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Last night while I was cruising the forums here I was half watching a YouTube video my wife had put on (Joe Rogan/Ben Shapiro) discussing the subject of transgender. The video is about 3 years old and has many millions of views.
I read throughmany of the comments and as you may have guessed many of them were ignorant and rude. Happily though, some were not and had been written be people that identified as transgender. I was glad to see that those comments went mostly untrolled.
What I am trying to ask in a round about way is whether YOU take the time to listen to the opinions of people that so vastly differ from you own as to appear almost alien.
I love the time I spend here with you ladies but as we all know the world at large struggles with acceptance and understanding not just regarding CD, transgender but change in general.
Even though I don’t understand close minded judgements, I recognize that as a human I am not infallible and have my own share of biases and blind spots. I try to often to play devil’s advocate but occasionally wonder if this means I lack the courage of my convictions.
Just some Sunday evening thoughts……
Hi Rei, I do listen to others opinions, and respect them. That is not to say I dont try to change their minds, there is nothing I enjoy more than a good old discussion/argument on other peoples opinions. However, I do admit their points are valid, and respect their choices. If everyone thought the same, what a boring world we would live in
Hugs, RegiI certainly take the time to listen to others opinions since I prefer not to be ignorant. Not listening to others and keeping a closed mind is just …. stupid. I’m always questioning things, and I may not always agree with another viewpoint, but that doesn’t invalidate it. That’s how we learn things and hopefully grow to understand ourselves and each other a bit better. Personally I love a diversity of opinion. Helps me to educate myself and understand things better.
Stevie
Beautiful point Rei , I definitely try as much as possible to listen and learn about other views , I hope that most of the time I’m successful in doing so 🌹🌹
Sammy , you’re always extremely though provoking , far from confrontational 💋💋
Hi Rei
This is a good topic and raises an important point, in that we should all listen to other peoples thought and convictions. Deep rooted beliefs are almost impossible to change, thinking of ourselves, no one is going to convince me to stop crossdressing, but those that oppose it may try! they have an opinion, I may not agree with it, but they are entitled to think the way they want to. But if both sides of any argument can just listen to the opposing views then we will all get on a little better. We are not going to change the world, we are not going to change everyones deep seated convictions, but we just might be able to get them to accept we are who we are and that we are no threat to them…………..
Hello Rei
I love freedom of speech, so many different views NEED to be heard, so we can listen, learn and discover. I love the fact that while we all come to CDH for basically the same reason, we all present our ” inner femininity” in so many different ways….I for one have learned so much, just being a part of it….
I also think our detractors have one main problem….they have ” tunnel vision” and can only see the hate they feel, not taking on board any other opinions from any other angles… basically unwilling to accept any other opinions or even TRYING to understand us…..just my opinion…rant over….huggs, sisters, grace 💋💋
Hi All,
It is a good topic to keep in mind, and I also try to listen when others speak their opinions. However . . . sometimes it’s difficult to resist “explaining things” to some folks. Realizing that the effort would be wasted, I generally just walk away. I am reminded of a line from the old National Lampoon spoof of “Desiderata” called “Deteriorada” – a walk through the ocean of most souls would scarcely get your feet wet.
But we need to keep in mind that the opinions of others really do have an impact on real peoples’ lives. And the propagation of false and self-serving ideas can and does do real damage to real people and our country. It’s OK to listen, and try to understand, but we should also work as much as possible to counter the real evil and undo the damage, if possible. And to support those of like mind.
I don’t believe all opinions are worthy of consideration, understanding and acceptance. Maybe I’m narrow-minded in my own way, but there are some people out there doing harm, and at a minimum we should work to undo the harm however we can, while protecting ourselves and those important to us.
Be open-minded, listen, strive to understand. But be realistic, and don’t let evil grow unchecked.
Sorry for the rant! Stay safe ladies!
Mikey
I go out of my way to find out the opinions of others. I sometimes like to immerse myself in the “other side” try to really get in their head space and think like they do to get a better understanding and develop the statements that would most likely have an effect on them. I despise narrow minded thinking and dogma. I find on most issues both sides are just as rigid and dogmatic as the other and that only leads to create heated arguments and breeds resentments and pushes people further into their beliefs. I also hold the firm belief that it is a mistake to hold firm beliefs.
This is a good topic for current times. I just want to offer my perspective. I grew up in a small farming community in the upper Midwest of the U.S. I no longer live there, but feel I understand them well enough. I can tell you the people there can be closed minded by and large. Call them what you want, salt of the earth, bigots, whatever, but here’s the thing. So many of them were/are born and raised in that area and they will likely die there. Those rural areas are very much in a bubble socially. They work hard to provide for their families that are what is considered largely a traditional male female structure. If they know you they will bend over backwards to help you. Most, however, have never personally known a person of color much less a out trans person. That being said the majority of impressions they get is from the news or internet, which as we know doesn’t always portray things in a positive light. Those largely negative impressions is what shapes their views, that and their interpretations of their devout Christianity. The folks that leave and further their education usually have expanded their views on such social issues.
What I’ve also gathered over the years is that many seem stunted in their social interactions, a immaturity of sorts. They aren’t lacking intelligence per say, but lack the ability to express themselves in a thoughtful manner because feelings are considered weak and have been buried over the years leading to issues expressing themselves thoughtfully or having a open mind to differences. This also seems to lead to issues grasping the plight of people that are different from their views and they end up perpetuating those issues. This is where ignorance comes into play, they just don’t know because their life experiences haven’t taken them to a place that they have needed to know. I won’t speculate on the answers, and every region has its differences, but I wanted to offer what I have gathered over the years from my own observations and experiences from the people I know and their views.
This is a great topic of conversation and truly relevant to the world as a whole.
I am often out and about dressed, and undertake ’normal’ things in my daily life. I am out and proud at work and I sometimes come across individuals who are curious about my lifestyle and wish to discuss things, even in the macho environment of the offshore industry.
These ad-hoc conversations are truly important to me as its an opportunity to portray the whole transgender (CD) community in a positive way. Some of the individuals have a negative attitude and ask very blunt questions or make derogatory statements in an attempt to hurt, but with time and humour these can be deflected and addressed. This has to be managed well as I may be the first TG/CD (or even LGBT+) that they have ever knowingly met. First impressions are everything .
My aim is to leave the conversation in positive way, with the individual pondering some of the points raised and maybe not so ignorant about our situation – minds are like parachutes and work best when open !
You cant educate all but can give them some things to think about, and its just possible that they will come round some what over time.
hugs Dawn
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OMG!! That’s tough to digest for a lot of people but it is completely true.There’s an old book that keeps getting re-published by no less than Dale Carnegie titled how to make friends and influence people.
He’s speaks very often about the same thing. As another quick point, people aren’t interested in you, they are interested in themselves. So when you can share common ground and show interest and praise in them…DING…you make a friend!
Nice addition Bobbi Sue, again tough to hear…but so true!
xo – Robyn 🤗❤️
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