Into the topic. All right. So, um, you know,
I think it was like a few weeks ago, we did an
episode talking about the, um, trans members
in the, in the, in the military and all that
stuff that was happening. Um, well, it was announced
today that the U S military has 30 days to set
up procedures for removing trans troops. Um,
a memo was filed in court as part of a lawsuit
against the Trump administration. This memo was.
ordering the Pentagon to identify and fire us
trans active military members. This is a course.
Um, after the fact that earlier this month, the
Pentagon stated that us military members, um,
would no longer allow trans members. However,
um, to like actively enlist into the military,
but those already like kind of grandfathered
in would be treated with honor and respect. Um,
so that shits out the window now, you know, just
a few weeks later, um, and all of this has really
been kind of like the latest move to erase really
the trans community as a whole from the, I guess,
like the world's eye or America's eye, I guess.
Um, so for instance, all mentions of trans have
been removed from the Stonewall national monument
website after an executive order. Even though
we know Marsha P. Johnson, a black trans woman,
was not only a part of this movement movement,
but is believed to have thrown the very first
brick at the Stonewall Inn. And this is this
is something that's a little crazy because I've
I've definitely have gone off on social media
of getting into like arguments of like. I don't
know, trans hate, so What's really interesting
is people have literally told me that You know,
the liberals are trying to be your race our history.
Yes but then You have a cheeto man in office.
That's literally trying to erase trans history.
Like I don't I Don't get it I don't and they
they don't see it so literally an argument that
I got into I pointed this out I was like What
the fuck about this then? I and the logic or
lack thereof that I was hit with was I am. Trans
history is not history because trans is new.
And I was like. The fuck are you talking about?
I was like, you realize like like anything in
the past is considered like history, right? Like
it doesn't have to be 2000 years ago. It doesn't
have to be the pyramids. It doesn't have to be
some guy turning water into wine. A hundred years
ago is considered fucking history. Anyways, what
do you think, Alex? What is your, since you were
in the military and my, my kind of stance on
this is because they're saying that trans members
are unfit to serve. And this is something that's
very interesting to me because. There are a lot
of jobs in the military. I mean, I knew a guy
who ran a gift store on a fucking. Aircraft carrier,
I don't even know why the fuck you have a gift
store on an aircraft carrier, but he he ran the
gift store. So it's really hard for me to like
kind of try to understand that like you could
say like no Like there's not a single position
in the US military that you're fit to do so You
got yet three things happening here simultaneously,
right? One in general I agree with the chat,
okay If you are willing to sign on said dotted
line, raise your right hand, and say, I am willing
to support and defend the Constitution of the
United States, and, you know, fight it, you know,
defend it against all enemies, foreign or domestic,
look, it's an all -volunteer military. You need
all the bodies you can get, baby. Like, I don't
know why you're turning motherfuckers away, right?
Like, that's... So let's start there. Okay, it
takes a level of any level of commitment to Sign
the papers and anybody who's been through fucking
maps will tell you man. That's the first thing
fuck boot camp Dude, that maps day is miserable
right when you're doing your entrance stuff for
the army. It's horrible. It sucks Okay, so let's
let's start there. Okay, that's my my initial
My initial play on this right which was You don't
what why are we turning people away? Why are
we discharging people that want to be in okay?
Problem number one when it comes to the military
There is very very little that anybody can do
because the commander -in -chief is the commander
-in -chief right much like with the kovat vaccine
stuff Don't get the vaccine. We're kicking you
out right And there's very little anybody can
do about it because it's it's the Department
of Defense. They they have congressional and
Senate oversight, but that's limited in what
it's capable of doing. So it sucks, but I think
this is going to stick. But here we get into
the problem that the DOD has. and it occurs anytime
you have and it's just it's the nature of the
business in in our hyper -partisan modern political
world where the secretary of defense is a political
appointee as he always has been and is a senate
confirmed political appointee okay that changes
with every administration there is going to be
this shit okay because you have a political appointee
in that position. And so the whims of the political
class who has taken over the White House and
the executive branch are going to affect us.
I think it's wrong. I think it's stupid. Largely,
I think it's stupid because, first off, why would
you turn away bodies who are willing to do it?
And also, it's such a small percentage of the
Department of Defense. Why the fuck are you worried
about it? Right. Like, does this? Is this really
affecting the DOD's ability to complete their
mission? And it's not. It's really fucking not.
Yeah, both YouTube's and and and Twitch chat
are kind of in agreement on this topic, which
is, look, it's it's dumb. It's fucking dumb.
It's it's fucking dumb. What would be a better
way to picture it? You've got to get down to
rebuilding the system from the ground up. And
I just don't know if we're there as a nation
right now to get to that point where we can rebuild
the system from the ground up. How have I served
with people from the LGBTQ community? Yes, especially
Don't Ask, Don't Tell. I had multiple people
under my supervision who I was their leader,
right? Who? were part of that community. Right.
