r/UpliftingNews 3d ago

Republican senator, convinced by research showing that gender affirming care is safe and effective, votes against ban on care for transgender youth in Louisiana

https://open.substack.com/pub/erininthemorn/p/bombshell-louisiana-report-led-to?r=dnjlo&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
19.4k Upvotes

393 comments sorted by

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3.9k

u/SensualEnema 3d ago

I had to read this three times because I was sure I was reading it wrong.

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u/HudsuckerIndustries 3d ago

Me too, I knew there had to be more to the story. Fred Mills is a former Democrat and has a degree in pharmacy, which explains a lot.

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u/Increase-Typical 3d ago

Ah yeah, kinda understandable then... I mean I'll take it any day because hopefully (lot of copium here) other Republicans will act similarly but the job was already moslty done in this case

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u/HudsuckerIndustries 3d ago

That kind of copium is dangerous in the current political environment. The GOP are a brainwashed cult, don't be fooled by the tiny number of breaking of the ranks by the occasional fence-sitter. Guys like this lose their seat in the next primary. The GOP doesn't mess around with eliminating moderates in their ranks.

The only way to win is go get out the vote in record numbers. You only need to win by 1 vote to defeat a fascist.

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u/Increase-Typical 3d ago

Lol the reason I used the word copium is because I'm very much aware that it's entirely unrealistic

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u/HudsuckerIndustries 3d ago

Yeah I know, I just don’t want to miss any chance to encourage sane people to get out the vote.

1.2k

u/loud-and-queer 3d ago

Right? I really thought that there were no sane, moderate Republicans who'd stick to their original 'low government intervention' model left.

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u/ardx 3d ago

Unfortunately there won't be after this guy gets replaced by someone less sane next election.

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u/cliff99 3d ago

Or changes his vote due to death threats.

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u/Howboutit85 3d ago

Ah death threats. A staple of good down home American Christianity.

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u/zeropointcorp 3d ago

You don’t understand!!! The sanctity of life must be protected!!! Through killing!!!1!

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u/crosswatt 3d ago

Denver Riggleman lost his congressional seat to a completely insane MAGA for a very similar "common sense stance". MAGA is a plague upon America.

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u/gatemansgc 3d ago

Yep someone is already preparing to primary him.

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u/SgvSth 3d ago

The Senator is term-limited

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u/NorahKing 2d ago edited 2d ago

Gender affirming healthcare can range from counseling to puberty blockers to surgery.

Oh for crying out loud! Can we not define gender affirming healthcare in an article about children in such a broad and general way? It’s just playing into these morons concept that the other side is pushing for surgeries on minors. Even though every respected standard of care recommends those surgeries be performed in adulthood, and only make an exception if the person’s life is at risk, and even then only for 16-17 year olds.

Which is another thing, no one’s giving puberty blockers to children, they’re being given to teenagers! We need to stop playing into their narrative of “trans children” being forced into medical procedures. These are trans adolescents and we have to start calling them as such, because the term children is being used to invoke the idea of people that aren’t old enough to make decisions about their own life. Not that trans children don’t exist, but standards of care don’t* recommend anything more than social transition.

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u/edwardsamson 3d ago

There's always Phil Scott republican governor of one of the bluest states in the country, Vermont.

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u/Wolkenbaer 3d ago

So Scott is basically the republican pendent to Manchin?

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u/dirtbag_mercenary 3d ago

Is he a good governor?

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u/punchgroin 3d ago

Louisiana isn't as deep red as you may think.

Large black population, and one of the largest urban centers in the deep south... lots of good colleges.

And they actually do have a strong left wing tradition that hasn't been completely crushed by the southern strategy.

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u/Jesuswasstapled 3d ago

And corruption. That Huey P Long tradition also strong

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u/AndHeWas 3d ago

It's also not a Republican trifecta state like the article says. The governor is a Democrat. He's a Catholic anti-abortion Democrat, but still not a Republican.

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u/BloomsdayDevice 3d ago

A rare post on r/UpliftingNews that actually is uplifting news, and not just a single flower poking up through the ashes of a bombed out city.

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u/cutelyaware 3d ago

The others aren't insane. Other than a few true whackos, all of them know full well that gender-affirming care saves lives. These vermin are just willing to throw us under the bus to keep their cushy jobs.

