Go B-O-Y-S! Ra Ra!

Quick and I hope sweet n sour post here about boy cheerleaders. Don’t think it is or was something for me but hey, each to their own. Saw this so tiny snipped in the London Metro last Wednesday and thought I’d put it out there.

Google is your friend too, so just hit return and get some more info. So as usual for me the BBC had an interesting, if older, article and quote which seems more evidence of the males of the world being boxed in to a ridged role.

"When the men went away to fight in the first World War, women took over cheerleading and claimed it for themselves,"

Pat Hawkins, president of the UK Cheerleading Association 2010.

War

This post is first, a thanks to those who fought and died to protect our way of life and second, a somewhat rhetorical question about why they did it?

So, war, what is it good for?

Whilst Mr Edwin Starr’s lyrics were largely an anti-Vietnam reaction there are other wars and it’s now that time of year in the UK to remember those who fought and to to those who gave their lives in wars so we may enjoy a life of relative freedom. Whilst we do have a long way still to go, had people not fought on our behalf, our freedom to explore our self expression would not be so far advanced.

So as we approach Remembrance Sunday, November 8 2015, I thought I’d state my great admiration and thanks to all those who fought and continue to do so, for this way of life. Similarly for our US brothers and sisters they have Memorial Day towards the end of May each year.

And so to part two of this post. Sparked off by a comment on a You Tube video about transgender people* that all it needs is a ‘good war’ and it would weed ‘them’ out. My summary not the persons actual words.

* I believe it was on a Caitlyn Jenner YouTube video.

Now I dare say there are those with a point of view that goes along the lines of, “we didn’t win the (insert war of choice) to allow people the freedom to change their assigned gender.

I’d argue quite the opposite.

As an example, the allies fought WW2 to prevent invasion and protect a growing way of life. A culture that believes in democracy and the ability to make our own choices. Not to be dictated too. One person, one vote etc. Our democratic system we use has largely come to terms with the fact that the LGBT community have the same rights as anyone who can cast a vote, which is totally logical. Anyone remember the Nazis? They may not have gone along with this thought and I can think of some others who wouldn't in todays world.

No, the democratic systems of the world are not perfect. They are not resolved. They are a process of refinement so that as a society we can grow fairly and not waste the talents and positive energy of all individuals who contribute to it.

So why did they fight for freedom? Why do they fight for freedom?

So we can choose and not be dictated too.

That we can be free to grow and explore who we are as individuals and a society, without oppression of irrational conformity under someone else's ideal of what or who we should be.

Dedicated to not forgetting those who fight for us, Five Finger Death Punch's track, The Wrong Side of Heaven.

* I believe it was on a Caitlyn Jenner YouTube video.

Trapped in a preconception

One of my very first posts was asking the question “Why” Why do I and possibly some others, like to dress in clothes generally ascribed to persons of an opposite sex? In this post I’ll look at this a little more. I’ll start at crossdressing and go on to gender. This is not an A-Z but a short and incomplete blog….

On Crossdressing

To start, a good short article covering why people crossdress can be found here.

…but for those who don’t want to go read it; the summary of the article is that there are three main reasons as to why men crossdress:

1 - sexual gratification
2 - express the feminine side of their personality
(comfort, and reduced stress / because it feels good.)
3 - experience the "power of a woman."
(it is very stimulating and intoxicating)

I’d agree with point 1 as to why many men dress. And if this is the sole reason a man dresses then it may actually be a confirmation on their masculinity and simple attraction to women in an odd way. Not always of course.

Whilst I do relate to point 1, I feel Point 2 describes me the best with a dash of point 3 thrown in for good measure.

On Gender

Before I carry on this YouTube is a good and relatively short into onto gender if you need to brush up.

Sorry it won't play in my blog I'm just not that techie!

Points 2 and 3 above are in the context of a release mechanism from the gender binary. An outlet valve for a cultural system that doesn’t wholly work. The word crossdressing itself is somewhat antiquated and assumes there are only two types of people in the world. Women, who can wear pretty much anything they want most of the time and then men, who have a severely limited and often dull wardrobe. Hence the term ‘drag and drab’. Of course gender goes far beyond just fashion and how we present ourselves but people tend to judge books by covers so lets stick with this for this blog.

