My boomer roommate had a t-shirt that read "Raise rebels, not sheep" on the front, which is a good message ngl... but then I saw the sleeve with the American flag plastered on it.
...
*Facepalm into oblivion*
Smdh.
Context: There was someone in the comments section on a youtube video by @blackbirdcoop (awesome creator, definitely worth watching and supporting. I highly recommend the the "Cow Rebellion" video reaction short because it's hilarious chaos.). People were joking about how the creator said that "chickens are almost harefully stupid" and I made the association to MAGA and this one asshole tried to mock me by trying to gaslight everyone into thinking that my political jab was unreasonable and "unrelated" to the content, when the content creator himself is an avid leftist and makes it a point to let everyone know just how intertwined politics are to oppressed peoples' daily lives and our very survival. I normally wouldn't feed the trolls, but I couldn't help it this time because I am beyond DONE.
My response: "You have zero media literacy or research skills. This creator is an avid leftist. Some of us, like myself and this creator, do not have the luxury of being apolitical because politics dictates our very survival directly. There is one political party in power that is actively trying to either kill us or put us back in chains for good and the other party in power has no fucking spine or any real reason to protect anyone but themselves, not the people under active oppression. But you don't see that because you choose to look the other direction every time something makes you the slightest bit uncomfortable. If we were not under active threat so much MAYBE we would have a moment or two to relax and not have to say things that hurt your fragile feelings, but that's not going to happen in our lifetimes. So yeah, I'm going to roast the oppressing classes without mercy any chance I get. So suck it up and deal with it, because that is the reality of what WE have to go through every damn day whether you choose to believe it or not and I am fucking TIRED of you assholes trying to silence and gaslight us into thinking it's 'not that serious'."
I feel like these "protect the children" bills are actually a disguised way to protect predators while simultaneously increasing surveillence to prevent political dissent. Allow me to explain.
By forcing age verification via photo ID or using biometric data (ie. facial recognition) effectively keeps children offline entirely because children do not typically get ids unless they drive, which is becoming increasingly uncommon between the ages of 16 and 19. In some ways, it could potentially keep predators from accessing kids on the surface. But kids are smarter than people give them credit for. Banning kids from the surface web will only force them into the darkweb, which is FAR more dangerous, or cut children off from eachother and other adults that can help them escape abusive situations.
We don't know if such laws will eventually be interpereted to apply to search engines such as google, even further isolating vulnerable people.
Not to mention the potential impact on academics. If kids can't fucking use a damn search engine (like google scholar), how are the kids that are serious about their education supposed to do research for their homework assignments? How are they supposed to fact check things in real time?
No one in power is thinking this through!
If they are (which I am inclined to believe at this point), then it's fucking insidious.
I don't think I even have to explain how this will affect the ADULTS too! Anyone with a nuanced opinion? Something the regime doesn't like? BAM! The government has your ID and they're using DHS to break your door down without a warrant to haul you off to a death camp. (No, I am not being hyperbolic, this is pattern recognition and shit like this is already in motion for LEGAL immigrants.)
Now, could this be used to identify predators online to be caught? Perhaps, but doubtful. Because women in particular have been harassed online endlessly and no one bats an eye until it is too late. And even then, they really don't give a shit.
If people actually wanted to keep kids safe, they would focus on implementing legislation to criminalize and increase prosecution of sexual harassment online, NOT restricting access of resources to the people with the least agency in society. But they won't do that because it was never about protecting kids.
I (28 turning 29 this year) am AFAB nonbinary with a fem lean. There are many reasons why I cannot have children of my own. I am disabled, impoverished, and in a long-term committed relationship with another non-binary person who is also asexual. I also have bipolar I and a possible genetic predisposition to Lynch Syndrome and breast cancer, for the sake of full disclosure. These are major factors in my decision-making process. I know that I need to remain on medications for the rest of my life, and changing medication regimens during pregnancy will put both me and the resulting fetus at significant risk. I also do not wish to pass on this condition to a future child because I know first-hand just how much suffering it causes. Because of my tendency toward depression, I also struggle to care for myself and I refuse to let that lead to me neglecting a child even briefly because I have first-hand experience with being the child who was both abused and neglected.
