Of All The Things...

... to be worked up about with all the problems in the world, the soaring gas and food prices, what do the Republicans worry about? Us.

That's right, in Louisiana they are facing rising health insurance premiums: because  of the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," property and auto insurance cost are skyrocketing, coastal erosion, pollution, and a public health crisis so what does their legislature focus on... us, the trans community!

A Trump-Inspired Louisiana Bill Would “Erase Trans People From Law”

House Bill 578 seeks to establish “a uniform statutory definition of sex in Louisiana.”

Them

By Quispe López

April 23, 2026

Louisiana lawmakers are advancing a bill that would replace all references to “gender” in state law with “sex” — a move that LGBTQ+ advocates say would effectively erase transgender people from written law.

House Bill 578, known as the “Restoring Biological Truth Act,” was introduced by sponsor state Rep. Mike Johnson in February 2026, and has since received the support of GOP governor Jeff Landry. The stated goal is to provide “a uniform statutory definition of sex in Louisiana,” defined as “an individual's biological sex, either male or female, as observed or clinically certified at birth.”

Of course they just screwed the intersex community!

While HB 578 is new, the ACLU of Louisiana noted that it largely borrows language from a law with an identical goal that passed through the Louisiana legislature in 2024. HB 608, also known as “Women's Safety and Protection Act,” stated that gender identity “and other subjective terms” should not “be used as synonyms or substitutes for sex.” That law has been in effect since August 2024.

Young professionals and families are frequently moving to neighboring states like Texas or Florida, citing better job markets, higher pay, and more reliable infrastructure. Louisiana ranks dead last in overall health rankings! Premature Death: 48th, Obesity & Diabetes: 47th and in Per Capita Income: Ranked 47th., and in Poverty Rate they are dead last!

And with statics like that what does the legislature focus on... us. The trans community!

R.E.S.P.E.C.T.

[Editorial]

I have testified many times before the Connecticut legislature, and I can honestly say that the legislators always treated me with respect. Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be the case for the Republicans out in Ohio.

Constituents showed up to testify against an anti-drag bill. Ohio Republicans mocked them

They took time off work, drove hours, and spoke out against Ohio’s anti-drag bill. Many left the statehouse saying that Republican lawmakers treated them with contempt rather than respect.

The Advocate

Ken Schneck

Apr 24, 2026

Kim Burroughs was not planning on testifying in front of the Ohio House Judiciary Committee on March 18.

She had a full week of depositions and legal work as an attorney at a Columbus-based law firm, and a nursery to assemble as she and her wife were soon expecting a baby.

But when Burroughs received a call from an Equality Ohio staff member asking her to submit testimony opposing HB 249, “The Enact the Indecent Exposure Modernization Act,” she knew she had to testify for her first time at the Ohio Statehouse.

[...]

But when Burroughs received a call from an Equality Ohio staff member asking her to submit testimony opposing HB 249, “The Enact the Indecent Exposure Modernization Act,” she knew she had to testify for her first time at the Ohio Statehouse.

[...]

“His behavior toward witnesses, residents of our great state of Ohio, was juvenile and condescending, refusing to acknowledge the expertise and experiences of others,” said Whitted, who was the only out LGBTQ+ House lawmaker when she served. “He instead presented as a monomaniac regarding constitutional knowledge.”

That is wrong! Very wrong! To treat a constituent that way shows a complete lack of respect. You would expect that behavior on a fifth-grade playground, not in a hearing room at the State Capitol!

Here in Connecticut, when the first gender-inclusive non-discrimination bill was introduced in 2006, it passed the Judiciary Committee 28–8. That was bipartisan support! However, by 2011, when the bill finally passed, the vote was 27–14, right down party lines. When I first started advocating for this law, if a legislator told you how they were going to vote, they told the truth. By 2011, that was no longer the case.

When the bill passed the Senate, a number of Republicans gave a "thumbs up" signal. They were personally in favor of the bill but had been ordered by their party to vote against it. Back then, I could talk to my Republican Senator and feel like they were actually listening; now, I have a MAGA Republican representative who doesn't even pretend to listen.

Although 108 Ohioans submitted written testimony, the Republican-dominated committee only allowed 16 to testify in person, imposing a three-hour limit for the hearing.

