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I'm tired of the two-party system. It has degraded to a system where there are only two diametrically opposed views, neither of which supports me. I have conservative views regarding big government and government spending but I have very liberal views when it comes to protecting the rights of individuals. And just elections of the past, I am stuck with two choices, neither of which I support. With only two parties, each with agendas that are off the left and right scales, I am not adequately represented. Finally, I'm okay with party affiliated politicians running for office using their party views, but once elected to office, they are obligated to support the entire electorate not just the electorate members that voted for them. Plain and simple, our government system is broken and dysfunctional. I'll step down from my soapbox now.

Thanks Mae. She was an amazing friend and I grew to love her like a sister.

I did Ashley. Non-rev travel was one of the major factors for taking the job. At the time, US Airways had the best non-rev policy in the industry. It cost $10 to fly coach and $25 to fly first class. We flew first class whenever there were seats available.

You should have a moderator fix what you meant to write as "birth certificate". Ooops. I've gone over that verse and am wholly and completely dissatisfied with the SBC exegesis of it, so much so that it was one of the things that helped me break out of a mindset of guit. Sometime I may strut by stuff as a Hebraist and show what it really means.

I found this — 450 — Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise Goal #1: Protecting Life, Conscience, and Bodily Integrity. The Secretary should pursue a robust agenda to protect the fundamental right to life, protect con- science rights, and uphold bodily integrity rooted in biological realities, not ideology. From the moment of conception, every human being possesses inherent dignity and worth, and our humanity does not depend on our age, stage of development, race, or abilities. The Secretary must ensure that all HHS programs and activities are rooted in a deep respect for innocent human life from day one until natural death: Abortion and euthanasia are not health care. A robust respect for the sacred rights of conscience, both at HHS and among gov- ernments and institutions funded by it, increases choices for patients and program beneficiaries and furthers pluralism and tolerance. The Secretary must protect Americans’ civil rights by ensuring that HHS programs and activities follow the letter and spirit of religious freedom and conscience-protection laws. Radical actors inside and outside government are promoting harmful identity politics that replaces biological sex with subjective notions of “gender identity” and bases a person’s worth on his or her race, sex, or other identities. This destructive dogma, under the guise of “equity,” threatens American’s fundamental liberties as well as the health and well-being of children and adults alike. The next Secretary must ensure that HHS programs protect children’s minds and bodies and that HHS programs respect parents’ basic right to direct the upbringing, education, and care of their children. https://static.project2025.org/2025_MandateForLeadership_CHAPTER-14.pdf First, that is not much, if that is all that is of concern. Secondly, I have seen all sorts of anti-Trump slander, including the Steele dossier and the lawfare he is now undergoing, to be cynical of any criticism against him, and indirectly this document. He deserves some of what he is getting, but not all. Thirdly, I bolded one statement of concern. I don't think gender identity is subjective. "Radical actors" is name calling, and there is a lot of that going around. Maybe I am not seeing everything of concern or reading this right, but i would discuss with the author of this document concerning this.

Good evening well I finally finished reading my textbook. Yeah. But I still have a lot more to go for the class. My endocrinologist always asks me about lactation. And yes I have had some very small amounts of leakage but not on any regular basis. I figure I blocked the discharge Duce when I pierced my nipples with scare tissue. But who knows. I also get asked about mammograms. I e had my first or baseline and this fall I will need to schedule my second. As someone in the midst of studying the Old Testament, I can say that I haven’t found any mention of pending damnation for being transgender or intersex. The closest it comes is a verse that says men should not wear women’s clothing. Now I don’t know each and everyone’s particulars, but I know I meet the medical definition of female gender, and even in Ohio, a State that until recently refused to allow bitch certificates to be changed, I meet the criteria. Therefore I can only conclude I am not a man wearing women’s clothing. But there is a somewhat different scholarly explanation of that law that it should not be taken as literally as the haters want. Mostly men should not pretend to be women to ex ape from their enemies. Or tried to hide from God. willow

Well, the left wing has been doing that. I read a few things while trying to find out what the problem is and liked what I read. But I am a conservative. Is there something specific in there that is of concern? Does it promise somewhere to erase trans folk? That would be problematic.

