And how activists will eagerly cut off their noses to spite their faces in service of virtue signaling and maintaining an image of ideological purity amid the battle over pediatric gender medicine.
Your title unfortunately is very apt. Activists cut off their noses to spite their faces. Schools yard bullies and sycophantic ideologs have taken up too much space. I’m sorry for your terrible experiences. I’ve had mine as you know Ben. As we also know the truth comes out. Black listing aimed at silencing the truth will not yield the result such persons seek. It will hurt a lot of people. But it will not prevail as long as some of us resist.
I've been following your work and Jesse Singal's for a few years. This world needs less "activists" and provocateurs from left and right, and more reporters like you two and Hannah Barnes, whether it is about pediatric gender medicine, HIV or anything else. I'm sorry for the unjustified hatred you get, but time will prove you right.
P.S. Yes, this is really reminding of the Red Guards! And it's true for the whole culture war.
You're one of many individual journalists doing the work we used to expect our leading media outlets to do. It takes courage and character to endure the abuse. Kudos to you. You will look back on this period of your life with pride.
I agree that the behavior is puerile, but it does also reveal the authoritarianism on which the trans "rights" movement operates. Both puerile and authoritarian behavior come from a place of weakness, from a knowledge, deep down, that they don't have science and ethics and good arguments on their side.
And that they attack you, who is always so dispassionate and factual in your writing, withholding judgment to a degree that is sometimes maddening to liberals like me who (after having spent the past year down this rabbit hole) have made up their minds on whether pediatric sex-trait modification interventions (euphemistically called "health care") should be allowed at all, just shows the extreme degree to which these people know they have lost the plot.
Trump's election and the destructive behavior of his first 100+ days have made this situation so much worse. It has really shown that both sides love authoritarianism when it suits their goals. The Left is now digging in their heels on this issue even more, probably making your work even harder than it was before. Keep up the good work, Ben. I really admire your fortitude in the face of so much toxicity.
I just got back from a major state medical Society meeting, which left me with visions of Yuri Bezmenov’s warning about the stages of authoritarianism. The trans activists are aggressive and attempt to cancel and marginalize anyone who would speak or even question that we may need more evidence before performing physical interventions on children. We are physicians for goodness sake. There was actually a resolution just to study the changing science and it was rejected. The idea that physician scientist would reject a proposal to study a life-changing intervention that may not be based on good science is one of the most Orwellian things that I’ve ever witnessed. And believe me in the last five years, witnessed a lot of Orwellian behavior.
Ben, as the parent of a trans identifying young adult, I am beyond grateful for your reporting. It helps me stay sane. You are a trustworthy voice that I depend on. Thank you for your perseverance.
Honestly Ben, you are like a patient parent (Dad!) dealing with a bunch of badly behaved kids. I’m surprised you didn’t add a detail that the activist on the zoom call didn’t turn around or flounce off “I’m leaving now”. You can’t reason with toddlers. Thank you for the work you do. I have 4 daughters, one who is the epitome of a Tom boy, your reporting along with Jesse’s has given me courage to guide her into just accepting there are all different types of girls (luckily I had a lesbian aunty who wore men’s clothes her whole life & wore a Nehru style linen suit when she married her girlfriend of over 30 years on her girlfriend’s 70th bday - her gf wore a pretty dress!) I’ve had a few people ask if my daughter could be trans. For f*cks sake, can’t a girl just dress how she wants to dress without her “gender” (shudder) being questioned? And it’s always by straight white upper middle class women who want to be “on the right side” it’s maddening 🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️
You’re a good journalist and you’ve got plenty of courage. Your work on both HIV and gender medicine will stand the test of time. Those of us who want an honest and factual treatment of these topics appreciate you and your work. Thank you, sincerely.
I'm sorry for what you have endured at the hands of cancel culture.
Thank you for writing unpolitcally about HIV/AIDs and transgender medicine. I very much appreciate your reporting.
I think you would enjoy reading Jacques Pepin's book, The Origin of AIDS. At a minimum, you would have in common with him a relentless, fearless drive to strive toward knowable scientific truths.
I think your reporting is vital, informed and fair and this is of a piece with that but I also really enjoy your style - what a brilliant term 'baroquely aggressive' is ....I'll be pinching it immediately!
You should be proud. You are in great company. BTW, my son is a trans man (an adult human female who medically transitioned to relieve sex dysphoria) and his worst enemy are the trans activists who deny biological reality and make all trans people look insane. Keep up the good work, Ben.
Would be nice to be able to read some of your pediatric gender medicine articles (ideally the research-heavy ones, so I can refer to original literature) without a subscription to the New York Sun. Are there any published somewhere that Wikipedia doesn’t describe as a right-wing paper? I share skepticism towards pediatric medical transition, but I’m not going to quote Fox News and the like in an argument
Your title unfortunately is very apt. Activists cut off their noses to spite their faces. Schools yard bullies and sycophantic ideologs have taken up too much space. I’m sorry for your terrible experiences. I’ve had mine as you know Ben. As we also know the truth comes out. Black listing aimed at silencing the truth will not yield the result such persons seek. It will hurt a lot of people. But it will not prevail as long as some of us resist.
I've been following your work and Jesse Singal's for a few years. This world needs less "activists" and provocateurs from left and right, and more reporters like you two and Hannah Barnes, whether it is about pediatric gender medicine, HIV or anything else. I'm sorry for the unjustified hatred you get, but time will prove you right.
