What Next?

Okay, I'm not a political activist by any stretch of the imagination, but I was so disturbed by something this week, that I have to say something.

There is a man who is somewhat a celebrity in the carnival world who is trying to, basically, become a lizard or snake. He has tattooed his body with scales of varying sizes, shapes and colors, has shaved all the hair from his head (or more--don't know, don't want to know), and has had subcutaneous ridges implanted in his face surgically to make him look more reptilian. He has file his teeth down to points and had oral surgery to give him a forked tongue. He looks rather freakish, however much he may have come closer to achieving his goal.

Another man has had surgery to GIVE HIMSELF A CLEFT LIP! He then had that enlarged, and has surgically implanted little receptacles for whiskers, so he can look like a cat (or lion--who cares?).

My point, good readers (both of you), is that however bizarre these men may appear, they are still men. Nobody in their right mind would believe that the first guy is really a lizard or snake. In fact, he still has his arms and legs....a true snake man would have rid himself of these unseemly appendages. Nobody would really believe the second guy is a cat. He could even alter his eyes, but he is still a man.

Now, for (as Paul Harvey would say) "the rest of the story." The lesbian daughter of Sonny and Cher has decided that she wants to be a man. Really? Now, my question is... If her "partner" wanted a man, why did she become a lesbian in the first place?

But what really gets me is that the Hollywood TV reporter interviewing her (I refuse to call her "him") was buying in to all this baloney! This is when I realized that Hollywood is either completely clueless, or is in league with other forces to destroy the sanctity of marriage and family. This is all going to be building in the press and on TV and in movies (just wait, I'm sure one of those terribly popular teen shows will start having trans-gender characters) until they can start saying, "See? It's not a same-sex marriage, because now she's a man!" 

This individual is not the first, but here is the thing: this non-gendered person has surgically removed her breasts and uterus, and says she is now a man.....Wait a second. My mother had a mastectomy, my wife had a hysterectomy. That doesn't make THEM men, now does it? Of course not. This person also said she couldn't wait for the hormone injections to kick in so she could start shaving! That should be the kicker right there! Men don't need artificial hormones to be men, and NO MAN WANTS TO SHAVE! Young girls want to shave (their legs), but men do NOT want to shave their faces. We'd have beards to our knees if women could put up with it!

This person had what sounded like such a great quote on the TV show. She said, "Gender is between the ears, not between the legs." Wow. What a sound byte! The only problem is, the quote is wrong. Gender is in the genetic makeup of the individual, not in their choices. What is between the ears? Preference. Nothing more. In some cases, perhaps not even that much.  

Okay, so what does all this mean? I'll tell you--it is an insult to every truly gendered person out there. Not to mention the fact that there are in our town a couple of individuals who were born hermaphroditic. This is a huge insult to them as well. They actually were born with multiple genders, and in some cases, the doctors forced the parents to make a choice (a choice which didn't always come out right). People who take away their gender are a slap in the face to those who wish they could have had only one to start with.

So now what happens? Do we have to start having extra restroom facilities? One for male, one for female, one for lizard-boys, one for non-gendered individuals, one for those who don't fall into any category? It's time to get real. I once pretended I was a superhero. It wasn't real. I couldn't fly. Isn't it time to stop pretending?