Some comments to a post at Belle's

Belle, on the perennial TransWars:

Look: the truth is, if you're that wigged out about transpeople, or other transgressions against the -purity- of your single-gender space? Well, you're in plenty of company; what you -aren't- is "against the gender binary." To the contrary, you have a deeply vested interest in maintaining that binary. You have no intention of getting rid of Class Man/Class Woman; you've got too much invested in your identity as -radical revolutionary feminist- (isn't that what all this squawking is about? how you don't get no respect just because you know you have the One True Way of leading the world to salvation?) What're you gonna do if/when the "war" (as someone else just called it) is over? Finally enjoy all the forbidden fruits that can only be possible in a non-patriarchal society (x kinds of sex, visual erotica, play, fuck knows what else)? Take up canasta? Fuck no; if you were that sort of person, you'd be doing that -now-. This shit gives your life -meaning-; you have an -identity- now; take that away, and what do you have?

Me, over there, responding to "Fuck no; if you were that sort of person, you'd be doing that -now-. This shit gives your life -meaning-; you have an -identity- now; take that away, and what do you have?":

YES. EXACTLY. And this is exactly what happened when I was a radfem. I mean, I still did play, I still did defend it. But I got no joy out of it, because the identity I was clinging to said I couldn't. Or that yeah, sure I could be a sadomasochist if I also wanted to be a damaged bad example to the masses, but what FUN is that, when you accept that all you are is a victim parodying hir victimizers? I got very little joy out of it. Out of anything, really, until I decided to give myself permission to enjoy life and stopped thinking my enjoyment OMGGASPHARMEDWOMENWHOWEREN'TME.