It’s ludicrous to suggest that people with a mental illness so severe it requires not only life-long medication but also a series of radical surgeries have a good insight into their affliction. We don’t consult schizophrenics’ on how to treat schizophrenia, do we?
6 responses to “Whose Insight?”
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Exactly.
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And yet… I know enough drag queens that DQSH did not ring all my alarm bells when I first heard about it. I was kind of like… well, that’s weird but I wouldn’t mind (drag queen I know) reading to my kids. Whatever. I became concerned about it when (drag queen I know) said, in no uncertain terms, that DQSH was a really, really bad idea, and said, simply, that drag shows are Adult Entertainment, full stop. And that has no place with kids. And I am perfectly willing to take his word for it.
Likewise, the trans people I am acquainted with pretty universally oppose medical interventions for children, as well as trans propaganda directed at them. That happens to align with my thoughts on the subject, but I figure if anyone knows, it’d be them, right? Would I change my mind if they thought otherwise? I don’t know. I’d probably be willing to reconsider.
I don’t think the insights of the mentally ill into their own illness should be automatically discarded.
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Yes, there’s a difference between considering someone’s viewpoint on an issue and considering them the final authority solely based on personal experience. I will do the former, but I do not consider anyone to be a “final authority” on a subject just because of their identity or life experience, mentally ill or no. Often it’s hard to be objective about something personal. I learned that firsthand with my skewed initial reaction to Covcath.
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I don’t think trans people are magically authoritative, but I also do not think they are as delusional/out of touch with reality as schizophrenics. Most trans people, even the ones with wrong and/or abhorrent beliefs, are aware of material reality. MTF transsexuals are not under the impression that they possess a womb, can give birth, etc. Everyone debating this topic is mostly aware of the basic physical facts, they just interpret these basic facts through different ideological lenses (and I’m not suggesting here that these are all equally valid viewpoints; they’re not. I have no respect for the “physical reality is irrelevant, all that matters is that you feel” crap.)
I have major disagreements with most of the trans community, but I will always treat trans people as adult equals, not particularly stupid children.
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I was talking more about the doctors referenced in the Shrier piece. Would you take your OCD to get treated by a doctor with severe OCD? Or a rash to a dermatologist covered in pustules? I definitely wouldn’t. But she seems so proud of getting these doctors to opine, like they are superior to the doctors without the dysphoria.
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Depends on the source of the pustules.
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A conservative literary critic and college professor
Clarissa's Blog 
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