Is He Or Isn’t “He”?

Politics in the U.S. at the moment is one large yawn. The GOP is unable to produce a viable contender for the 2012 elections; President Obama is carrying on with his agendas no matter how hard it may be to slide around and/or glide within the opposition’s attempts to de-thrown him, and “The Donald” has fallen by the ever-present “way-side” as do those who love to run their big mouths off because they think they JUST CAN!

It’s far more fun, as well as extremely well-intentioned commentary, to revisit the Chaz Bono transgender vis-a-vis nattering's on Shiloh Jolie-Pitt than it is to lumber along with the current lackluster political climate despite Obama’s triumph in releasing one more deluded tyrant from the earth.

The Chaz and Shiloh Jolie-Pitt story has more to it than a mere misguided comment from a person who is NOT REALLY A TRUE TRANSGENDER! C’mon, Chaz! You still retain female parts below your belt and have the confused audacity to consider yourself a “Transgender” because you removed your breasty thingy’s, dress like a guy and look like one?

I have no answers to several of the questions I’ll raise in the post…at least at the moment. However, moving on from the other Chaz Bono-based Flog of the other day, there are a few dangling threads I’d like to snip with or without a witty quip.

The below-the-line point for me is how all of us view, misunderstand, empathize, or simply look away from this issue. Again I ask, is Chaz really a genuine transsexual right now or not? And why does it matter to know? One reason is that Chaz has brought the issue into the public forum in a big way this week with the documentary Becoming Chaz that aired on the OWN Network.

If anyone reading this post is confused about transgenders, add me to the list because I may not have a true understanding of where the line is drawn between pre-transgender and an actual transgender other than the obvious completion of the process. Viewing the transition of a man I knew into a woman required a two year process beginning with psychological counseling; hormone injections that provided breast development, in conjunction with laser facial hair removal. After a certain medically deemed appropriate time, he flew to Colorado where the final end to his manhood took place.

From that point on “he” was now a technical “she.” Prior to the final cut, despite living under a female name for at least a year and dressing as such, his legal status was still considered to be that of a man. In Chaz Bono’s case, it’s an iffy middle ground. That’s one of the reasons I am attempting to grasp what is really going on here. Chaz says that he isn’t pleased with the options/functionality of what science has to offer for female-to-male genitalia enhancement, and will wait to add a little Peter to his Paul on down the curvy line of medical techy science improvements.

That makes sense. In the interim, though, what in the world is Chaz thinking by calling so much attention to his issue? To help others is noble. That part of the story is logical. But Chaz, sweetie, you aren’t the best poster child for the cause. You are one of the few women-to-men examples who bring the word “freak” into mind. Sorry that so much weight was gained; body chemistry changes are a bitch. Just ask women in peri- and post-menopause. You may be happy now, but seeing you as you are these days makes others sad.

Is going so terribly public another part of the transition process for someone I am using my own armchair psychology to understand? Just as I railed against Chaz and others for projecting a gender-confused future on a very young child, I am now examining Chaz under my own microscopic lens. But Chaz is an adult who has deliberately brought on the attention.

More to come on this subject.