It's a plan to basically completely take over the government by the right wing.

I'm actually in Asheville tonight. Some of the people in the support group invited me for dinner after the meeting. We're going to get together again tomorrow again. It's been nice, 4 trans women and 1 trans man, together ar a restaurant.

I found https://www.project2025.org/policy/ I will have to read it. I have not. What is of concern? The link provided earlier goes back to this forum.

My parents were life long Democrats.

'Nuff said. Yeah I'm not thrilled with Biden either. There are some conservative ideas I'm good with. And I do feel that the current Democratic party is too cozy with the bankers and wealthy. But despite all their talk, when it comes down to it, so are the Republicans. And it's not the Dems calling for our eradication. Unfortunately, I see this election as existential for trans folks.

Good evening everyone, @Birdie your CNA Is ill informed about breast and proper bra fitting. My wife and I are checking out a campground up in Michigan just a little North of Saginaw, MI. We had a great meal at a local tavern serving delicious perch fillet dinner. We’re going to check out the Saginaw,MI Bay area for summer time activities for when we come back on occasion. We belong to a camping club call Adventure Outdoors and have free camping at their resorts around Michigan and Ohio. Hugs, Mindy🌈🐛🏳️‍⚧️🦋

I agree. Biden has been known to switch positions without notice, whether on abortion, Gaza or gay marriage. Most of what he has done has been via executive order and decision, so it does not carry the force of lasting law and can be easily reversed. I really do not trust him at all. Trump says a lot of things. He switches his position all the time. Most of what he wants to do will require legislation to accomplish, some of which will simply never become law. I do not trust him at all. I'm not sure which is worse for trans people specifically because of this, and the fact that the other issues that surround trans folk which I attempted to isolate this question from, but here I go :) also affect trans people along with everyone else. In either case trans folk need to be prepared.

I'm certain that there are some, if not many, but you would be hard pressed to find them willing to speak up on this forum. There are many trans folk who are conservative, and believe that Biden's non-trans related policies are terrible. Those include his economic, foreign policy, border security, and environmental policies. I'm a lifelong Democrat, and even I don't like all of Biden's policies. It comes down to who would do the most damage to the most people, and the most damage to America as a going democratic nation which has respect for the rule of law. Carolyn Marie

Thank you for continuing to share your story, Sally! Willa sounded like a grand friend, I'm sorry for your loss. :(

Not all conservatives are for Trump. I am far from thrilled he is running. Just wanted to make that clear.

Anybody willing to present the case for Trump? Any conservatives out there?

Two words(?): Project 2025 Please provide links to the "political calculus" referred to, I'd be interested to know where this is coming from. It seems odd that anyone would be advocating to vote in a President that has stated that he will try to use the federal government to go after LGBTQ+ people because voting back Biden, that is not doing that, might cause some state legislatures to put forth more discriminatory laws. LGBTQ+ people are not safe in a MAGA future.

It's awesome that you have had such a great friend in your life! I could only imagine what losing felt like to you. It's neat that you worked for the airlines. Did you take advantage of the space availability fights? My dad worked for Northwest and always flew every single summer except one where we drove from north Mississippi to Phoenix, AZ. My parents agreed to never do that again lol.

The trans community won't be good under Trump at all. Biden is the one who has done more for the trans community than any other presidents. Last time Trump was in office he was at an LGBTQ rally and his support went quickly away from us because the majority of the voters are anti trans. He is going to get rid of our rights and also come after the rest of LGBTQ. I don't know where you heard we would be better under Trump. Trump unveils sweeping attack on trans rights ahead of 2024 (axios.com) Trump Promises to Go After Trans People if Re-Elected (vice.com) Trump promises to ban transgender women from sports if re-elected (nbcnews.com)

