Virginia: Look West To See What’s Coming

by Kerry Dougherty

Reason #5,692 not to vote for ANY Democrats running for the General Assembly this fall:

We all know that Virginia’s leftists in Richmond yearn for our lovely commonwealth to be more like California. When last they controlled the state legislature these nuts directly tethered our energy policies to that “progressive” utopia.

It won’t stop there, so let’s see what else is on its way from the West Coast.

Looky here! It’s Assembly Bill 665, working its way through the legislature. When this passes — and it’s just wacky enough to win approval — it would essentially emancipate some 12-year-olds, allowing them to seek mental health care without their parents’ approval.

This bill would only apply to kids who are on Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program. But how long before all children would be free to flee homes where they were not having all of their fantasies indulged?

“The authors want to change the law to let a 12-year-old opt out of their home on a whim, invoking parental separation and emancipation of minors without any claim of danger or parental consent,” attorney Nicole Pearson said, testifying against the bill. “This is child emancipation.”

Others say it will be abused by kids who believe they are trans. They’ll use the law to leave home and seek irreversible and dangerous medical interventions without telling their parents.

This would dovetail nicely with another bill — AB957 — that passed both houses of the California legislature in May.

Fox News reports that gem of a law can cause a parent to lose custody of a child if they do not engage in “gender-affirming” care.

…its provisions would alter the California Family Code by making affirming gender identity one of legal standards parents have to meet in order to be recognized as providing for the “health, safety, and welfare” of the child.

If parents embroiled in a custody battle were to deny the child’s gender identity, state courts would have the authority under Section 3011 of California’s Family Code to remove the child from the parent’s home.

Make no mistake. In California there is just one state-approved reaction parents may have when a child announces that they’re trans: they must embrace the new identity.

So if your son wants to sashay out of the house in a dress and lipstick, you’d better smile and toss him a tube of Revlon because he — oops, she! — can report you to the authorities.

In California, officials believe that any parent who would dare to reply: “Don’t be ridiculous, take that frock off. You’re not leaving my house dressed like a girl” is engaging in a form of child abuse. The docs who will give that kid sterilizing drugs or perform amputations of healthy organs, however, are on the side of California’s angels.

Scary, isn’t it?

And similar laws will be coming to Virginia IF voters hand control of the General Assembly to the far left in November, that is.

You’ve been warned.

Republished with permission from Kerry: Unemployed and Unedited.


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Comments

108 responses to “Virginia: Look West To See What’s Coming”

  1. VaNavVet Avatar
    VaNavVet

    Where is the compassion for trans children? Of course if you deny that gender identity is real then you don’t need to feel compassion. Leave these decisions to parents, their children and their doctors. The GOP bills across the country are just as kooky in banning gender affirming care. Republicans appear to be all for parents’ rights until it comes to this issue. So lets just keep folks like Senator Chase in the GA!

    1. Stephen Haner Avatar
      Stephen Haner

      This insanity took root and has now been uprooted in Europe, where the idea of butchering these children with permanent surgeries is no longer tolerated. Gender may be fluid for some but scalpels are not.

      1. If ‘gender is fluid’ why are there only two options in ‘gender affirmation’?

      2. VaNavVet Avatar
        VaNavVet

        Another area where parents rights need to be protected on both sides of the issue.

    2. Nathan Avatar

      Where’s the compassion? Yes, lets talk about compassion.

      ‘While on Lupron, I experienced almost daily migraines, constant muscle aches, and intense depression. At the time, I attributed my unhappiness to “gender dysphoria,” the condition I was supposedly on Lupron to treat. How many other children who get put on this drug suffer tremendously and use that suffering to validate their belief that they’re meant to be the opposite gender? Maybe that’s why so many children who start puberty blockers go on to transition medically. They become convinced that the only solution to the confusion and discomfort they’re experiencing is to keep pressing forward, regardless of the consequences.”

      “When I was a 15-year-old and transitioning to female, strangers on the internet encouraged me to start puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones as soon as possible before my body was “poisoned” by puberty. I was cheered along in my transition, and the most cheers always came when I posted pictures of myself in women’s clothing — the skimpier, the better. At the time, I craved the attention. It made me feel good about myself when not much in my life did. I was exactly the kind of lonely, vulnerable boy internet pedophiles like to prey on, and I consider myself lucky I never met any of my adult “friends” in person. Their version of self-actualization was destroying their bodies for sexual fulfillment, and they wanted to convince children to do the same.”

      https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/restoring-america/community-family/puberty-isnt-optional-how-gender-ideology-harms-children

        1. Lefty665 Avatar
          Lefty665

          Sort of is it real or is it Memorex?

