u cld write a whole thesis abt this xkcd & how the only workers personified here r the upper class college degreed tech & management workers & not the third world workers facing unsafe grueling conditions working in mining or even manufacturing..... the wood source described as a "legal fight"
It really is one of the best examples of them compounding. Cause when I was in a really bad spot housing wise, a few times I applied to those anyway and made a point about being like "oh I'm afab" and it felt so fucking gross. But I didn't wanna be homeless. So I made myself uncomfortable (and for nothing as it turned out, I would not do the same thing again if I went back in time)
But even then, and even more now, I was so conscious of the fact that, as uncomfortable and gross as it felt.... It was an option. And if I was a trans woman, no matter how desperate I was, it would not BE an option. It's a way of understanding privilege more people need to take on IMO, cause it's not about whether or not I think of it as a privilege. Course I dont. That's not the point.
Most popular Jack the Ripper theories from ripperologists just blame immigrants, but personally I think it was British empire soldiers...guys who'd just come back from committing massacres in Africa and Asia and figured, why stop now?
The British army committed tons of mutilations during the massacres they committed in colonial times. Removing breasts and mutilating uteruses has been recorded before. In India, in Kenya etcetera.
It's silly to think Jack the Ripper was just some random blue-collar worker from Poland instead of a soldier who probably just came back from the Xhosa Wars, for example.
And Xhosa Wars happened about a decade before the first Whitechapel murder.
One of the theories posits a Malay ship cook as Jack the Ripper. It's so stupid. True crime people are so stupid. This is the era when the British, Dutch, and French etc were committing mass violence across half the world. No one bothers to think about the implications of such a culture of violence and how it would influence their own capital's culture. This is London during the height of colonial plunder.
Not one true crime enthusiast wants to suggest that maybe the serial killer used to be an annihilator of an Indigenous tribe.
Instead, we get a Malay cook. Or a Polish immigrant. Or a Jewish butcher. Always the outsider. Never the bloke who learned his trade in the Xhosa Wars, came back to Whitechapel, and just kept going.
on TME/TMA: being mistaken for a transfem and catching strays is not the same thing as actually being a transfem: the actual targets of transmisogyny
I know a lot of trans men want to be TMA reallllll bad because someone mistook them for a transfem once and called them a tranny, but the "Affected" in "TransMisogyny Affected" doesn't just mean you have been Affected by transmisogyny at some point--it means it affects you, inescapably, in uncountably many more ways than just random harassment, every minute of your damn life. and it worms into your brain and stays there, because you ARE the tranny they were talking about
you may be a tree near the target and catch the occasional stray, but you are not the target
One of the ways transmisogyny manifests is in default-uncharitable interpretations of ambiguous meaning.
Last week I was at a meetup where I was the only transfem. I checked the groupchat when I arrived and there was a message from the organiser: "We have a newcomer called X, can you look out for him if you get there first?" I located X, introduced myself, sent a message to the chat say, "I have located X," and continued to talk to him until the organiser arrived. When the organiser arrived, she was not happy with me. It turned out my phone had autocorrected, "I have located X," to, "I had located X," which the organiser interpreted as me passive aggressively telling her that I had already done the thing she was asking about. Her conclusion: I was unreasonable and aggressive in responding to her reasonable request. My explaining what had happened didn't convince her otherwise.
A different occasion last week: in a local trans groupchat, a trans man sent a link to a drag event happening in our town. A few people said they were already going, some said they might go. Then a trans woman replied saying, "Thanks, but I don't really like drag." Her tone was immediately called into question. Her words were assumed to communicate: "I think you are a terrible person if you like drag," even though she never said that. Several non-transfems who had never even heard that drag might not be universally-beloved by everyone were upset to discover that fact. A trans woman simply saying she didn't like this thing became A Big Deal.
Meanwhile, at a different event again, a trans man told a group that he was straight and attracted to women, but he wouldn't feel comfortable bringing home an "AMAB woman" (yes he actually said that). It was quickly brushed over, and after he had left even trans women tried to defend him by saying "he probably didnt realise people would be offended" etc etc. In contrast to the examples above, he is not even aware that anyone was upset by what he said, never mind worrying about what consequences he might face.
