Ohio is the latest in a series of states that has shown why anti-trans politics are not politically popular. Republicans tried to make issue 1 about trans people, and it backfired hard.
This is maybe their 50th moral panic in my lifetime. Reading about moral panics is eye-opening because they always fizzle out and/or backfire. They might be sticking with this one longer because they are running out of good ones or maybe because there are Christian Nationalist billionaires like the U-Line guy who really like this one.
They hoped for and need something that would last like the ‘pro-life’ movement to activate the evangelicals plus seem like a righteous crusade some centrists would respect so I suspect it will be hard for them to give it up. They can’t use crime effectively partly because crime is generally low and partly because the Democrats simply counter it by funding the police. Same with drugs. Also, these don’t create the imagined ‘enemy identity’ and scapegoat that they need. They can be racist but going too hard loses votes. Sexism--same thing.
So it won’t be successful for the GOP but I fear they will have a hard time letting go because there’s not much else in the hopper. They’re down to ‘migrants on the border’ and ‘transgender agenda/drag queens, etc.’ The latter DOESN’T appeal to most voters and turns many people off, as you say, but it does get a subset of their reliable stalwarts very activated--older evangelicals especially. They don’t have as many hooks right now for them besides this. Unfortunately, these haters may have created a whole ideology that’s just going to sit there like a virus in a nerve cell to pop out like the shingles does but there’s some hope it can die out as younger people start to take over the country.
Their attacks on the transgener community show a lack of humanity, and their methods show a complete lack of integrity, with their seeming hope to be that fear and an unhuman ideology will garner support.
However, while they focus on these issues, as Erin reported, people are feeling effects of issues that **actually** affect their lives, including, as the Fox News poll shows, jobs, cost of living, and gun violence, none of which the Republican party appear to be addressing. And if jobs is top of mind for many now, just wait until the progress of AI really kicks in within the next 3-5 years and major economic shifts ramp up.
I'm thankful that the people of Ohio were able to see though a thinly veiled attack on bodily autonomy and human rights, and that we're seeing more of it across the country.
Congratulations on rising above the noise, Ohio! You stood up against the bullying and judgement of the conservatives. A vote for freedom and personal liberty, progressive not regressive!
This article brings me hope. It is well researched and draws logical conclusions. The 2024 elections are going to be pivotal for us so we'll have to hope the trend continues!
I hope you are right about this Erin. It may be true that voters don't think transgender "issues" should be at the forefront, but I am honestly not sure they care about trans people one way or the other. They certainly don't have many opportunities to hear about our plight. The stories are out there, but only if you dig for them. You won't see them on the NBC Nightly News.
I don't care what sinks their boat, whether it's abortion rights, their attempts at voter suppression, their attacks on black history, their threat to democracy or just their extremism--I will be happy and relieved to ride that wave.
> I am honestly not sure they care about trans people one way or the other.
I think it starts, just like with gay rights before them, that once somebody knows somebody transgender personally, their politics change (hopefully for the better). Once I knew people who were trans I saw them (or "you" to whomever is trans and is reading this) as human beings and not abstractions [mis]represented in the media.
Hopefully, the same effect is happening to a lot of cis people who are starting to know trans people.
I think thats absolutely true. The difficulty we have is that we are such a small minority. Some people won't meet a transgender person or may not know they have met one.
They tried trans panic against the abortion-rights amendment (Prop 3) in Michigan last year. It was late enough in the race that it was clearly flailing, and it didn’t land here either.
A good dream. He’s a corrupt greedy wastrel so luckily he is wasting their money. When people say he is corrupt I think ‘let him go’ because anything he spends on wine can’t go to ruining people’s lives. Unfortunately though he has such vast sums even he can’t go through it all.
Yeah I agree. It is unfortunate that someone so fortunate has so much free time and money to spend it all hating. Probably a drop in the bucket for em. Not taxed hard enough imo.
I just worry that they’ll continue pushing their anti-trans rhetoric and also find some new issue to be fake outraged about that gets them votes. Or they’ll simply continue drawing advantageous districts and cheating their way into office.
And then once in power they do... well, what they’re doing now basically - attacking our rights
In other words, continuing to do what the people don’t want them to
This is maybe their 50th moral panic in my lifetime. Reading about moral panics is eye-opening because they always fizzle out and/or backfire. They might be sticking with this one longer because they are running out of good ones or maybe because there are Christian Nationalist billionaires like the U-Line guy who really like this one.