    3. Nathan Avatar

      Again on the subject of compassion.

      Is it compassionate to send young people down a dangerous conveyer belt with life altering implications, when it doesn’t even have a documented exit path, should the person decide to de-transition?

      What is your answer? That there aren’t enough in that condition for anyone to give a crap about them?

      I believe in compassion for all trans, including those who decide to de-transition.

      “Little is known about the psychological and medical needs of detransitioners and there is currently no guidance on best practices for clinicians involved in their care. The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) recently published its eighth Standards of Care document and chose not to include a chapter on detransition (Coleman et al., Citation2022). Likewise, the Endocrine Society’s Clinical Practice Guidelines for Gender-Dysphoria/Gender-Incongruence offers no advice on how to safely stop hormonal therapies (Hembree et al., Citation2017). The American Academy of Pediatrics failed to acknowledge the possibility of regret and detransition in their policy statement on care for children and adolescents with gender dysphoria (Rafferty et al., Citation2018). Perhaps it should not be surprising then that many detransitioners find it difficult to access clinicians with the requisite knowledge to manage enduring adverse effects of hormones and surgical complications (MacKinnon et al., Citation2022; Vandenbussche, Citation2022). Some stop hormonal therapies “cold turkey” without medical supervision, instead turning to online communities and social media for advice (MacKinnon et al., Citation2022).”

      https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0092623X.2023.2224320

      1. VaNavVet Avatar
        VaNavVet

        Never heard of de-transition but it of course is possible. Still say leave it to the parents, their children, and their doctors.

        1. Nathan Avatar

          “Still say leave it to the parents, their children, and their doctors.”

          Ultimately, that would be best, but parents and children must be provided with an accurate assessment of the risks. That is not happening in many, if not most cases today.

          Don’t believe me? Read this.

          https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/104/3/686/5198654

          1. VaNavVet Avatar
            VaNavVet

            Agree and that should be addressed but not by Republican legislatures passing laws banning care.

          2. Nathan Avatar

            Thanks to intense pressure from activists, the medical community has forsaken the accepted process and procedures for a treatment of this severity. This has gone on for several years.

            If the medical community isn’t going to do it’s job because of threats and pressure from activists, then there needs to be serious implications.

            We’re experimenting on young children, and neither they nor their parents are properly informed.

          3. VaNavVet Avatar
            VaNavVet

            Are you expressing your opinion about the medical community or can you provide a reference?

          4. Nathan Avatar

            Did you read the article I linked to from The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism? Below is the first sentence of the concluding paragraph.

            “In our opinion, physicians need to start examining GAT through the objective eye of the scientist-clinician rather than the ideological lens of the social activist.”

            Earlier you stated that you have “never heard of de-transition.” That surprised me greatly.

            Do you recall the story of Chris/Kristen Beck entitled Lady Valor? It’s about a former Navy Seal which aired on CNN? This was a huge story about 10 years ago, and was even sited as a basis for changing military policy with respect to transgender people serving in the military.

            https://www.cnn.com/shows/lady-valor

            Did you know that Chris Beck, who transitioned to Kristen Beck, has now de-transitioned to Chris Beck?

            Here’s the story.

            https://www.foxnews.com/media/detransitioned-navy-seal-warns-parents-gender-surgery-minors-not-sharing-all-data

          5. VaNavVet Avatar
            VaNavVet

            So yes, you were citing an “opinion”. I don’t watch Fox News so I guess that I missed the Beck story. Doesn’t really surprise me though as he never impressed me as a feminine kind of guy. Hence, not really sure what the Kristen was all about.

          6. Nathan Avatar

            I cited the “opinion” of several specialists in the field of endocrinology backed up by 63 footnotes and studies.

            You may wish to label it an opinion, but can you provide any example of the abandonment of medical protocols and procedures to match what is being done with gender dysphoria?

            The fact that you were unaware of de-transitions speaks to a biased news media, which is at the heart of this issue. Conservative media do report on the tragic failures of gender transitions, but that is the job of legitimate journalism. Murders, airplane crashes and medical screwups are important news. What’s the benefit of any news agency that would neglect these?

            Additionally, please go back to CNN. Have they made sure to update stories about Chris Beck’s transition to include his de-transition? That would be the ethical thing to do.

            https://www.cnn.com/shows/lady-valor

          7. VaNavVet Avatar
            VaNavVet

            The reference cited clearly states “in our opinion”. It is hard to prove a negative in this case something that is not occurring. I do agree that Fox News is clearly biased as the Dominion voting machine settlement documented.

