From the Archives III
Ewww, cisheteronormativity
In the beginning there was kindness.
Gen Z’s love-affair with socialism, a stepping stone to communism—and we know how that ends—starts with compassion for the marginalized.
My daughter’s admiration for the “oppressed” (i.e, LGBTQQIAA++) along with her disdain for the “oppressors” (i.e, straight white Americans) created the need for her current contrivance. Next, postmodern theory flipped the script on reality enough for her to believe that she’s a gay man. And just like that, my daughter identified out of the oppressor identity and into the oppressed one.
Instead of questioning the “class warfare” narrative or appreciating the greatness of her country, she and almost all of her friends have been fed a lie and led to glorify sexual minorities.
My strategy to overthrow her regime? It is not to tyrannize her. It is not to censor her. It is not to control her or punish her. It is to connect with her. To put my trust in her. It sounds crazy maybe. But I’m not taking away her phone, iPad and laptop. I’m not forbidding her to hang out with her alphabet friends. And I’m not pulling her out of school. That would make everything worse, would transform me into the tyrant she loathes, and it doesn’t always work. Sometimes it backfires, like Stoic Mom described in her recent interview with Stella and Sasha on the Wider Lens podcast.
If Miss Miller were begging me to take her to the gender clinic, I’d be singing a different tune, but she’s not. And because she’s not, I can find authentic genuine trust for her.
Because, like The Tao Te Ching says,
If you don’t trust the people, you make them untrustworthy.
I yearn to ask my daughter how she came to believe in the simple, over-simplified and false narrative of class warfare. I mean I know it was a combination of school, her friends, entertainment and the internet. But can she articulate the moment she started defining the world this way? Is she even conscious of her second-hand point of view? And how come I don’t ask her? Well, I might one day. But it will take some planning. Some strategizing.
People have suggested I show Miss Miller certain videos or articles to wake her up. But waking up doesn’t work that way. A person has to trust the messenger. A person has to be ready. My hunch is that her awakening to a more robust and complicated world view will come from a friend, or maybe a romance. It might come from realizing that the identity she’s crafted for herself does not make her feel any more powerful, happier, better looking or more free. The illusion of a glittery trans existence must be revealed for what it really is—a dead end.
I keep thinking of the phrase “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” and how the progressive agenda goes against every one of these tenets. Mutilation and sterilization oppose life. (Ditto abortion.) Shutting down dissenting voices opposes liberty. (Ditto big government.) Aligning oneself with a victimized identity opposes the pursuit of happiness diametrically.
It bears emphasizing: physically dismantling your body could not be more antithetical to pursuing your best, most authentic self. And making others responsible for your happiness—by affirming your ‘gender identity’—will always always lead to powerlessness, resentment and misery.
I remember when I learned not to ever rely on anyone else for my happiness or sense of self-worth. It was the most empowering, liberating moment of my life. And now I watch in mute horror as our children are taught the opposite.
How ironic is it that the fruits of our capitalist society—our children’s luxurious privilege—have given rise to such horror? And how horrific is it that the corporations themselves have given these children no establishment to rebel against, leaving them to struggle against reality itself?
To help my daughter I must help myself, leading by example. I must work vigilantly to liberate myself, not to blame the country for failing me, but work to restore its goodness. I am not entitled to happiness, but I am entitled to its pursuit, for now. And that is an honor to be grateful for every day.
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'And just like that, my daughter identified out of the oppressor identity and into the oppressed one.' Bingo!
I love the part about us being entitled to PURSUIT of happiness, rather than happiness itself. Now, we also need to understand and help our kids understand that happiness is not the same as pleasure and comfort (pursuit of hedonism?)