Anti-Trans Group Admits Bathroom Bill Fear-Mongering Was "Largely Contrived"

[NeoGreen]

https://friendlyatheist.patheos.com/2018/12/09/anti-trans-group-admits-bathroom-bill-fear-mongering-was-largely-contrived/

Anti-Trans Group Admits Bathroom Bill Fear-Mongering Was “Largely Contrived”
By Hemant Mehta, December 9, 2018

Last month, Massachusetts voted to keep an anti-discrimination law that protected transgender rights. It wasn’t even close; the ballot measure passed with 67% of the votes. It was excellent news for supporters of civil rights… and bad news for Christian bigots who believe treating LGBTQ people with respect violates their faith.

The result also led to some soul-searching from anti-trans hate groups like MassResistance, whose leaders are trying to figure out where they went “wrong” and what they can do to secure wins in the future.

Their most surprising revelation? They admitted it didn’t help their side talking about predatory men dressing up as women and hunting for victims in bathrooms because it was “largely contrived.” (No kidding. That’s exactly what decent people have been saying for years: Trans people use the bathrooms for the same reason as everybody else, not because they’re searching for prey.)

The rallying cry of the pro-family groups trying to repeal the law was the well-known “bathroom safety” argument — that in addition to transgenders, this law allows male sexual predators to lurk in women’s restrooms to prey on girls and women. This was technically true, but was largely contrived. They also talked about privacy in restrooms and locker rooms. They did NOT address the “civil rights” claim — which gave the LGBT lobby a complete free pass to use it without pushback. Nor did they address the bizarre and delusional nature of transgenderism itself in their arguments, except to say that transgenders “already have good legal protections” and didn’t need more.
Now with the “transgender anti-discrimination” bills the same thing is happening. Our side concocted the “bathroom safety” male predator argument as a way to avoid an uncomfortable battle over LGBT ideology, and still fire up people’s emotions. It worked in Houston a few years ago.

But the LGBT lobby has now figured out how to beat it. Their lopsided victory in Massachusetts will likely be repeated everywhere else unless the establishment pro-family groups (and their wealthy donors) are willing to change their tactics.

In other words, the “pro-family” side chose the wrong lie, allowing sensible people to write them off as fear-mongering haters, and that’s why people voted in support of civil rights. (Oh, the horror.)

[Major Nikon]

1. When people are convinced they are fulfilling "gods' will" nothing else really matters

Any standard of ethics, law, or decency goes out the window.

That's how abortion doctor murders are harbored. That's how FLDS child rapists escape prosecution, sometimes indefinitely. That's how RCC priests are relocated, sometimes internationally, to avoid prosecution. That's how victims within some congregations are counseled against reporting crimes.

Religion makes it very easy to prey on the vulnerable, who often resort to religion to protect them against the very things they wind up getting victimized with in many cases. For this reason, religious authorities have a greater duty to protect their membership from these things as is the case with organizations like scouting. Instead in many cases they do everything they can to make sure "gods' law" trumps that of mere humans.

[Pope George Ringo II]

2. "Delusional nature of transgenderism"

Their invisible friend says transgender people are delusional. Where's Alanis Morissette when you need her?