          8. CJBova Avatar

            Nathan’s link lists a series of consequences that I have never
            seen spelled out at the same time by advocates of gender affirming treatment: sterility, lowered bone density, increased ovarian cancer risk from testosterone, five times the
            venous thromboembolism risk from estrogen.
            It should be a required footnote
            to every push for GAT.

            The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology
            & Metabolism, Volume 104, Issue 3, March 2019,
            Pages 686–687, https://doi.org/10.1210/jc.2018-01925

          9. VaNavVet Avatar
            VaNavVet

            You mean activists on both sides and are still merely citing opinions which everybody has one of.

          10. Nathan Avatar

            Are all opinions equally informed?

            “The British Journal of Medicine looked at 61 systematic reviews with the conclusion that, quote, ‘There is great uncertainty about the effects of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgeries in young people.’ The Journal of the Endocrine Society came up with the same conclusion, even the American Academy of Pediatrics. They all cite the lack of evidence.”

            https://www.foxnews.com/politics/crenshaw-grills-dem-witness-failure-name-one-study-citing-benefits-surgeries-trans-kids

            Please cite a systematic review that says otherwise. Yale School of Medicine assistant professor Meredithe McNamara couldn’t, so I doubt you will find one.

            Standards of Care are normally based on systematic reviews. Why isn’t that the case with respect to gender dysphoria in youth?

            The removal of heathy organs is particularly troubling. Even the removal of vestigial organs has more support from long-term studies then is the case with surgical gender surgeries, which remove healthy organs that are essential to human health and reproduction.

          11. VaNavVet Avatar
            VaNavVet

            The systematic reviews cite uncertainty regarding effects. This is just that “uncertain” so not yet proven to be beneficial or not. Science is about hypothesis and experimentation. There will be positive results on both sides of the issue. Parents who trust their doctors should be able to decide in consultation with the child. Adults make these same decisions for themselves with the same systematic reviews.

          12. Nathan Avatar

            “Science is about hypothesis and experimentation.”

            True, but consider the words you have just written. Hypothesis and experimentation describes clinical trials, not standards of care.

            High risk treatments and procedures which are “uncertain” and “not yet proven to be beneficial” (your words) should not be standard, and not presented to parents as the only option available, as is currently the case.

            Parents are asked pointedly:

            “Would you rather have a dead daughter or a live son?”

            The conversation above is what’s happening on a daily basis all over the country. It’s a complete misrepresentation of current research, yet your solution is for our elected representatives to do nothing.

          13. VaNavVet Avatar
            VaNavVet

            Every procedure had to be performed for the first time and then took many trials to be perfected. It is true that children may hurt themselves or attempt suicide but I do not believe that a doctor would make such a statement or present only one option. There is no evidence that such a conversation ever takes place. If you really want something messed up then ask a politician to do it!

  2. Stephen Haner Avatar
    Stephen Haner

    Once upon a time in the glorious past, merely aligning Virginia Democrats with their California or New York cousins was enough to end their chances in elections. I hate to break it to people, but the wackiness is way more popular than it used to be, especially with those of tender years with brains molded in our current public schools who get their news/views from social media. You have to take the ideas on directly, dissect them, and offer better options. Minds will not change and elections are won on voter registration and turnout, which Democrats fully understand and today’s Republicans (the election deniers in the lead) simply do not grasp.

    1. Matt Adams Avatar
      Matt Adams

      Not to mention the importation and ever expansion of NOVA. The rest of the state is not required to make any decisions, the DC suburb will do that act.

      1. how_it_works Avatar
        how_it_works

        Too bad that there wasn’t/isn’t sufficient growth and economic development in RoVA to counter NoVA.

  3. Ronnie Chappell Avatar
    Ronnie Chappell

    Why is it that liberals oppose trying minors who commit murder as adults (because their brains aren’t sufficiently developed to understand what they’re doing) but fully support allowing minors to render themselves unable to bear children?

    1. student_of_zot Avatar
      student_of_zot

      You’re not allowed to ask such triggering questions lol

    2. Why does the school system want to allow this, but requires a parent’s permission to give the same child an aspirin? Confusing ‘Dem Logic’ [which is, as everyone knows, a oxymoron]!!

    3. Kurt Eberly Avatar
      Kurt Eberly

      A contradiction that cannot be resolved; and anything based on a contradiction will collapse.

    4. In the Calvin and Hobbes cartoons, the game of Calvinball had ever-changing rules. The left’s position on the age of majority/consent shifts to fit whatever particular narrative is being advanced by the left on a specific issue.