Whenever I go to an event, I often spend the next 24-48 hours ruminating over every single thing I said to check if I did anything at any time that could even vaguely be construed as annoying to anyone. I have often put this behaviour down to severe anxiety, but I think I am realising that it is actually a rational response to a world where even the slightest social misstep could be blown way out of proportion and result in my later social exclusion. It's one of those things that existed long before I was aware of my own transness but while I was nonetheless transmisogynised by society, a crippling fear of the slightest imperfection that I assumed everyone else felt too but apparently they don't. I guess when other people go out of their way to smoothe over the damage your words or actions might cause, you don't need to stress about that damage because there are no consequences to it! It sounds very nice to be able to live like that.
they gotta put all their eggs in the "male socialization" basket cause some trans women don't even have the body parts they fearmonger about but they still want to control them
like at this point in the like... 10+ years trans women have been a go-to wedge issue, everyone knows how chromosomes don't necessarily determine phenotype, everyone knows bottom surgery exists, everyone knows intersex people exist, everyone knows some people don't even produce gametes at all, everyone knows we don't stop calling cis women women after a hysterectomy or sterilization
the well of bioessentialist arguments is starting to run dry cause everyone knows the facts that disprove them. so they've had to greatly exaggerate how socialization works and how immutable it is cause what the hell else are they gonna do, lol
and while we’re at it, fuck this idea that ONE ACCOUNT has to belong uniquely to ONE PERSON. This is the same thing these silicon valley fucks want; their vision of the future where everyone has a unique biometric ID code implanted in their body is the ultimate extension of Netflix’s “no password sharing” policy. You want to use your friend’s car? Sorry, you can’t, you need to be an authorized user. Your mother wants to let you look something up on her OED account? Too bad! That’s only for her! The concept of perfect market efficiency gives them greedy little money bag eyes.
If I pay money to have a newspaper sent to my house, they don’t charge me extra when I show it to my dad. This password sharing thing isn’t just a Netflix problem; don’t be surprised if it shows up elsewhere in other forms. Stamp this idea out now or we’ll be stuck with it.
This is by far the most popular post I have and I have to say: good, I’m right. Password sharing and ID verification are going to kill the internet. not oooh in 50 years. in like 5 more.
i think people are starting to confuse class analysis with bioessentialism. like... no not all men do this, but Men as a constructed social class do do this. that's still okay to say. that is regular material analysis of the world around us.
It's a bit strange to see people focus on not calling people narcissists because it's rude to people with NPD as if Narcissistic Personality Disorder is not the most obvious case of a "shitty bad person disorder" diagnosis ever. Personality disorder diagnoses are a punitive thing, not a reflection of some innate truth we all need to be nice about.
I actually think it sucks that there's an official diagnosis of "self centred asshole" and maybe we shouldn't be respecting that as a serious thing. Like obviously don't be rude to people anyway but you don't need to say that in a way that reifies shitty bad person disorder as a real thing.
"Don't use Narcissist as a negative thing, that's a real and severe mental health condition that real people suffer from!" is not the sympathetic win u think it is. You're boxing at shadows here, barking up the wrong tree as it were.
Psychiatric diagnoses are clusters of pathologised behaviours, you don't "have" something, you've been diagnosed with it. It's ultimately disconnected from your actual experiences and body. A doctor decided they didn't like your personality and slapped a billing label onto it.
Defending the label of "narcissist" as unique to people with NPD is just fucking insulting to people diagnosed with NPD. You're treating something they've been labelled that strips them of their agency as something true about them that needs to be respected. Personality disorders are probably one of the most blatant things in psychiatry as far as "wow this is made up bullshit to punish people" goes and yet it's the biggest hornets nest on the planet to try and talk about.
So, just out of curiosity a few years back I clicked on a headline for like an annual day of remembrance for tiannemen square, and it included a video so I wanted to see if they would play the full clip.
That clip stopped at the same point that the clip is always stopped when used in news stories, but the article linked a source about tiannemen square for further reading.
I clicked on that source, and it was very similar to the first article, roughly 2-3 short paragraphs of declarative statements, the same clip edited to cut off before it shows "tank man" climbing on top of the tank shortly before walking away unharmed, and another link to a source for further reading about the events at tiannemen square.
At that point I wanted to see if I would ever get through this chain of an attribution of an attribution down to any primary sources or even a single article that just showed the full, unedited clip at the very least.
Every link I clicked on had the same exact structure. It was an article from a major publication, they all featured either the singular famous still frame of Tank Man standing in front of the tank or they showed the edited clip that is cut before the clip shows him walking away safe and unharmed in order to imply that the tank ran him over, they all had a short summary of events and then the "source" provided if a reader wanted to verify the facts of the article was just another article repeating the same thing which linked to another article repeating the same thing which linked to... and so on and so on.
I probably went a few dozen links deep and never found a single article that used any primary source documents or historical analysis or investigative reports as a source for any of the claims made in the article. The only primary source to be found was the singular video that every article refused to show in full.
