Microsoft's sex change

[jessica_m1978]

BY OWEN THOMAS
http://valleywag.com/tech/transitions/microsofts-sex-change-309008.php

Michael Wallent, a general manager at Microsoft, will return to work in January as Megan Wallent. He came out to colleagues as transgender last month, first in person and then by email. Wallent says he encountered nothing but support -- mixed, of course, with some

Comments

[jessica_m1978]

To start, I initially heard about this on OutQ on Sirius on my way home from work. I'm a little irritated that I do a google search on "microsoft transsexual blog" (she had a blog documenting her transition) and there isn't a single mainstream news source in the first ten results. In a society where celebritant DUIs are front page news, I'm fairly insulted that this one mainstream news source couldn't show up in the top ten fucking google results. But imagine that; mainstream media doesn't want to show anything that might portray a transsexual person in a positive light.

As for the article, it seems to be trying to be fair despite fucking up pronouns and showing pictures of her as a guy. I do LOVE the fact that they talk about transsexual women having to deal with traditional sexism in conjunction with transition-related issues. I'm also encouraged that there's quite a few positive comments with relatively few immature and/or mean-spirited ones.

One thing that irritates me is the impression average Americans must get from the fact that they typically only see middle-aged or older like Christine Daniels and this woman. That transitioning in the workplace is an uncommon, novel thing that happens to upper-middle class white people, with little to no repercussions.

But who wants to publish things about 20-something transitioners without a steady career at a Fortune 500 company and a six-figure paycheck? I mean if you did that, the general public might actually realize how fucked up the situation REALLY is. Although all you'd really have to do is distract them with drug-related sports scandals and Lindsey Lohan's most recent vacation to rehab.