      Applying the Calvinball approach: It’s OK to raise the age of consent to possess a firearm to age 21, because anyone under the age of 21 is not mature enough to responsibly handle firearms; the age to vote should be lowered to 16 because 16 year olds are sufficiently mature to participate in elections; but 16 year olds are immature and not capable of understanding the seriousness of their crimes so they can’t be tried as adults; minors should not be allowed to purchase alcohol, cigarettes or vapes, but they are capable of making life-changing decisions about abortion and irreversible sex change surgery.

    5. VaNavVet Avatar
      VaNavVet

      Minors are not allowed to make those decisions as adults are. Doctors and hospitals would not perform surgeries without parental permission.

      1. WayneS Avatar

        Really? They perform abortions on minors without parental permission.

        What do you think is the ultimate goal of those who strive to make it legal to keep a child’s gender dysphoria a secret from the child’s parents?

        1. VaNavVet Avatar
          VaNavVet

          Can you document this claim or is it just rumor? It might have something to do with forced “conversion therapy”.

          1. WayneS Avatar

            I only made one claim, so:

            Can I document the claim that doctors perform abortions on minors without parental consent? I think so. But a perusal of various state laws would verify that it is certainly permitted in many states.

          2. VaNavVet Avatar
            VaNavVet

            Could you cite one state and a reference?

  4. student_of_zot Avatar
    student_of_zot

    As a former CA resident I’m not surprised by this at all. A terrible development for CA parents/guardians and THEIR children.

  5. Nancy Naive Avatar
    Nancy Naive

    Why is everyone assuming the result will be a gay or transgender child as opposed to a well adjusted non-suicidal kid helped over a peer instilled neurosis?

    1. WayneS Avatar

      Because that is essentially what “gender affirming care” does. It affirms (agrees with or consents to) what the child states about his/her gender. The World Health Organization says it is “designed to support and affirm an individual’s gender identity”.

      If the goal was to determine what’s really going on with a child’s mind and body, and to help them deal with that, then it would be called “gender dysphoria care” or “gender determination care”, or some such – but not “gender affirming care”

      1. Nancy Naive Avatar
        Nancy Naive

        Carried from previous.
        You know, the internet and social media is a world shrinking device.

        I wonder if it creates an artificial sense of overcrowding and high density living even though physically nothing much has changed since 1990s.

        Applying the mouse(rat) study conclusions to people…

        1. WayneS Avatar

          Perhaps. The internet has had many unforeseen effects on our society.

          1. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            Exactly, the web is what was transformative.

        2. Lefty665 Avatar
          Lefty665

          We’ve added another billion or two people since the ’90s. That has made at least a marginal difference in population density.

          That may do a disservice to the mouse(rat)s.

          Seriously, I think you’re onto something. Social media has made perceived density the psychological equivalent of physical severe over crowding. We are certainly seeing similar behavioral changes.

          1. Nathan Avatar

            I believe smartphones are a significant factor as well as social media. When people accessed social media exclusively via computers, they still had a relatively normal life.

            These days, people spend an enormous amount of time looking at their smartphones. It’s one of the more radical changes in human history.

            The first iPhone went on sale June 29, 2007.

          2. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            You’re making a distinction without a difference. Access devices have facilitated our connections, not changed them. Smartphones are part of our media environment just like tablets, notebooks, desk tops and hybrid tvs.

            Life existed before the Iphone. It invented nothing new. What it did was put together several existing capabilities in an attractive package.

          3. Nathan Avatar

            Maybe.

            Maybe not.

            Smartphones, social media use and youth mental health

            https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7012622/

          4. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            Coincidence and causality. The web/internet is the medium and apps the vehicles. Phones, tablets, notebooks and desk tops merely the methods of access to the medium and content.

            The method of access may have an impact on rate and ease of adoption, but overall it is incidental to the issue.

      2. Nancy Naive Avatar
        Nancy Naive

        Then this is a golden opportunity to establish the contrarian care. I’d refer to the “wash the gray” sound alike that failed miserably, but perhaps something other than religious based? Sports based! Oh wait, no. Boy scouts! Did that work?

        Ya know, it could be that all of this is the result of an inability to compromise. Overcrowding causes rats to behave this way too.

        Okay, mice…
        https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2428&context=open_access_etds

        FWIW, one of my college girlfriends replicated a similar experiment with lab rats. Since her work was undergrad, I couldn’t find it on the web.

        1. WayneS Avatar

          Overcrowding causes rats to behave this way too.

          Have you ever read The Wanting Seed by Anthony Burgess?

          1. Nancy Naive Avatar
            Nancy Naive

            No, I haven’t. Short read? My eyes are of limited use these days. Half hour limits on close work

          2. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            FWIW, after more than 100k hours staring at screens, 40+ inch 4k tvs as monitors have taken away my eyestrain. I can read them without glasses, and they’re cheap.