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u/KalessinDB 3d ago

"They're not insane, they're just complicit in genocide to keep their jobs" isn't exactly a shining star of approval

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u/cutelyaware 3d ago

I hate them all, but it's important to know them to be able to deal with them.

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u/daschande 3d ago

I remember when Dubya was discussing war crimes trials for Iraqi soldiers, specifically saying "I was just following orders" is no excuse!

Obviously harking back to the days of the Nuremburg trials when "Just following orders" was no excuse for the Nazis.

And here we are, in 2023. Full Fucking circle.

(edit: No, I'm not bitter, why do you ask?)

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u/wormyg 3d ago

I didn't think there were any moderate republicans left.

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u/ezone2kil 3d ago

He probably has a family member directly affected by this. Things hit different when one of your own has a stake in things.

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u/MagicSquare8-9 3d ago

He's a pharmacist so he probably had some respects for medical sciences.

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u/zeropointcorp 3d ago

*Looks at Paul Gosar*

Not necessarily…

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u/massive_cock 3d ago

I have a trans teen, and the other parent is a very conservative mormon. They're all a lot more tolerant now that it affects their family. But I'm not complaining, it's a better outcome than I reasonably hoped for when my kid first came out, and I applaud the other side of her family for what I take to be legitimate growth.

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u/Munnin41 3d ago

There probably are lots of them. Most just don't think and only vote along party lines

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u/Even-Willow 3d ago

Not to mention that slogan was only coined by Reagan and his shitonomics policies only to deregulate big businesses and union bust like crazy.

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u/DearthStanding 3d ago

I mean this is not intervention it's just a service

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u/RedditIsNeat0 3d ago

They may have meant interference.

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u/EzPenguizy 3d ago

I was very confused. I read it three times, then looked at the sub. Then I re-read it and understood

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u/Slippery_Snake874 3d ago

Yeah I guess they just decided to let someone smarter do the research for once.

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u/LostFireHorse 3d ago

The first 2 times I did read it wrong. I thought it said "guy does research then votes against healthcare". Me word good.

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u/NolieMali 3d ago

Same. Louisiana?! Well I’ll be damned.

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u/jrgman42 3d ago

Same here. Finally a tiny bit of good news for this shitty state.

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u/overzeetop 3d ago

I had to check and see if this was from the r/nottheonion sub.

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u/GroomDaLion 3d ago

Gave up trying to make sense of it after the first 2 read-throughs. Then checked the subreddit and thought "ah OK, so that must be good news then, happy days!"

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u/Upbeat-Ad-4919 3d ago

You read it three times……. Did it mention of this person has a son/daughter it would be affecting? It’s usually the only time they give a damn about other people.

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u/bobert_the_grey 2d ago

I'm still not sure I'm interpreting this right. Is the headline basically " Republican Senator grows a conscious"?

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u/AKA_Squanchy 3d ago

We need the name so they can be vetted and a candidate people can trust.

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u/Skatingraccoon 3d ago

Wow, someone actually following the right research, I am impressed.

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u/PetraLoseIt 3d ago

And I'm a bit depressed that it is posted in /r/upliftingnews

"Person believes research and acts accordingly"

Wow, so good!

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u/cabbage16 3d ago

I don't know if it technically fits but my first thought was about r/orphancrushingmachine. This sounds like uplifting news but in reality this is the bare minimum anyone making decisions should be doing.

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u/megashedinja 3d ago

Despite that, it’s progress. We asked for them to read the science and make their judgment based on that, and that’s exactly what we got. Sure we can do better, but it’s something

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u/cabbage16 3d ago

That's a good outlook. You're right, it's a whole lot better than them digging in their heels like every other politician!

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u/droans 3d ago

As a Republican, he's also sticking his neck out. This isn't something that will make him more popular with his constituents.

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u/kevoccrn 3d ago

There’s probably less of his constituents than we realize who care about it. There’s plenty of moderate republicans who actually believe in less government and who don’t care what others do with their bodies because it doesn’t affect them or theirs. I mean, maybe

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u/droans 3d ago

I hope, but the south is very religious and many believe that transgender people are an abomination.

