My younger daughter just started her freshman year in high school and made the JV tennis team. At one of the four matches they had last week (you’ve got to cram them all in before it gets cold), she was talking to a friend about how much she disliked Trump. An older gentleman who had come to watch his granddaughter play on the opposing team decided it would be a good idea to engage my 14-year-old in a political debate. Allow me to paraphrase parts of the conversation as it was recounted to me, and please forgive the obvious gaps in the exchange. The version I got may have been the highlights reel.
The conversation went on for another minute in which he said my daughter must get her news from an unreliable sources and complained that Harris has no real policy plans. Then my daughter had to get up and play. As she walked onto the court, the random older man called after her, “I’m glad you’re not voting.” To which Em-fab-razz shwee-wippin b-deb double-bee-buk yelled back: “I’m sorry you are.” I’m verklempt. I mean that’s the kind of comeback that always occurs to me about five minutes too late or the next morning in the shower. More importantly, though, she was (at least in her retelling) respectful. She argued real points and didn’t resort to insults or name calling, which is saying a lot given that Trumpism is the only politics she’s ever witnessed. It’s the politics of hate and distrust, but she behaved better than the adults. She certainly behaved better than Trump who called Kamala Harris mentally impaired at a rally this weekend (and also went on about his beautiful body**). And she behaved better than ROMWSBPPaFwMUaD himself who really had no business trying to debate a high schooler. As one of my friends pointed out, “that a**hole was preying on her youth and female avoidance of confrontation. F**k him.” I’m just sorry my daughter can’t vote next month, but she’s coming for you 2028! Study Finds Anti-Trans Laws Increase Suicide Attempts in Young PeopleWhen states pass anti-trans laws, suicide attempts among transgender and non-binary (TGNB) kids goes up. It’s that simple. And now we have the peer-reviewed article to prove it. The study, published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour, found that enacting anti-trans law aimed at minors—whether that’s a law policing bathrooms or sports teams—increases the rate of suicide attempts among TGNB young people in that state by somewhere between 7 and 72%. States have been trying to make transgender people the boogeyman ever since the Supreme Court settled the debate on gay marriage. (I’d like to say once and for all, but we now know how loosie-goosy this court is willing to be with precedents and how badly Clarence Thomas would like to overturn Obergefell v. Hodges, Lawrence v. Texas, and Loving v. Virginia, despite the fact that that last one might invalidate his marriage to the Queen election denier.) The Karl Rove playbook requires a nemesis who can serve as both symbol and scapegoat when convincing disenchanted Americans to vote against their own best interests in the name of family values. When Gay went mainstream, the moral minority began demonizing transgender individuals and quickly turned their attention to kids. This year alone, state legislators introduced 658 anti-trans bills. This was up from 174 in 2022, 85 in 2020, and just 30 in 2018. There were bathroom bills. Sports team bills. Bills preventing people from updating their birth certificates or driver’s licenses. There were bills banning gender-affirming care like puberty blockers and hormone treatments. Florida—the state that bangs the parental rights drum louder than any when it’s banning sex ed and burning books—passed a law that would take trans kids away from their parents if they received gender-affirming care. (Can you imagine having to live in fear of being taken away from your supportive parents?) The new study focused on 2018 to 2022 during which time 48 anti-trans bills became law in 19 states. The authors surveyed 61,240 TGNB young people ages 13 to 24 from all 50 states. Participants were asked over 100 questions so researchers could start to understand their mental health and suicide risk. They were asked about thoughts of suicide and suicide attempts. They were also asked about factors known to protect trans kids such as access to care, access to affirming spaces, and LGBTQ+ representation as well as factors known to be a risk such as victimization, discrimination, and experiences with conversation therapy. Their analysis found that self-reported suicide attempts among young people did not increase when anti-trans bills were introduced or under debate. There was, however, a statistically significant increase in suicide attempts among TGNB young people in the state if those bills passed and became law. The analysis can’t pinpoint the reason(s) that suicide attempts rise, but the authors have some theories. (I have some theories about how hate-filled legislative debates and laws targeting already marginalized kids do damage to those at whom that hate is directed, but the authors’ theories are more civil and contain fewer expletives.) The authors speculate that being banned