That is unheard of! I have been at the Capitol into the wee hours of the morning. During the marriage equality bill, testimony went almost around the clock!

The Republicans don't want to hear the voices of the people anymore; those voices just get in the way of the party line.

The Republicans simply have no R.E.S.P.E.C.T. for the voters!

[/Editorial]

They Keep Piling On Us!

It seems like every time we turn around...

• They want to require television show to be labeled “trans” if they have any “trans” characters or plots.
• Trump wants to have us labeled as terrorist.
• Trump has stripped us of our life savings healthcare.

Now substitute Black people for trans people.

• They want to require television show to be labeled “Black” if they have any “Black” characters or plots.
• Trump wants to have “Blacks” labeled as terrorist.
• Trump has stripped us of our life savings healthcare.

Do you think that would be allowed? Why is it okay for us to be discriminated against?

There are two mindsets about us: conservatives think we choose to be trans, while liberals know we are born this way. If you look at nature, you will see trans identity everywhere! But we were censored in the animal world along with the human world. Primatologists and anthropologists reported it in their notes, but it never made it to the public back in the 1950s—the era of the "Lavender Scare."

Integrative and Comparative Biology (ICB) writes in Joan Roughgarden’s Evolution’s Rainbow, a book review by Josephine Low that, 

In The Origin of Species, Charles Darwin described life as “endless forms most beautiful.” The field of biology is defined by the pursuit of universal explanations for these infinite possibilities. Despite the enduring desire for objectivity, what scientists choose to study and their interpretation is shaped by cultural norms. Paradoxically, popular culture looks to science to affirm what is “natural” and therefore right, creating a feedback loop which distorts our perception of the natural world and humanity’s place in it.

If enforcing a singular perspective on an infinite world unjustly flattens the world, embracing a multitude of perspectives is the best way to understand an infinite world. To borrow the language of renowned ecologist and evolutionary biologist Joan Roughgarden, we need to learn to see nature’s rainbow.

But that is exactly what the Republicans want to do when they pass laws stating that there are only two genders! The National Institutes of Health website, PubMed, reports in Genetic and Environmental Contributions To Gender Diversity: A Systematic Review of the Twin Literature. The introduction reads, in part:

The aetiological basis for gender diversity remains unknown. However, similar to other complex human traits (Polderman et al. 2015), the prevailing theory is that a complex interaction between genes and the environment collectively contribute to the formation of gender identity (Coleman et al. 2022). Studies using a classic twin study design have assessed the validity of this hypothesis by comparing rates of concordance for a transgender and other gender diverse (hereafter, trans) identity in monozygotic (MZ, identical) and dizygotic (DZ, non-identical) twins (Polderman et al. 2018) (see Table 1 for glossary of relevant terms). Since MZ twins share 100% of their DNA, compared to 50% on average in DZ twins, twin studies offer a powerful opportunity to examine questions about the heritable contribution to gender identity. In addition, using univariate models, twin data can also facilitate assessment of the relative contributions of environmental factors shared between each twin pair (e.g. intrauterine and family environment) and non-shared environmental factors (e.g. unique life experiences) (Neale and Cardon 1992).

[…]

Conclusion

This review of the twin literature suggests that there is likely both heritable and non-shared environmental contributions to gender diversity, but the magnitude of these contributions remains undefined and further research is needed to help clarify this.

But the Republicans still think it is a choice! That one day we sit down and think, "Gee, I want to be trans so I can be beaten up and discriminated against!"

The Guardian reported on:

'Sexual depravity' of penguins that Antarctic scientist dared not reveal

Landmark polar research about the Adélie penguin's sex life by Captain Scott's expedition, deemed too shocking for the public 100 years ago, is unearthed at the Natural History Museum

The Guardian

Robin McKie, science editor

Sat 9 Jun 2012

It was the sight of a young male Adélie penguin attempting to have sex with a dead female that particularly unnerved George Murray Levick, a scientist with the 1910-13 Scott Antarctic Expedition. No such observation had ever been recorded before, as far as he knew, and Levick, a typical Edwardian Englishman, was horrified. Blizzards and freezing cold were one thing. Penguin perversion was another.

Worse was to come, however. Levick spent the Antarctic summer of 1911-12 observing the colony of Adélies at Cape Adare, making him the only scientist to this day to have studied an entire breeding cycle there. During that time, he witnessed males having sex with other males and also with dead females, including several that had died the previous year. He also saw them sexually coerce females and chicks and occasionally kill them.

