I will try to be tactful.
Please do not discount Complete's opinions and point of view because even though you may not agree or probably even understand what she is talking about, I do and it would be really nice if observations like this from trans elders could be talked about without violating the site's terms or causing a disagreement. Arguably, she might have been a little more tactful too in her approach but I understand her sentiment.
I share many of her views but a lot of you that haven't been around a long time probably don't understand how someone could have such less than shiny opinions about the "trans community". It may be because although her and I are both of trans experience, we've not been a part of the trans community, all its prescribed dogma and what almost at times seems like brainwashing so coming into this relatively recently with decades and decades of just living regular lives as everyday women outside of this realm, many things are puzzling and some are even a little disturbing. In some ways, it's as if we're looking in at all this as outsiders. It's a different perspective that may be hard to understand but I think it's worth discussion?
To clear the air about my background as a caveat but germane to this discussion, I grew up outwardly gender incongruent which pretty much means I was seen as a girl but was known as a boy. My parents took me to clueless therapists too when I was a young child. A bit later in life after a miserable time fitting into the world and despite trans youth not being a recognized thing at the time, I nevertheless was diagnosed with "primary transsexualism" and started HRT at 17 before my senior year of high school which upon graduation in 1973, I seamlessly and with little fanfare went "full time" and just blended into the woodwork working my way up in the pink collar world as just your average gal. I had SRS in 1977 when I was 22, was married when I was 30, divorced when I was 42 and pretty much all during this time up until a bit over three years ago was pretty much oblivious to even being of trans experience or having anything to do with it. Other than our special medical needs, it just wasn't a part of my life. In the real day-to-day world, it still isn't. I am not out about my medical history and have no desire to ever be.
With all the media visibility and with trans being turned into the political football it has become, it made the whole thing a little hard to ignore so I began to look for where I might have a place in all of this or even if I did and I really haven't found one except as I said, as an outsider. Being trans youth before we'd even been "discovered" as such adds to this point of view and certain attitudes I've encountered from those that aren't in the same early/late transitioning group should not be discounted as part of my perspective.
As Complete alluded, there seems to be a prescribed transgender dogma within the community that maybe you can't see if that's all you've ever known? It seems to have rules and boundaries that don't like to be violated by contrary opinion or even by those just playing devil's advocate to maybe help others gain a broader perspective or better understanding of themselves.
With my relatively recent "awakening" if you will, I have become a student of the trans phenomenon and in my several years of study and observation, it has been made clear that certain voices are not welcome in an echo chamber. That's not saying anything about this forum specifically but within the approved transgender narrative in general. If you disagree with something or your opinions go against the grain, happen to be unpopular or you ask too many questions, it's seen as nearly heretical by some who then vehemently feel the need to defend their position as upholders of the accepted transgender canon.
There seems to be a high degree of cognitive dissonance by some in the transgender community that prefer to not have their bubbles burst. I'd rather not rain on anyone's parade but it's not all unicorns and rainbows and there are some folks that aren't quite on-board with it all and these are things I think should be brought to the table in an open minded way if for no other reason than to have a better understanding of these things within ourselves.
So, this isn't really the time or place for that but my point was coming into today's trans world relatively from the cold but yet full of history, experience and different perspectives in some ways is quite jarring and may be a bit for everyone? Complete and I got over the whole trans thing early in life and have gone on to have full lives like any other woman but because we did change sex so many, many moons ago, by default our medical issues have included us in a group neither of us has ever belonged or asked to belong so when we are faced with group think we haven't been a part of, there's a natural tendency to want to call out things we might see as BS.
I understand Complete's criticism of "support".
As someone relatively new to the "transgender experience" but with a longer history being trans than most of you will ever know, it is hard to just hop on the bandwagon without being a little bit cynical or critical of certain aspects of the "trans movement". No harm is meant in this and I have no ill will toward anyone and hope everyone finds whatever it is that makes them happy and I'm still learning plenty of things myself but that's not by sticking my fingers in my ears and going la-la-la as to not hear something that falls outside of my paradigm.
So yeah, this has been my transgendered [Sic] experience pretty much too. Trans World has its own brand of political correctness and acceptable standards but living 60 years of my life in the non-trans world, in the last three or so years I have become interested in the other side, it's become quite eye-opening to say the least.