They hoped for and need something that would last like the ‘pro-life’ movement to activate the evangelicals plus seem like a righteous crusade some centrists would respect so I suspect it will be hard for them to give it up. They can’t use crime effectively partly because crime is generally low and partly because the Democrats simply counter it by funding the police. Same with drugs. Also, these don’t create the imagined ‘enemy identity’ and scapegoat that they need. They can be racist but going too hard loses votes. Sexism--same thing.
So it won’t be successful for the GOP but I fear they will have a hard time letting go because there’s not much else in the hopper. They’re down to ‘migrants on the border’ and ‘transgender agenda/drag queens, etc.’ The latter DOESN’T appeal to most voters and turns many people off, as you say, but it does get a subset of their reliable stalwarts very activated--older evangelicals especially. They don’t have as many hooks right now for them besides this. Unfortunately, these haters may have created a whole ideology that’s just going to sit there like a virus in a nerve cell to pop out like the shingles does but there’s some hope it can die out as younger people start to take over the country.
Very well said Ro.
Their attacks on the transgener community show a lack of humanity, and their methods show a complete lack of integrity, with their seeming hope to be that fear and an unhuman ideology will garner support.
However, while they focus on these issues, as Erin reported, people are feeling effects of issues that **actually** affect their lives, including, as the Fox News poll shows, jobs, cost of living, and gun violence, none of which the Republican party appear to be addressing. And if jobs is top of mind for many now, just wait until the progress of AI really kicks in within the next 3-5 years and major economic shifts ramp up.
I'm thankful that the people of Ohio were able to see though a thinly veiled attack on bodily autonomy and human rights, and that we're seeing more of it across the country.
And thank you Erin for keeping me informed!
Me here: transitioning, ending my bloodline....”guess I’ve aborted all my future kids” 🤷🏻♀️
Funny stuff aside, good for Ohio :)
Congratulations on rising above the noise, Ohio! You stood up against the bullying and judgement of the conservatives. A vote for freedom and personal liberty, progressive not regressive!
This article brings me hope. It is well researched and draws logical conclusions. The 2024 elections are going to be pivotal for us so we'll have to hope the trend continues!
I hope you are right about this Erin. It may be true that voters don't think transgender "issues" should be at the forefront, but I am honestly not sure they care about trans people one way or the other. They certainly don't have many opportunities to hear about our plight. The stories are out there, but only if you dig for them. You won't see them on the NBC Nightly News.
I don't care what sinks their boat, whether it's abortion rights, their attempts at voter suppression, their attacks on black history, their threat to democracy or just their extremism--I will be happy and relieved to ride that wave.
> I am honestly not sure they care about trans people one way or the other.
I think it starts, just like with gay rights before them, that once somebody knows somebody transgender personally, their politics change (hopefully for the better). Once I knew people who were trans I saw them (or "you" to whomever is trans and is reading this) as human beings and not abstractions [mis]represented in the media.
Hopefully, the same effect is happening to a lot of cis people who are starting to know trans people.
I think thats absolutely true. The difficulty we have is that we are such a small minority. Some people won't meet a transgender person or may not know they have met one.
They tried trans panic against the abortion-rights amendment (Prop 3) in Michigan last year. It was late enough in the race that it was clearly flailing, and it didn’t land here either.
Hope Leonard Leo goes broke fighting their “woke” boogyman.
A good dream. He’s a corrupt greedy wastrel so luckily he is wasting their money. When people say he is corrupt I think ‘let him go’ because anything he spends on wine can’t go to ruining people’s lives. Unfortunately though he has such vast sums even he can’t go through it all.
Yeah I agree. It is unfortunate that someone so fortunate has so much free time and money to spend it all hating. Probably a drop in the bucket for em. Not taxed hard enough imo.
COME GET YOUR HOPIUM!!! HOPIUM COMIN AT YA!
I just worry that they’ll continue pushing their anti-trans rhetoric and also find some new issue to be fake outraged about that gets them votes. Or they’ll simply continue drawing advantageous districts and cheating their way into office.
And then once in power they do... well, what they’re doing now basically - attacking our rights
In other words, continuing to do what the people don’t want them to