LGBTQ+ 5 -- Now With More Gender Outlaws

[Weeping Sore]

On ‎9‎/‎16‎/‎2017 at 0:25 PM, Robin Of House Hill said:

I think it's their reaction to things like the "eager Russian brides" websites.

Thanks for that info.  I'm definitely going to look into it.  Recognize that this is long range planning.  Yesterday, we renewed our lease on our apartment for another year.  I'm not expecting to need to get out of Dodge, before then.  This may be a conservative state, but this area of Arizona seems to have a live and let live way of looking at things.  No one has hassled either of us, since we moved here.

It was my understanding that the spouse of an Irish citizen must live there for 6 months to become a citizen herself.

[Robin Of House Hill]

1 hour ago, Weeping Sore said:

It was my understanding that the spouse of an Irish citizen must live there for 6 months to become a citizen herself.

There are other conditions that apply, so it's not a sure thing.  If things got really terrible, here, it would be an option.  Still, she is getting her Irish passport.  That gives her an escape route.  I have a US passport, so I have an exit plan, even though it may not be a permanent one.  There are other things to consider.  We'd have to sell all our stuff, and then buy what we need afterward.  The cost of transporting a 12 year old dog is considerable.  So this is something of a plan we'd rather make and not need to implement, than need to go and have no plan.

So far, there hasn't been any evidence that a problem exists where I live.  In almost two years the only things that happened is a guy shouted something out of a passing car, but I couldn't make out what it was.  so it might have been nothing.  Last year a cashier at the nearby Walmart told me she was upset that politicians wanted to keep people out of bathrooms.  That might have been meant to be supportive, or just a way of telling me she knew.  Either way, I considered it a failure on my part. Living stealth is a hard reality that depends on passing as cis, so as not to be recognized.

[Xray the Enforcer]

On 9/22/2017 at 9:04 PM, Dr. Pepper said:

I took the easy way out and used a perfectly reasonable excuse for slowing things down with these plans we have.  They were disappointed and said all the right super sweet lovely things which again makes me wonder if we are actually all on the same page and just aren't putting it to words.  At the end of the day, though, I'm not quite prepared for the consequences if I'm wrong so I'm stepping back and waiting to see if this pining fades away.  

I wish I had good or useful advice -- but at least it sounds like you're doing what you think is the safest option right now. And that counts for a lot. Good luck. 

[Robin Of House Hill]

7 hours ago, Xray the Enforcer said:

I wish I had good or useful advice -- but at least it sounds like you're doing what you think is the safest option right now. And that counts for a lot. Good luck. 

Thanks.  We know this idea isn't an easy one to pull off, and is unlikely to be needed.  Hopefully, it won't be needed.

[Weeping Sore]

21 hours ago, Robin Of House Hill said:

There are other conditions that apply, so it's not a sure thing.  If things got really terrible, here, it would be an option.  Still, she is getting her Irish passport.  That gives her an escape route.  I have a US passport, so I have an exit plan, even though it may not be a permanent one.  There are other things to consider.  We'd have to sell all our stuff, and then buy what we need afterward.  The cost of transporting a 12 year old dog is considerable.  So this is something of a plan we'd rather make and not need to implement, than need to go and have no plan.

The dog could be another stumbling block if the destination is Ireland. They have a harsh (6 month) quarantine for bringing pets into the country, unlike some other countries in Europe, which just require up-to-date vaccinations.

[Robin Of House Hill]

13 minutes ago, Weeping Sore said:

The dog could be another stumbling block if the destination is Ireland. They have a harsh (6 month) quarantine for bringing pets into the country, unlike some other countries in Europe, which just require up-to-date vaccinations.

Not so.  We checked.  The primary problem is that it would cost more to transport the dog, than us.

The funny thing is that it was my wife who came up with this idea, but she thought I would oppose it (knowing how I originally reacted to moving from Hollywood to Tucson).  Strangely enough, I rather like the idea.  After all, I could consider it as one last adventure, or I could see it as a way of getting away from the almost half of the voters who voted for Trump and would likely not be enthusiastic about my existence if they knew what I am.

[mankytoes]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-41384473

Bath Spa University "blocks transgender research".

Thoughts? The devil may be in the detail (we don't really have both sides, as the uni hasn't commented), but it seems a shame that people aren't being allowed to explore this issue academically, when this is such a relevant current issue. I just hope society hasn't become too entrenched with one view of gender (again), because it's an interesting and complex issue that I'm still learning about.

[Weeping Sore]

20 hours ago, Robin Of House Hill said:

Not so.  We checked.  

Ooh, good to know. My mother was born in Ireland* so I can always claim my citizenship if needed.

 

*She was born in the North (part of the UK), but the Republic will grant me citizenship because she was born on the Island of Ireland. And happily the Republic is still part of the EU...

[Robin Of House Hill]

On 9/27/2017 at 7:36 AM, Weeping Sore said:

Ooh, good to know. My mother was born in Ireland* so I can always claim my citizenship if needed.