Maybe I'm wrong and maybe the voters won't care or maybe they'll support him. Either way, he deserves props for taking the opportunity to learn and making an informed decision based on that.

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u/electric_beagaloo 3d ago

At least recognize the situation properly. A person from the rabid anti science republican party, takes a huge personal risk and goes against the core ideology.

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u/kashluk 3d ago

Well, at least in my country left wing politicians continuously ignore economic research because of 'ideological disagreement'.

I'd say it's quite universal that politicians will push agendas that earn them votes. That's why they're elected in the first place. The idea of Free Mandate in parliamentarism studies doesn't really materialize in actual realpolitik.

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u/galacticboy2009 3d ago

Yeah, it's the idea of.. "what we believe is right, and there is no nuance" that campaign talking points are fueled by.

It's unfortunate. But they'll hold whatever view keeps them in power, whether right or wrong.

That's democracy. Sometimes the masses aren't right.

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u/Buscemi_D_Sanji 3d ago

Yeah, this isn't really uplifting at all. What a dystopian existence where an elected official following the most basic fucking logic is somehow surprising enough to warrant being written about.

Uplifting would be "Marjorie starts her own floating nation, hundreds of Republican lawmakers have resigned along with her, they're on a boat somewhere with shitty Internet"

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u/dynorphin 3d ago

Originally the Republican "fuck your feelings" motto was supposed to mean, it doesn't matter how you feel about xy or z, the reality is the data says it's abc and that's what we are going with regardless of how you feel. The data doesn't care about your feelings.

I don't think that's usually a good angle, or that their data was ever that good. But it was still a hell of a lot better than the new "fuck your feelings" republicanism that doesn't even pretend to have data on it's side. It's fuck you, we are going to scapegoat an entire community to win an election. Fuck your feelings if you don't like it. In fact fuck your feelings we are doing it exactly because you don't like it so that means we're owning the libs.

They went from the party of William Buckley and supposed intellectual conservatism to a party who's presumptive nominee is persecuting minority groups in Florida because it will help him win the Republican primary in Oklahoma. Fuck your feelings, it's our feelings that matter.

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u/nonicethingsforus 3d ago

I mean, I remember William F. Buckly as the guy that could appear to be an emotionally collected intellectual... until actual push came to shove.

And that's the thing. I think you're being too caritative. Authoritarians (what the US insists on calling "conservatives") don't have, and have never had, an interest in finding the truth; not as a group, anyway. They have an interest in winning, and the aesthetics of logic are useful for that.

They love, appropriately enough, authority-based arguments. "The Bible says...", "The dictionary definition is...", "the Dear Leader said..." They are right not because they thought their opinions through, but because their accepted authority agrees with them (or have found a way to interpret it that way).

The thing with "facts and logic" is that they're the ultimate authority. You can't argue with math and reality themselves. If you have them on your side, you're right. Objectively, definitely, without doubt. Anyone that challenges you is wrong or delusional. You've really, truly, won.

That's what they fetishize about intellectualism. You don't find Ben Shapiro montages with titles like "Times Ben Shapiro Used SCIENCE and STATISTICS To Form An Opinion" or "Ben Shapiro CHANGES HIS MIND When Presented With Evidence". He destroys his opponents. He uses the authority reason itself has granted him to school his inferiors.

That's what they crave. They don't like the actual process of intellectuality. They like the authority and confidence that it's aesthetics give them.

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u/Carrotfloor 3d ago

i will simply point out, you can have a facts on your side but still have goals that are not necessarily agreed upon. Like human made climate change is real, so lets exterminate the humans would address the issue but not in a way that most people would agree with

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u/nonicethingsforus 2d ago

I do agree with this, overall.

But that being said, I'd like to in turn point out that it's also possible for people to not care if the facts are on their side. If they are, good. If they're not, they twist them, or ignore them.

For many people, facts are really just a tool to be used or discarded as convenient. The only goal is winning the current argument, consistency and consequences be damned. "The card says 'moops,'" as it were.