Levick blamed this "astonishing depravity" on "hooligan males" and wrote down his observations in Greek so that only an educated gentleman would understand the horrors he had witnessed. Back in Britain he produced a paper (in English), titled Natural History of the Adélie Penguin. However, the section about the animal's sexual proclivities was deemed to be so shocking it was removed to preserve decency. Levick then used this material as the basis for a separate short paper, Sexual Habits of the Adélie Penguin, which was privately circulated among a handful of experts.

As a result of that self-censorship, we are demonized! Maybe if they had publicized that being LGBTQ+ is part of the natural process of life back then, LGBTQ+ people would not be persecuted now. Maybe if they taught that in school, we wouldn’t have the hate we have now. And now, once again, they are banning anything LGBTQ+ in schools! What is that teaching the students? What else have scientists hidden from us?

I have always said that Mother Nature loves to experiment. So when you pass laws saying that there are only two genders, you are going against Mother Nature—and she doesn’t like that!

---

Another factor showing that being LGBTQ+ is an inborn trait rather than a choice is statistics!

I’m "sinister"—or left-handed, as they used to call us! We were called witches and burned at the stake. Nuns would whack your hand until it was black and blue and belittle you in front of the class for smudging the ink. According to BBC News:

Approximately 10% to 12% of the world's population is left-handed. While estimates can range from 8% to 15% depending on the study and cultural factors, the 10% figure is the most commonly cited. This ratio has remained remarkably stable for over 5,000 years, with a higher prevalence in males than females

But here is a fact they don’t teach you in school. Psychology Today writes that if you are LGBTQ+, you have a higher chance of being left-handed: 

According to Kenneth Zucker*, a researcher at the University of Toronto's Center for Addiction and Mental Health, homosexuals are more likely to be lefties than heterosexuals. Zucker analyzed data collected in 20 different studies over the past 50 years and discovered a correlation between left-handedness and homosexuality. The findings indicate that lesbians have a 91 percent greater chance of being left-handed or ambidextrous than straight women, while gay men are 34 percent more likely than straight men to not be right-handed. While Zucker says the research provides empirical evidence that links homosexuality to left-handedness, he also adds that "we don't have a definitive answer as to why the relationship exists."

*Hey, I know! Ken Zucker S**ks!

In another PubMed article they write,

Abstract

Handedness preference was assessed in 205 boys with gender identity disorder and 205 clinical control boys referred for other reasons. Boys with gender identity disorder were significantly more likely to be left-handed than the clinical control boys (19.5% vs. 8.3%, respectively). The boys with gender identity disorder, but not the clinical control boys, also had a significantly higher rate of left-handedness compared to three independent, general population studies of nonreferred boys (11.8%; N = 14,253) by Hardyck, Goldman, and Petrinovich (1975), Calnan and Richardson (1976), and Eaton, Chipperfield, Ritchot, and Kostiuk (1996). Left-handedness appears to be a behavioral marker of an underlying neurobiological process associated with gender identity disorder in boys.

Hey! To all you people who think being trans is a choice: is being left-handed a prerequisite for "choosing" to be trans?

Wait, that’s not all. In Nature Communications, the article “Elevated rates of autism, other neurodevelopmental and psychiatric diagnoses, and autistic traits in transgender and gender-diverse individuals” reports:

In conclusion, our study demonstrates that transgender and gender-diverse individuals have elevated rates of autism diagnosis, related neurodevelopmental and psychiatric conditions, and autistic traits compared to cisgender individuals. This study has clinical implications by highlighting that we need to improve access to care and tailored support for this under-served population.

Can you imagine Republicans passing laws like the ones they are passing against us on any other protected class? Why are they allowed to discriminate against us? They justify their pogrom against the trans community with their lies.

The same institutions that tried to "beat the left-handedness out of people" in the past are often the ones trying to "legislate the trans identity out of people" today.

We will not be erased!

Saturday 9: Good

Saturday 9: Good (1995)

On Saturdays I take a break from the heavy stuff and have some fun… 

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

 

1) This song begins with a guy realizing he's home alone. Do you enjoy being all by yourself?