With that being said, I understand that there are experimental procedures that could allow those who are AMAB to recieve a transplant of an AFAB person's uterus and vagina in order to concieve and and birth a child. I am of sound mind and decision-making capability at the time of writing this post. I am neither in a state of mania nor depression and I did not come to this decision lightly. I wish to use a piece of my body to advance medicine for the trans community, if my uterus is indeed viable. And I understand the sacrifice involved in doing so.
I will not be able to begin the process of becoming a donor until I reach the age of 30 and I don't know what legal barriers will be put in place by then. Until then, I will be on Medicaid in a few months and once I am, I will be investigating whether my uterus is still viable and if I will meet the criteria to become a donor.
What I ask of the trans and broader LGBTQ+ community as a whole, is to begin crowd sourcing for the medical procedures for both donor (me) and recipient once I have been able to confirm my ability to become a donor. (I will provide proof when I have it.) I refuse to be the one to do so myself because I do not want even the perception that this is a grift. Instead, I would recommend that an established, trusted organization that directly benefits the trans community hold the donations and assist in spreading the word once viability is confirmed.
A uterus, or lack thereof, does not determine whether one is a woman or becomes a mother. But if one chooses motherhood, I would be honored to assist in the process.
Edit: I live in the US, and if my uterus cannot be used for transplant within 10-20 years (due to research delays or bs laws or some other bs), then I wish to participate in the research necessary to allow for sucessful outcomes for the trans community if it can be adequately safeguarded.
I (28 turning 29 this year) am AFAB nonbinary with a fem lean. There are many reasons why I cannot have children of my own. I am disabled, impoverished, and in a long-term committed relationship with another non-binary person who is also asexual. I also have bipolar I and a possible genetic predisposition to Lynch Syndrome and breast cancer, for the sake of full disclosure. These are major factors in my decision-making process. I know that I need to remain on medications for the rest of my life, and changing medication regimens during pregnancy will put both me and the resulting fetus at significant risk. I also do not wish to pass on this condition to a future child because I know first-hand just how much suffering it causes. Because of my tendency toward depression, I also struggle to care for myself and I refuse to let that lead to me neglecting a child even briefly because I have first-hand experience with being the child who was both abused and neglected.
With that being said, I understand that there are experimental procedures that could allow those who are AMAB to recieve a transplant of an AFAB person's uterus and vagina in order to concieve and and birth a child. I am of sound mind and decision-making capability at the time of writing this post. I am neither in a state of mania nor depression and I did not come to this decision lightly. I wish to use a piece of my body to advance medicine for the trans community, if my uterus is indeed viable. And I understand the sacrifice involved in doing so.
I will not be able to begin the process of becoming a donor until I reach the age of 30 and I don't know what legal barriers will be put in place by then. Until then, I will be on Medicaid in a few months and once I am, I will be investigating whether my uterus is still viable and if I will meet the criteria to become a donor.
What I ask of the trans and broader LGBTQ+ community as a whole, is to begin crowd sourcing for the medical procedures for both donor (me) and recipient once I have been able to confirm my ability to become a donor. (I will provide proof when I have it.) I refuse to be the one to do so myself because I do not want even the perception that this is a grift. Instead, I would recommend that an established, trusted organization that directly benefits the trans community hold the donations and assist in spreading the word once viability is confirmed.
A uterus, or lack thereof, does not determine whether one is a woman or becomes a mother. But if one chooses motherhood, I would be honored to assist in the process.
Edit: I live in the US, and if my uterus cannot be used for transplant within 10-20 years (due to research delays or bs laws or some other bs), then I wish to participate in the research necessary to allow for sucessful outcomes for the trans community if it can be adequately safeguarded.
The comment that sparked this response was "It's not all men, but there's no way to know which ones are which."