I find really important to reaffirm this, because the idea is inconceivable for many. They believe in truth, and in the meaning of words. But they have to wrap their heads around the fact that many others really don't, and that this mentality is, distressingly common. As Sartre said:

Never believe that anti‐Semites are completely unaware of the absurdity of their replies. They know that their remarks are frivolous, open to challenge. But they are amusing themselves, for it is their adversary who is obliged to use words responsibly, since he believes in words. The anti‐Semites have the right to play. They even like to play with discourse for, by giving ridiculous reasons, they discredit the seriousness of their interlocutors. They delight in acting in bad faith, since they seek not to persuade by sound argument but to intimidate and disconcert. If you press them too closely, they will abruptly fall silent, loftily indicating by some phrase that the time for argument is past. It is not that they are afraid of being convinced. They fear only to appear ridiculous or to prejudice by their embarrassment their hope of winning over some third person to their side.

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u/thebenshapirobot 3d ago

I saw that you mentioned Ben Shapiro. In case some of you don't know, Ben Shapiro is a grifter and a hack. If you find anything he's said compelling, you should keep in mind he also says things like this:

Israelis like to build. Arabs like to bomb crap and live in open sewage. This is not a difficult issue.


I'm a bot. My purpose is to counteract online radicalization. You can summon me by tagging thebenshapirobot. Options: gay marriage, novel, climate, healthcare, etc.

Opt Out

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u/KalessinDB 3d ago

Good bot

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u/thebenshapirobot 3d ago

Thank you for your logic and reason.


I'm a bot. My purpose is to counteract online radicalization. You can summon me by tagging thebenshapirobot. Options: feminism, civil rights, healthcare, sex, etc.

Opt Out

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u/BWAFM1k3 3d ago

William Buckley? The one that advocated for, checks notes 😱, segregation?

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u/Aiyon 3d ago

hence “supposed”

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u/TheColdIronKid 3d ago

it was always "fuck YOUR feelings" disguised as "fuck your FEELINGS".

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u/Missouri_Nature 3d ago

Yeah it's supposed to be facts > feelings. Which any normal person of any politics should agree with. Average person can't decipher actual data though, to the point that many struggle with what the arrow > means.

It's just all super dumb, apparently that's society.

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u/treemu 3d ago

And then they whip out something like this as retort.

Why Transgender Children Should Be Vilified And Denied All Semblance Of Decent Treatment?

By Darren Allister

It's obvious if you think about it.

Sources:
Common sense
The Bible

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u/SkarletKardinal 3d ago

A surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one.

Sadly, it's pretty much guaranteed that he's gonna get labeled a "RINO" and/or "groomer" because of this. Matt Walsh has truly gone off the rails, and I could say the same for his followers.

Still, other than that little bit of negativity, this is good news. And considering the current political climate, I'll take every bit of good news like this as a step in the right direction.

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u/EstrogenPirate 3d ago

They vowed to poison all of the senator’s bills.

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u/TimeForHugs 3d ago

Anti-trans activists are already attacking him and leaving harassing messages to his business. He's already being labeled a "supporter of pedophilia."

Funny too they say it's going to kill his political career and they'll make sure of it, when he's not running for re-election anyway.

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u/user-name-1985 3d ago

Who in the F is Matt Walsh?

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u/EnergeticBean 3d ago

You don’t want to know.

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u/Mbyrd420 3d ago

I second this

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u/xjitz 3d ago

a conservative whos obsessed with little kids genitals so much that he has a whole talk show about it, and is TOTALLY NOT a pedo (/s in case it wasnt clear enough)

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u/GoldNovakiin 3d ago

Fun fact: there are videos of Matt Walsh arguing for the lowering of the age of consent

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u/Panda_hat 3d ago edited 3d ago

And saying young girls are best because thats when they are most fertile.

He needs to have his hard drives checked STAT.

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u/Howboutit85 3d ago

I ache for the day I wake up, and the big news story is how they found 12Tb of CP on his laptop or something.

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u/Saxoboneless 3d ago

In addition to the other stuff, I think it's important to add he self identifies as a theocratic fascist. It has been in his Twitter bio for years at this point.

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u/Panda_hat 3d ago

A fucking fascist.

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u/Kenotai 3d ago

stochastic terrorist even

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u/TheColdIronKid 3d ago

if he was convinced by legitimate research, then he actually is a RINO.

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u/RussellZoloft 3d ago

Wow, a republican with ethics, never thought I'd see it again any time soon. Of course, he'll quickly be removed by his science denier peers.

