In what Trump's administration has branded a "common sense" order, the government will recognise only two sexes, ending all federal funding or recognition of gender identities.
Male and female are the only sexes; intersex is just a blanket term for various medical conditions that describe abnormal development of sex characteristics.
It’s natural and harmless to have any combination of male and female sexual characteristics, even if it’s uncommon. It’s only considered medical condition because we decided it was.
My friend has a uterus and gonads. I have red hair and blue eyes. Both are super uncommon and neither has caused us any trouble, that’s just how we’re made.
I’d argue that male and female are just names for the ends of the spectrum.
Yep. Nothing wrong with it. Everybody’s abnormal in some way. Doesn’t mean we should redefine scientific terms or “other” someone just because their abnormality has to do with sex characteristics.
Personally, I go out of my way to not be normal, but most people want to fit in, and especially don’t want to be seen as different or lesser because of something they can’t control.
What’s wrong with redefining scientific terms? Unless you’re one of those “Pluto is still a planet” people, then I guess we’ll agree to disagree, but I prefer to update terms that no longer fit our understanding.
If “male” and “female” are the terms you’re referring to here, I’d disagree quite a bit. Language is a fluid and imprecise thing, and words are going to mean different things to different people, as well as change over time whether we want them to or not. Hell, just look at how messy things get whenever a transphobe tries and fails (yet again) to define these words in a way that doesn’t result in Diogenes walking in holding a chicken.
The reality is that both terms are labels on boxes we try to sort people into, for better and for worse. There’s no good reason to get overly attached to them; like any categorization, they will fail regularly, as the universe does not care for the shapes of our boxes.
So, if neither variation of sex characteristics nor personal identity defines the category of sex, then how can we define it? The answer is simple. The category of biological sex is defined through what developmental pathway you went down for the production of either sperm or eggs–the two, and only two, gamete types.
Nah, variation in sex characteristics is a way better measure than gamete development, because variation in sex characteristics actually relates to the person as they exist now. Grown adult human beings are not gametes.
And some of them are not obviously male or female from birth, but are given surgeries to force them into one or the other. Sometimes they get it wrong.
Male and female are the only sexes; intersex is just a blanket term for various medical conditions that describe abnormal development of sex characteristics.
It’s natural and harmless to have any combination of male and female sexual characteristics, even if it’s uncommon. It’s only considered medical condition because we decided it was.
My friend has a uterus and gonads. I have red hair and blue eyes. Both are super uncommon and neither has caused us any trouble, that’s just how we’re made.
I’d argue that male and female are just names for the ends of the spectrum.
Yep. Nothing wrong with it. Everybody’s abnormal in some way. Doesn’t mean we should redefine scientific terms or “other” someone just because their abnormality has to do with sex characteristics.
Personally, I go out of my way to not be normal, but most people want to fit in, and especially don’t want to be seen as different or lesser because of something they can’t control.
What’s wrong with redefining scientific terms? Unless you’re one of those “Pluto is still a planet” people, then I guess we’ll agree to disagree, but I prefer to update terms that no longer fit our understanding.
If “male” and “female” are the terms you’re referring to here, I’d disagree quite a bit. Language is a fluid and imprecise thing, and words are going to mean different things to different people, as well as change over time whether we want them to or not. Hell, just look at how messy things get whenever a transphobe tries and fails (yet again) to define these words in a way that doesn’t result in Diogenes walking in holding a chicken.
The reality is that both terms are labels on boxes we try to sort people into, for better and for worse. There’s no good reason to get overly attached to them; like any categorization, they will fail regularly, as the universe does not care for the shapes of our boxes.
So you’re saying if you call a sex abnormal, it doesn’t exist?
Nobody said that. Nobody would say that. Be reasonable.
If you’re actually interested in understanding what I’m saying, this article does a good job of explaining it in lay-friendly terms.
Nah, variation in sex characteristics is a way better measure than gamete development, because variation in sex characteristics actually relates to the person as they exist now. Grown adult human beings are not gametes.
And some of them are not obviously male or female from birth, but are given surgeries to force them into one or the other. Sometimes they get it wrong.