Thought Of The Day 22

"To pee, or not to pee - that is the question."

Ok, when it comes to the whole trans people bathroom thing, I'm a little torn. To begin with, It's no secret that I have MS. One of the crippling elements of this disease is frequent and sudden bathroom urges. That said, I have been out in public many time when nature called. And I've also been known to use any available bathroom. So one part of me thinks, when you got to go, you got to go, and people should not be restricted in terms of where they relieve themselves due to their gender. 

But another side of also thinks, why shouldn't women deserve to have their own private spaces in the world? Women really have been the most discriminated class of people for a long time. Why should a man dressed like a female be able to take away women's right to their own restrooms, just because they identify as a woman? That mentality wouldn't fly in any other aspect of life.

And then, there's another side of me that feels, if everyone is in their own stalls just doing their own business, how would anyone really know the difference anyway? Unless you're peaking under stalls, You have no idea who's using the stall next to you. 

So, in trying to view this from a common sense perspective, I'm sort of going back to my MS. Because of my disability, I do have a handicap plate that allows me to park in a handicap spot. However, I can't just park in those spots because I identify as handicap - even though I technically do. I must actually go through the process of applying though the state and prove to them through doctor certification, that I am indeed handicap. And all that is just to have the ability to park in a special parking place.

Couldn't we do something similar with bathrooms? It seems to make sense, especially if transgender dysphoria is suppose to be a real medical condition. Meaning, you'd need some sort medical determination from a professional instead of being just some guy tossing on a dress, calling yourself a woman, then prancing into private women's spaces. Can't we protect bathrooms the same way we protect handicap parking spots at a shopping mall?

Naturally, this is not a perfect idea. I doubt someone will be at every bathroom checking medical cards to see if someone is medically considered trans or not. But that's similar to handicap parking spaces. Sure someone can sneak park in a handicap spot because they are running into a store to grab a quick item. But the idea is that it is regulated, and if they get caught, they get a ticket.

If nothing more, medically determining a specific bathroom usage if you're trans, would at least create an assumption in the public eye that whoever is using a particular bathroom, actually belongs in that bathroom. It's a lot more reasonable then bearded Billy Bob in makeup and a dress walking into the ladies room proclaiming - "I self-identify, so I belong in here," which seems a little unchecked to me.

This is just my thought and opinion.