But I will tell you this, even after Don't Ask,
Don't Tell, there was still a political and social
price to pay. OK, because you're also dealing
with culture and it's it's it's a fucking nightmare.
The other piece of this is that the leadership
in the Department of Defense has also forgot
a key thing. And they're like, the DOD is supposed
to be apolitical. No. they're supposed to be
nonpartisan. You are a political entity, right?
You just are. In fact, you are the last political
thing we do. When politics and diplomacy fails,
we send the army, right? They have mistaken being
nonpartisan for being apolitical, and I don't
know what it's going to take to fix that. There's
a lot of pushback within kind of middle rank
leadership in the military. I'm seeing a lot
of it right now. I don't know how. I don't know.
And unfortunately, you really can't sue. It's
going to be difficult to set lawsuits up. So
I'm not sure how this was going to play out.
But yes, the trans erasure. This was lock stock,
their goal. Right. They removed the T from the
LGBT travel advisories on the State Department
website. They're removing trans references to
the Stonewall. Yes, this is a goal because it's
red meat for the base that costs them nothing
and is easy for them to accomplish politically.
It's like the NCAA, the sports ban and federal
funding, right, with banning trans athletes.
The fact of the matter is, is it affects, what,
probably 50 people? nationwide if that right
hence why i'm like why are you fucking worried
about this just let the ncaa handle it but the
fact of the matter is is it's red meat to the
base right look base look what we're doing look
what we're doing promises made promises kept
that's and and that's that's that's their mentality
right this is an easy one to toss to them while
they pass tax cuts for rich people right that's
all there is to it I'm done. That's my piece.
Again, I would never turn away anybody who wants
to do that miserable fucking job. And it's a
miserable fucking job at times. It sucks. You
want to do it. Why would you turn them away?
Right. So. Anyway, you have anything else on
that one? You want to move on to funnier topics?
I guess a real quick. Since we've seen a lot
of movement on trying to erase the trans community
in general, what do you think's the next step?
What do you think they're going to go after next?
I. I don't know. And so this is where, again,
we get into weird territory because they're going
to cross a line. And ironically, the current
court is not really on their side, right? The
current court is the one that ruled that discriminating
against someone who's trans is discrimination
based on sex per the Civil Rights Act. It was
Neil Gorsuch, Trump's first appointee, who wrote
the opinion. Gorsuch wrote the Bostock opinion
and pissed a lot of conservatives off when he
did it. He's a Trump nominee. He's not supposed
to do that. He wrote the Bostock opinion. I don't
know which way this court is going to go on this
particular issue. They went the way that we didn't
expect in Vostok. Vostok v. Clinton County was
the was the case. And it was an employer who
fired somebody for being trans. Right. And the
court, the opinion of the court written by Neil
fucking Gorsuch was. Yeah, if you fire somebody
for being gay or trans, you are discriminating
based on sex. Right? Like that's what it is.
So plain text reading of the Civil Rights Act.
And again, conservative justice. Do I know if
that's going to be the case going forward? No,
no idea. But. So that's why I'm having a hard
time telling what they're going to do. We're
still and this is the thing that I caution. I
had a. Conversation with a friend of mine the
other day who's like you very frustrated like
it's so hard to keep up with everything that's
happening I go remember these guys are only about
a month and a half into this We don't really
know how this is all gonna shake out yet because
we haven't had time for the Supreme Court and
everybody else and and and the process to play
out and There's a few ways this can go and I'll
be honest. I'm stuck I have no idea which way
this is gonna go in the meantime. They're gonna
hurt a lot of people Before we get to the resolution,
I just don't know what it's going to be. Did
any of what I say make sense? We're angry and
it's it's shitty. What the fuck? No, it's. It
does make sense. I just honestly, I can't. I
believe. I know we're about like a month and
I can't believe that we're here. Well, I can't.
I fucking can't. You know, I think like my favorite
kind of shirt I've been seeing is. Make 1984
fiction again. To me. We knew and we tried to
tell people project 2025 was the goal We told
people take this fucker seriously He's dead serious
about what he wants to do and there were so many
people Who fell into that like lean Trump camp?
Who were like no? He's not it's hyperbole You
know, I can't tell you how many news stories
I've seen this week of people who are like I
voted for Trump and now I'm getting railed up
the butt like We fucking told you we yeah, we
told you this was the plan we knew everybody
on our side knew You know So that's probably
a topic for another day. Let's let's let more
of the fuck around and find out Anyway people
let us know what you think down in the comments
below Well, we're gonna we're gonna move on to
fun time. Yeah, I mean it's shitty