 

*She was born in the North (part of the UK), but the Republic will grant me citizenship because she was born on the Island of Ireland. And happily the Republic is still part of the EU...

Cool!.  It's always good to have an exit strategy, even if it isn't needed.  I can claim Israeli citizenship, simply by flying there.  But it seems like jumping out of the fireplace, into the fire.

[TerraPrime]

10 minutes ago, Robin Of House Hill said:

Cool!.  It's always good to have an exit strategy, even if it isn't needed.  I can claim Israeli citizenship, simply by flying there.  But it seems like jumping out of the fireplace, into the fire.

The religious conservation faction of Israel is pretty good at blocking progress in LBGTQ rights, last I read. 

[Robin Of House Hill]

11 hours ago, TerraPrime said:

The religious conservation faction of Israel is pretty good at blocking progress in LBGTQ rights, last I read. 

True.  Plus the problem would exist for my wife getting permanent resident status (no Jewish ancestors).  As I said, these are preliminary plans that may never be needed.  There is also the language problem.  Unfortunately, with the exception of Canada, the English speaking world seems to be going to hell in a handbag.

[Datepalm]

Well, if you're legally married (anywhere) prior to your claiming Israeli citizenship, she's automatically eligible for citizenship under the same law, including absorpsion benefits, housing subsidy, language classes, etc. (If you get Israeli citizenship and get married the next day, you're in for years of kafkaeaque bureaucratic nightmares to eke out any residency rights for the spouse.)

LGBT rights more broadly are stalled and definitely under attack by the religious right, but the country is so divided its basically separate societies waging a war of attrition against each other through the political system now. Tel Aviv is as liberal and gay-friendly a city as its ever been. Outside it and a few other big(ish)-city bubbles, it's probably pretty grim. (Cost of living and erosion of the welfare system also makes this a tricky place to move to...though we still have a public healthcare system, so there is that.)

[Weeping Sore]

2 hours ago, Datepalm said:

LGBT rights more broadly are stalled and definitely under attack by the religious right, but the country is so divided its basically separate societies waging a war of attrition against each other through the political system now.

So...pretty much like the United States?

[Robin Of House Hill]

3 hours ago, Datepalm said:

Well, if you're legally married (anywhere) prior to your claiming Israeli citizenship, she's automatically eligible for citizenship under the same law, including absorpsion benefits, housing subsidy, language classes, etc. (If you get Israeli citizenship and get married the next day, you're in for years of kafkaeaque bureaucratic nightmares to eke out any residency rights for the spouse.)

LGBT rights more broadly are stalled and definitely under attack by the religious right, but the country is so divided its basically separate societies waging a war of attrition against each other through the political system now. Tel Aviv is as liberal and gay-friendly a city as its ever been. Outside it and a few other big(ish)-city bubbles, it's probably pretty grim. (Cost of living and erosion of the welfare system also makes this a tricky place to move to...though we still have a public healthcare system, so there is that.)

Thanks for the information. I was already aware of of the LGBT-friendly areas, but it's good to have that confirmed. Cost of living is a concern as we're both retired and living on Social Security and other pension revenue.

1 hour ago, Weeping Sore said:

So...pretty much like the United States?

I was tempted to say same shit, different religion, but right wing Christians are obsessed with Old Testament, only, so there's little difference.

[Datepalm]

4 hours ago, Weeping Sore said:

So...pretty much like the United States?

I find it hard to say, since I have very little idea of what actually living in the USA is like* (much less different parts of it...Israel, as Americans like to note, is the size of New Jersey. Apparently Americans measure everything in New Jerseys) but my sense is that while there is a deep political and cultural divide, in Israel the political-religious divisions are in many ways closer to separate ethnic groups, in terms of daily life. We do not attend the same schools, live in the same neighbourhoods, follow the same 'life-path', and rarely intermarry. In many areas of the US, for all I know, that's the de-facto situation. There's a lot of literature on this in the urban-development-demographics-etc sphere, where it's often framed as a class issue, but in the US that's usually viewed as negative. Here its more of a positive.

 

*Though tentative plans for a couple of weeks tripping between DC, NY, Boston and possibly Michigan in January!

[Xray the Enforcer]

3 hours ago, Datepalm said:

Apparently Americans measure everything in New Jerseys

We actually measure things in Rhode Islands and Scaramuccis.

[Datepalm]

How much surface area does a Scaramucci have, approximately?

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

2 minutes ago, Datepalm said:

How much surface area does a Scaramucci have, approximately?

I seriously doubt Rhode Island could contain it, I'll tell you that much.

[Xray the Enforcer]

9 hours ago, Datepalm said:

How much surface area does a Scaramucci have, approximately?

A Scaramucci is a unit of time, roughly 11 Earth days.

[Robin Of House Hill]

1 hour ago, Xray the Enforcer said:

A Scaramucci is a unit of time, roughly 11 Earth days.

Bring back the "Like" button!!!!!