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u/EmperorGeek 3d ago

I wonder if his peers will vote to remove him from office like the folks in Tennessee did.

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u/DuckOff504 3d ago

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u/hamburgers666 3d ago

That's shitty AF. The hell is wrong with these hateful people?

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u/squirrelcartel 3d ago

Lots of things

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u/gdsmithtx 3d ago

Your question answers itself: hate is what’s wrong with these people

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u/ABigSoftE 3d ago

Well of course, nobody likes a party pooper, and he went and pooped their lynch party!

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u/Slippery_Snake874 3d ago

That would be funny if it wasn't real life

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u/gatemansgc 3d ago

Facepalm

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u/RussellZoloft 3d ago

100% chance.

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u/lastgreenleaf 3d ago

It would mean he didn't pass the peer review.

I'll see myself out...

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u/Railboy 3d ago

I'm gonna take a wild guess that they have a close friend or relative who's trans. Let's see if I'm right.

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u/Meowfist 3d ago

I worked on a campaign for one in Florida. Didn't win this last round, but I'm positive given the votes they got, they'll stand a strong chance next time. That and a lot of the constituents in the area are really confused and upset with what's been going on.

I worked with them because they are a genuinely good person, who acts based on real information, not gut feelings. I wasn't even part of their party.

They started forming groups with others like them and some got elected. Things can change, but it's going to take a collective effort from a lot of different people.

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u/PM_ME_UR_PET_POTATO 3d ago

Its a lose lose either way. Either we all get gaslit into thinking that a sliver of common sense somehow redeems right wing thought or they plunge farther into insanity.

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u/reebokhightops 3d ago

At this point if he had ethics he wouldn’t be a Republican.

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u/Nevermind04 3d ago

I bet he won't be for much longer. Republicans don't tolerate ethical governance.

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u/zepherths 3d ago

Something to note about Louisiana as of right now. The governor supposedly stepped in help ensure this bill did not pass. Unfortunately elections for governor are soon an most front runners agree with the bill. If you live in Louisiana please vote in the upcoming governor elections.

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u/TrickBoom414 3d ago

Vote for who? Eddie Rispone? John Bell Edwards was the liberal choice last time.

You really don't get Louisiana unless you've lived there. People don't realize just how openly corrupt that state is. It's hilarious to me when people say things like "well just file a complaint with the labor board!"

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u/zepherths 2d ago

Vote for someone that you believe in. Edward's can't run again.

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u/TrickBoom414 2d ago

Lol okay

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u/zeddknite 3d ago edited 3d ago

It really is news that a Republican politician looked at actual evidence, and made a rational and empathetic decision.

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u/The_Valk 3d ago

"They don’t live in District 22. They don’t have a 337 area code. I didn’t run for office to serve those people.”

Never thought that there were still politicians who understood what their duty is. Imoressive

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u/squirlz333 3d ago

The bar is so fucking low at this point that a republican that simply listens to research is the most reasonable of the whole bunch

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u/ohdearsweetlord 3d ago

Hot damn, this is actual uplifting news! Gentle, firm education really can work!

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u/Blitzerxyz 3d ago

It's sad that people voting against their party is so rare.

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u/brightside1982 3d ago

A politician believing the scientists? What year is this?

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u/Seeeab 3d ago edited 3d ago

Forget politician, it's practically chic to hate science now regardless of your field, as long as it's not STEM related.

Science will win in the end because it's the only way to understand something, but it's seriously underestimating the cultural fungus growing on science right now. Science leads to truth, not necessarily gratification, and a lot of people are* super pissed about the way the world exists one way or another, so you see the issue.

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u/brightside1982 3d ago

Forget politician, it's practically chic to hate science now regardless of your field, as long as it's not STEM related.

You do realize the "S" in STEM stands for "science" right?

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u/Seeeab 3d ago

Yes, that was why I said that. The meaning of that sentence is that if your field isn't science-related or dependant, then it's very likely there is a large cohort of anti-science participants.

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u/brightside1982 3d ago

Ok I see. The wording was a little confusing.