Well being single… it is a fact of life. When I have company up at the cottage I need a lot of “Me time” to decompress.

2) He watches the sun throwing shadows on the floor. Which room in your home lets in the most sun?

The atrium, it can heat the house during the day in all but the last days of December and the early January.

3) He sings that he may write a letter to his ex. If you were inspired to send someone a handwritten message, do you have stationery or notecards on hand? What about first-class postage stamps?

Yes, I have stationery to write thank-you cards. But I’ll have to dust it off.

4) This week's band, Better Than Ezra, got their start in Baton Rouge. All the members attended LSU and played their first gig at Murphy's, a bar near campus. When you were in your early 20's, where did you and your friends go to socialize?

The bars in town. 

5) While the band refuses to disclose the origin of their name, many assume the "Ezra" they refer to is poet Ezra Pound. Do you often read poetry?

Nope. But I wrote some

6) In 1995, when this song was popular, Michael Jordan "unretired" and returned to the Chicago Bulls. Tell us about a decision you wish you could undo.

Selling the New Hampshire lake cottage.

7) Also in 1995, Phoebe Buffay first performed "Smelly Cat." Do you recall what show she sang on?

Nope, I have no idea who Buffay is lat alone the show!

 

8) Legendary New York Yankee Mickey Mantle died in 1995. How is your team doing so far this young baseball season?

Well first off, you need a team to root for!

9) Random question: What's in your garage, besides your car (lawn tools, holiday decorations, old paint cans, etc.)?

Well if you asked three months ago it was piled up with junk. But they filled a huge dumpster, now there are tools. 

Discrimination!

Saint Patrick's Day parades?

Mardi Gras parades?

Cinco de Mayo parades?

Fiesta of Five Flags?

Chinese New Year parades?

Puerto Rican parades?

Pride parades?

Have they all been banned? Well, the governor just signed a bill banning Pride parades and other DEI events. So, are all these events banned? After all, cultural parades are DEI!

Ron DeSantis bans local governments from supporting Pride events & DEI initiatives

DEI and Pride discriminate against “white males,” DeSantis said. “It’s wrong.”

LGBTQ Nation

Molly Sprayregen (She/Her)

April 23, 2026

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed a bill on Wednesday banning local governments from “funding or promoting or taking official action as it relates to diversity, equity, and inclusion.” The bill would also ban local governments from supporting Pride celebrations.

At a press conference after signing the bill, he reportedly described DEI as “an ideological construct that is designed to promote a particular political agenda, particularly to the detriment of disfavored groups.”

“I would think with DEI, ⁠the disfavored groups, number one obviously, would be white males,” he said, “and I think ​they’ve been discriminated against.”

“It’s not fine,” he added. “It’s wrong.”

Um... this is what throws me: "DEI and Pride discriminate against white males." How so? How is a Pride event discriminating against white males? I don't know about you, but at Pride events, I see a lot of white males walking around. So, how is it discrimination? The same holds true for the other events that he has banned—how is it discrimination? In their hatred of anything LGBTQ+, have they banned all cultural events?

 The bill defines DEI as any effort to “manipulate or otherwise influence the composition of employees with reference to race, color, sex, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation other than to ensure that hiring is conducted in accordance with state and federal antidiscrimination laws” as well as any effort to “Promote or provide preferential treatment or special benefits to” those groups or “promote or adopt training, programming, or activities designed or implemented with reference” to them.

You know, that just turned the definition of discrimination on its head! Think about it.

If an employer refuses to hire any Black employees, under this law, "manipulating or otherwise influencing the composition of employees" by forcing them to hire Black candidates would fall under that. The law has essentially made enforcing anti-discrimination measures illegal!

So, we shall see if any city, town, or county will have any Puerto Rican parades this year, or if they have determined that the law only affects us—the LGBTQ+ community. We are likely heading toward a massive legal battle over whether a city can recognize the heritage of its own citizens without it being labeled "illegal DEI."

Of All The Things...

You would think that there are more important stuff to investigate!

FBI Launched Investigation Into New York Times Reporter Over Story on Kash Patel’s Girlfriend

The Justice Department ultimately decided not to pursue an investigation, according to the Times

The Wrap

Corbin Bolies

April 22, 2026

The FBI launched an initial investigation into New York Times reporter Elizabeth Williamson, who wrote about how FBI Director Kash Patel ordered the bureau to offer security and transportation to his girlfriend, according to the Times.

