In my training as a registered nurse, my program required us to make a list of ethical issues we'd find incompatible with our professional practice. This was to help us seek out appropriate work that didn't violate our ethical standard. I had only one issue: I could never participate in gender reassignment surgery, as it was called at the time. I find it to be a reckless abandonment of medical principles. 25 years later, I still believe that. I have no problems with lifestyle choices (GLB,Polyamorous...)that don't require surgical alteration. In my early contacts with the gay community in the late 60's and 1970's, many gay leaders decried gender surgery.

I've been told I am a bigot and am no longer welcome in my Quaker meeting over this issue. I find it a completely and totally separate issue from gay rights. Although the author does not agree with me, I do applaud his careful well written essay. Bravo.

I wholeheartedly support Mr. Aravosis point of view; he's loudly saying what so many gay/lesbians have been thinking about for sometime not but dearing to say. I for one, have not understood the relevance between transgendered folks and the gay/lesbian community, - do these folks really want to be identified with the gay/lesbian community?

Personally, I do not think so. By chance, in my line of work, I've met a few of them and I was dismayed when I'd heard any of them voice their prejudices against the GLT community. There's no doubt that the transgendered folks need legal protection more then ever since their numbers keep growing and presently, it's seems like up-hill battle for them to them to get legal rights that would protect them adequately. But not at our expense, - not this time anyway.

Thank you Mr. Aravosis for bringing forth such an important and relevant subject that many other columnists won't dare even ask aloud.

As a trans-woman, I obviously have a dog in this fight, but even if not I could not possibly subjugate principle, moral judgment and loyalty to political expediency (flimsy expediency at that, as this act faces an extremely dubious future through the George W. Bush presidency). So it is disappointing, to say the least, that so many of our so-called "allies"... those who have long reaped the benefit of OUR activism for OUR shared cause for OUR eventual full liberation within this culture... so easily cast away US... the ORIGINAL members of this community to come out into the open and fight the good fight!

Not only have you shown yourself to have the conviction and moral courage of a slug, you also apparently lack the common sense not to step right into the trap laid by the conservatives who must be absolutely apoplectic in laughter at how their little hissy-fit over "gender identity" so easily served to divide and conquer the vaunted LGBT movement. Bravo, boys! If only the terrorists could be so readily snookered.

So you smell the bacon frying, your greed has taken over, and you are willing to kowtow to conservative demands, and risk PERMANENT FRACTURE of the political coalition WE have built over a period of decades, as you throw overboard a significant (possibly so much larger than your population if you count the millions of deep-in-the-closet crossdressers out there). You must be so proud, right now.

No, history will remember you as gutless. When push came to shove, you caved. When it came time for solidarity, you cut and ran. When principle was on the line, you courageously opted for "half the loaf". When a carrot was dangled, you could have held tight to the same hands that have walked with you down thousands of Gay Pride Marches, but you recoiled, and suddenly noticed, "Hmmm... you're really not like me, are you?"

No, we're not John! We don't have a damn thing in common with you... except EVERYTHING that matters when it comes to the civil rights of an oppressed sexual minority in the United States of America in 2007.

So you're entirely wrong about that. And you're also wrong-headed in your enthusiastic admiration at how adept conservatives are at scoring "small but cumulatively deadly victories". Over the past few decades, they have achieved this through lying, bullying, tampering with elections, bribing, semi-legally gerrymandering, and, most importantly, exploiting the prejudices and fears of a vast swath of largely gullible Americans... including targeting YOU as one of the prime problems with America today!

We should never aspire to be like conservatives! Since 1776 when they were against breaking apart from King George, to 1860 when they were against ending slavery, to 1920 when they were against giving women the right to vote, to 1962 when they were against full civil rights for black Americans, to today when they are still against gay rights and environmental protections and stem-cell research and global warming, they have been wrong about everything. And slowly, steadily, they are losing power. Through hook and crook, they have won some elections, yes, but they have completely lost control of the cultural battle to keep America as white-bread as possible.

Let's remember who the enemy is. It's not John Aravosis. It's not Barney Frank. It's not gays. It's not lesbians. It's not bi's. It's not transsexuals. It's the conservatives. Let's focus our ire on the real culprits. We don't have to kowtow to them anymore. We don't have to take their bullshit. If it means a couple of more years before a full ENDA can be passed, so be it. No one stands to suffer more during that period than the T-community.

Stand on principle, people! Stay steadfast to your values, and loyal to your allies. We WILL kick their ass, as we ALWAYS do!

Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness! It's all right there. Do you believe it? Just for yourselves? Or for everyone? You know what the right thing is to do. ENDA for us all... stuff it down their throats until they choke on it.

I wholeheartedly support Mr. Aravosis point of view; he's loudly saying what so many gay/lesbians have been thinking about for sometime not but dearing to say. I for one, have not understood the relevance between transgendered folks and the gay/lesbian community, - do these folks really want to be identified with the gay/lesbian community?

Personally, I do not think so. By chance, in my line of work, I've met a few of them and I was dismayed when I'd heard any of them voice their prejudices against the GLT community. There's no doubt that the transgendered folks need legal protection more then ever since their numbers keep growing and presently, it's seems like up-hill battle for them to them to get legal rights that would protect them adequately. But not at our expense, - not this time anyway.

Thank you Mr. Aravosis for bringing forth such an important and relevant subject that many other columnists won't dare even ask aloud.