Post 7 “The Pittsburgh Years” When I retired from the Army, we moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania because I had been hired by US Airways to work in their flight training department. The transition to civilian life was a bit of an adjustment, but I never really looked back. At the same time, I was excited at the prospect of having more Sally time. But with work and two teenage boys in the house, getting to be Sally was a challenge. The biggest issue in this regard were my sons, as they didn’t know about my feminine side. My wife and I discussed, in great detail, whether or not to tell them. If they had known about Sally, it would have been much easier to actually be Sally when I wanted to. But I still didn’t know exactly where my transgender journey was going to take me, and this uncertainty was the primary reason my wife and I decided it wasn’t the right time to tell them about Sally. Except for the convenience it would afford me, we didn’t think it was fair to burdened them with such a sensitive family secret if it wasn’t absolutely necessary. If at some point things changed and it looked like I might be heading towards transition, my wife and I agreed we would revisit our decision. Despite having to tiptoe around the boys I was able, with my wife often running interference for me, to significantly increase my girl time. The nature of my variable work schedule meant that often days off occurred during the week when the boys were in school, and on those days, I took full advantage of the time. Additionally, I had discovered a new trans friend through a local support group, and my wife, ever and always accommodating, ensured I had time for outings with my new friend. Willa, my new friend, quickly became my best friend, and after only a short time, she and my wife became quite close as well. With Willa’s help, I would soon discover that Pittsburgh was a very trans friendly city. Together, she and I made the town our own. We attended the theater, the symphony, we went out to dinner regularly, and I think we visited every museum in the city. With Willa’s support and friendship, I was actually becoming quite the girl about town. Willa and I had a lot in common. We loved to shop, we had similar feminine styles, and we had similar views and feelings about being trans. In fact, our frequent and deep discussions about transgender issues helped me begin to understand my transgender nature. Having Willa as a springboard for all topics transgender, was probably as effective as regularly visiting a therapist. I would never discount anyone’s desire to seek professional help, but having an unbiased confidant, can also be an effective method for self-discovery. Exploring the city as Sally and spending time with Willa was instrumental in helping me understand my transgender nature, and would begin shaping my transgender objective. My feelings about the kind of girl I was and where I wanted to go began to solidify. Being out and socializing as Sally in a big city like Pittsburgh, taught me I could express my femininity without issue. I honestly felt confident I could live my life as a woman; however, remaining completely objective, I just couldn’t see giving up the life I’d built as a man. At that time, I was being heavily influenced by the concept of the gender binary, which had me thinking I had to choose between being a man or being a woman. It was Willa who reminded me there were no rules requiring gender identity to be binary. During one of our deep discussions, she posited the idea of enjoying both genders, something she was doing, and a concept that made a lot of sense to me. I was already living the life of a part-time woman, so I simply started paying more attention to how that was making me feel. One characteristic that was dominating my feminine self-expression (and it continues to this day) was that when I was Sally, I was “all in.” When I became Sally, it was such a complete transformation that I truly felt like a woman. The feeling was powerful, and if I had to describe it another way, I’d say it was akin to an actor, so into the part, they actually become the character they are portraying. That was me, and I discovered that this level of depth was extremely fulfilling, and that feeling tended to last long after transitioning back to my male persona. Part-time womanhood it seemed, was actually working for me. Eventually, a job change forced me to move away from Pittsburgh, but the enlightenment I experienced while living there has shaped the nature of my bi-gender personality to this day. Even after leaving, Willa and I remained the best of friends. We had many more adventures, some of which I will detail in later posts. Sadly, Willa passed away two-years ago after contracting a prolonged illness. Her loss was hard to take and I miss her dearly. However, I have so many fond memories of our times together, and because her support helped shape me, she lives on in my heart. Hugs, Sally

thank you dear. I'm constantly working at adjusting n writing off other people's judgment or input. thank you n good luck

Them's fighting words, but I intend to discuss this respectfully, calmly and so forth, in accordance with the forum rules. Considering the one issue below in isolation: There is a political calculus that trans folk may be better off under Trump than under Biden. The argument goes that Biden has created such a backlash by moving so far to the left that red states, in particular, are reacting with a swarm of laws that negatively impact trans folk. Some of his actions strike many people as clumsily forcing unwanted regulation on people, and some of his appointments, such as the luggage stealing bigender individual, have not helped advance trans folk but rather the reverse. In a second term Biden would make things worse for trans folk because of the backlash and resentment his policies would create. Trump likely would have negative impacts to trans folk, as he did in his first term with respect to the military, so it is a set of tradeoffs as to which is worse. Thoughts?

Can you dress androgynously?