After the Feb. 28 story on Patel’s decision came out, FBI agents interviewed Alexis Wilkins and searched databases for information on Williamson, according to the Times. The bureau wanted to proceed with its investigation to determine whether Williamson broke federal stalking laws, a source told the outlet, but alarmed Justice Department officials ended the inquiry over concerns that it was rooted in retaliation and after establishing there was no legal basis for it.

[...]

Executive editor Joe Kahn told his paper it was “a blatant violation of Elizabeth’s First Amendment rights and another attempt by this administration to prevent journalists from scrutinizing its actions.”

“It’s alarming. It’s unconstitutional. And it’s wrong,” Kahn said.

Wow!

What a national security issue! The press learned a highly classified document... on the passenger list that is a matter of public record or should be!

This comes as the latest attack by the FBI on the press, you might remember that they didn't tell the judge that the warrant they wanted was for a reporters.

FBI raids home of Washington Post reporter in ‘highly unusual and aggressive’ move

Agents searched Hannah Natanson’s Virginia home and seized devices in inquiry tied to a classified materials case

The Guardian

Richard Luscombe and Jeremy Barr

14 Jan 2026

The FBI raided the home of a Washington Post reporter early on Wednesday in what the newspaper called a “highly unusual and aggressive” move by law enforcement, and press freedom groups condemned as a “tremendous intrusion” by the Trump administration.

Agents descended on the Virginia home of Hannah Natanson as part of an investigation into a government contractor accused of illegally retaining classified government materials.

[...]

Press freedom groups were united in their condemnation of the raid on Wednesday.

“Physical searches of reporters’ devices, homes and belongings are some of the most invasive investigative steps law enforcement can take,” Bruce D Brown, president of the Reporters’ Committee for Freedom of the Press, said in a statement.

“There are specific federal laws and policies at the Department of Justice that are meant to limit searches to the most extreme cases because they endanger confidential sources far beyond just one investigation and impair public interest reporting in general.

“While we won’t know the government’s arguments about overcoming these very steep hurdles until the affidavit is made public, this is a tremendous escalation in the administration’s intrusions into the independence of the press.”

Trump & Company have an irrational fear of the press and ignore the First Amendment!

What The...

This is totally... I don't know how to express it without swearing.

Okay do you know what the Pink Triangle came from? They were Germany Holocaust prisoner markings for LGBT people and now Trump & Company wants to have TV shows with a warning label.

Trump’s FCC weighs whether to flag shows with trans or non-binary ‘programming’

Statement on TV ratings system says disclosure is needed for children’s programs that include ‘gender identity issues’

The Guardian

Adrian Horton

Wed 22 Apr 2026

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is launching a new inquiry into the TV ratings system, including whether content related to gender identity is not adequately flagged for parents, in the latest warning shot to broadcasters from the agency headed by the Trump loyalist Brendan Carr.

The new proceeding, announced on Wednesday, asks for public comment on the transparency of the TV Oversight Management Board, which oversees the rating system and guidelines. That system was developed after Congress passed a law in 1996, leading to the creation of numerous ratings such as TV-Y, for programs deemed appropriate for all children, and TV-MA, for mature audiences.

The so-called “industry voluntary rating system” is used by broadcast networks overseen by the FCC, as well as cable, satellite and streaming services, which are not subject to the same guidelines.

Are you ready for this... a throw back to the 1930s!

In its public notice of the new inquiry, the FCC singled out non-binary and transgender topics as an issue of concern. According to the agency’s media bureau, “parents have raised concerns that controversial gender identity issues are being included or promoted in children’s programs without providing any disclosure or transparency to parents. Specifically, the industry guidelines that parents rely on are rating shows with transgender and gender non-binary programming as appropriate for children and young children, and doing so without providing this information to parents, thereby undermining the ability of parents to make informed choices for their families.”

Save the Children!!!! That is only a smokescreen.

What they are saying by labeling us is that we are dangerous, we are predictors! Can you imagine if they said programs with Black in has to be labeled? Well it is the same thing!

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum wrote, "... Gay men and men accused of homosexuality were identified with pink triangles. ..." Now we are going to be identified as TV-TG?