have with them will be bag-on.
The premise is pretty basic: your face is one of the most important identifying features you have, and for this challenge you are to have that feature removed. You can not look in the mirror and be happy with what you see, because there is nothing to be seen. People will look at you strange. Indeed, that is part of the challenge as well, as the experience of being transgender often involves people looking at you in a way you are not wholely comfortable with.
Naturally, this is not a perfect simulation of the experiences of being transgender, but I imagine it is a pretty good start. I don't expect anyone to accept the challenge, as it is intended to be mostly theoretical. However, the challenge is physically possible, so if anyone felt they were up to it, I would love to hear of their experiences.
This is a misconception which is still rampant in spite of my having essentially passed beyond it long ago. In short, it's a concept that people seem to have difficulty grasping, while for me it's just something I've taken for granted. But this time I think I've got her beat. I asked her, "Well, do you think you could live as a gay man, with all the social pressures that entails?"
Her response actually stunned me, though I suspect many of my cisgendered readers may expect it. "Sure, I think so." Again, when discussing issues of gender and sexuality, my cisgendered readers will have to forgive me, for it's essentially like I'm living on a separate plane of existence, not because I view myself as above others but simply because I've had a lot more time to study and live through these things that most people never even consider. I was amazed at the level of certainty she seemed to have in which she said these words. It was as though she had never considered what her own life would really be like, and I have concluded that that is something that was lacking on my own argument. I need to show people what it is like to be forced into a social role to which you are not emotionally connected.
And thus, I have devised what I call my Paper Bag Challenge. I had initially conceived of several rules, but none of them fit in any scenario I ran in my head, so I decided to simply pare all the rules down to the core spirit of the challenge.
For 30 days, no one, not even you, can see your face.
The most likely way of achieving this is, of course, the classic paper bag with holes for your eyes and/or mouth, etc., but it could also be achieved with a mask or a veil. From 12:00 am the first day to 11:59 pm of the 30th, at no point when anyone can see you or when you are within view of a mirror, should your face be exposed. Obviously, it is recommended that the covering be removed while sleeping, but only for safety's sake. Significant others should hopefully be asleep, but even so any social interaction you have with them will be bag-on.
The premise is pretty basic: your face is one of the most important identifying features you have, and for this challenge you are to have that feature removed. You can not look in the mirror and be happy with what you see, because there is nothing to be seen. People will look at you strange. Indeed, that is part of the challenge as well, as the experience of being transgender often involves people looking at you in a way you are not wholely comfortable with.
Naturally, this is not a perfect simulation of the experiences of being transgender, but I imagine it is a pretty good start. I don't expect anyone to accept the challenge, as it is intended to be mostly theoretical. However, the challenge is physically possible, so if anyone felt they were up to it, I would love to hear of their experiences.
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