          3. Nancy Naive Avatar
            Nancy Naive

            Dammit! Why didn’t I think of that! This stupid iPad has AirPlay! I’ve never even played with it!

            Maybe tomorrow morning with coffee. Even my distance sight is screwy tonight.

          4. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            Most machines have HDMI ports that make it easy to output video/audio to an external monitor. Dunno about apple stuff, I’ve avoided it like the plague. The high price of proprietary equipment and restricted options does not add value to match the cost for me. YMMV.

            Hope you get some relief for your eyes. It’s scary when they don’t cooperate.

          5. Matt Adams Avatar
            Matt Adams

            Apple has “Lightning” port to HDMI adapters. Operates in the same fashion, they have several different options, more specifically for the phones and ipads as their ports are also their charger.

          6. how_it_works Avatar
            how_it_works

            Last two Lenovo laptops I got for work have no video output other than a USB C port. They make adapters to connect an HDMI port to USB C.

          7. Matt Adams Avatar
            Matt Adams

            They also make USB C to Ethernet adapters, because I believe most of those lack those as well.

            This whole slimmest computer trend has impacted a lot of those peripherals.

            It’s not just IBM/Lenovo whatever you’d like to call them, I’ve seen it on Dells as well.

          8. how_it_works Avatar
            how_it_works

            Yes, the latest Lenovo laptop I got for work (Z13) has exactly 3 ports: Two USB C and one headphone/microphone port. I ordered some USB C to USB A adapters so I could plug in my USB hub…they turned out to be a little too cheap (they were $2 each). One doesn’t work at all and the other slows down the transfer rate significantly.

          9. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            Buying too cheap/small open architecture without enough/variety of ports can be as hobbling as proprietary architecture. “What’s it got for ports?” is an important question before purchasing. There’s a limit on how many adapters, USB or otherwise, I want to screw with, although the ones I’ve used have worked well.

          10. how_it_works Avatar
            how_it_works

            The trend seems to be fewer ports.

            Soldered memory modules, so you can’t upgrade, are also too common now.

          11. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            You pays your money and you takes your choice.

            The original IBM PC had soldered memory too. You know where it got them. If you don’t like the way a product is made, don’t buy it and thus reinforce a mfrs decision you don’t like. That’s what open standards are about.

          12. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            “Apple has “Lightning” port to HDMI…”

            TMI, I really don’t care what proprietary way apple does it. Robin Williams used to say cocaine was gods way of telling us we had too much money. Apple is another way to tell that.

          13. Matt Adams Avatar
            Matt Adams

            Don’t disagree with you in that one, the only convenience I find is the IPAD I use on long train rides. Out of everything they’ve done, the IPad just surpasses all other tablets in convenience.

          14. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            Oops, sorry, I’ve had a case of the a** with apple for more than 40 years. I escaped a proprietary environment (Datapoint ca ’84, and it was hard to do) and vowed never to get into another one. Woz was great, Jobs not!

          15. Matt Adams Avatar
            Matt Adams

            I vehemently dislike apple, they’ve haven’t done anything new since the released the first versions of the Iphone and Ipad and charge everyone an arm and a leg for their tech, they control. I had an Ipod nano until it died and an Ipad only so I have something larger than my Google Pixel screen to watch on train trips.

          16. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            The iPhone was an innovative product, packaged and marketed well. But after almost 15 years a glass slab ain’t a premium idea anymore. I’m currently driving a Samsung flip that I like very much. Android is a pretty good OS these days too.

            Any phone screen is still a crappy UI. Just not enough real estate for it to be a good way to interact when I don’t have to. It also tends to bleed information so I don’t give it more than absolutely needed.

          17. WayneS Avatar

            It is relatively short. It provides an interesting and darkly comic description of a society’s reactions to overpopulation, food shortages, etc. He wrote it around the same time as he created A Clockwork Orange.

            I’m sorry to hear about your eyes. My wife is starting to have some vision issues and it’s got both of us a little spooked – her more than me, of course.

            I wish you the best – take care of them!

          18. Nancy Naive Avatar
            Nancy Naive

            Pub date 1962? Right in the thick of these rat/mice studies. Inspiration?

          19. WayneS Avatar

            Perhaps.

        2. WayneS Avatar

          Well that study is ripe for ‘cancellation’.

          The researcher lists homosexuality as one of the “catastrophic events” that can occur in a population when it exceeds a comfortable density level.