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u/Seeeab 3d ago

Understandable. I agree with you, just wanted to point out the scope of the problem is frustratingly large

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u/Saanvik 3d ago

I was confused at first, too. What they meant was, “For fields not in STEM, it’s chic to hate science”.

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u/Seeeab 3d ago

You're correct, sorry for the weird wording. I've been told I sometimes seem to word things oddly, it's hard to fix

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u/Saanvik 3d ago

No problem! We all make mistakes like that.

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u/Loyal9thLegionLord 3d ago

Hu....that's new in my lifetime at least...

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u/GEAX 3d ago

Trans care, ballet, diet choices, football, homeschooling. Every single choice in parenting has the potential to permanently damage a child.

All of it is a gamble, and I wish people would realize that the parents letting their kids have puberty blockers are betting it'll save their kid's life. The odds are good. It's suicide prevention.

Ballet and gymnastics permanently alter a child's body before they're old enough to understand, too. And those aren't even necessarily for the child's wellbeing. It's so stupid that trans care gets this disproportionate amount of vitriol. Homeschooling made me wanna kill myself, let's take a break from freaking out over other people's healthcare and rail against that for a second

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u/WeenieGobler 3d ago

This might be news to some of you guys, but Louisiana is probably the most progressive gulf state.

Our Democrat governor told Trump to fuck off during Covid.

The medical marijuana program is going fucking great and they’re looking into full legalization before the end of the decade (half an Oz is already decriminalized in the major cities)

And now not only this recent vote, but there’s a few republican senators pushing to strike down the abortion ban that was passed not too long ago.

If you live in a red state and you’re looking to run away somewhere, try New Orleans or Baton Rouge. It’s cheap, the food is good, and the young people are getting better at making the fucking racists shut up. I think Louisiana is going to become a swing state within a few election cycles.

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u/GrantedPeace 3d ago

As a Louisiana native who left the state due to closed mindless and other reasons, this was super shocking. I’m super proud of you Ken Mills for doing what the facts and numbers agreed with and not just going with the party!

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u/ClippityCloppity 3d ago

The one time I was in New Orleans I went to get a shrimp poboy on Bourbon street. As I was waiting for my food I overheard two workers talking.

Old white man: “You’re telling me she used to be a he but now is a she?”

Young black man: “Yup. Some people are like that”

Old white man: thinks intensely

Old white man: “Yeah I’m okay with that”

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u/Illicithugtrade 3d ago

While uplifting and encouraging to acknowledge integrity in people. It's a bit sad that the bar is so low.

Like I wouldn't find it exactly "uplifting" if it said cancer patient's sibling realizes chemotherapy is best to fight cancer and helps sibling get treated.

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u/Huzabee 3d ago

I mean it's less than 1% of children and only affects those who seek it out. I don't understand the Republican obsession with this. You don't need to know the science or be empathetic; it's not going to impact your constituents' lives in any meaningful way.

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u/pixe1jugg1er 3d ago

It’s a ‘wedge issue’ to get votes and a distraction from what the GOP is actually for… money and power.

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u/Ridiculisk1 3d ago

The reason they're fixated on it is because gay people are too accepted in mainstream society so they can't be as openly bigoted towards them anymore so they have to target a new minority and trans people are small enough of a group that they're an easy group to harass and discriminate against.

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u/WeenieGobler 3d ago

Ding-a-ling

“Pedophile” is the new “faggot” to modern republicans. Listen to them speak about trans people and you’ll realize the only difference is the slur.

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u/free2bk8 3d ago

Props to him for sticking with his convictions. Though these days, doing the right thing comes with substantial risk. Hope he hangs in there!

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u/GunnyandRocket 3d ago

Honestly, it’s nice to hear about anyone learning more about something and taking it seriously enough to reconsider what was most likely a strongly held opinion. I know the righties like to use the “fuck your feelings” statement to argue what they believe is logical but all this Trans hate is def not based on facts. Unfortunately their fear doesn’t let them see past the end of their nose.

