Sex, Thought, Choice, Liberation

[archmage]

OK, seriously...do you need a label to say who you fuck? Is there some reason we can't all just enjoy the physical activities of sex and intimacy with whomever we enjoy and be good at that? Does it really matter who that might be, or what gender they are compared to you, or what particular actions you enjoy with the partner of your choice

Comments

[kwsapphire]

I feel (to an extent) the same way about gender. Assigning a gender at birth, even when there is no clear gender, causes a lot of heartache and anguish for a lot of people in the world. If we just let people grow up into whatever they're gonna grow up into, and didn't try to stick people in restrictive categories (that obviously don't apply to everyone), I think we'd all be a lot better off.

[archmage]

While I agree to an extent, the situation of there being "no clear gender" is rare. it's usually pretty damn obvious which gender one is. Now, as one grows, one may feel a yearning towards the other end of the spectrum, and that's a different thing altogether. Personally, I feel a little too much is being made of the idea of a child born with "no clear gender" and that this idea is being taken up and run with before any clear study has been made of just how often this is happening.

I'm behind anyone that wants to change. One of my best friends is mid-change, and I think it's a great idea. But let's at least be honest about the situation. Seems to me it would be a lot MORE of a problem to not be straight up about what gender one is clearly and biologically is at birth and in the growing years. This is an adult situation, and would best be handled in the adult years when one can make mature and informed decisions.

[kwsapphire]

I can't speak from personal experience, but my mom's mother was a nurse's aid and she said that babies are born with ambiguous gender far more often than hospitals are willing to admit. What's more, at that time hospitals would take the baby away and perform gender assignment surgery without ever notifying the parents. This was still going on in the 80s, though I haven't seen recent data. In addition there are several outside factors that have been influencing child development, including certain plastics mimicking estrogen and therefore leading the the effeminization of newborn males.

Yes, usually it's cut and dry, but not 100% of the time. And I think in those cases where it's not cut and dry, parents shouldn't be forced to assign a gender (a la the birth certificate), and certainly hospitals should not be allowed to perform these (irreversible) surgeries which can obviously lead to severe psychological confusion/trauma down the road.

[archmage]

Now, I do agree that they shouldn't be making those decisions without the consent of the parents. However, i'm betting most parents want to choose one gender or the other.

Which is worse, the child growing up and deciding to change their gender, or the child growing up with the (innocent but nevertheless present) cruelty and tactlessness of other children because they don't know if they are a boy or a girl? Others' mileage might vary, but I'd rather spare the child that kind of Hell while developing and be supportive and open about choices later.

[syrinakintari]

I have to agree with you! All I can think of now is my old friend 50"s Steve's token standard line "nice shoes, wanna fuck"