          1. Nancy Naive Avatar
            Nancy Naive

            Truth hurts? I’m not sure he’s wrong. I’d make a joke, but it wouldn’t last long enough to see.

        3. Lefty665 Avatar
          Lefty665

          My recollection is that there was a large study done at the University of Maryland too. It found an increase in incest in addition to the rise of other aberrations along with population density noted in the linked study.

    2. Nathan Avatar

      “Why is everyone assuming …”

      Why are you assuming there’s no possible danger?

      I try to assume as little as possible.

      What I know, however, is that we are heading into uncharted territory with the current explosion of gender transitions at younger and younger ages. The cause and outcome is uncertain.

      I also know that puberty blockers are being used in ways not given FDA approval. It’s called off label.

  6. Nancy Naive Avatar
    Nancy Naive

    Bodily autonomy. Wow! Why do children need bodily autonomy?

    Could you imagine a child dying of some strange disease whose parents might contemplate having another child for donor parts?

    1. James C. Sherlock Avatar
      James C. Sherlock

      The views you have expressed on parental rights and duties in medical care here seem consistent with others you have expressed on, for example, schools.

      Clearly many commenters do not agree.

      Please help us by providing a short version of your overarching philosophy on:
      1. the age of majority; and
      2. the rights and duties of parents vs. the rights and obligations of children vs. the rights and duties of the state before the children reach the age of majority you have defined.

      As a bonus, please advise where poor children who seek emancipation at the age of 12 are supposed to go.

      1. Nathan Avatar

        Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy

        Iatrogenic Harm in Gender Medicine
        Sarah C. J. Jorgensen
        Published online: 19 Jun 2023

        We do not know what is driving the sharp rise in the number of young people being diagnosed or self-diagnosing with gender dysphoria (Cass, Citation2022; Kaltiala-Heino, Bergman, Tyolajarvi, & Frisen, Citation2018; Zucker, Citation2019). Likewise, we do not know why the case mix has rapidly shifted from predominantly young boys and middle-aged men to primarily adolescent females with complex mental health problems and neurodiversity (Aitken et al., Citation2015; Kaltiala-Heino et al., Citation2015; Zucker, Citation2019). The natural trajectory of transgender identification in this novel cohort is uncertain and we cannot predict who will be helped by gender-affirming medical interventions or who will be harmed. The long-term safety and effectiveness of these interventions is yet unknown (Hembree et al., Citation2017; Ludvigsson et al., Citation2023; NICE, Citation2020a, Citation2020b).

        https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0092623X.2023.2224320

      2. Nancy Naive Avatar
        Nancy Naive

        It’s simple. Humans are the only complex nonlinear servo-mechanism capable of being totally and wholly reproduced by unskilled labor… and it shows.

        The case cited above actually happened. The parents were extremely disappointed that the doctors wouldn’t use their newborn child as a marrow donor for the older child who was dying, especially since that was the reason the had him. They sued. They lost. Parents last name was something like Brosze or similar.

        Why is it you Conservatives always want to “own” people? Children, libs, students, etc.?

        If comments on transgender or gay kids, like those here, are also made at the family table, it’s no wonder that a confused 12-yo would want to seek solace and guidance elsewhere.

        1. Nathan Avatar

          Nice deflection. You answered none of the important questions asked.

          1. Nancy Naive Avatar
            Nancy Naive

            Ask better questions. Besides, you are not entitled to the answers.

          2. James C. Sherlock Avatar
            James C. Sherlock

            The ultimate deflection.

            You should apply to be White House Press Secretary.

            She has labeled herself as a historic figure.

          3. Nancy Naive Avatar
            Nancy Naive

            Well then, we diverge.

          4. WayneS Avatar

            A legend in her own mind…

          5. WayneS Avatar

            A legend in her own mind…

        2. Lefty665 Avatar
          Lefty665

          “Humans are the only complex nonlinear servo-mechanism capable of being
          totally and wholly reproduced by unskilled labor… and it shows.”

          Oh, I like that, can I use it if I give you credit? 🙂

          1. Nancy Naive Avatar
            Nancy Naive

            Better do a search for earlier references… “Ask not what your country”, ya know.

          2. Nancy Naive Avatar
            Nancy Naive

            I like the “who like their work so well” addition. Certainly a plus.

          3. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            wholly reproduced by unskilled labor… has a nice ring to it too.

    2. Nathan Avatar

      Nancy Naive,

      What was your comment some time back about the reasoning power of the first grader who shot the teacher?

  7. Carter Melton Avatar
    Carter Melton

    Government encouraging children to report parents for behavior that doesn’t comport with the party line…..hmmmm…Question for the wokesters: where have we heard this before ?

