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The History of Skirted Men

Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales (1594 – 1612)In the not all too distant past, men wore unbifurcated garments and while few would want to dress like Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, it is not a novel concept that men should not be confined to trousers. Little by little, journalists, sociologists, and artists are looking into the history of skirted men and sharing their findings:

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Corporate Retailer Gender Policies

USA Today reports that Target does not stand alone in its respect for non-cisgender persons. Starbucks, Barnes & Noble, and Hudson Bay (Sacks Fifth Avenue, Lord & Taylor) all condone customer election of the facility that matches that customer’s gender identity. Sears (as well as its Kmart subsidiary) is not as outspoken, but condemns all forms of discrimination. Read the full print article here

And there is evidence that other companies agree. CBS affiliate KTVT reports that Ross Dress-For-Less and TJX (TJ Maxx, Marshall’s) also endorse facility election based on that customer’s gender identity. The station also reports that Walmart has no specific gender policy one way or the other. Read the full story here.

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On Teachers’ Striking Over Salary

It has been said that the government which governs least also governs best. And as a libertarian, I think the government’s interference with those things which can be handled locally should be avoided. I have often remarked that the federal government should not be involved with school lunches. But the recent spate of teacher strikes makes me wonder where this nonsense will end.Show more ›

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The Purpose of Prayer

Not too long ago I found myself in a discussion with a Puerto Rican pastor about prayer. I dare say that most Christians believe that prayer changes our circumstances, but I say that prayer is designed to change our perceptions.Show more ›

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On the Age of the Cosmos

A fundamental problem in articulating the age of the universe is that time has not always existed. Whether one subscribes to the big bang or to creationism, there is evidence that time was not constant throughout the universe’s existence.Show more ›

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Circumcision Fiction

For many decades of the twentieth century, American physicians both recommended and presumed consent for routine infant circumcision. In 2009 the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a policy position to state that circumcision was strictly a cultural and/or religious consideration with no medical consideration (pdf). In 2012 the American Acadrmy of Pediatrics amended its position to offer two justifications for circumcision—reduced risk of UTIs in infancy and reduced risk of STIs in adulthood (pdf). However, the AAP qualified the amended policy that its data only established a statistical benefit greater than the statistical risk. Infant circumcision was therefore categorized as an acceptable medical procedure only; the data did not establish infant circumcision as a necessary medical procedure.Show more ›

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Hey Google….DBAA

Some time ago I created a Tasker profile called DBAA (Don’t Be An Asshole). Basically, this profile watched for certain keywords in wireless network names and then put the phone on vibrate based on the assumption that ringing in those locations would be undesirable (specifically, it looks for church, mosque, synagogue, shrine, theater, cinema, movie, patron, library, academy, school, elementary, middle, high, auditorium, lecture, recital, and hall). It isn’t perfect; some places might not have wifi or the wifi name might not contain one of the hotwords. Still, if it helps anywhere, it’s a benefit. But why, I wonder, hasn’t Google implemented this sort of functionality tied to Android’s location awareness? That would be easy enough and much more reliable. Of course, nothing should be forced upon the user so, like Do Not Disturb mode, a user should have the option to enable or disable. Better still, why not prompt the user to enable silent mode upon arriving at such a location?

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The Fundamental Flaw in HB2

As do countless citizens and corporations, I fundamentally disagreed with North Carolina’s 2016 legislation now known commonly as HB2. It was as much hateful as it was an egregious violation of federal law. I have pointed out in other posts that treating all females as frail victims incapable of defending themselves or speaking for themselves is supremely misogynistic just as it is supremely misandrist to presume all males to be menacing predators. In fact, I argue that the same mental processes which make a particular person (man or woman) a predator are the very same mental processes that make a comparable person a hero. You see, while a predator perceives a given set of circumstances as a potential victim to be exploited, a hero perceives those exact same circumstances as a potential victim in need of defense. And in this the old cartoons got it right! The hero and the villain wear identical hats and the color merely reflected the content of their character. Apart from these extremes, though, most males just go about their own business and their presence is neither good nor evil.Show more ›

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What Is Gender Nonconformity?

As noted in another post, sex and gender are not the same thing. Sex is typically seen as a binary trait that flows from reproductive function whether that be regarded as genital, chromosomal, gonadal, hormonal, or structural. There are, of course, biologically intersex persons born with karyotype disorders, androgen insensitivity disorders, and/or genital dysgenesis disorders. According to the U.N. World Health Organization, as much as 1% to 2% of persons are born intersex worldwide. Gender, however, is more complex and is not a monolithic construct.Show more ›