Plan B Forum

Turn and face the strange...



I've never watched the Kardashians tv show but I have seen pictures of Bruce throughout the years and thought he was getting very strange looking. I figured he was just getting some bad plastic surgery work done.

Now it appears that he has decided to change his sex.

What would make a person decide to change sex at age 65? Is it any different than doing it at a much younger age?

What do you think of anyone who wants to become the opposite sex? I think it's very strange.

-OBserver Guy

Whatever makes him happy.

That's very deep, man.

I think I may need to chill out and meditate on that thought for a while...

What if they gave a war and nobody came?

oldr_n_wsr wrote:Whatever makes him her happy.

FTFY.

She waited until 65, doubtless, because as one of America's sports 'heroes', the pressure she felt to live up to that role was surely intense. Now I'm assuming she's come to the realization that life is too short to be anything but who you are.

Lord Jim wrote:What if they gave a war and nobody came?

It's not possible to give a war. That's why nobody would ever come and your question is illogical.

yrs,

Jay Tall Black Chinese Guy

If he wan't a part of the Kardashian media whore empire no one would have known or cared.

I don't know; jenner was a fairly well known athlete. If another well-known Olympian (say mark Spitz) did the same thing, it would have been reported pretty widely as well.

But I agree that being a part of that family/media whore empire could well be an ordeal.

bigskygal wrote:She waited until 65, doubtless, because as one of America's sports 'heroes', the pressure she felt to live up to that role was surely intense. Now I'm assuming she's come to the realization that life is too short to be anything but who you are.

Is it correct to assume that Jenner believed (s)he was really a woman around the time he reached puberty? If so, he must have lived a tortured life.

Or did this happen more gradually to him and to others?

I know very little about the subject.

Note: I think Bruce would have made the news even without the Kardashians. Maybe not as big of a deal as it is now, but we would have heard about it.

Sure we'd have heard about it but outside a news blip and tabloids no one would really care.

I think his status as an Olympic decathlon winner would have brought media attention to this...

Back in the mid-late 70s Jenner was probably as well known as Michael Phelps or Lance Armstrong when they were at the height of their popularity...

Joe Guy wrote:

Lord Jim wrote:What if they gave a war and nobody came?

It's not possible to give a war. That's why nobody would ever come and your question is illogical.

yrs,

Jay Tall Black Chinese Guy

Hater...

Crackpot wrote:Sure we'd have heard about it but outside a news blip and tabloids no one would really care.

I agree with Jim; when Greg Louganis came out of the closet (and admitted to being HIV positive in the early 90s) it was pretty big news.

Whatever he needs to be happy and fulfilled is fine with me. He must be in great pain to voluntarily give up the privilege that comes with being a white male.

I wish him the best as well; a decision like this is not easily made.

Guinevere wrote:Whatever he needs to be happy and fulfilled is fine with me. He must be in great pain to voluntarily give up the privilege that comes with being a white male.

He's hoping to be the first to win decathlon gold medals as both a man and a woman.


yrs,
rubato

and as the oldest...

Joe, I've watched several documentaries and done some reading on gender identity and transgender issues, and it seems everyone's experience is unique, as with many other such issues.

Here's a great and pretty exhaustive resource (for a Wiki) to start you off: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transgender


eta: I've read that Jenner plans to do a biopic or even a reality show about his transgender experience. Don't know if it's true, but I think it would be a good thing, if done tastefully. His status as an American icon may bring many folks to develop understanding and acceptance of the transgendered.

I was crushed on Bruce Jenner when I was just a little girl - he was so beautiful on the Wheaties box and my parents spoke so highly of him. I think that feeling exists for many, many people.

I do not agree that nobody would care but for the Kardashians - he's remained active in public life on his own terms, especially in celebrity sporting events for charity, etc. (a lot of golf). He would draw attention, for sure, on his own merit. Younger people may not think so, but anybody born in the 70s and before would.

Thanks for the wiki link, BSG. I will read it after I post this.

I still believe that any person that goes through the process to become transgendered is strange. I don't understand it. I think I would need to talk to a few transgender people to form a more complete opinion.

I went to law school with a man who transformed into a woman. He never seemed terribly happy to me in either iteration and he died suddenly in his mid 50s which made me wonder about the medical impact of his choice.

I wouldn't call it strange - more like something to have to live with or very close to, to understand.