P.S. Yes, this is really reminding of the Red Guards! And it's true for the whole culture war.
Hannah is so great! What a tome she published. I learned so much from her.
💯 agree. Hannah’s book was so measured it really helped me understand how things can go so badly wrong
You're one of many individual journalists doing the work we used to expect our leading media outlets to do. It takes courage and character to endure the abuse. Kudos to you. You will look back on this period of your life with pride.
I agree that the behavior is puerile, but it does also reveal the authoritarianism on which the trans "rights" movement operates. Both puerile and authoritarian behavior come from a place of weakness, from a knowledge, deep down, that they don't have science and ethics and good arguments on their side.
And that they attack you, who is always so dispassionate and factual in your writing, withholding judgment to a degree that is sometimes maddening to liberals like me who (after having spent the past year down this rabbit hole) have made up their minds on whether pediatric sex-trait modification interventions (euphemistically called "health care") should be allowed at all, just shows the extreme degree to which these people know they have lost the plot.
Trump's election and the destructive behavior of his first 100+ days have made this situation so much worse. It has really shown that both sides love authoritarianism when it suits their goals. The Left is now digging in their heels on this issue even more, probably making your work even harder than it was before. Keep up the good work, Ben. I really admire your fortitude in the face of so much toxicity.
I just got back from a major state medical Society meeting, which left me with visions of Yuri Bezmenov’s warning about the stages of authoritarianism. The trans activists are aggressive and attempt to cancel and marginalize anyone who would speak or even question that we may need more evidence before performing physical interventions on children. We are physicians for goodness sake. There was actually a resolution just to study the changing science and it was rejected. The idea that physician scientist would reject a proposal to study a life-changing intervention that may not be based on good science is one of the most Orwellian things that I’ve ever witnessed. And believe me in the last five years, witnessed a lot of Orwellian behavior.
What state are you in? Or at least, part of the country.
One thing the “Trump Years” has exposed for me is that neither the far left nor far right possess mirrors. Thank you for your work. Perseverance!
Ben, as the parent of a trans identifying young adult, I am beyond grateful for your reporting. It helps me stay sane. You are a trustworthy voice that I depend on. Thank you for your perseverance.
I’m glad it’s meaningful to you! Reach out anytime.
Honestly Ben, you are like a patient parent (Dad!) dealing with a bunch of badly behaved kids. I’m surprised you didn’t add a detail that the activist on the zoom call didn’t turn around or flounce off “I’m leaving now”. You can’t reason with toddlers. Thank you for the work you do. I have 4 daughters, one who is the epitome of a Tom boy, your reporting along with Jesse’s has given me courage to guide her into just accepting there are all different types of girls (luckily I had a lesbian aunty who wore men’s clothes her whole life & wore a Nehru style linen suit when she married her girlfriend of over 30 years on her girlfriend’s 70th bday - her gf wore a pretty dress!) I’ve had a few people ask if my daughter could be trans. For f*cks sake, can’t a girl just dress how she wants to dress without her “gender” (shudder) being questioned? And it’s always by straight white upper middle class women who want to be “on the right side” it’s maddening 🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️
You’re a good journalist and you’ve got plenty of courage. Your work on both HIV and gender medicine will stand the test of time. Those of us who want an honest and factual treatment of these topics appreciate you and your work. Thank you, sincerely.
Thanks, Tim!
I'm sorry for what you have endured at the hands of cancel culture.
Thank you for writing unpolitcally about HIV/AIDs and transgender medicine. I very much appreciate your reporting.
I think you would enjoy reading Jacques Pepin's book, The Origin of AIDS. At a minimum, you would have in common with him a relentless, fearless drive to strive toward knowable scientific truths.
Just ignore the juvenile bullshit posturing and forge ahead undaunted with your excellent journalism.
I think your reporting is vital, informed and fair and this is of a piece with that but I also really enjoy your style - what a brilliant term 'baroquely aggressive' is ....I'll be pinching it immediately!
I must admit, I’m a bit too fond of the word baroque used to describe things that are not art. But it’s so much fun to use!
You should be proud. You are in great company. BTW, my son is a trans man (an adult human female who medically transitioned to relieve sex dysphoria) and his worst enemy are the trans activists who deny biological reality and make all trans people look insane. Keep up the good work, Ben.
Thanks, Penny! All the best to him and you.
Let me just guess who this was... 😬
Thanks for all you are doing!
Do you know the HIV activist world?
In so much as it overlaps with the covid activist world! 😉
That picture had me going for a second, but always the hands and fingers, of course before I read the caption.
Also, no self respecting gay man mullets it up.
The garbled language on the tank is a giveaway. I couldn’t get Grok to stop doing that!
That too, but I’m well aware that at my age I may confuse misspelled words for neologisms I’m not yet familiar.
Totally
Also, hang in there. You’re doing good work.
I’m good, thanks!
Would be nice to be able to read some of your pediatric gender medicine articles (ideally the research-heavy ones, so I can refer to original literature) without a subscription to the New York Sun. Are there any published somewhere that Wikipedia doesn’t describe as a right-wing paper? I share skepticism towards pediatric medical transition, but I’m not going to quote Fox News and the like in an argument