flicker

Seriously.

I don't know how to say this without sounding insane, but I've never met a trans person who didn't pass.

This isn't because they're all beautiful. It's because there's a wide variety of women in the world and I've said this before, and I'll say it again- I think there's a lot of internalized misogyny in trans spaces, where there's this idea that you have to conform to some idea of 'beauty' in order to be femme.

A lot of cis women are invisible. That's not because they 'pass'. It's because they aren't remarkable. One of my oldest friends, who passed away recently, was a woman with polycystic ovarian syndrome. It's a condition that tends to make women grow more hair than "average," it tends to be coupled with insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome, which makes for a rounder body in some ways, and it's an extremely common condition. I'm not even 40 and I've had 5 different friends who all had it! It's super common! And there's this thing that cis women deal with which is, if you aren't pretty, you're straight up ignored.

So what I see, and I hope that this comes across as gender affirming, is that trans women are women, and they don't realize that they pass a lot easier than they think they do. Because you don't have to be like the woman on the right in the comic to be a woman. You can look like the person on the left, and still look like a woman, because there's lots of ciswomen who look imperfect in a lot of ways. It's just that trans women are harder on themselves than they should be, because they've been taught "women look like X and sound like Y and do like Z." And the truth is, we're half the damn population! We look like and sound like and do like everything! We just aren't on TV, on the radio, in the news.

I've said in the past that I have the bodytype of Danny Devito and it's true. And I definitely am not trying to downplay the extreme difficulty that trans women face, and there are some very obviously masculine things that concern them (such as facial hair, omg, the struggle) but my point is, it's easier to pass than most people think. Give me 12 hours with Danny Devito (and a talented cosmetologist to do something with his hair) and we can make him pass. He'd probably let us. He probably wouldn't even make a joke out of it, because he's a class act.

I'm real tempted, as a cis woman, to dress like a man and see if I can pick fights with people. Because I want people to be able to stand up say, "Well, yes, I'm trans," and then fistfight whoever jump them, but that sounds exhausting, and they shouldn't have to do it. At the same time, I'm worried these idiots would find out I was fighting them on purpose and then would try handwaving me as "not really trans so it doesn't count."

I already have the body-type of Danny Devito. May as well make use of it.

I mean we can take exception with someone holding a bag that is tagged, "candy for luring kids." I can't think of a time when that could be a good thing.

Is it telling about my childhood trauma that I immediately imagined a priest holding that bag?

Disclaimer: I did this because it's what's easiest for me to read, and hopefully it'll help someone else.

This Executive Order does the following:

• All federal agencies, including independent regulatory commissions, are now subject to direct White House control.
• Regulations cannot be issued without presidential approval.
• The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) can now withhold funding from independent agencies if they don’t align with White House priorities.
• All federal employees must follow the President’s and Attorney General’s interpretation of the law, eliminating legal independence.
• A White House Liaison is to be installed in every independent regulatory agency to enforce direct presidential control.

This is the biggest executive power grab in U.S. history.

• This formally ends the concept of an “independent” regulatory agency, dismantling one of the last barriers to absolute executive power.
• This order effectively erases the last major restraints on executive power.
• The federal government no longer operates with checks and balances.
• Regulations and laws are now dictated solely by the President.

If left unchecked, this is the moment the U.S. ceases to function as a democratic republic.

#The President Now Controls All Regulatory Agencies

The SEC, FTC, FCC, and FEC are no longer independent.

• The Stock Market is now subject to White House control, enabling insider trading, favoritism, and targeting of political opponents.
• Antitrust laws can be selectively enforced, allowing administration-friendly monopolies to expand unchecked.
• Political opponents in the tech sector, media, or finance can be targeted with regulatory action while allies are protected.

Elections are now influenced by direct White House oversight of the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

The FDA, EPA, and consumer protection agencies are fully politicized.

• Drug approvals, food safety regulations, and environmental policies can be rewritten for political or corporate interests.
• Climate change regulations can be erased overnight.
• Scientific research is now subject to White House approval before public release.

Implication: There is no longer any neutral enforcement of economic, environmental, or election laws. Everything is now dictated by political loyalty.

The White House Can Block Agency Budgets or Direct Funds Elsewhere

• The OMB can now adjust funding allocations for independent agencies.
• This gives the President the power to defund agencies without needing Congress.
• Regulatory agencies that challenge presidential policies will be quietly strangled of resources.
• Agencies loyal to the President will receive full funding—even illegally.

Implication: Congress no longer controls federal spending on regulatory enforcement. The executive branch can choke out opposition agencies and reward allies.

The President & Attorney General Have Final Say on All Legal Interpretations All federal employees must follow White House interpretations of the law.

• The Attorney General’s opinions override agency lawyers, inspectors general, and independent counsel.
• Agencies cannot adopt their own interpretations of legal statutes—everything must align with the President’s views.
• The President can rewrite federal legal interpretations overnight.

Implication: Legal consistency is gone. Agencies cannot push back against corrupt, illegal, or unconstitutional directives because the President’s interpretation is the only interpretation allowed.

Installing White House Liaisons in All Regulatory Agencies

A “White House Liaison” will be placed in every independent agency.

• This ensures constant presidential oversight of daily operations.
• These liaisons will report agency actions back to the White House and enforce political compliance.
• Agency directors will no longer have the ability to act without White House approval.

Implication: There is now a direct enforcement arm inside every regulatory body. Even agencies that resist presidential control will be internally monitored and controlled.

• Every regulatory body—from financial markets to environmental protections—is now politicized. Congress no longer controls federal funding—agencies must obey the White House or risk defunding.
• The President’s legal interpretations override all agency autonomy, eliminating independent enforcement of federal laws.
• The federal bureaucracy, once designed to be resistant to corruption, is now completely subject to presidential loyalty.

A someone else with ADHD, it absolutely wrecks the flow I get into trying to read it.

E: It's really important though so I'm going to reply to myself in a bit after making an edit that would make it easier for me, myself, to read, in the hopes it'll help someone else like me. (The process of editing it will make it something I can read, lol.)

I went ahead and got you all a link to the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire.

Which was a rather famous fire that killed so many people, because the stairwells were locked.

Please remember that OSHA rules are written in blood.

weather update
Tennessee

I'd say, "send help," but the help couldn't make it, because all our streets are effed, because of all the snow.

I got that beat mercilessly as a little girl masking version of ADHD where my sink is never not empty but even if I didn't, I understand it and I understand depression which is so often comorbid with untreated ADHD and we deserve to celebrate every success like this.

Now if I could go home after work today and sweep and mop my damn downstairs, that would be the kind of success that I can only dream of. We need ADHD collectives where I'll come do your dishes (as long as you have gloves and a fresh sponge that doesn't stink) and you can come do my stupid floor.

A fire? At a Sea Parks? It's wrecking my head! If she had said that her parents drowned, I'd be the happiest man in the world!

My favorite example of this is when Scrubs added Dr. Grace Miller, she was literally written to be Dr. Cox, if he was a woman.

And people despised her.

My entire counterargument is the fast fashion episode. That one was brilliant.