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World Athletics - Gender cannot trump biology

I take your point but it's this 'precision' that they're chasing.
Yeah mate, I know..... and like I said, if a roomful of boffins can't figure it out I am in no position to even offer a suggestion...

All I can give is my personal opinion that I would LIKE it for girls/women to be able to compete fairly at level with other girls/women who have the same physiology/strength. Both morally and ethically, I believe its the only way to attract all members of the population to participate in the benefits of competitive sport. How it is defined is something the experts need to agree on.... Yes I understand you that physical dicks and vaginas aren't the clear divide (we aren't in 1950s where a squeeze of the clangers was enough to decide if you are male or female) but I HATE seeing all these stories (and relax I know it is a very small and vocal minority and not prevalent, but I just hate even 1-2 examples as I deem it unfair) of seemingly male athletes competing as female and blowing their competition out of the water...

All that will lead to is less females participating in sport... do we want that?
 
Yeah mate, I know..... and like I said, if a roomful of boffins can't figure it out I am in no position to even offer a suggestion...

All I can give is my personal opinion that I would LIKE it for girls/women to be able to compete fairly at level with other girls/women who have the same physiology/strength. Both morally and ethically, I believe its the only way to attract all members of the population to participate in the benefits of competitive sport. How it is defined is something the experts need to agree on.... Yes I understand you that physical dicks and vaginas aren't the clear divide (we aren't in 1950s where a squeeze of the clangers was enough to decide if you are male or female) but I HATE seeing all these stories (and relax I know it is a very small and vocal minority and not prevalent, but I just hate even 1-2 examples as I deem it unfair) of seemingly male athletes competing as female and blowing their competition out of the water...

All that will lead to is less females participating in sport... do we want that?

Agree with everything you've said here.

My point is they want to use a test that the discoverer of the gene says isn't conclusive to determine what sex a person is biologically. To date they haven't offered up a definitive test or definition.

Yeah mate, I know..... and like I said, if a roomful of boffins can't figure it out I am in no position to even offer a suggestion...


Hence the controversy.

FWIW I don't have a clear definition either. I'm sure the (fill in the blank here) blokes would though. Everything's black and white to those fellas.
 
I'm pretty sacrosanct in my support for the LGBTQi community but I think it's important to add nuance when it comes to things like competition within sports for men to women 'transgender athletes'.

You can’t throw 50 per cent of sports people under the bus to advance the rights of maybe 0.1 per cent, but you still have to try to advance the rights of any oppressed minority generally.....

We’re all asking these fundamental questions about identity now that the things that once defined us are seen differently by many. It’s complex, moving-picture stuff. And it is quite a distraction to keep us at each other’s throats politically over these debates, if trans women compete in athletics, or if they’re barred, it’s not going to change the fact that lots of men, athletes or not are wanting to transition into women, because they feel that they are women.

It’s certainly difficult waters to go into because everything has become so shouty and abusive.

And that's from both sides of the debate. If I'm really looking for a solution then I probably want to hear from the transgender athletes and the women athletes who are there.

I'm a middle aged heterosexual man. I haven't got a clue. I cannot walk in their shoe's...or in this case runners... 🤪
 
I'm pretty sacrosanct in my support for the LGBTQi community but I think it's important to add nuance when it comes to things like competition within sports for men to women 'transgender athletes'.

You can’t throw 50 per cent of sports people under the bus to advance the rights of maybe 0.1 per cent, but you still have to try to advance the rights of any oppressed minority generally.....

We’re all asking these fundamental questions about identity now that the things that once defined us are seen differently by many. It’s complex, moving-picture stuff. And it is quite a distraction to keep us at each other’s throats politically over these debates, if trans women compete in athletics, or if they’re barred, it’s not going to change the fact that lots of men, athletes or not are wanting to transition into women, because they feel that they are women.

It’s certainly difficult waters to go into because everything has become so shouty and abusive.

And that's from both sides of the debate. If I'm really looking for a solution then I probably want to hear from the transgender athletes and the women athletes who are there.

I'm a middle aged heterosexual man. I haven't got a clue. I cannot walk in their shoe's...or in this case runners... 🤪
I'd like to think our discussion was fairly civil to be honest... I think we ALL want whats right... (sure there is a small minority that like to play the internet neanderthal) .
 
I'd like to think our discussion was fairly civil to be honest... I think we ALL want whats right... (sure there is a small minority that like to play the internet neanderthal) .
Yeah mate, I was talking in general rather than the g + g fc community....

Everyone on here is generally pretty civilised about this kind of thing. You're always going to get different opinions on these discussions of course. It's another one of these very emotive subjects.
 
I'll tell you something for nothing. As sure as the sun comes up and Fox or Skynews or Murdoch need a distraction they'll run a trans person competing in a women's event story to stir outrage. It's as regular as clockwork.

Guaranteed.


 
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