We all want to be accepted for who we feel we are inside and have that seen as such on the outside. Living and presenting on the outside as someone who you don’t genuinely feel to be inside is not a pleseant feeling. For many ‘men’ the odd evening ’crossdressing’ is enough of a release to allow them to continue to conform to the prescribed gender binary uniform of tradition the rest of the time.

I love getting fully ’dressed up’. Even if I could all the time I wouldn't all of the time. Speak to anyone who wears make-up and high heels etc regardless of there gender or sex and it does require more work than pulling on jeans and some trainers. Tight can jeans rock for me as much as a skirt and sitting around the house in a pair of jogging bottoms is fine too for different reasons. Look at it the other way. There is very little I wear every day that a genetic woman wouldn’t wear and feel comfortable in. Does that mean I crossdress every day? As I may have stated before, I don’t feel like a woman trapped in a man’s body. I do however feel like an identity trapped in a preconception. 

Personally speaking I allow many of the traits of my more feminine side to merge into or simply influence my day to day life. This affects how I dress, look after myself, my choices and, to a degree how I relate to others. Don’t get me wrong, my masculine side is there too. For me my whole gender balance and my freedom of expression is what has become more prominent as the years move on. Our physical bodies are in a constant state of renewal and change. If our minds weren’t we wouldn’t be living creatures.

You are you, however you or someone else labels you. I don’t want to get all Matrix/Morpheus or Zen on you here, but you cannot, not, be you. The confusion comes about because for most of the world all we do is act our role as described by society, and a role is so much more than the clothes you wear.

In 1599 or so Shakespeare wrote in “As You Like It”, stating “All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players…”

I'n not entirely sure if Shakespeare actually knew how accurately this describes the human condition as it transcends male and female. Our confusion is because we’re trying to define a role that many in 21st century society simply don’t see - yet. The ‘yet’ is important.

So back to the question. Why do I dress and why do I allow it to affect my life? Because quite simply - it’s who I am and I am human. Now; define human without using the future or potential as a meaningful reference?

The above image I found via another good blog but honestly can't find the original link. I think I got surf crazy that day!

Call Me Caitlyn

Caitlyn Jenner, formerly Bruce Jenner on Vanity Fair Cover. Another positive cover story...

News links:
Yahoo
BBC Newsbeat
YouTUBE

In a word - Progress

It’s so nice to see a positive article posted on the BBC website, 27 May 2015. A large step for Manobi Bandyopadhyay and another small step for human equality.

Achievement!

It's a year on so, Conchita… does she pass, and importantly should she pass?

You see, most but not all of the issues to do with F2M or M2F evolve around one issue. What we define as male and what we define as female. Without these binaries there would be no X2X. I have said before, I love and respect the fact there is a male and female binary BUT believe strongly that there should be room between these for more expression.

For those of us lucky enough to live in a society where women have ‘mostly’ equal rights to men, our definitions of male and female in reality largely come down to what we see. Passing is about how we act and our fashion. Our manner and appearance.

Check off both those boxes and Achievement Unlocked - Passing!

Leave one out and you fail.

For many, if not most M2F and F2M they really want to pass. However some people feel they shouldn’t need to conform to this gender binary. Personally I feel both ways depending on my day. I dress totally female when I can with the intent of being able to pass but on a day to day basis I just want the ‘right’ to be me and wear what the hell I want. Is that to much to ask? 

Do we have, or should we have, a society where an individual has the right to express themselves as they feel they are, not as others would like them to be, within the realms of the law and decency and the situation of course! How free and creative are we as a society? I feel this is less an issue for women than men. This is well put in this quote from Eleanor Roberts of the Beaumont Society.

“Most of the Male-to-Female (MtF) transgender community are part-time crossdressers who need opportunities to dress/make-up as a woman one or two evenings a week. This is often enough to release the pent-up pressure and keep a marriage & family together. Women in the same situation do not need this; women's fashion is wide enough to allow them masculine styles of dress/hair if they wish without attracting condemnation.”

Eleanor Roberts (Beaumont Society)

I felt that it was an interesting choice of words “without attracting condemnation.” Condemnation could sound strong but even a disapproving frown from someone is a form of condemnation. I would agree with the sentiment as simply put, it is more socially acceptable to pass as the opposite gender than be ambiguous because it’s easier on peoples brains. Humans love to be able to classify things which is mostly good and has allowed us to evolve. However like any skill, it’s misuse limits our development. 