    1. WayneS Avatar

      According to contemporary propaganda, Pavlik Morozov was very familiar with the concept.

  8. Eric the half a troll Avatar
    Eric the half a troll

    “And similar laws will be coming to Virginia IF voters hand control of the General Assembly to the far left in November, that is.”

    Unless Kerry can demonstrate unanimous support for this law by the Democrats running for office this year, this is nothing but Kerry being hyperbolic in an attempt to motivate the Republican base through unfounded fear. Expect more in the weeks ahead.

    1. Lefty665 Avatar
      Lefty665

      “Expect more in the weeks ahead.”

      “And with good cause.” as Doug Wilder said to Ollie North after North complained about being the most investigated man in America.

      Linking Virginia to California’s dingbat energy laws was something the Dems did when they ran the GA and had the Gov too. They have also introduced the bill Kerry cites in the GA. She’s got the facts right. Left to their own devices Virginia’s Dems get off into the weeds pretty quickly. Repubs too, but that’s another discussion.

      Some of us think that a divided government, like both Virginia and the nation have these days, is as good as it gets. It keeps either party from doing its worst.

      1. Eric the half a troll Avatar
        Eric the half a troll

        In what scenario do you envision our government NOT being divided after November…? Answer: only if R’s hold the House and take the Senate… hence the fear-mongering critique…

        1. Lefty665 Avatar
          Lefty665

          That’s easy, it’s the option you are afraid Kerry may help achieve, Repub control of the GA in addition to the Governorship. We’ve seen what happened when the Dems controlled both the GA and the Gov.

          Like I said, I’d prefer that didn’t happen (or vice versa). Giving the Repubs a majority for just long enough to repeal some of the dingiest stuff the Dems passed when they had unfettered control would be a feature. Otherwise divided government gives us the best chance of avoiding the worst partisan excesses. That’s a feature, not a bug.

          1. Eric the half a troll Avatar
            Eric the half a troll

            So you agree the piece is fear-mongering. Why not just say vote for Republicans so we can role back what Dems did? Perhaps Kerry thinks that sort of platform just won’t sell as well as unfounded fear does?

          2. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            In this case it is factually based concerns, and not unfounded. Commentary on being chained to nutty California on vehicles and the text of actually introduced Va legislation is not “fear mongering” as you so wrongly attempt frame it.

            Your attempt to discredit the basis of discussion instead of dealing with the virtues, or lack of them, in the issues raised is typical of what is wrong wrong with our nation today. It contributes nothing to the discussion and is more properly itself categorized as “fear mongering”. Nice try, but no cigar.

          3. Eric the half a troll Avatar
            Eric the half a troll

            “In this case it is factually based concerns, and not unfounded”

            Ummm… I repeat, unless you can demonstrate unanimous support for this law by the Democrats running for office this year, it is not factually-based. Those are the realities of politics in Virginia.

            But do you know what WILL happen should Republicans gain control? A 15 week abortion ban (at least). That is demonstrably true. Many here feel great about this fact. Dems certainly do not.

          4. Eric the half a troll Avatar
            Eric the half a troll

            “In this case it is factually based concerns, and not unfounded”

            Ummm… I repeat, unless you can demonstrate unanimous support for this law by the Democrats running for office this year, it is not factually-based. Those are the realities of politics in Virginia.

            But do you know what WILL happen should Republicans gain control? A 15 week abortion ban (at least). That is demonstrably true. Many here feel great about this fact. Dems certainly do not.

          5. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            The chaining of Virginia to California craziness is already Dem passed law.

            Fact based is that the legislation has been introduced by Dems who have demonstrated their willingness to pass dingbat legislation (see California and cars above).

            Your assertion that there is some requirement to prove unanimous Dem support before objecting to introduced legislation is at best profoundly silly.

            Please note that I have not tried to require you to prove unanimous Repub support on hypothetical restrictive abortion legislation before you fear monger about it, nor will I.

            You should get out from under the bridge more often.:)

          6. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            The chaining of Virginia to California craziness is already Dem passed law.

            Fact based is that the legislation has been introduced by Dems who have demonstrated their willingness to pass dingbat legislation (see California and cars above).

            Your assertion that there is some requirement to prove unanimous Dem support before objecting to introduced legislation is at best profoundly silly.

            Please note that I have not tried to require you to prove unanimous Repub support on hypothetical restrictive abortion legislation before you fear monger about it, nor will I.