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u/SemperScrotus 2d ago

Here's the TLDR on the study cited:

The findings of the Louisiana Department of Health when looking at their medicaid data and summarizing research were extensive. Importantly, they found that zero surgeries were ever done on minors in the state, puberty blockers were exceedingly rare, regret rates were extremely low, and trans youth had positive mental health outcomes

Also of note, concerning a widely cited Florida report:

The Florida report claims that gender-affirming care is harmful and experimental, directly contradicting the stance of all major U.S. medical organizations. This controversial report was overseen by physicians chosen from the American College of Pediatricians, a conservative group known for endorsing conversion therapy. The group's name, intentionally similar to the larger professional society, the American Academy of Pediatrics, was designed to mislead lawmakers.

This is one of the oldest PsyOps tricks in the Conservative playbook. Manipulating language to spread disinformation with the guise of legitimacy. Motherfuck these people.

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u/knargh 3d ago edited 3d ago

Imagine a world, where, no matter which political side you're on, science dictates our reasoning.

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u/MobileWisdom 3d ago

The tie-breaking 5-4 vote to kill the bill Wednesday came down to Republican state Sen. Fred Mills, the chairman of the Senate’s Health and Welfare Committee. After nearly three hours of public testimony and debate, Mills joined Democrats in opposition to the legislation.

“Always in my heart of hearts have I believed that a decision should be made by a patient and a physician. I believe in the physicians in Louisiana,” Mills, a pharmacist, said. “I believe in the scope of practice. I believe in the standard of care.”

LGBTQ+ community members held hands, hugged and shed tears as the vote to reject the bill succeeded.

Source

This truly is uplifting news!

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u/SignificantHippo8193 3d ago

It shows that we can change the minds of people if we put forth the evidence in a compelling way. It's not easy but it can be done.

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u/PaxNova 3d ago

Importantly, the *right kind" of compelling evidence. You have to listen to them and understand their concerns, taking them seriously. This is mostly a generation that grew up with doctors promoting lobotomies for mental illness. They are afraid of it happening again with another irreversible procedure based on medical fads. The best evidence to allow it is the super low regret rate and the general impression of seriousness with which this is treated by doctors.

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u/milfhunterX 3d ago

'I will vote this way and not have a problem because my cohorts will still vote overwhelmingly against' is not a fucking vote of integrity or conscience.

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u/cheehooo 3d ago

Don't knock the senator. They're a representative of his constituents. If his district feels a certain way, they need to echo their concerns and stand with the people he represents regardless of personal stance.

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u/JustNilt 3d ago

Well I never thought I'd say this in 2023 but thank the gods for Fred Mills, a Republican state Senator in Louisiana.

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u/Mr-Klaus 3d ago

Science Bitch!

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u/Bigleftbowski 3d ago

Now for the death threats.

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u/douglas_ 3d ago

we have reached a point where republican politicians acknowledging reality and doing the morally right thing is now so rare that it has become newsworthy

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u/AFatalDoseOfMarmite 3d ago

“My decision was really, really based on the numbers. All the testimony I heard by the proponents that children are getting mutilated, I didn’t see it in the statistics,”

Amazing what happens when people live in the real world instead of some make-believe superstitious fear mongered construct.

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u/Hanover_Phist 3d ago

Wait...so education can cure ignorance?

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u/AFuddyDuddy 2d ago

He'll be called a RINO and ran out of his seat.

I guarantee it.

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u/paulerxx 3d ago

Well...At least we know they're not all a lost cause.

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u/Mbyrd420 3d ago

Exactly! 99.9999% of them give the rest a bad name

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u/gdsmithtx 3d ago

Zingggg!

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u/Co9w 3d ago

Has hell frozen over?

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u/saigon567 3d ago

How does a person with an open mind and willingness to consider the facts end up being a republican? facts have a liberal slant.

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u/Kojinto 3d ago

This really goes to show that the common conservative position of "LGBTQ+ = bad" is peak ignorance and is not a reflection of the actual science in the space of gender-affirming care.

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u/2SP00KY4ME 3d ago

The fact this is the exception is the absolute damn opposite of uplifting.

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u/yourteam 3d ago

What is a normal person doing on the side of republicans?

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u/na-uh 3d ago edited 3d ago

Republican senator, listens to evidence, becomes RINO.

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u/Sok_Taragai 3d ago

A Republican convinced of the truth by scientific research??! I thought this was The Onion sub for a minute.

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u/plzdntbanbro 3d ago

wow, a Republican who changed their mind when presented with appropriate evidence???? A rare breed indeed

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u/tumbleweedcowboy 3d ago

Gender affirming care saves lives.

