...In the pants... (c)

One of the main differences between the labels, from my experience, is that when you say "Transsexual" to someone, they think "Perverted freak", and when you say "Intersexed" they think "freak of nature".

The majority of people think that "Transsexuals" make a choice. Someone said that on another board once... that N. was making a choice.... and I completely lost it. True, I "lose it" pretty easily, but that's neither here nor there.

If the truth is that "Transsexuals" are people who choose to change their sex, then ok... there's a difference... but to the best of my knowledge, there's no "choice" involved. A "Transsexual" is trapped in the wrong body (so to speak). It's change it or get out. Does a Diabetic really have a choice with taking insulin? It's either take it or die! That's not a choice! Do we choose to breathe?

In "theory", if an XXY person is raised as either recognized sex/gender, they have to "transition" in order to be "who God made them". If you're a XXY person who is raised male, and feels comfortable that way, you're "sick". (No, I don't feel that way... I'm using "their" language.) It's the same thing as the parents of a stereotypical boy raising that person as a girl, but that stereotypical boy being ok with it. The person isn't a girl. That would make them a transsexual. The parents would also be arrested/chastised for abusing the child and scarring him for life. In the same light, an Intersexed person who is raised as either a boy or a girl would be a transsexual. They have the comfortable identity of X, but the body Y.

In my head, there is no such thing as a "transsexual" by the societal rule book... only Intersexed people and "transgender" people. At this point in time, it is medically impossible to change someone's sex (you can't change chromosomes). However, as with the term "feminist", "Transsexual" has taken on a meaning above and beyond that... and many of us do understand that the Y doesn't make the man anyway... and that neither does the penis or beard. So... it's either "there's no such thing as a Transsexual" or you have to go with the adopted meaning of the word.

With the adopted meaning, "Transsexual" usually refers to someone who goes through steps to change the initial on their ID, and who medically alters their body to resemble the stereotype of their sex/gender (until they run out of money), or who feels "trapped" in their own (wrong) body. In this, there certainly is a such thing as a "Transsexual". Thing is, to me, the brain is an organ, thereby making many who call themselves "Transsexual", "Intersexed"... at least before they change their body to their liking. The term "Intersexed" is based on the existence of 2 sexes... and the stereotypes of those sexes. That's not the same as "Transsexual" which is actually a word with an "adopted" meaning. The only way you can compare "Intersexed" to "Transsexual" is to compare both in the literal sense. If you do that... no one is "Transsexual", they're "Intersexed"

However... If an "Intersexed" person is only someone with XXY chromosomes, then only chromosomes determine sex.... and that has been (over and over again) determined to be false. So... "Intersexed" must also adopt a meaning. "Intersexed" means a person with stereotypical aspects of both sexes.

Being that "Transsexuals" have stereotypical parts of both recognized sexes, it would make them "Intersexed".

(my head is spinning. It's much easier to just think this stuff than to write it down in a way which makes sense to other people.)

As far as I can tell, all Transsexuals are Intersexed... but not all Intersexed people are Transsexuals. Some Intersexed people are just fine with their bodies... just fine being "both/all" sexes... but very few have been raised as such... making them, yup.... Transsexuals... because they have to transition to their own actual sex/gender (just as Transsexuals do) - ItFtI or ItMtI or MtI or FtI, or hide it from society in fear, etc.

"does it matter?"
To me it does. The brain is an organ... people give preference to things they can "see"... it's sort of like how people with physical disabilities are given sympathy/help/caring as opposed to the mentally disabled who get fear/abuse/stigmatized. That people do that, greatly affects my life. So... I bitch about it.


"we tend to be rather soundly trounced from a variety of quarters"

just call me a dime