I’m struggling with suicidal ideation too. Decades suffering gender dysphoria I couldn’t recognize left its mark. I was depressed, anxious, always feeling stuck on a neverending treadmill, gasping to keep up and keep moving. Once I understood the cause, I took steps to discover joy I didn’t know I could have, only for the world to crash down for wanting that joy, needing it. Trans folk are being crushed for the political expediency of hideously selfish prats. They use us, as they would any other convenient minority, to sustain an illusion they’re accomplishing something in politics. These fascists dehumanize us, destroy our joy for their self-gain, and damn the lives they break along the way.

I don’t want to die, I want to live. But my world is screaming and I can’t breathe. I don’t need platitudes; I don’t want to live for the sake of spite; I want the pain to stop. Everything is a severe blizzard of white noise, blinding and formless and overwhelming. My path is unclear. I feel so goddamn alone.

Despite this, there’s one hope I hold. I reject the dogmas of capitalism and fascism where one can only succeed by trampling others. I know we can be more than a worthless wreck of squirrels: hoarding, screeching, and killing each other over territory and power until we’re all boiled down into shapeless grey lumps. I also know this won’t happen on its own, and it won’t be by my will alone.

What I can do, in the here and now, is live my life the way I think it ought to be lived, and share it as much as I can to any who’ll listen. I choose what I value, not what the world forces upon me, and I reject the notion “there’s no other way.” My life is fullest when I enrich it with a diversity of stories, art, music, etc., because they challenge me, and show me the wonders of this existence in ways I couldn’t imagine on my own. Stories of characters I admire and love keep me alive and focused, when the world drowns all other thought out. I value experiences, above all else, not for novelty nor distraction, but for personal growth and the sheer enjoyment of exploration. I want to be the better person, for my own sake; and I don’t have to cut anyone else down to make it so.

I know you’re struggling right now, and how crippling it can be. Please stay. The world is better for you being in it, even if you can’t see or feel it right now. We don’t always get to see the effect we have on this world or others, but even the smallest steps we take matter. Even if all you can muster is one small step, it’s enough.

To some degree, sure. But these are adults with the capability and responsibility to think for themselves. It’s one thing to punch down on someone repeatedly for a mistake or being fooled, and yes, the majority of the fault lies with the deceiver, but these people aren’t stupid either. Trump and the rest of the Republican ilk made it clear what they’re about, and their actions speak louder than their rhetoric. If folks are foolish enough to believe him over and over again, the problem is just as much them as it is him.

I’m curious, did NatPo also cover the fact that Bell was subsidized $40 million by the federal government for losses suffered by Bell Media, a bill pushed forward by the Conservatives and supported by the NDP, only for Bell to turn around, fire thousands, all while giving a 3.5% increase in dividends for shareholders?

Couple of things. Politicians have zero idea of what they’re talking about, especially one like Pollieve who’s looking to demonize trans women to rile up his base. Calling someone a “biological male” is just their fancy way of saying “man in a dress”. It’s their way of making it seem like they’re less transphobic than they actually are.

Trans women and trans men are biologically no different from their cis counterparts. Trans women lose the muscle mass and strength they had when testosterone was their primary sex hormone. They perform no better or worse than cis women when it comes to sports. Trans women take on the same health risks as cis women; and the same can be said for trans men.

Furthermore, chromosomes don’t work the way you’re suggesting here either. They act more like blueprints during development in the womb. There are also XY cis women with androgen insensitivities, as well as cis women who produce higher levels of testosterone.

Long story short, you don’t need a degree in biology to understand the arguments being put forth by Pollieve and folks like him are absolute bunk. They’re intended to antagonize people against trans folks.

Congrats!

I’ve got my appointment with a specialist tomorrow. They’re probably going to want blood tests before they prescribe anything, but more than any other changes, I’m just looking forward to having peace of mind. I can wait 5 years for the rest to grow in, but mentally I feel like a battery hovering at 1-5%. Looking forward to changing that 💜

You know what would go a long way? Make housing a shitty income source. Bring about heavy taxes on any additional livable property beyond the one you live in yourself. Ban all politicians from landlording - it’s a conflict of interest holding us all back. Ban corporations and foreign organizations from owning housing. You’d see a fire sale. Prices would plummet, and people who need housing would have a greater chance at it. Finally, get a fucking UBI going, and grow universal healthcare to include eye and dental care.

Enough is goddamn enough. We know who the problem is and it isn’t immigrants, it’s well-off folks taking and hoarding more than they need using their much larger disposable income and connections to take advantage of the rest of us.

There are solutions to making Canadian’s lives better, and they’ll take work and time to make happen, but this continuous pissing in the wind isn’t getting us anywhere. We can do this civilly with hard work, or we can get to a breaking point and do things like 1789 France. One way another, the bullshit has got to go.

The entire battle between Palpatine vs Maul and Savage. Probably my favourite lightsaber battle.

Take away my morning coffee, and you’ll have me becoming a super villain taking over the world.

Well, how else would companies profit off of works they contributed nothing to? /s

Capitalism needs to die. We need a society that works to better and enrich all, not fuckwads who bleed and exploit others and their work for personal gain.

This hits pretty hard. Looking at the bigger picture is depressing: what the fuck is humanity’s end goal? Because it looks like it’s the heat death of the planet, all so a bunch of narcissistic fucks can pretend they’re royalty, and lord it over the rest of us who weren’t as lucky and see stepping on others for your own desires as cruel and morally reprehensible.

Corpo-speak doesn’t mean shit. Actions do.

I worked with a small media company like this. They’d constantly throw new tasks and duties at you like candy with no plan, no resources, and unwritten and unsaid expectations you’d somehow make it all work while they sat back and raked in the cash. Burnout was inevitable, and it’d make them furious and vindictive with you when you dare to ask for less work or more pay or people to do the job.

Enough is enough. If treating your employees like spare parts is what’s needed to succeed in a capitalist society, then not only do these companies deserve to die out for their inhumane treatment of workers, but the whole system needs to be upended.

Fuck this Ferengi “we need all the profit” nonsense, especially given what Star Trek is about. I’m not paying for another service. The only thing these companies are doing is making piracy a more appealing option again.

Assassination Classroom - Just finished watching this series and it’s one of the most heartwarming meditations on teaching and education wrapped in a batshit crazy premise of junior high kids being forced to kill their teacher before he destroys the world at the end of their school year. Made me cry a few times.

The heart is in the right place: protecting trans folks from those who’d seek to deny us care. But part of me worries this is a path back to pathologizing dysphoria, which can increase hurdles for trans folks from getting the care we need. Like when people had be out living as their gender for a set period of time before receiving care, sometimes stereotypically so.

Well duh. When you’re the primary instigator, of course they’re going to target you.

Conservatism is dying slowly, and instead of reconsidering their positions, right-wingers are doubling down and turning to fascism to keep their grip on power. We must stay vigilant and counter their bullshit and violence whenever possible. If we want a better world, we have to fight for it.

Insurance companies are not your friend. The only thing they care about is syphoning as much money from you as possible.

Fucking evil. Not only sexual abuse, but controlling their victims not only through forced pregnancies, but using the potential life of a baby as a tool for coercion. Attacking abortion was never about protecting the fetus, it’s only another method for Christian fascists to control and subdue women.

This is good news. Glad to see some states doing what they can support trans youth. These kids don’t deserve to be victimized by malicious assholes using their lives as a wedge issue for fascist policies.