            You should get out from under the bridge more often.:)

          7. Eric the half a troll Avatar
            Eric the half a troll

            Please show me a bill proposed in the Virginia legislature that would “emancipate some 12-year-olds, allowing them to seek mental health care without their parents’ approval”. The requirement for unanimous support comes from the fact that zero Republicans would support such a bill and IF the Dems were to win both bodies, it would be by the slimmest of margins. The idea that such a law “will be coming to Virginia” if Dems win control of General Assembly is ludicrous. Further, Kerry wants us to believe that Youngkin would sign such a bill – how else would it become “law”, pray tell…?

            My scenario is far more likely should Republicans win and you know it. It is the stated position of the party leadership.

          8. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            You make up fantasy suppositions then require their acceptance.

            Troll land = fantasy land.

          9. Eric the half a troll Avatar
            Eric the half a troll

            It is Kerry who contends that such a law is in our future should the Dems win in November. I agree that is fantasy which is the exact point of my comments you take such issue with.

          10. Lefty665 Avatar
            Lefty665

            Nice try, no cigar. Perhaps you’ll do better next time.

          11. Eric the half a troll Avatar
            Eric the half a troll

            Denialism does not win you the argument.

  9. Nathan Avatar

    Parental rights and age of majority are important issues as they relate to gender transitions. Gender dysphoria is growing rapidly, and the age of diagnosis is decreasing.

    The mean age of gender dysphoria diagnosis is decreasing

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a17b84778c19c2342a0560aba991ed144a976f84f14514d0893549c6b22f9cc3.gif

  10. Nathan Avatar

    The following from The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM) is critical to an understanding of the potential dangers of gender-affirming care as it is currently being practiced in the U.S.

    (JCEM is the world’s leading peer-reviewed journal for endocrine clinical research and clinical practice.)

    Childhood gender dysphoria (GD) is not an endocrine condition, but it becomes one through iatrogenic puberty blockade (PB) and high-dose cross-sex (HDCS) hormones. The consequences of this gender-affirmative therapy (GAT) are not trivial and include potential sterility, sexual dysfunction, thromboembolic and cardiovascular disease, and malignancy (1, 2).

    There are no laboratory, imaging, or other objective tests to diagnose a “true transgender” child. Children with GD will outgrow this condition in 61% to 98% of cases by adulthood (3). There is currently no way to predict who will desist and who will remain dysphoric. The degree to which GAT has contributed to the rapidly increasing prevalence of GD in children is unknown. The recent phenomenon of teenage girls suddenly developing GD (rapid onset GD) without prior history through social contagion is particularly concerning (4).

    GnRH agonists are used in precocious puberty to delay the abnormally early onset of puberty to a physiologically normal age. The goal of PB in the healthy child, however, is to induce hypogonadotropic hypogonadism to “buy time” to confirm gender incongruence. In a study of PB in adolescents aged 11 to 17 years, 100% desired to continue GAT. They simply “bought” themselves lower bone density and the need for lifelong medical therapy (5).

    Studies show that <5% of adolescents receiving GAT even attempt fertility preservation (6). Those started on PB at Tanner stage II, as recommended by current guidelines, will be blocked prior to sperm maturation and ovum release. They will have no prospect of biological offspring while on HDCS hormones and continuing on to gonadectomy.

    The Endocrine Society’s guidelines recommend elevating females’ testosterone levels from a normal of 10 to 50 ng/dL to 300 to 1000 ng/dL, values typically found with androgen-secreting tumors. The ovaries of women given testosterone correspond to those found in PCOS, which itself is associated with increased ovarian cancer risk and metabolic abnormalities (1). Venous thromboembolism risk is elevated fivefold in males taking estrogen (2).

    The health consequences of GAT are highly detrimental, the stated quality of evidence in the guidelines is low, and diagnostic certainty is poor. Furthermore, limited long-term outcome data fail to demonstrate long-term success in suicide prevention (7). How can a child, adolescent, or even parent provide genuine consent to such a treatment? How can the physician ethically administer GAT knowing that a significant number of patients will be irreversibly harmed?

    Hypothesis-driven randomized controlled clinical trials are needed to establish and validate the safety and efficacy of alternate treatment approaches for this vulnerable patient population. Existing care models based on psychological therapy have been shown to alleviate GD in children, thus avoiding the radical changes and health risks of GAT (8). This is an obvious and preferred therapy, as it does the least harm with the most benefit.

    In our opinion, physicians need to start examining GAT through the objective eye of the scientist-clinician rather than the ideological lens of the social activist. Far more children with gender dysphoria will ultimately be helped by this approach.

    https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/104/3/686/5198654

    1. WayneS Avatar

      In our opinion, physicians need to start examining GAT through the objective eye of the scientist-clinician rather than the ideological lens of the social activist.

      Exactly.

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