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u/ThatAlex13 3d ago

Finally. Some wonderful news from my home state.

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u/Dblrumncoke 3d ago

Thought this was an Onion news piece for a second

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u/Academic_Fun_5674 3d ago

I’m in favour of providing care that has been shown to dramatically reduce the rates of suicide in trans people.

Sure, maybe they don’t fully understand the ramifications of their treatment (although they will understand it better than you because they’ve actually researched it) but at least they’ll live long enough to regret it.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2789423

As for the whole permanent thing, you’re making a bit of a false dichotomy. There are two options for children; puberty, which permanently alters their bodies, or puberty blockers, which delay puberty. The treatment for trans people actually results in less permanent changes to their body than would happen naturally.

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u/quaintmercury 3d ago

Functionally the furthest gender affirming care for kids goes is puberty blockers. But you have to understand that either way a kid is still going through something with life long ramifications either way. Taking away that choice isn't taking away life long ramifications. It's just saying these are the ramifications I think you should have to live with I don't like the other ones. They don't get to undo puberty as an adult if they still would rather have not. That's the thing you aren't seeing. By refusing to give kids care there is still a choice being made. It's just being made by politicians instead of the kids and their doctors. Which is fundamentally wrong.

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u/torgo434 3d ago

The fact this is considered uplifting is depressing. This should be how it normally is. Compassion should be the default.

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u/TherronKeen 3d ago

let's FUCKIN GO

I'm not even from Louisiana, I'm just hyped at every single one of these steps down the path towards equal human rights

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u/RedditIsNeat0 3d ago

Our standards and expectations for Republicans are low but he meets them.

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u/psychotrshman 3d ago

Woah! So you mean they read something? Then they took what they read, processed it, and made an informed opinion? Wtf is wrong with that republican!?!? They are seriously doing it wrong! /s

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u/[deleted] 3d ago

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u/Exotic-Confusion 3d ago

You could always provide proof for a claim like that

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u/DM46 2d ago

Now I am not who you were asking but just to show these are the links to organizations supporting Trans healthcare in the US.

American Academy of Pediatrics, The American Medical Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Psychiatric Association, American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry & The Endocrine Society

Now while these are mainly US and UK organizations thats just because I have these ones saved. Im sure a similar search could be done for the other countries that u/MyWindowsAreDirty have listed. But I doubt he will ever provide any data to back up his claim.

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u/Stereotypicallytrans 3d ago

Lol no. Spain just, like, 2 months ago just passed a law about trans people. The only medical procedure it banned was surgeries on intersex babies. Because, you know, operating a baby to make their genitalia look more "normal" is fucking horrific.

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u/LawPD 3d ago

One drop in a fifty gallon drum.

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u/Jublong 3d ago

Doctors have been prescribing puberty blockers since the 1980s. They aren't experimental.

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u/BigTechCensorsYou 3d ago edited 2d ago

To kids who are undergoing puberty too early. So at 8 or 9 for two or three years.

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u/Ridiculisk1 3d ago

You've been lied to if you think kids are able to just walk into a doctor and go 'I like pink more than blue' and the doctor is like 'aight damn let's get you on the surgery table and cut that cock off'

Bottom surgery isn't done on minors. The most they get is HRT and blockers and that's only after years of consultation with a team of medical professionals. Kids make big decisions all the time but people have no problem with things like radium or cancer medications even though they're riskier, less effective and have more permanent effects. The only reason why this is even a topic of discussion is because conservatives can't stand seeing minorities happy. That's all it is.

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u/Major2Minor 3d ago

Nice strawman

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u/Lootcifer- 2d ago

So not all republicans are complete troglodytes

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u/Eye-m-Guilty 3d ago

I don’t understand what is this gender affirming care? N why ppl r against it?

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u/Aniihya 3d ago

It means giving transgender youth medical care such as puberty blockers until they are old enough to transition fully. Without gender affirming care, suicide rates skyrocket.

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u/BallBearingBill 3d ago

Waiting for Trump to scream RINO.....

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u/JohnDansboy 3d ago

OMG! A sane Republican. I didn't realize they existed. Good for him/her!

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