And to be clear, this isn't just some odd quirk of this specific event. This pattern is exactly how most modern propaganda makes its way into the public consciousness. When a claim or accusation is made and the source making the claim is of dubious veracity (such as when the US state department, intelligence agencies, and various affiliated NGOs make claims about states or groups that are targets of US aggression and intervention), then going through this process of publishing hundreds of articles that amount to little more substance than saying "BBC reported that NYT reported that The Sun reported that WaPo reported that The Guardian reported that an anonymous state department official said something happened" serves two purposes.
The first purpose that this process serves is that the original source that is of dubious or sometimes completely discredited veracity is now buried from scrutiny under and attribution of an attribution of an attribution of an attribution.
The second purpose this process serves is that it creates the appearance of academic, journalistic, and/or scholarly consensus even though this large volume of reporting ultimately traces back to a singular source.
Anyway, this is a fun and good practice that everyone should get into the habit of that totally isn't jokerfying in the slightest!
Parts of the Jewish left believe trauma explains attachment to Zionism. But what they call “trauma” is more likely a collective story than a
The homogenization of vastly different histories into a grand narrative of Jewish trauma points to a desire to tell a palatable story about how Zionism became hegemonic in American Jewish life. Like the original deployment of the lachrymose conception of Jewish history, it relieves Jews of political agency while making historic trauma the focal point of Jewish identity. This time, what gets lost in the mythologized Jewish past is an understanding of the political, economic, and social forces that shaped what scholar Shaul Magid calls the “Zionization of American Jewish life,” like the centralization of financial and communal resources by Jewish communal leadership toward support for the State of Israel. Zionism was not simply adopted by a terrified rank-and-file American Jewry, nor is it a trauma response today; it was, and is, a political project, with specific and evolving strategies aimed at particular, and—it should be emphasized—violent aims.
Transphobia is about to be signed into law in the UK. We can fight this.
I am begging the UK trans community and its allies to attend the Mass Lobby at Parliament on June 25th, 11am-4pm, organised by Trans Solidarity Alliance.
Last year we broke the record for an LGBT+ mass lobby of Parliament. Will you help us break it again? Join us on 25th June 2026 to demand be
The new EHRC Code of Practice pushes trans people out of toilets, hospital wards, and community spaces. It normalises gender policing based on appearance and stereotypes. It becomes statutory guidance in the UK by the end of June.
Trans people are now legally their assigned gender at birth and must join gendered spaces accordingly, but if they are perceived as their lived gender, they can also be ejected from those spaces. The guidance says: either break the law, or don’t pass too well.
A mass lobby is where you invite your MP to discuss your concerns with you in-person. Ask your MP to:
Demand full parliamentary scrutiny, debate, and use their free vote on the EHRC Code of Practice.
Support any motions rejecting the EHRC guidance. As of June 4th, Labour MP Nadia Whittome has submitted a prayer motion - Early Day Motion 240.
Write to Bridget Phillipson, the Minister for Women and Equalities about our concerns
Your MP does not have to be an ally, they do not have to respond to your email for you to show up and greencard them (details below the cut.) What matters is that as many people as possible show up.
I cannot stress this enough: Showing up in person matters. It is much more effective than petitions, emails, and letters.
It is a horrible, stressful time, and I am so sorry if you're trans and live in the UK. But I was at last year's mass lobby and the line for greencarding alone stretched around the back gates. It was a record breaking mass lobby and made us impossible to ignore. Let's do even better this time. Details under the cut:
Worried about what to say?
Bring your personal worries about transphobia being signed into law, and trans friends being excluded from public spaces. You are a living person who deserves dignity. Remind your MP of that. You will also get guidance and brochures from Trans Solidarity Alliance that outlines our demands. This is mine from last year.
Money issues?
Trans Solidarity Alliance provides a travel bursary that you can sign up for via the link.
Got a refusal or no response from your MP?
Come anyway! You can request a same-day appointment with your MP through a process called greencarding. They will come and see you if they’re already in Parliament. Even if they don’t, they’re made acutely aware of your cause because you showed up in person. This is my greencard from last year.
Here is the EHRC Code of Practice in full. It's a tough read, but some highlights are:
Organisations can’t provide trans-inclusive, single-sex services, or they risk being sued for discrimination.
e.g. domestic violence support for women including trans women, men’s rugby group including trans men (12.68).
Trans people will have nowhere safe to pee.
