WTF Community

Trump announces US military ban on transgender people

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Like clockwork: something goes bad (health care vote), create a distraction (no transgendered in the military).

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Completely not surprised by this,

It’s just a matter of time before we stop allowing women in the military again, because it costs too much to pay for their medical needs, you know pap smears and breast exams are just a luxury. Oh WAIT, we want to take those away from everyone.

While this may very well be a distraction from the Health Care Vote, it’s still a wrong against our military. I don’t care who is in our military, as long as they are dedicated to keeping our country safe.

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This is a pretty amazing stat: The military spends 10 times as much on erectile dysfunction medicines as it does on transgender troops’ medical care.

“The implication is that even in the most extreme scenario that we were able to identify … we expect only a 0.13-percent ($8.4 million out of $6.2 billion) increase in health care spending,” Rand’s authors concluded.

By contrast, total military spending on erectile dysfunction medicines amounts to $84 million annually, according to an analysis by the Military Times — 10 times the cost of annual transition-related medical care for active duty transgender servicemembers.

The military spends $41.6 million annually on Viagra alone, according to the Military Times analysis — roughly five times the estimated spending on transition-related medical care for transgender troops.

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Being the crazed racist that Trump is, nothing like this really surprises me. I can’t begin to describe how angry it makes me, though. If this is allowed to continue much longer, I can honestly see some really drastic, as in wrong, things happening to our country. Trump, and his friends, will never see anything except the way they want it, and won’t change their mind without there being something in it for them.

Trump is farther to the right than ORRIN HATCH, a 83 yr old mormon Senator from UT!

Also, this Politico report is astonishing…especially after the WaPo report about how $84M of the DODs budget goes to ED meds, whereas as annually trans medical care projected cost us $2.4M-$8.4M… :persevere:

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This makes me so happy to read.

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Me too, it’s the only thing about today that made it ok to keep slogging thru the other shite. Still worried about the future bc that’s my constant knee jerk go to emotion at every turn, but I heard some great defenses of trans servicemen and -women from cis vets who were pretty fucking fired up about how wrong that reversal would be to try to enforce. Helped me breathe thru the nastier comments from ppl who, let’s face it, just don’t have opinions I give a single fuck about. Cheers and thank you for your service, you brave people of any gender, at any stage of affirmation, for willingly signing up with your very lives on the line. :tumbler_glass:
Edit:fuckin autocorrect turned “brave” to “brace” ffs. Couldn’t let it stand lol.

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The only sense I can make of this is that it’s an effort to hold on to evangelical voting base. I can’t help but to ponder if the draft was reinstated if someone could claim transgender now and get a deferral in the same way future presidents who participated in college athletics did for “ankle spurs”.

I’m not sure anyone joins up with the military for any stronger reason than wanting to fight to protect their country, it’s not a country club. If someone wants to sign their life on the dotted line, that’s the kind of risk not everyone is willing to take so fucking power to them if they do and we should care for all of our servicemen and -women’s basic needs to strengthen the fighting and protecting they are choosing to do for those of us who didn’t get in line. You’re making an argument that seems very generic and doesn’t present any concrete examples of why you think it’s a bad idea to include certain ppl in the employ of our military. For example, are you or a loved one in (now or formerly) the military and can you tell us why any “non-normal” ppl hurt operations in a particular way?

I’m surprised anyone Trump was considering for any cabinet position has a conscience.

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Finally, people willing to speak truth to power.

Coast Guard leader: “I will not turn my back” on transgender members

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Excellent! I had not seen this, thx for sharing.

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The Palm Center for Sound Public Policy plus 56 retired generals and admirals released a statement warning Trump’s ban would disrupt and degrade military readiness.

I also appreciated this story: Kristin Beck is a 20-year Navy Seal veteran, formerly on Seal Teams 1, 5, and 6 who received the Bronze Star award and Purple Heart. (Transgender Americans are as fit to serve as anyone else!)

There already are several thousand transgender people actively serving, so it’s great to see solidarity of veterans opposing Trump’s nonsense.

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“The administration had no plan in place, but Trump told others they would have to ‘get in gear’ if he announced the ban first,” Politico reported, citing a White House official who spoke to Trump. “He also said the announcement would stop the lawyers from arguing with him anymore.”

https://thinkprogress.org/trump-lawyers-warned-against-trans-ban/

Tweets can have seriously implications…

”Of the approximate 178 contacts per day (on average) received by The Trevor Project, 7.3 percent typically self-identify as transgender," the statement reads. “However, within 24 hours after President Trump’s tweet regarding transgender military service members, contacts from transgender individuals spiked to 17.5 percent of all contacts. Furthermore, in the week after the Texas legislature introduced the anti-trans ‘bathroom bill,’ contacts from transgender young people doubled to 14.7 percent.”

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Anything to do with trans rights essentially boils down to a healthcare issue imo.

What the fuuuuuuuck. Ok I guess I’m less surprised than just nauseated.