I personally feel people should be allowed to wear what they feel expresses themselves and they feel good in. You have to admit it would be a far more interesting world? As Eddie Izzard said,

“They aren’t women's clothes they are mine, I paid for them.”

Please, please for the love of Pete, can someone give me a reasonable argument why a man shouldn’t wear a dress in public? Other than 'because it's the way it is or has been'. Maybe I’ve just missed a lesson somewhere?

So to sum up, “being accepted” and “passing” are two different things. And passing makes being accepted almost a default state. Being accepted when not conforming to a gender stereotype is very difficult.

We are very social creatures and being accepted for being yourself is important. Maybe it’s time we opened up our vocabulary to allow people (some of us at least) to express themselves and be themselves more easily.

Surely the strength and beauty in humanity rests in it's diversity.

So what do I think about Conchita… does she pass, and importantly should she pass?

No she doesn’t pass as society describes a female, but more importantly she passes for being herself and we should all admire that even more!

And you, are you - you?

Links to pages on passing:

Thetransgenderpartner

passing tips

On the shores of an evolutionary ocean

(There are quite a few TED talk links in this post)

So I confess this blog goes somewhat beyond gender issues per se, but hey if your gonna dream, dream of dragons! As an inspirational start point I offer this short clip of Peter Weyland's 2023 TED Talk, essentially a viral for Prometheus the Movie.

The focus of this post is pretty simple. What does it mean to be trans in the much, much, broader sense? The short answer is almost every human is Trans - they just don’t know it. In the same way as we don’t appreciate that we travel through the universe at 390 kilometers per second - most just don’t see the changes so they don't know or want to believe.

Not one of us can really see the future. Saying this or that will happen in ten or fifteen years is not the point. The point is our journey and our attitude whilst moving along it. It is often mentioned that we predict landscape of the future from the perspective of the landscape the past, which may be true. But that shouldn’t mean we should be limited in our potential view of the future. Or put anther way, why accept yesterdays limitations today - or tomorrow.

As an example this article describes a woman of over 100 years old who despite only living 400 miles from the ocean had never seen it before. I use it as a metaphor to show how the future can be more...

And so on to today and tomorrow. Some time ago I watched this TED talk on the next stage of human evolution, “Homo-evolutus”. Or read the perhaps easier to digest blog - HighExistance.

It describes how humans will soon be in a position to determine their physical and possibly mental evolution on a needs or want’s basis to a point where defining exactly what a human is, may be difficult. In many ways I’d argue that M2F and F2M Trans people have been initiating this process for decades. Leading the way as it were emotionally if not technologically. But the real point on this talk (to me and this post) really implies that if we think changing your gender is radical, in the future people will wonder why we were concerned about such relatively minor change?

Looking further ahead, and nothing directly to do with Trans issues, other than the acceptance that we can and should have the right to be able to be what we want to be - is what comes after Homo-evolutus or what next?

I would argue Homo-evolutus may become or may better be called Homo-potentialus?

So, we are on the verge of the intelligence revolution which will change our society in far greater ways than the industrial revolution ever did. See this TED talk for reference. If you want to skip the first 7 mins that’s when the stats come in ;)

The outcome of this can only be what I’d term Homo-potentialus, meaning worrying about a fixed gender (a fixed anything) is like a caveman arguing with an astronaut, about how far they can throw a rock.

Like many stories or posts on this subject most of us in our daily lives don't have any direct control over the issues mentioned. However, like a passenger in an increasingly speeding car, we can learn how to lean into the corners and be empathetic to the changes.

So it is about attitude and how we use our minds. As humans we now rarely fight for patches of earth or the carcass, at least as individuals. Yet the old attitudes persist with some. Let us evolve. Let us be more. Let us be more than we were told we should be, could be. For you will always be you. Now isn't that trans' at heart?

As a sign off I quote Rocket Racoon from Guardians of the Galaxy...

“Ain't no thing like me 'cept me.”

I couldn't find the right clip on You Tube so if you want to see the actual quote , you'll need to watch the movie :)