If you’re a trans man, businesses can't allow you to pee in the men's, and you can also be ejected from women’s bathrooms if you’re perceived as a man. Vice versa for trans women. EHRC suggests a ‘third space’ bathroom, which is discriminatory and unworkable for most businesses. (13.130-133)
Sports organisations must exclude trans people from single-sex competitions (13.73).
A women’s only sports competition must exclude trans women because of their biological advantage or face potential lawsuits (13.74), but a trans man who has undergone testosterone treatment can also be excluded based on fairness rules (13.81).
Trans women are stripped of the legal definition of ‘lesbian’, and therefore no longer have legal protections if they’re discriminated against on the basis of sexual orientation. (2.50, 2.92).
Here is the Good Law Project's better explanation of the EHRC Code.
I have also made a PDF printout of QR codes for the government petition, email your MP tool, and mass lobby link to pass around your communities. DM me and I'll send it to you.
Recovering from autistic burnout as a high-masking adult:
To recover, you literally need to manually learn skills that most people learn as a toddler
You need to learn what makes your body uncomfortable, and what to do to fix it
If you are high-masking, that usually means that you have learned to ignore every distress signal your body sends unless it is a distress signal that a neurotypical person would recognize. People have likely been unintentionally gaslighting you about your lived experience your entire life
If you feel bad or panicked for no reason, stop and try to pay attention to your body. Are you tense? You are likely feeling physical pain somewhere. If you've been gaslit about your pain your entire life, you might not be able to identify it.
Go through a sensory checklist.
SIGHT: Try closing and covering your eyes. If this gives you relief, the lights are probably too bright. You may also need differently-colored lights
SOUND: Cover your ears. Does this give you relief? If so, you may need earplugs or noise canceling headphones. You may also benefit from a neutral or pleasant background noise, like soft music or brown noise.
TOUCH: Are your clothes uncomfortable? Your chair? Your body? Do you feel greasy, like you need a shower? Do you need softer, sensory-friendly clothing?
TASTE: Do you need to brush your teeth or tongue? Would chewing on something help?
SMELL: Is there a strong or unpleasant smell in the room? Do you need to clean or empty a trash can? Would an air purifier help? Would a pleasant smell like a candle help?
INTEROCEPTION: Are you hungry? Thirsty? Tired? How is your posture? Are any of your muscles tight or sore? Scan your body slowly from head to feet, tensing and loosening each group of muscles. Going for a walk or doing a series of quick stretches may help a lot.
Learning how to do this stuff is not intuitive, if you've had an entire lifetime of gaslighting telling you that everything hurting you isn't a big deal and you're being dramatic over nothing.
This takes time, it takes work, it's not intuitive, and it's hard. Most people forget how hard it is, because they learned this as toddlers.
If you want to recover, you need to relearn your whole body. And get over your idea of "normal" and just wear the damn sunglasses and put on the headphones. If people stare, fuck em. You're disabled and they can deal with that.
Something I keep thinking about is how a lot of people consider it a good thing that children cannot by themselves consent (or refuse consent) to medical treatments. Some people do kinda get it that maybe it might be a problem with stuff like kids not being able to access trans healthcare, or kids being refused vaccination by antivaxx parents. But in general I see that most people are actually okay with this idea for the most part.
And like... you do get that that is kinda insane, right?
Because this is something that so often leads to suffering. And I am saying this as someone disabled, who had so many issues due to this in his childhood.
Just three examples: when I was 7, I was supposed to get checked for autism. My mother did not want an autistic child. Since she just could have a "neurotypical" child by refusing diagnosis, she did just that.
When I was 12, my mother had decided I needed a certain plastic surgery (one that had a minor health benefit, but still was largely a beauty thing). I did not want it. I really, really did not want it. We still went through almost the entire process until thankfully there was a doctor who went: "Wait, this is elective. I am refusing to do this on a child that does not want it."
And when I was 14 my mother refused to get me to the hospital when I had severe food poisoning. She refused me hospital treatment for almost two weeks. By the time I got actually taken to the hospital I was almost dead.
And here is the thing: all of this should just not happen. The doctor when I was 12 was cool, but... he refused to do the surgery because he had the right to make a conscience call. Legally my mother was in the right to force me into that elective surgery. And that just should not be the case.
A lot of children die and suffer due to their legal inability to consent - or refuse consent - to medical treatments. And I wish y'all would understand that.
Whenever this is brought up, people will go: "Oh, but parents will decide what is best for the child." And here is the thing: No, they are not. There is so much stuff out there showing that indeed, a lot of parents suck at this. Some out of malice, some because they are religious nuts, and some because they literally treat their kids like some sort of doll or some shit.