from participation in sports may lead to more experiences of rejection, social isolation, and bullying. Similarly, not being allowed to get gender-affirming healthcare or update documents may “lead to less access to vital resources and create more opportunities for discrimination and harassment.” All of this increases the stress of being a minority in this society which can in turn lead to worsening mental health and increased suicide risk. This all seems pretty f**king obvious. I’m reminded of the time that Utah’s legislature passed a bill banning trans kids from playing on sports teams with other kids of their gender. Republican Governor Spencer Cox vetoed the bill and wrote the following explanation full of the empathy and a desire to understand that seems to have eluded most members of his party. He said:
The legislature did, in fact, override his veto. And, spoiler alert, it did not go on to show trans kids any love. Less than a year later Cox signed a ban on gender-affirming care for minors into law. He said in defense, “While we understand our words will be of little comfort to those who disagree with us, we sincerely hope that we can treat our transgender families with more love and respect as we work to better understand the science and consequences behind these procedures.” Laws like this show neither love nor respect for trans kids or their families. These bills don’t represent a genuine concern for the health and wellbeing of young people; they prey on the status of TGNB young people as “others” and vilify them to score cheap political points. It is the ultimate example of punching down, and it does real damage to real kids who are already struggling. Georgia Judge Eviscerates Abortion LawHere’s something to smile about, at least temporarily. A Fulton County Superior Court Judge Georgia struck down Georgia’s 6-week abortion ban on Monday in a 26-page ruling that Sex On Wednesday readers will love for its snark as much as its decision. The case—SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective v. Georgia—started in 2022 when a group of health care providers sued the state to block the Living Infants Fairness and Equality (LIFE) Act. Putting aside the gag-inducing name of the law, it’s important to know that it was passed in 2019 when Republican lawmakers across the country were still being held in check by a Supreme Court that still included RBG. Then Dobbs happened. The SisterSong Collective sued to prevent this trigger law from taking effect. The Superior Court of Fulton County ruled that certain portions of the law were void because they were unconstitutional when the law was passed. The state appealed the ruling. The Supreme Court of Georgia ruled that the Superior Court was wrong; those parts of the law were not void. It sent the case back to that same lower court to be decided on its merits (as opposed to the earlier more procedural ruling). So that’s what Judge Robert McBurney did. First, though, he took both SCOG and SCOTUS to task. In a footnote, he writes:
Suck it Alito. McBurney went on to decide the case on its merits and in so doing managed to clearly articulate the central issue of the abortion debate. He writes:
He then explores the possible turning points from conception to viability. The law in question defines this turning point moment as the detection of a fetal heartbeat which he argues is “awkwardly arbitrary.” For one things, he notes, medical professionals on both sides of the debate agree that what is detected at six weeks is not a real heartbeat because fetuses don’t have anything resembling a four-chambered heart until about 17 weeks. He also argues that the state could not articulate why a four- or five-week-old unborn child’s life was not worth protection but a six-week-old’s was. In yet another footnote (always read the footnotes), he says this arbitrariness:
And then he goes in for the kill.
Thank you Judge McBurney for saying what so many of us have been trying to say for years and for doing so with a lot of eloquence and a little much-needed snark. It will be such a shame when the Supreme Court of Georgia overturns this impassioned decision. ** Always read the footnotes. In yet another unhinged rant that is not getting enough attention, Trump upped his cringe factor this weekend saying that he didn’t have to run for president, he could be sunbathing on the beach instead. “You have never seen a body so beautiful,” he said talking about himself, and went on to suggest that he has a much better build that Sleepy Joe. I never, ever want to see Donald Trump naked. However, I think we might all agree to give him huge ratings on his web-cam sunbathing show if he agreed to never, ever run for office, speak in public, or post on social media again.
Yes. This picture of his beautiful body was selling on Facebook Marketplace for $250.Sex on Wednesday is free today. But if you enjoyed this post, you can tell Sex on Wednesday that their writing is valuable by pledging a future subscription. You won't be charged unless they enable payments.
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It's Pronounced "Creepy Old Man"
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